4 ms·

6 reasons I'm skipping Christmas this year

15 points by 3stripe 13y ago

1. I'm a grown adult. It's my choice. And in a year of running experiments (therapy, going on retreat, writing from the gut, being more honest than I'm comfortable with) it seemed like an interesting experiment to end the year with. The less Christmas-y things I did this month, the more I noticed how people around me were only doing things because they felt they had no choice not to. Christmas parties, getting pissed up for 5 or 6 days on the trot with work colleagues they didn't even like that much, etc etc. 2. Although I love them very much, my family are a pain in the ass to spend time with. And the pressure for everyone to "just get along" on Christmas Day makes things even worse. If I had my own family it wouldn't be a problem if I wanted to spend it with them — so why should that change because I'm single? 3. After a month of 7 day weeks, I need some quality me time. Just been on a solo bike ride around London. Not sure what I'll be doing with the rest of the day. But solitude is a fine gift to give yourself. 4. Christmas Jumpers. Is it just me or have they reached a new low this year? More moronic than ironic. For me they are seem to be symbolic of the hollowness of Christmas. 5. I'm £6,000 in debt and have boxes of unused items all over my bedroom. I don't need more stuff, nor do I have money to buy any. By opting out of Christmas I won't be receiving another stack of things I don't need. 6. The whole celebration of excess thing. With or without the religious layer on top of that.

notastartup 13y ago
I applaud this. I actually never remember when Christmas is exactly because I simply do not care. I know when it ends, and I feel better. Just because everyone is doing it doesn't make it special or have some intrinsic meaning. l'existence précède l'essence so to speak. Besides, Christmas has become all about material gifts. I think spending time family is a good thing, regardless if it's holiday or not. Try to set apart some difference, at least spend a bit of time, like have dinner together and such. Never mind the rest of the world as it carries about what was the holiday about anyway? Some dude that was born, grew up to be crucified, defies the laws of universe and physics to rise up from the dead? I don't hate Christmas but I pretty much regard it like any other day of the year. For other's it's Christmas day but for me it's just Wednesday with more food and family time and christmas tree. I admit I really like the christmas tree.
- 3stripe 13y ago
  Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. "I don't hate Christmas" - agreed. I am labelling experiment simply as non-Christmas rather than anti-Christmas. My only regret is not finding some people to share my non-Christmas with. Maybe next year!
  - glasz 13y ago
    let's start on the internet. i'm in. i have almost exactly the same complaints flying around my head for the last 5-6 years but just don't get around to say "no" to this crap.
    - tunap 13y ago
      Long year with family, losses and bad news abound. For my 'celebration', I spent the last two days at a deserted lake in the desert. Was windy & cold the whole time, but it was solitude. A pair of bald eagles fished the shore by me for three hours. A coyote got bit by a heron he was sneaking up on. The ravens tried & failed to steal something... anything. I read half of "The Fractalist". Best Xmas Ever!
livestyle 13y ago
I'm a Christian and I don't celebrate Christmas either for many of the reasons. The big one though for me is Jesus wasn't born anywhere near Dec25th and we are never told in the scriptures to celebrate his birth. Funny thing is I get more flack from my Christian friends than I do from my non Christian ones. Irony.
- coldtea 13y ago
  >I'm a Christian and I don't celebrate Christmas either for many of the reasons. The big one though for me is Jesus wasn't born anywhere near Dec25th and we are never told in the scriptures to celebrate his birth. Well, I'm not really a believer, but in my culture's version of Christianity, the historical traditions amassed by the body of believers are just a part of the religion as any. That is, "the church" is the union of believers first and foremost, not merely what was written down. So, being true to the spirit doesn't mean being true to the written word. In fact, Christ himself never wrote anything: he taught people, to teach other people. And he emphasized how imporant the body of believers is.
coldtea 13y ago
>* I'm a grown adult. It's my choice.* Don't know about this "grown adult" thing. Sounds more like a choice an adolescent would make, more like a "teenage rebellion" kind of thing.
- kintamanimatt 13y ago
  That's so incredibly disrespectful!
  - jbeja 13y ago
    Really? I though it was funny.
  - coldtea 13y ago
    Which is orthogonal to whether it's true or not.
vouchey 13y ago
Something tells me a few folks are happy to let you skip Christmas, Grinch.
- davidy123 13y ago
  I find that the people who object to those deciding to skip xmas are the grinchiest.
  - tunap 13y ago
    Ignore the denigrations to conform. Be generous and thankful all year long and skip the retail holidays.
danpalmer 13y ago
An alternative perspective... 1. I'm a grown adult, so I have responsibilities like work, it gives me a chance to ignore some of those for a short while, and relax. 2. I love my family very much, and don't see them enough. It's a great time to see them. 3. After several months of solid work leading up to a recent deadline, I need some quality family and friend time. 4. Christmas Jumpers, and the paper hats from crackers, and socks with Santa on them. These all make a welcome change to the monotonous routine of everyday life. 5. I can't actually turn this one around. I have lots of student debt (thankfully manageable), but I enjoy giving presents to others. 6. I don't often get the chance to splash out, but I enjoy it when I do, without 'celebrating' excess. I don't disagree with your reasons at all, and I can see the attraction of skipping Christmas to some extent, I just look at most of these things a different way.
bmelton 13y ago
> I'm a grown adult. It's my choice. [...] I noticed how people around me were only doing things because they felt they had no choice not to. Stop doing things that you don't want to do. I'm a grown adult, so I opted out of every party that I didn't want to attend. I attended the parties that I would have attended had they been thrown for any other reason that wasn't Christmas. I enjoyed Christmas more this year than I ever have, not the least of which because I got fantastic gifts, and also gave some pretty good ones, but because nothing was forced. > My family are a pain in the ass to spend time with. I declined Christmas with the family. When asked, I just informed them that "We're just doing a quiet thing at home this year." Zero pressure. I don't mean to critique your Christmas opt-out in the least. It sounds like your situation is different from mine in that (it seems that) you're single, while I've got a wife and 12 year old. Whether or not opting out of Christmas is an option for me isn't really my place to say, but we did do a much quieter affair than usual, but do recognize that there are alternatives between "Bah humbug" and "full-on Christmas", and you're free to pick anywhere in the middle that you like, as well as opting out altogether, as you have done. Either way, Merry Christmas. I hope your time off was as good a gift as you hoped for. Sounds like a good one.
- 3stripe 13y ago
  Cheers! Merry Non-Christmas to you too :)
richsin 13y ago
Right on. I am 100% with you and you definitely do not sound like a rebellious teen. I had a very similar year to yours regarding personal reflection and I think ending your's off this way gives so much more meaning moving forward. It's not a perfect choice because there are some good things about Christmas to enjoy, but there are compromises either way you go. Wish you all the best for the New Year.

15 points by 3stripe 13y ago

notastartup 13y ago

I applaud this. I actually never remember when Christmas is exactly because I simply do not care. I know when it ends, and I feel better. Just because everyone is doing it doesn't make it special or have some intrinsic meaning. l'existence précède l'essence so to speak. Besides, Christmas has become all about material gifts. I think spending time family is a good thing, regardless if it's holiday or not. Try to set apart some difference, at least spend a bit of time, like have dinner together and such. Never mind the rest of the world as it carries about what was the holiday about anyway? Some dude that was born, grew up to be crucified, defies the laws of universe and physics to rise up from the dead? I don't hate Christmas but I pretty much regard it like any other day of the year. For other's it's Christmas day but for me it's just Wednesday with more food and family time and christmas tree. I admit I really like the christmas tree.

3stripe 13y ago
Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment. "I don't hate Christmas" - agreed. I am labelling experiment simply as non-Christmas rather than anti-Christmas. My only regret is not finding some people to share my non-Christmas with. Maybe next year!
- glasz 13y ago
  let's start on the internet. i'm in. i have almost exactly the same complaints flying around my head for the last 5-6 years but just don't get around to say "no" to this crap.
  - tunap 13y ago
    Long year with family, losses and bad news abound. For my 'celebration', I spent the last two days at a deserted lake in the desert. Was windy & cold the whole time, but it was solitude. A pair of bald eagles fished the shore by me for three hours. A coyote got bit by a heron he was sneaking up on. The ravens tried & failed to steal something... anything. I read half of "The Fractalist". Best Xmas Ever!

livestyle 13y ago

I'm a Christian and I don't celebrate Christmas either for many of the reasons. The big one though for me is Jesus wasn't born anywhere near Dec25th and we are never told in the scriptures to celebrate his birth. Funny thing is I get more flack from my Christian friends than I do from my non Christian ones. Irony.

coldtea 13y ago
>I'm a Christian and I don't celebrate Christmas either for many of the reasons. The big one though for me is Jesus wasn't born anywhere near Dec25th and we are never told in the scriptures to celebrate his birth. Well, I'm not really a believer, but in my culture's version of Christianity, the historical traditions amassed by the body of believers are just a part of the religion as any. That is, "the church" is the union of believers first and foremost, not merely what was written down. So, being true to the spirit doesn't mean being true to the written word. In fact, Christ himself never wrote anything: he taught people, to teach other people. And he emphasized how imporant the body of believers is.

coldtea 13y ago

>* I'm a grown adult. It's my choice.* Don't know about this "grown adult" thing. Sounds more like a choice an adolescent would make, more like a "teenage rebellion" kind of thing.

kintamanimatt 13y ago
That's so incredibly disrespectful!
- jbeja 13y ago
  Really? I though it was funny.
- coldtea 13y ago
  Which is orthogonal to whether it's true or not.

vouchey 13y ago

Something tells me a few folks are happy to let you skip Christmas, Grinch.

davidy123 13y ago
I find that the people who object to those deciding to skip xmas are the grinchiest.
- tunap 13y ago
  Ignore the denigrations to conform. Be generous and thankful all year long and skip the retail holidays.

danpalmer 13y ago

An alternative perspective... 1. I'm a grown adult, so I have responsibilities like work, it gives me a chance to ignore some of those for a short while, and relax. 2. I love my family very much, and don't see them enough. It's a great time to see them. 3. After several months of solid work leading up to a recent deadline, I need some quality family and friend time. 4. Christmas Jumpers, and the paper hats from crackers, and socks with Santa on them. These all make a welcome change to the monotonous routine of everyday life. 5. I can't actually turn this one around. I have lots of student debt (thankfully manageable), but I enjoy giving presents to others. 6. I don't often get the chance to splash out, but I enjoy it when I do, without 'celebrating' excess. I don't disagree with your reasons at all, and I can see the attraction of skipping Christmas to some extent, I just look at most of these things a different way.

bmelton 13y ago

> I'm a grown adult. It's my choice. [...] I noticed how people around me were only doing things because they felt they had no choice not to. Stop doing things that you don't want to do. I'm a grown adult, so I opted out of every party that I didn't want to attend. I attended the parties that I would have attended had they been thrown for any other reason that wasn't Christmas. I enjoyed Christmas more this year than I ever have, not the least of which because I got fantastic gifts, and also gave some pretty good ones, but because nothing was forced. > My family are a pain in the ass to spend time with. I declined Christmas with the family. When asked, I just informed them that "We're just doing a quiet thing at home this year." Zero pressure. I don't mean to critique your Christmas opt-out in the least. It sounds like your situation is different from mine in that (it seems that) you're single, while I've got a wife and 12 year old. Whether or not opting out of Christmas is an option for me isn't really my place to say, but we did do a much quieter affair than usual, but do recognize that there are alternatives between "Bah humbug" and "full-on Christmas", and you're free to pick anywhere in the middle that you like, as well as opting out altogether, as you have done. Either way, Merry Christmas. I hope your time off was as good a gift as you hoped for. Sounds like a good one.

3stripe 13y ago
Cheers! Merry Non-Christmas to you too :)

richsin 13y ago

Right on. I am 100% with you and you definitely do not sound like a rebellious teen. I had a very similar year to yours regarding personal reflection and I think ending your's off this way gives so much more meaning moving forward. It's not a perfect choice because there are some good things about Christmas to enjoy, but there are compromises either way you go. Wish you all the best for the New Year.