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No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

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  • No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

    Every year, retailers move Christmas sales earlier and earlier. Some how, Christmas marketing got closer and closer to Thanksgiving until finally, Christmas marketing and advertising have preceded Thanksgiving.

    Frankly, I think the way that Christmas was hijacked for retail marketing purposes is grotesque. When you look at Christmas today, it has become an event of over-indulgence

    Really, what I want for Christmas this year is to enjoy the time together sharing peace and spirituality with my family and even by myself. Leave all the gifting and overindulging spending out of it.

  • #2
    Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

    I don't mind the stuff per se - you can choose to ignore the commercialization and embrace the good stuff. What I hate are the emotional games and baggage attached to the holidays:

    I don't approve of your life, so I'm giving you what I think you should want, not what you would really want;

    I guess I have to give you a present even though I don't even like you, so here's a piece of junk I picked up on the way over;

    I know you wanted this stuff last Christmas and have already bought it, but in order to show you're ungrateful, I'm giving it to you this year;

    Here's something that is non-returnable and 5 sizes too big for you. But if you really like it, you'll make it work;

    I have a deep seated need to belittle you, so here's something I know you will absolutely hate and I will keep at you to gush all over it hoping that you'll say what you really think and then I can point out how inconsiderate you are;

    I bought you what you wanted, even though it's crap, but I'm not going to do it again because I was inconvenienced by it;

    Now that Christmas is over, you can buy me this and that;

    Oh poor me, I had to slave all day over special food for you and your crazy diet (even though I really didn't do anything different than normal, but don't I look the martyr);

    Isn't this the best you've ever tasted? Isn't it? Isn't it just perfect!? Aren't I the greatest cook in the entire world? (No, "yes, it's very good" isn't enough, you must tell me its the greatest thing on earth since sliced bread! and I'm going to hound you until you do);

    and so on.

    I just highlighted a few special moments...
    “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

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    • #3
      Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

      Come over to my house for Christmas some time toedtoes. Its pretty laid back.

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      • #4
        Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

        Thanks! This will be my 2nd holiday season without the above and it's still a very new feeling to not be stressed out the entire time - but I wouldn't trade it for anything.
        “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

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        • #5
          Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

          That's what I am talking about. If Christmas is stressful, then we are doing something wrong.

          Forget about all the junk gift-giving and stressors and elaborate cooking.

          Go to church. Pray together. Have dinner at the same table together. Relax on this day and be thankful and spiritually rich.

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          • #6
            Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

            It was the people involved that was stress inducing, not all the gift-giving, etc. I do agree that for some families, they get caught up in the need to do it all over the holidays and that creates their stress - if they simply eased up, they would be much happier.

            But for many, it's the being together with people who should never be together that creates the stress. For us, once you take away the normal stressors, all that's left is the incompatibility. Thanksgiving was actually more difficult than Christmas because there were no distractors to keep attention away from the real problem.

            If just removing the gifts and elaborate cooking can make a stressful holiday into a wonderful experience, then count yourself as a very lucky person.
            “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

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            • #7
              Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

              I'd been after my mother to stop stressing over the holidays for years. Getting up there in age, she was still taking days to cook massive meals, just to feed a bunch of ungrateful, sit-on-their-as**es, do-nothing-to-lend-a-hand family members. The arguments she and I had always ended with her saying, "But it's family." My counter to that was, "Why take crap from family that you wouldn't take from anyone else?" "It's family..."

              Well... just before Thanksgiving she told me she'd had enough. The look on everyone's faces when she told everyone that this was the last time was priceless! Blank stares all around. I'm not sure why, but I was surprised when not a word was said, asking why she was done. I expected at least one person to ask what was going on, but they just sat there and ate, sat around 'til it was time for them to leave and that was that.

              I'm telling this story because there's a silver lining in all of this that relates to this forum. Mom and I had always wanted to see Canada, something Dad gave less than a damn about and no woman I've ever been with ever cared about either. So, since he's passed on and mom wants to avoid dealing with the stress of the holidays, we're now actively looking to go in halves on an RV so we can go traveling waaay out of town. The big debate now is whether to get a mobile home or a travel trailer. (And, yes, I'm well aware of the pros and cons of each - just have to figure out which is gonna work best for her.) The other positive here is that I'll no longer have to bite my tongue and keep my mouth shut at the dinner table, just to keep some semblance of peace for Mom.

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              • #8
                Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

                That is a great story!!! Good for your Mom! I always wished my Mom had done that, but she suffered all the way to the end.

                Canada is beautiful! There will have to be a discussion as to where you're going, what you'll see, etc. It's been too long since I've been and I will need to live vicariously through you...

                On the RV, since you know the pros and cons and have worked those out, I'd consider the comfort of the ride. If you can get an MH with comfortable cab seats, then the not having to stop to use the restroom or get a snack can't be beat. But, after a few hours of driving my clipper, I really miss the comfort of my Durango. For a big driving trip, I would put the seat comfort over the restroom/snacks.
                “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

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                • #9
                  Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

                  I'm pretty much sold on a trailer over a mobile home for a number of reasons. First and foremost in my head is thinking that a mobile home would leave me stuck wherever I'm set up if I don't pull a car behind it. I really don't like the idea of that because it'll kill the gas mileage on a vehicle that already gets maybe10 miles per gallon. I also think getting used to pulling a trailer that I can't see would take some time to get used to. I've had pop ups and still pull a boat, so a trailer wouldn't be something radically different.

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                  • #10
                    Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

                    I got a small MH (21ft) so I could bypass the having a toad. I don't hook up to water and sewage - I use my water tanks pretty much all the time. If there's electrical, I hook up to that, but it's just a single cord. I fill up my fresh water tank as needed rather than hooking up to "city water" at each place. For dumping, unless you're staying in one place for months at a time, it's just as easy to hook up and dump right before you leave, than to hook up when you arrive and then dump right before leaving. So, it's easy for me to pick up and go if I want. And with a small setup, you tend to put things away right after use, so there isn't a lot of "battening down the hatches" before driving off.

                    But, with more than one person, the biggest issue I see with a MH without a toad, is that if one wants to stay back at camp and the other wants to go sightsee, grocery shop, fish, etc., there is no "stay here in the trailer and rest while I go a few miles down the road".
                    “One could not be a successful scientist without realizing that, in contrast to the popular conception supported by newspapers and mothers of scientists, a goodly number of scientists are not only narrow-minded and dull, but also just stupid.” - James D. Watson

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                    • #11
                      Re: No more STUFF for Christmas, thanks

                      There's just four of us, my Mom and me, and my Sister & BIL. We do a reduced 'gift giving', and have a nice dinner out. Not many places open but they can be found. One of our favorites will be open. Long line but the food is worth it. Beats cooking all day. And no clean up or dirty dishes, and no two weeks of left-overs to try to eat before it goes bad in the fridge!
                      I figure once Mom passes, I will pretty much embrace my inner Scrooge and say "Bah Humbug" to Christmas. I will likely be full-timing in my conversion van by then.
                      Longtime Motorcycle Camper. Getting away from it all on two wheels! :cool:

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