The Christmas/Xmas/Hannukah/Saturnalia/BUY OUR STUFF Season

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

Ho Ho Ho!? Bah Humbug? You decide!

Seen a couple of people already say they're not a fan of Christmas but I thought I'd just share how excited I am. Even being retail where I don't really get time off I still love Christmas, the lights, the cold nights, the snow (possibly), the food, the cheesy TV specials, everything about it creates a great atmosphere I feel.

I've already bought most of my presents and finished wrapping them so that's one big weight off, leaves me to sit back and enjoy.

The weeks leading up to Christmas have a real sense of magic in the air, but at the same time they're full of frustrating present-buying and rushing around. And before that, as I've said earlier, all the early marketing just gets on my wick.

After that, bliss. It is the warmest, cosiest, snuggliest time of the year.

Actually why do people leave buying their christmas gifts until the last minute so they all run around in what ends up turning in to a seething mass of bo at the pace of a headless chicken?  Why does nobody seem to do the smart thing and just buy their gifts several months beforehand?  

That said I do enjoy the holiday itself.  It's the one day of the year everything shuts down, everyone packs up, and the town is completely silent.  Nothing quiet beats days like those, while days where you can just swan about doing as you please are fairly frequent, that kind of peace and quiet isn't.  It's made even sweeter after avoiding the christmas rush that most people go through to the day by virtue of not actually celebrating christmas and careful planning.  Not directly anyway, I do raise a glass to the enjoyable day I always have though.

As I said in the things we love thread, I love me some Christmas. I'm not a big fan of starting out too early so I'm fighting my demons trying not to put the tree and that up too early.

Athrun888 wrote:

Actually why do people leave buying their christmas gifts until the last minute so they all run around in what ends up turning in to a seething mass of bo at the pace of a headless chicken?  Why does nobody seem to do the smart thing and just buy their gifts several months beforehand?

Because... that would be sensible?  And it would require me to not put* off shopping, an activity I absolutely loathe, until the last minute?  I don't know: it's not a rational thing, and maybe I'll try to do it at the start of December rather than the end. GNamer Secret Santa will require me to shop earlier rather than later anyway.

*There's a split infinitive in there, but it honestly seems to make more sense to me that way.

On-line shopping is more sensible, I reckon. City centres and out-of-town shopping centres are to be avoided from late October onwards, for me. My Christmas spirit truly kicks on once work is over; up until then, it's just the waiting game.

But then I usually resort to Amazon. And I don't like Amazon.

I get waiting to the last minute if you have kids as they'll change there dam mind, but if your buying for parents or something could be done sooner but I don't think about that in September. Mine will be done after Decembers payday which is the 12th.

The fact I've done the majority of my present buying has probably helped get me in the mood even more, just a few more presents for the other half, something for her family and the remaining allowance for my secret santee and I'm done which I hope to achieve by the end of next week.

I actually did my Christmas shopping relatively early this year! All ready to go up to the Midlands for Christmas with the family now. Two more days...

Any amusing Christmas parties, or office Christmas stories? I don't know who at my office decided that it would be a good idea to talk at us for 1.5h after the office Christmas lunch, with the heating turned up to maximum, but my goodness it was hard to keep my eyes open. And the we had the Christmas party straight afterwards.

Every year I always say I'll try and do something creative in preparation for Christmas. Er, doesn't usually happen.

This year: You get Paul McCartney's second-most-popular Christmas song, if he only had a NES to write it on.

That beginning, Jimbob. I think my ears are broken now.

I finished work back on Thursday for the festive season, and I'm not back until January 5th. Two and a half weeks of relaxation, with none of the other pressures that are or have been in my life (such as work, underemployment, undergrad study or postgrad study) in the way or on my mind this Christmas. This has been the first Christmas I'll get to celebrate fully and 'properly' in a decade.

I'm a bit behind on the presents, but the main stuff has been bought. I'm looking forward to it!

The Cappuccino Kid wrote:

I finished work back on Thursday for the festive season, and I'm not back until January 5th. Two and a half weeks of relaxation, with none of the other pressures that are or have been in my life (such as work, underemployment, undergrad study or postgrad study) in the way or on my mind this Christmas. This has been the first Christmas I'll get to celebrate fully and 'properly' in a decade.

I'm a bit behind on the presents, but the main stuff has been bought. I'm looking forward to it!

Jammy bugger! The first Christmas without having to worry about exams though is a great one, it actually feels like you can enjoy your time off.
Since I work for the big bad NHS (not actually that bad) I'm off on Christmas day, Boxing day and New Years day, although I'm in on the 2nd of January to make sure none of the babies are ill. I'm not quite sure why we don't go in on Christmas or New Years day since the results would be ready for their respective mornings if I went into the lab but I'm not going to bring that up with the boss.

I've just hauled all of my stuff up to a tiny village in the countryside, with minimal Internet. I'm not as jammy as Cappa, though: a lot of "my stuff" consisted of study.

Fortunately, a lot of the rest of it consisted of Wii U!

Well 13 min into Xmas and here I am stuck at work

Merry Christmas everyone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm admittedly a bit down on Christmas in comparison to earlier in the thread, it's just felt like it's come along so fast and mainly because of all the working, I'm fairly sure New Year's Eve shouldn't be tiring, strenuous and stressful, it's definitely time for a career change.

Anyway, not to bring everyone down or anything, sure it'll be a great day, got a fridge full of food to stuff myself with, already opened most of my presents so will have a lie in in the morning and will have presents from the other half to look forward to later on in the day.

I've just opened my Secret Santa (see Secret Santa thread), and I'm safely up on Christmas. Best festive wishes to all of y'all! Have some Tom Lehrer on me:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtZR3lJobjw

My first year away from home has got off to a wonderful start, lovely morning before we head off to the gf's parents. Merry Christmas everyone!

Merry Christmas, one and all!

Merry Christmas everybody!

Any good gifts this year?  Besides my Mega-Absol plush ( ), I finally got my hands on Pokémon AS, the traditional wine and chocolates, and a rubber duck with a head-dress.

I got a new suit which I'm pretty excited to wear out on the town. Also the standard books, DVDs, chocolate and tshirt. My brother got the World of Ice and Fire but I didn't. I agonisingly resisted picking it up day one for nothing

Much to the dismay of my neighbours, I'm now the owner of a new guitar. Oh, and I also got some game thing, Super Smash Bros or something. I'm telling you now, the concept of that game will never catch on...