As a two time grandfather, its really lovely to see the grandkids opening up Christmas presents and I certainly don’t object to that.
But I think its down right ridiculous that we’ve been conditioned to buy presents for adults.
I certainly don’t give a flying fuck for any of the presents I’m going to get. And it irks me with all the time my wife is spending covering our grown children, siblings and dear friends.
Somehow the retail industry has managed to get us to buy things that we would not normally buy, by getting all of us pressured to buy for someone else. Billions get spent on useless items and its no secret that the retail industry depends on Christmas. If we don’t buy presents, then we are scum. Its like the Debeer’s campaign that we must spend two months salary for a diamond ring. If you don’t spend $10,000 on a diamond ring then you are cheap and don’t love your girlfriend as much as she would like.
I’m trying to save money to upgrade our house. I’ll take cash donations(like that will fly with my wife:rolleyes:). I don’t fuckin need the Bourne Trilogy discs or one more sweater that I won’t wear and will clog up my closet.
Oh I hear you man, I hear you. You want to really give somebody a present? Buy them fucking health insurance for a year. Or scheduled maintenance for their vehicle. Offer to babysit once a week for the next year, or cut their lawn. Find out what shit they actually need, instead of loading them up with cheap crap to ease your brainwashed mind over the fact you HAVE to buy presents.
I’m pretty much on board with this. Most Christmases my wife and I buy each other half of some expensive item that we both need and want, along with a smattering of much cheaper stocking-stuffer items. This year we’re buying an 18mm-250mm zoom lens for our DSLR. A couple years ago we decided the new front door we had just ordered was our Christmas present to each other. I’d prefer our relatives just make a donation to a charity in my name instead of giving me something.
Christmas is for the kids. Birthdays too, but that’s the subject of another rant.
I will jump on this bandwagon (only 4 so far, but we know the rest of you are out there).
And I work in an industry (advertising) that also depends on 4th quarter revenue to make the year go around.
I am so tired and cranky from the enforced syrupiness of everything and everyone, not to mention the endless food-food-food-food-food that is everywhere. It gets worse every year.
And there is no hope for it to do anything else but continue to get worse. Make it stop, someone!
Roddy
My family has stopped the gift giving - we are all donating to a charity of our choice instead. We’re about to go off and do our donation just today, in fact (to the Alberta Motor Association Foundation for Traffic Safety). I actually want to buy two presents - one for my sister and brother-in-law that we see often and are close to, and for my mom. The rest - I’m not missing not buying presents for them.
I missed this part - the endless over-abundance of food is making me quite uncomfortable. I’d like to go to a Christmas party and have a reasonable amount of food there, not twice or three times as much as the group can possibly eat.
I’m just grateful that my inlaws cut out the “must buy lots for everyone” bullshit a few years ago. It started as “buy something for the kids, and the parents (father-in-law and mother-in-law), and a special gift for your Secret Santa selection, and something small for the others.” There are several siblings in this family, most of whom are married, and “something small” turned into crazy. People were bringing in bags and bags of gifts. It didn’t help that the income level went from “commodities trader with a few houses” to “getting by on disability payments” either. One year when one sister (unbeknownst to us) hadn’t paid rent for a few months, she also brought in more gifts than anyone.
Fortunately a couple like-minded people got together after the huge gift exchange and said “no really, this is crazy.” Any gifts to non-kids/non-parents/non-Secret Santa had to be small, inexpensive (~$5), and preferably made by you. So a plate of cookies would be fine.
This year was even better - the “kids” are all college age or beyond, so they were added into the Secret Santa drawing too. Personally I’d prefer to just dump it altogether but at least this reaches a sanity level I can deal with.
Same with my side - there it’s just my mom, my sister, me, and our respective partners.We exchange simple wish lists. Sometimes it’s practical stuff like “Home Depot gift card” (Mom is renovating the house). I asked Mom for warm woolen socks from the factory store near my hometown. My husband loves my Mom’s taste in clothes for him and wants a new sweater. My sister stuck in the boonies wants me to find her interesting coffee roasting companies and get some beans, plus she wants a refill of the sugar scrub I made for her las year. My mom’s BF hoped we could track down an out-of-print novel for him. I asked my sis to donate to a local cat/dog/rabbit shelter that I adore.
No more sweets, please. My husband is overweight. I constantly struggle with a yo-yo of 10-15 lbs that make my pants uncomfortable. His whole family knows that he’s had weight problems all his life. Why do they give us chocolate?!
I got a gift at work the other day. I am touched that this lady wanted to give me something, true. But I couldn’t help thinking that this thing was manufactured for just this reason…for someone to give to someone else they don’t know to fulfill a perceived obligation.
Now I have this thing, which I will probably give to someone else I don’t really know to fulfill a perceived obligation…
I like to make jam over the summer - I made several huge batches in August, and guess what’s being given as a token of my fondness this year? JAM! Oh, I did get my two bosses a giant bottle of locally brewed beer each (buy local!), but outside of that, I’m with the concept of less is more and have dialed it way back over the years. It has served to make the holiday season much more enjoyable and waaayyy less stressful, focusing on time with friends and family instead of shopping and all the crazy that goes with it.
The custom here in the outer boonies of the Caribbean is to give kids gifts, but only your closest relative’s kids and your own. We’ve dialed it back, way back. I only buy gifts for my daughter, and it has to be something helpful, something I would have eventually bought anyway.
That’s right–strap them in chairs, stick a hose down their throats and force feed them the stinkin’ figgy pudding as if they were geese.
I too, am with this sentiment. I’ll buy gifts for my family because it’s for the family as a whole, but I don’t care much for individual gifts (to clarify, we still use a landline phone, and I’m going to buy a new phone for the family’s use to replace an old, worn out phone). I certainly don’t want/need a gift for myself.
Or I’d be just as happy to not celebrate Christmas at all, but the rest of my family hasn’t caught up to that thought yet. But they will…
Sent a few token mail-order slippers to offspring overseas, might cough up some jam or something quilted for obligations nearer by, and I’m considering some e-cards for the ones on the far side of the world. But I’m not decorating, not ‘celebrating’, and going to as few potlucks as I possibly can. Fortunately, the Yankee swaps I’m willing to attend dictate that all gifts must be previously owned so no purchasing involved, just a good scrounging through the cupboards.
My husband picked up a runner’s watch that he wanted and I bought myself a new (used) loom. It’s all good.
Now if I can just get the radio station to stop playing Christmas music I’ll be a happy camper.