AH…it’s that time of year again when all hell breaks loose and the season of joy and giving is upon us again.I am speaking of Christmas,otherwise known as Six Weeks In Hell for us retailers.Bad parking(even at 7:30 AM!Don’t you people SLEEP?),bad food,customers with nasty 'tudes,bosses who have turned into perfectionist freaks,co-workers who bitch and moan…doesn’t this all sound like fun?
I hate Christmas…not because I’m pagan but because of all the resulting crap that goes along with it.I hate pine trees,poinsettias,sugarcoated Christmas tunes that make me wanna hurl chunks,fancy dress outfits I"ll never be able to wear because I don’t have TIME to go to a fancy ass dress ball during December…that sort of shit.It all makes me wanna hurl.Hell,I don’t even like getting Christmas presents because 99% of the time I get shit I don’t even want…could never have any possible use for.Christmas…as a season…is overrated.I wish we could SKIP Christmas and just get right to January.Fuck all that happycrappy yuletide bullshit.Christmas was invented by retailers to make people think they NEEDED another overinflated,marketized,no-meaning-behind-it-whatsoever reason to have a sale.Therefore they invented Christmas and fooled the Christians into thinking it was “the birth of Jesus the Christ’s birthday”.Bullshit man.Utter bullshit.There is no need for Christmas.It’s just an excuse to stuff yourself stupid,gain sixteen pounds and unwrap shit you don’t want from relatives you don’t like.
2 things.
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You do know that there is a (space) key on your keyboard, right? Use the fucking thing.
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The “Holiday season” doesn’t get started until Thanksgiving, so there is a little over a month until these types of rants should be out and about.
Have you been in the stores lately?
I have to second ultrafilter. Christmas merchandise was displayed next to Halloween stuff at the same time this year. I’m going to make some Hallo-Thanks-Christ cards if this trend continues. That way I’ll be covered for the all-encompassing holiday of Christmas, which seems to start in October these days.
And anyone that works in retail has my sympathy for the next 2 1/2 months.
Can I buy you an asprin, I_Dig?
As a Halloween junkie, I was disturbed to find Christmas merchandise available BEFORE the Halloween candy was even stocked!
We don’t we just give up now and pass a law mandating $200+ of purchases per month per annum?
Actually, yes and they are full of Halloween candy/decorations with nary a Thanksgiving/Christmas tree/light/decoration in sight.
O f course I live in Bath, ME, which is the same thing as semi-living in the middle of nowhere, so take it for what it’s worth.
If you are so upset about retailing in the prime retailing season, then change jobs. Life is too short to waste it on a career you don’t enjoy.
Nope, I went to the mall today, and it was a veritable smorgasboard of Hallo-Thanks-Christ decorations.
I went to Kirkland’s to look at lamps, but could barely see them for all the freaking Santas and Snowmen.
Yankee Candle has the Macintosh Apple, Pumpkin and Harvest Candles in the windows, but if you venture into the store, there’s a big display of Peppermint Candy, Balsam Fir, Christmas Cookie, Christmas Eve and Christmas Wreath candles.
Hallmark has Halloween cards and Thanksgiving cards *(who the heck sends Halloween and Thanksgiving cards?) * right next to the boxes of Christmas cards and tree ornaments.
I think truthbot has the right idea. Let’s just roll it all into one holiday and get it over with.
:rolleyes:
I just wanted to second truthbot’s sympathy for anyone working in retail for the next 2 1/2 months. I, too, have worked in the hell known as retail over Christmas and have seen all that you describe and more. What is it about Christmas (or even just the holidays in general?) that makes everyone turn into miserable, selfish people? If the holidays made me that unhappy, I think I would just skip them altogether.
I am SO GLAD TO BE OUT OF FUCKING RETAIL!!!
Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. I see Santa’s going to have to add some names to his “Naughty” list.
You’re very lucky.
Actually, I haven’t seen that many Christmas displays yet, but I live just west of the eastern border of civilization here in Northern Virginia, so that might account for it. But when I didn’t live here–oh man…
Pssh…Christmas stuff came in two trucks ago. We were supposed to have it out as of Thursday but have no room in the store.
Before I quit Kmart-and this was in early SEPTEMBER, mind you-the Christmas trees were already up and decorated.
That’s funny, Christmas hates you too. 
Mmm…I’m an atheist, and even I love Giftmas. All the blinky, sparkly lights and cinnamon smells and shiny things to distract me everywhere. I love sparkly, shiny, glittery things.
Oooh and working it’s not even so bad, I like crowds and when there are lots of people about, and people are always so happy when-ever I can find them the gift they’re looking for.
You’re all a bunch of Grinches.
I love Christmas, too, but in its proper place. I want to savor the frights of Halloween and the cozy warmth of Thanksgiving before I am inundated with elves, Jesus, and snowmen.
Elves and Jesus and Snowmen-Oh my!
Elves and Jesus and Snowmen-Oh my!
Elves and Jesus and Snowmen-Oh my!
Sorry, gobear, couldn’t resist!
My husband and I went to Menards Home Improvement Store today. He was a little put out with me when I wouldn’t buy any Christmas ornaments, let alone look at them. All I wanted were some Halloween decorations.Damned if I could find anything that didn’t look like it belonged in the clearance bin.
I miss the days when christmas started after thanksgiving. 
I love retail,don’t get me wrong.But Christmas is the WORST time of year for me.Long lines and not enough product seem to bring out the worst in people during a time when we’re all supposed to act cheerful and loving and giving.I can think of several things that happened during a Christmas season due to those things right there.
Such as…the season I worked at a Sears while in my last semester of community college where a guy threw a pair of men’s work boots at my head.Fortunately,he missed and made a huge dent in the wall behind me.
Such as…the season,just after I had gotten married,when I worked at Best Buy and had a customer curse me and my mgr out because our computers had gone down and we were unable to accept checks and credit cards for a short time.
Such as the time I that SAME season where I got to watch a pair of 40ish women get dragged out by security for battling over a pair of Gameboy Colors.
Last year,I can recall several incidents where I had to drive around for nearly an HOUR to find a parking space a nd was late to work because of it.It’s not my fault the mall has no parking BUT the least they could do is provide some sort of employees-only parking.When I inquired about this at the security office(who I believe is in charge),they told me a certain lot was supposed to be for employees but they weren’t allowed to stop customers from parking there.
We got Christmas stuff in two trucks ago,as well and I’m already sick of seeing it in the stockroom.Last year the tape we play as ‘background’ music at work had SIXTEEN different versions of “Frosty the Snowman” on it.In English,spanish,latin(I think),by old people,young people and a violin/string quartet for chrissakes!I walked by a store in the mall one day and saw them putting out Christmas trees,ornaments,the like and I popped in.I told the salesgirl who was hanging this stuff it was not even October yet(this was mid-September).She said yes she knew but it was NEVER to early to get the Holiday Spirit going.I asked her if she was new to retail and she told me she was.I laughed and said,we’ll see if you’re still saying that mid-December,newbie cuz I can almost guarentee you won’t be.Holidays are retail hell for the workers.I wish I could just go into a deep snooze and not wake up until after it was all over for all the stress I go through.My husband is also in retail and from mid-Nov on we don’t see each other for more than 3 seconds until after January because our schedules usually are conflicting.If I wasn’t such an understanding wife(and in retail to boot!),I’d divorce his ass for that.It’s not fair and the demands that the general public put on retailers during Christmas should be considered cruel and unusal punishment.