The "The Holidays are Here" Thread 2013

Hello, forum.

I would like to propose that for the upcoming weeks we attempt to 'prop each other up', rather than tearing one another down.

The "Holiday/Holy Day Season" is upon us. Full bore (boar?). Beginning in less than 48 hours. It started mildly enough around Halloween. Then Veteran's Day. Now, Thanksgiving.

For non-Americans, thanksgiving will not be an issue; but, there are other 'holidays' going on now/soon as well for those members.

Could we have a thread that simply allows us to "share our joy" or to "rant" as the winter 'festival days/holidays' approach?

"Rants" Including all of the 'expectations' and 'surging', like "Black Friday" (gha!), etc....
and "sharing our joy" including the good bits. We are a global family here.

Can we vent and share? Here? Safely?
Regardless of creed, nationality, race, age, gender, sexuality (etc and so on ad infinitum)....?


Namaste



p.s. or not


But I'm going to post the thread anyway.

I'm afraid I'll be doing a lot of ranting here. But I will do my best to cheer others up, if only with my misery. LOL

First, I'm so glad my kids are older, so I've had NO reason to leave the house on Friday, the most blackest of days. Although last year, my hubby and I did it by accident, and got a steal on water softener salt at TSC. So that was nice.

I'm am happy about Thanksgiving this year, as it is back at the in-laws, instead of the brother in-laws. Hubby doesn't get along with his brother so hot, so that makes it more uncomfortable when not on neutral ground. Then the stop at my mom's, where she can completely freak out that we are all going to have hard feelings, after partaking in a, em, friendly group card game. Mom likes drama. Too bad none of us ever leave the table upset. You bring what you can afford to...... give away, if it happens. LOL

After that, I try to get out of as much Christmas stuff as I can. Unless it involves the little ones. I will go to two parties, and at one, I will be on the floor, playing with them and their new toys, until it is time to leave.
I doubt I will be able to see the grandbabies much during the holidays, which will suck. Thankfully they are to young to know what is going on this year. Next year, hopefully things will be better there!

reply to post by chiefsmom


Oh wow, AWESOME reply....

Yeah. Erm...my birthday was nine days ago (Sunday)...

But for me, it starts with Veteran's Day. (Thankfully my kids have outgrown 'halloween'). My husband is a veteran, and for him, it's not a 'holiday', it's a weeping day.

Then comes the birthday (ewwww!)....then, fast on its heels, Thanksgiving. Every other year: Dress up in biz cazh and go to mom's. (Which lately has been more enjoyable now that the kids have grown up)....
the 'off years', we're on our own.

Hub doesn't like to go to his mom's.

And....

throughout last night I laid in bed wondering "what do I do for/gift to my [grown working] kids this year?"

Ok, to preface this post, I'd like to say I love the holidays. That being said I'm entirely disgusted with the ever increasing corporate greed for our hard earned dollars earlier and earlier each year.

Thanksgiving is the present boundary of what they think they can get away with. For years it's been the day after thanksgiving, aka black Friday, it won't be long before halloween becomes the next black friday. You think I'm kidding, I've been around for fifty three years and been awake and aware for 35 of those years. Enough all ready. It's disgusting and degrading the human spirit.

reply to post by twohawks

You think I'm kidding, I've been around for fifty three years and been awake and aware for 35 of those years. Enough all ready. It's disgusting and degrading the human spirit.

Nope!
Don't 'think you're kidding.'

I've got two years on ya, man. Go class of 1974! 1975? (Right? I graduated at age 17 in 1976).

wildtimes
reply to post by twohawks

 

You think I'm kidding, I've been around for fifty three years and been awake and aware for 35 of those years. Enough all ready. It's disgusting and degrading the human spirit.

Nope!
Don't 'think you're kidding.'

I've got two years on ya, man. Go class of 1974! 1975? (Right?

I graduated at age 17 in 1976).

edit on 11/26/13 by wildtimes because: (no reason given)

Hala friggen yulla brother. You know exactly what I'm talkin about
Luya. ( drunk dyslexic)

throughout last night I laid in bed wondering "what do I do for/gift to my [grown working] kids this year?"

LOL lot of that going around, as I've been thinking about it all day today. I'm going with the basics, as they are boys. Undies, socks, manly scent gift sets, and cash. While it may seem impersonal, they could both use it right now.

Sorry about the birthday, LOL I know I don't acknowledge them any more. That way I am not aging.

Crap, hope the oldest isn't on here!!!!!!

This will be another good holiday season for me. No family arguing or bitching. I get to do whatever I want without having to involve others who have other ideas. No stress...period. You got it, it'll be just me, myself and I along with the dawg, a pig and two piglets and chickens. Best company eva! LOL

Granted that I'll have cauliflower ear by sundown because I do have to at least stay in touch with the family. They're scattered all across the U.S. and if I visit one, the others will feel slighted which always sparks tension the next go around.

Christmas is coming, the geese are getting fat.
Please to put a penny in the old man's hat.
If you haven't got a penny, a ha'penny will do.
If you haven't got a ha'penny- God bless you!

reply to post by DISRAELI


Awesome, every time I hear that, (or read it) I am reminded of the Muppets. God I loved that show.

wildtimes
Hello, forum.

I would like to propose that for the upcoming weeks we attempt to 'prop each other up', rather than tearing one another down.

The "Holiday/Holy Day Season" is upon us. Full bore (boar?). Beginning in less than 48 hours. It started mildly enough around Halloween. Then Veteran's Day. Now, Thanksgiving.

For non-Americans, thanksgiving will not be an issue; but, there are other 'holidays' going on now/soon as well for those members.

Could we have a thread that simply allows us to "share our joy" or to "rant" as the winter 'festival days/holidays' approach?

"Rants" Including all of the 'expectations' and 'surging', like "Black Friday" (gha!), etc....
and "sharing our joy" including the good bits. We are a global family here.

Can we vent and share? Here? Safely?
Regardless of creed, nationality, race, age, gender, sexuality (etc and so on ad infinitum)....?


Namaste



p.s. or not


But I'm going to post the thread anyway.

edit on 11/26/13 by wildtimes because: fun with grammar

People only "tear each other down" because they believe we are all separated individuals. We think that smacking each other via physical or mental won't hurt yourself, yet that's not true at all. For we are ALL ONE, I AM One with you, and you are One with me. The "holidays" shouldn't be the only time of the year you treat others as yourself, but throughout the year, for the rest of this life, and lives beyond. This is the Kingdom of Heaven and the basics of Christ Consciousness.

May peace be with you all, and your hearts will grow in Divine Love.

wildtimes
Hello, forum.

I would like to propose that for the upcoming weeks we attempt to 'prop each other up', rather than tearing one another down.

The "Holiday/Holy Day Season" is upon us. Full bore (boar?). Beginning in less than 48 hours. It started mildly enough around Halloween. Then Veteran's Day. Now, Thanksgiving.

For non-Americans, thanksgiving will not be an issue; but, there are other 'holidays' going on now/soon as well for those members.

Could we have a thread that simply allows us to "share our joy" or to "rant" as the winter 'festival days/holidays' approach?

"Rants" Including all of the 'expectations' and 'surging', like "Black Friday" (gha!), etc....
and "sharing our joy" including the good bits. We are a global family here.

Can we vent and share? Here? Safely?
Regardless of creed, nationality, race, age, gender, sexuality (etc and so on ad infinitum)....?


Namaste



p.s. or not


But I'm going to post the thread anyway.

edit on 11/26/13 by wildtimes because: fun with grammar

Happy Channukah and Merry Christmas.

Wildtimes, imagine being Jewish, then you have 8 crazy nights of stress....At least the Christians whittled it down to 1.

OK for the pagans...happy yule. Unless you aren't Celtic Pagan, then a warm Winter Solstice, and if you aren't that, then surf's up in Australia.

Christmas is coming
well for me its seeing the belt stars of Orion in the night sky in late November.
When I was a kid at school it would be the decorations going up in the last week before we broke up for the holiday and if it snowed we would run around the play ground chanting ally ally aster snow snow faster.
Then it would be my old mum baking sausage rolls and fruit pies and the furniture being moved closer to the fire and ice forming an inch think on the bathroom window made from the steam of the nearly to hot bath I feared getting out of because of the bone chilling cold of the bathroom.

Now I’m older and living only a 200 hundred kilometers below the Arctic Circle it’s bottling my summer wine and chopping cubic meters of fire wood and getting a collection of books and candles ready for the inevitable power cuts the winter storms bring.
Sadly I have to make my own sausage rolls and fruit pies now but I can smile about that because knowing how to is one of the millions of presents my parents gave me – but I still watch out for the belt stars of Orion in the late November night sky

reply to post by WarminIndy

.At least the Christians whittled it down to 1.

Well, not exactly. It's more like 8 WEEKS of crazy stress, imposed by the advertisers and goods-vendors...
for most people, anyway.

When my kids were little, we had a tradition: every other year, instead of "objects" exchanged, we would instead spend the money on a vacation together, usually skiing. Those were wonderful memories! Now that they are in their 20s, both working, I am back at a point where I'd like to resume that tradition. I plan on presenting the idea to them over Thanksgiving.

Another tradition of ours was that on the first snow day after Thanksgiving we would go to a small "tree farm" called 'Grandpa's Xmas Trees' - and we'd take extra gloves, hats, mittens, scarves, etc. as "flags". We'd then walk through the 1/2 acre of trees, discussing the virtues or size or shape of various specimens, and place a 'flag' on the "maybes". Until we found the best one, we'd continue this process.

The guy would always have a little fire going, and cookies fresh out of his wife's oven...and his younger helper would take a bow saw to the tree we'd chosen and then we'd haul it home on the roof of the car.

I don't do decor anymore, though, except maybe one ornament hanging on a plant.

reply to post by WarminIndy

Wildtimes, imagine being Jewish, then you have 8 crazy nights of stress....At least the Christians whittled it down to 1.

Here's actually the rundown for the 'season' for me:

NOV
Veterans Day
Birthday
Mother-in-law's birthday
Thanksgiving

DEC
Daughter's birthday
Brother's birthday
Christmas

JAN
New Year's
Mom's birthday
Mom and Dads anniversary (mattered on the big ones)
Other brother's birthday
Dad's birthday (he's now passed)
Grammie's birthday (she's passed too)

FEB
Son's birthday
Valentine's Day
Niece's birthday

Which brings us to Feb 20.

There are a smattering of other birthdays and the regular 'holidays' then, until November rolls around again.

Yeah. Sixteen "occasions" in FIFTEEN WEEKS to keep track of and address. If we still did "Halloween", that would another event and one more week to the syllabus.

LOL

!!!!

Whew.