Bah Humbug - The Bear and Badger

acemuzzy

Not everyone likes Christmas. It can be a tough time be due many, in fact - not least having to pretend be your cheerful even when you're not.

And many others, of course, just don't give a fuck - no cultural interest, no religious interest, yaddah yaddah.

So let's have a place to release those grumbles, or apathy, or whatever. To complain about how it's starting earlier each year. To moan about the queen's speech and everyone else's ludicrous enthusiasm.

acemuzzy

For us, first Christmas without my wife's mum. It's gonna be tough. Kids will help for sure, but I know there are gonna be tough moments for the missus, and we kinda want it over already. Meh.

acemuzzy

Also Christmas movies suck

hylian_elf

I'm not sure if I completely fall in the Bah Humbug category. It means nothing to me or my family, but we love the festive spirit and feeling etc, take part in Secret Santa and parties and get togethers.

But I hate Xmas songs (on the radio constantly) with a passion.

Moot_Geeza

All sorts of family dramas going on with my wife's lot this year, nothing is straightforward. I'm staying well out of it but I'd quite like to wobble their collective stubborn heads.

poprock

Christmas music and Christmas movies can get in the bin, for me. I’ll give you that much.

Tempy

Haven't been able to find a small, natural tree, which is upsetting Ev a bit. Grumble.

afgavinstan

I genuinely really do not like this time of year at all. Part of it my own doing, some of it I can't help. Just a big ball of stress is all I know. But it'll pass like every other one so best to just get the head down and try to enjoy the bits I can.

Yossarian

Tempy wrote:

Haven't been able to find a small, natural tree, which is upsetting Ev a bit. Grumble.

How small are you talking? I’ve got a mini Christmas tree that’s about 2ft high, including the pot it’s growing in. Got it from Waitrose.

Kow

2nd Christmas not seeing friends or family, so that's a bit shit. In normal times I like Christmas plenty. Having sprog around makes everything better of course.

Dark Soldier

I'm generally a Christmas Grinch. Just another day really, with a big meal. No hype or festivities here for me.

RedDave2

Christmas office parties in restaurants are often hell for staff. You often get a load of people who don't really know each so the atmosphere is crap and some of them clearly don't go out much and don't understand how restaurants work. And they don't tip.

What ever else about covid restrictions, can't say I'll miss them too much.

Tempy

Yossarian wrote:

Tempy wrote:

Haven't been able to find a small, natural tree, which is upsetting Ev a bit. Grumble.

How small are you talking? I’ve got a mini Christmas tree that’s about 2ft high, including the pot it’s growing in. Got it from Waitrose.

That'd do us, but Waitrose is a pain to get to from where I live.

b0r1s

I bought this for my ex a few years ago. It’s about a foot and a half including the pot. They do continue to grow. She told me she repotted it and it’s now about 3ft.

Not sure if they will deliver in time now.

https://www.bloomandwild.com/send-flowers/send/the-starry-night-tree/8629

Yossarian

I should probably try to keep mine alive until next year, but it feels a bit weird having a Christmas tree in the flat all year around.

JonB

No issues with Xmas as such, but a reminder that it's going to be 2 years since I last saw family. We were hoping to return again this year, but the Covid/vaccine situation was never right. Clearly the right choice now as well.

davyK

acemuzzy wrote:

For us, first Christmas without my wife's mum. It's gonna be tough. Kids will help for sure, but I know there are gonna be tough moments for the missus, and we kinda want it over already. Meh.

We went through that last year. To be honest the lock down probably helped Wifey a bit as she really wasn't up to any partying. We had a quiet one (as did most who didn't work for the cabinet). NYE was particularly quiet as for the last 20 years we have thrown a party. It was actually quite nice having a quiet one for a change and waking up to a house still in reasonable order.

Christmas music is overplayed. How anyone works in retail is beyond me. There's a small selection I quite like for nostalgia reasons. It's weird though how playing it on the 26th seems wrong. Once the day is over I really don't like hearing it. I like the week before - I find where we are now is the Christmas sweet spot.

Same with films. There are one or two I like but the rest can be dispensed with.

I get a bit emotional around this time of year - though I'm never sure why. I just feel a tiny bit sad. There's an element of sadness for people who will struggle through this time of "enforced enjoyment" and those who will face debts in the New Year after putting themselves out for their kids. And I empathise with anyone financially put under pressure to keep up which really isn't what this time of year is about. We don't actually spend that much and we certainly don't go overboard with gifts for family - we do a secret Santa now which really cuts back on that bollocks of buying stuff for people.

Facewon

Pretty scroogy generally, but may be because of 20+ years in jobs that had me working through or near enough to. New role dies over Christmas. Don't have much leave this year, but next year I'll be off for weeks and feel better about the whole thing reckon.

Escape

Our Christmases were so idyllic as a young family, I'd say we've all felt quietly pressured by our failings to recreate them since. I'm aware the clock's ticking and think I'll regret not making the most of them one day, a situation that just makes it harder to relax and enjoy them as they should be.

In 2019 I watched Worzel Gummidge on my own at my folks', wishing they weren't busy with other stuff and could watch it with me for the feels. Seems like a lot of missed opportunities every year. I often say I'll go shopping with my mum and it never happens.

I suppose these reflective disappointments are mainly because I've reached my 40s feeling like an absolute wasteman, at least in measurable terms, and at times like these that haunts me. I'd like my family to see me have some good years again, but another Christmas is another underscore typically.

Sounds like I'm more depressed than I am, but without the comfort of a partner and/or kids I feel like I've missed a huge chunk of life along the way; pulled a Flight of the Navigator. Boxing Day's great, though, when that pressure lifts and the festive nonsense is still about.

(That'll actually be the 30th for me this year, since we're having our day on the 29th.)

Escape

Watching Auld Lang Syne on telly on NYE... now that is depressing. They had Craaaiiig David in a pink jacket in 2019, and I sat through the lot somehow. Anything but Holland, I guess.

davyK

Being the age I am (55), my formative years meant me being fed a certain image of an idyllic Christmas that was described by TV ads at the time. It was an upper middle class version of Christmas with immaculate homes, snow, beautifully wrapped gifts under an enormous Christmas tree etc. Christmas cards back then were more religious or heavily influenced by the Dickensian Christmas with glowing windows in idyllic scenes.

The 6 of us in a 3 bedroomed terrace weren't going to get that. This gave me the idea of a dream Christmas that real life would never equate to. But it didn't matter - my Christmases as a kid were great. Mainly because that gen of adults in my family were really closely knit and my mother being very much the glue. Christmas was also the only time we got more desirable presents - our birthdays tended to be low key - enjoyable but not gift heavy. So there was a lot riding on Christmases re toys/games for the year ahead. So I'm cursed with a mix of the idea of a recreation of a hybrid of those two sets of expectations.

I've also noticed (maybe this is an incorrect perception) but the Biblical references now seem lost on the current gen (+/- 1). While I classify myself a hopeful agnostic I have no beliefs or faith but what it did was ground the holiday and give a reason for it. But I am very familiar with the Christmas Story and a little part of me plays it out in my mind even though if it did happen, it's placed by scholars closer to September with the festival moved to a pagan one to ease recruitment. So singing carols in school etc. all added to general feeling around that time of year.

Up until a few years ago I used to hit a wall after Christmas. Whether that was because of yet another failure to match expectation or not I don't know. But I don't get that now thankfully. It may be because they come around at an increasingly alarming rate now.

digi

I dislike Christmas becouse birthday, pressure and never feeling like I do enough.
Just always feels so depressing.

Kids are older now too and live with mum at hers but are staying over at there boyfriends/girlfriends etc for Xmas.

Family is miles away in Scotland except my older brother who doesn't really bother with me anyway.
He has a spoiled daughter who takes all his attention and is also the reason he can't be the one to give my partner away at the wedding (its bad luck to give someone away before your own daughter apparently, who knew?)

Yeh fuck Christmas,
I should probably retire from here till after the season, wedding planning is hard enough without Xmas and new year in between.

Il see/chat with you folks in a few weeks.

Merry Xmas.
X

davyK

Aye. Kids leaving home puts a bit of a downer on things I imagine.

Having young kids brings the fun back. It dried Wifey and I out at any rate.

Our two girls (22&23) are at home this year and they are in FT emp for the first time so have no shop shifts to do. One is single , one going strong but there's no sign of co-habitation with that one.

Making the most of it this year....but one bar from Jessie's Song and I fold like a house of cards.

Kow

This is the first Christmas that sprog is aware that there are presents coming so he's full of hype. He's not entirely sure how it all works as Santa is not really a thing here, nor is the 25th, so he's getting mixed messages all over the place. I still remember getting up at the crack of dawn as a kid and racing downstairs to see what presents I had so I hope he'll have that too. Not so good at this humbug stuff.

Brooks

I don't mind this shit but I will never expend any effort on it myself.

Questor

As someone really not close with family, this time of year feels especially forced to me. Working retail also means I fucking hate christmas songs, though Fairytale of New York is the notable exception, probably because it's kinda downbeat when you actually think about the lyrics...!

Happy for other people to enjoy this time, but yeah. can't wait for the new year.

n0face

I've got to somehow smuggle a drum kit into the house and hide it until Christmas Eve, then silently assemble it in the middle of the night. I think this is my biggest Christmas challenge yet

RedDave2

davyK wrote:

Being the age I am (55), my formative years meant me being fed a certain image of an idyllic Christmas that was described by TV ads at the time. It was an upper middle class version of Christmas with immaculate homes, snow, beautifully wrapped gifts under an enormous Christmas tree etc. Christmas cards back then were more religious or heavily influenced by the Dickensian Christmas with glowing windows in idyllic scenes.

The 6 of us in a 3 bedroomed terrace weren't going to get that. This gave me the idea of a dream Christmas that real life would never equate to. But it didn't matter - my Christmases as a kid were great. Mainly because that gen of adults in my family were really closely knit and my mother being very much the glue. Christmas was also the only time we got more desirable presents - our birthdays tended to be low key - enjoyable but not gift heavy. So there was a lot riding on Christmases re toys/games for the year ahead. So I'm cursed with a mix of the idea of a recreation of a hybrid of those two sets of expectations.

I've also noticed (maybe this is an incorrect perception) but the Biblical references now seem lost on the current gen (+/- 1). While I classify myself a hopeful agnostic I have no beliefs or faith but what it did was ground the holiday and give a reason for it. But I am very familiar with the Christmas Story and a little part of me plays it out in my mind even though if it did happen, it's placed by scholars closer to September with the festival moved to a pagan one to ease recruitment. So singing carols in school etc. all added to general feeling around that time of year.

Up until a few years ago I used to hit a wall after Christmas. Whether that was because of yet another failure to match expectation or not I don't know. But I don't get that now thankfully. It may be because they come around at an increasingly alarming rate now.

Found this quite relatable and interesting because my family was the same in so many regards. With this in mind, I try to recreate that type of Christmas and not so much the advertised version (not that there is anything wrong with that). It's tricky with a polish wife but last year we seemed to find the perfect balance of each of our family traditions and this year we look to be good for the same. Definitely feel less is more with Xmas, stretching it beyond 2 weeks is quantity over quality

regmcfly

I really enjoy Christmas with my parents and have done for a number of years. It has been tough over the past couple of years. We are spending this Christmas with my mum, dad,sister and brother in law and I feel inherently selfish because this is what I want.

davyK

RedDave2 wrote:

blah blah

Found this quite relatable and interesting because my family was the same in so many regards. With this in mind, I try to recreate that type of Christmas and not so much the advertised version (not that there is anything wrong with that). It's tricky with a polish wife but last year we seemed to find the perfect balance of each of our family traditions and this year we look to be good for the same. Definitely feel less is more with Xmas, stretching it beyond 2 weeks is quantity over quality

I think I prefer the European version of Christmas to be honest (or at least what I perceive it to be). It's where a great many of our festive traditions come from anyhow. There isn't really anything British (or Irish) about Christmas. It's an import and we have turned it to plastic.

We do like getting hammered which is perhaps the only common ground with the Germans, Polish, Swedes etc that we really have. Our blend of Saxony, Celt, Norman and Viking has a lot to answer for. But we don't need Christmas for that.

Yossarian

n0face wrote:

I've got to somehow smuggle a drum kit into the house and hide it until Christmas Eve, then silently assemble it in the middle of the night. I think this is my biggest Christmas challenge yet

The wrapping is going to be a bitch.

davyK wrote:

We do like getting hammered which is perhaps the only common ground with the Germans, Polish, Swedes etc that we really have. Our blend of Saxony, Celt, Norman and Viking has a lot to answer for. But we don't need Christmas for that.

I suspect that it’s more to do with geography than anything else. What else are you going to do during long, winter nights before you’ve invented electric lighting?

Howdy, Stranger!

Categories