u/ordinaryme99

Will anybody be here on the dreadful day?

Maybe we can celebrate Grinchmas or Krampusmas together and just vent and try to forget what others do.

So, basically in Iceland it is tradition to exchange books as gifts on Christmas Eve and then quietly read them together after finding a comfortable spot. The reading is accompanied by chocolate and hot cocoa.

I honestly don't even want to hear the word "Christmas" and don't have anybody anyway, but it is probably better than all the farce that Christmas has become in other countries. (I don't have to explain why it is a farce..., you all know why.) At least they don't spend a lot of money on unnecessary gifts and don't make a lot of noise.

I am starting to feel really anxious! I am trying very hard to protect myself, but it has become increasingly difficult to avoid seeing Christmas crap. It's already in quite a few shops, and the ads are starting too! The mere thought that it will get worse and worse instead of better is horrible. And people starting to ask the usual annoying questions like "What are you going to do for Christmas?". I mean, it is only going to get worse.

Why do we have to endure this torture for so long? We seem to be the most ignored suffering minority in the world. Reminding people that they have nobody, or that their loved ones are dead, or that they are poor is not cool.

On the other hand, I also hate pity. "Oh, I am so sorry you have nobody to celebrate Christmas". "Are there charity meals where you live?"

Just leave us alone!

https://preview.redd.it/0dzvrkyy0jph1.png?width=644&format=png&auto=webp&s=4d88e90e13045c246a83e54d5762ed17b6ec59ec

I live in an apartment building and don't know how to buy online any more because many sellers now use cheap services that deliver at odd hours (including late at night) and without knocking and then leave parcels unattended in common areas and more often than not they disappear. There are no security cameras so these thieves can do whatever they want. I have serious health problems and don't drive and don't know what to do. I wish I could at least leave a note for the carrier when I buy, but it is not possible and quite often they don't even tell you which carrier they use.

What would you do? Is my only option to only use sellers who clearly indicate that they use the national postal service (because they normally give a 2-hour delivery window and I leave the door open so I don't miss the delivery)?

Introverts can be very good friends when they find the right person(s) to have meaningful conversations. This is something that most people don't understand. People feel annoyed if we mind our own business and don't participate in chitchat. This happens all the time. It starts with students, but it often continues with colleagues at work and of course neighbours. I hoped that after my studies the situation would change when dealing with adults, but it never did. Neighbours in particular seem to be even suspicious of people who like to stay on their own. My neighbours told the landlord that I am weird, although luckily the landlord sided with me and even asked me if they had harassed me. This has not always been the case in the past. I had neighbours who invented stories about me and made my life hell only because I minded my own business, nothing else.
What's the problem with minding one's own business? What's so offensive? Nothing of course, but people misinterpret it as being conceited. This is actually sad.

In no particular order:

1. Commercialism (I think even people who love Christmas hate this aspect)
2. Making people feel that they have to be good because hey, it's Christmas. People in need need help every single day of the year. Help for those in need is not a gift under the tree. It is essential every day.
3. Kitschy decorations and music even triggering sensory overload in some people
4. It often confuses children who have been good all year and then see that rich naughty children get super expensive gifts while they get gifts from a 2-dollar store if they get something at all.
5. The pressure to buy not out of love but because it has to be (again because hey, it's Christmas)
6. Unwanted gifts often end up in the bin or on eBay; they are nothing memorable
7. Real trees mean trees have been killed; artificial trees often mean an environmental burden (many people don't even bother to recycle an artificial tree for next year)
8. Christmas can trigger traumas - memories of those we loved and who have died, memories of abuse and loneliness -, and can make people feel worthless if they don't have the money to buy expensive gifts
9. Forced family reunions often end up in disagreements, snarky remarks, inappropriate questions, and at any rate they are not exactly refreshing for those who love peace and quiet.
10. Christmas also obviously creates differences and for some it is almost a competition - look what I bought and what I got (apparently there are even people who put empty boxes under the tree just to make people jealous - yes, the true spirit of Christmas...).
11. Movies totally unrelated to Christmas often end with a Christmas scene (I have to mute the volume if I want to know how a movie ends and turn on captions because I cannot stand the music!)
12. It has become a real joke. In the past it started in December, then in November, then in October, then in September - last year I saw decorations in August, and because they thought maybe that's enough for Christmas in December, they invented Christmas in July (which doesn't even start in July).
13. It is a pagan holiday that has been basically stolen, but Christmas lovers refuse to accept the truth (including the fact that Jesus was not born in December).
14. Irritating questions like "What are you going to do for Christmas?", "What did you get for Christmas" (after the painful event)
15. Fake smiles, fake everything -all problems should magically disappear because hey, it's Christmas.
16. The Elf and Santa
17. All the disruptions, delays in the mail, closed shops etc.

In a nutshell - Christmas should be banned, at least publicly.

If I can think of more reasons I will add them to my post. Can you think of more?