NationStates Jolt Archive

On Monday night, they talked about this on the evening news, with the holiday decorations already up, (some even back in September) it seems like here in the United States, Thanksgiving is being mostly forgotten about as everyone now gears up for two month celebration of Christmas. Hell even Halloween barely escaped the Christmas celebration. However, with it's now being in full swing, one does have to wonder if we've actually forgotten Thanksgiving, or is it slowly being turned into Christmas: The Prequel, what do you guys think?

It's a sign of the slow cancerous creep of Christian influence into our culture, our government and our personal lives. Every year they tack another couple days onto Jesus worship month.

However, with it's now being in full swing, one does have to wonder if we've actually forgotten Thanksgiving, or is it slowly being turned into Christmas: The Prequel, what do you guys think?

There is no such Movement.
*hands out pamphlets discreetly*
This is not the religion you are looking for...*waves hand*
*points to the Jews*
Them and their Kwanzaa, thats where the Thanksgiving haters are at...what with their 'kosher' foods and all..

On Monday night, they talked about this on the evening news, with the holiday decorations already up, (some even back in September) it seems like here in the United States, Thanksgiving is being mostly forgotten about as everyone now gears up for two month celebration of Christmas.

Everybody? Pft, speak for yourself christian and not for the 60 million or so of us in the US who really don't care about this jesus fellow.

I heard it has to do with the economy, and that the retailers are afraid that if they don't sell now, they wont be getting much profit. That's why you're seeing all of these holiday/black Friday-esque sales so early this year.

Thanksgiving is more a time for families, with the main features being a large dinner and a football game, with the Macy's Parade thrown in. The difficulties of commercializing it push it into the background, as it's largely a private observance, for all it is a secular holiday. If this were a Christian propaganda thing, Thanksgiving would be heralded more, as it is established on Christian principles-who exactly do you think we're giving our thanks to?

It isn't Christian propaganda, it's consumerism and capitalism.

I seeemed to have missed this. My family is having a nice big extended family dinner with even a few neighbors coming by for Thanksgiving. I'm really looking foward to it!

Anyway, I'm Jewish so maybe that has to do with not paying as much attention to the Christmas rush?

Anyway, I'm Jewish so maybe that has to do with not paying as much attention to the Christmas rush?

Ignorant Jew. *is also looking forward to Thanksgiving* Birthday gifts, alcohol, and pie! Hurrah!

It's the retailers trying to get the sales going earlier and earlier. I call it "Retail Dreamin' Season" because they dream that all they have to do is stick a few Santas and Christmas trees up, and people will start buying, no matter what time of year it actually is.

My sales experience tells me that people will just fire massive IGNORE cannons at the whole spectacle until sometime in mid/late November. So I wish the stores'd just go back to putting up the Christmas stuff after Thanksgiving, like they once did!

Fergi America;13196973']It's the retailers trying to get the sales going earlier and earlier. I call it "Retail Dreamin' Season" because they dream that all they have to do is stick a few Santas and Christmas trees up, and people will start buying, no matter what time of year it actually is.

My sales experience tells me that people will just fire massive IGNORE cannons at the whole spectacle until sometime in mid/late November. So I wish the stores'd just go back to putting up the Christmas stuff after Thanksgiving, like they once did!

Agreed.

who exactly do you think we're giving our thanks to?
Squanto.

It's a sign of the slow cancerous creep of Christian influence into our culture, our government and our personal lives. Every year they tack another couple days onto Jesus worship month.

Yeah, they keep trying to force their religion into the holiday started by separatist, fundamentalist Christians. For shame!

I blaim the fact that the holiday has nothing comercial in it. You don't dress up as colonists or Indians, you don't give away presents or candy, and you don't have to turn your house into either a haunted one or a Christmas village.

Add in one big turkey feeds a goodly number of people and you can see why those who want your money more or less ignore the holiday, they can't sell anything (Besides turkeys).

Thanksgiving is being lost to the worship of the almighty Dollar. Anyone who still believes that Christmas is still about Christ is woefully naive and probably still believes in Santa.

The problem is that Thanksgiving is a USA Holiday while Christmas is celebrated all over the world in one form or another. That and the Retail Stores make their money during Christmas.

Everybody? Pft, speak for yourself christian and not for the 60 million or so of us in the US who really don't care about this jesus fellow.

Thanksgiving isn't just about Christ. It was also the feast where the Settlers and the Natives sat together in harmony. Something that is rare and beautiful when it happens nowdays.

The problem is that Thanksgiving is a USA Holiday while Christmas is celebrated all over the world in one form or another. That and the Retail Stores make their money during Christmas.



Thanksgiving isn't just about Christ. It was also the feast where the Settlers and the Natives sat together in harmony. Something that is rare and beautiful when it happens nowdays.

Christmas isn't particularly about Christ either anymore... where in the story about a poor homeless kid being born in a barn is there a mention of diamond jewelry at 30% off and giving your husband the big screen high def TV of his dreams?

i may have spelt the name wrong, but to paraphase Loius Black:

When did Thanksgiving become Christmas: Part 1? When I was a kid Thanksgiving was, you ate you drank you passed out. Thats it. Nobody woke you up and said "let's go shopping!"

Christmas isn't particularly about Christ either anymore... where in the story about a poor homeless kid being born in a barn is there a mention of diamond jewelry at 30% off and giving your husband the big screen high def TV of his dreams?

hence... if you read my post completely... I said "while Christmas is celebrated all over the world in one form or another."

Thanksgiving is a big hassle. Nobody cares anymore. Christmas is much easier, you get a tree, make your kids decorate it, buy them toys, hope that they bought you something wash. rinse. repeat.

Thanksgiving is a big hassle. Nobody cares anymore. Christmas is much easier, you get a tree, make your kids decorate it, buy them toys, hope that they bought you something wash. rinse. repeat.

... I would think the activity of decorating and cleaning up for the Christmas holidays would be more of a hassle than cooking a Turkey and cleaning up after dinner...

On Monday night, they talked about this on the evening news, with the holiday decorations already up, (some even back in September) it seems like here in the United States, Thanksgiving is being mostly forgotten about as everyone now gears up for two month celebration of Christmas. Hell even Halloween barely escaped the Christmas celebration. However, with it's now being in full swing, one does have to wonder if we've actually forgotten Thanksgiving, or is it slowly being turned into Christmas: The Prequel, what do you guys think?
We already had Thanksgiving....turkey was great.....so were all the fixings!!

:)

... I would think the activity of decorating and cleaning up for the Christmas holidays would be more of a hassle than cooking a Turkey and cleaning up after dinner...

have you ever cooked Thanksgiving dinner? <.< it's horrible.

also, we celebrate Thanksgiving.......we just don't really know anyone else who does, apart from really old people (tm) and even they just go to Denny's or something and buy turkey and dressing combo meals.

Christmas is not something you can do without, it's so commercialized that you would be a space alien not to celebrate it in some form. I tried to go sans Christmas tree last year, the kids freaked out. My in-laws were sure I had joined some weird cult and were ready to take the kids away for safety reasons.

The truth is I just didn't wanna mess with it.

have you ever cooked Thanksgiving dinner? <.< it's horrible. Oh comeon... my turkey wasn't that bad... :p

oh, sorry, yeah it's a bitch, but the fact that it's spread over two days and the poor working family doesn't have the prep time Christmas has...

also, we celebrate Thanksgiving.......we just don't really know anyone else who does, apart from really old people (tm) and even they just go to Denny's or something and buy turkey and dressing combo meals. we do. we do it potluck style. everyone brings something... one person cooks the turkey, some bring salads, dessert, ham, etc... gets the whole family involved and the burden isn't only on one person/family. same with the cleanup. everyone does it. (kinda helps that our football games are in the Late morning/early afternoon so no excuses for the dads to not help in the clean up... or they watch the kids. :p

Christmas is not something you can do without, it's so commercialized that you would be a space alien not to celebrate it in some form. I tried to go sans Christmas tree last year, the kids freaked out. My in-laws were sure I had joined some weird cult and were ready to take the kids away for safety reasons. well, yeah. my fondest childhood memories are falling asleep under the christmas tree.

but nowdays, I don't bother with a christmas tree... maybe this year i'll by a wreath. maybe I'll string up some lights... but all the decorating, to me, is for the children's benefit (the neices and nephews).

The truth is I just didn't wanna mess with it. yeah, it can be a hassle. Especially if one does it by her lonesome. but it is easier if everyone shares the burden.

Thanksgiving will always be its own distinct holiday to me. Thanksgiving is a huge turkey, peas, mashed potatoes, gravy, pumpkin pie, yams, etc. Christmas is a ham or goose, maybe egg nog, no pumpkin pie. Turkey makes better leftover sandwiches than ham, so Thanksgiving is an extended weekend of turkey, which is nice. Thanksgiving might mean going to relatives' houses, while Christmas takes place at your own house, usually. Thanksgivng has no giftgiving or tree, and less of a religious flavor. No one has to shop for Thanksgiving - if you're a compulsive shopper you might anyway, but it's not common courtesy to gift-give at Thanksgiving like it is at Christmas. :)

...and probably still believes in Santa.
:eek:

*cries*


Anyhoo, I've never celebrated Thanksgiving, being on the wrong side of the Atlantic.

Sounds like some good food though. I'd like to try some pumpkin pie... or this mysterious eggnog I keep hearing about.

On Monday night, they talked about this on the evening news, with the holiday decorations already up, (some even back in September) it seems like here in the United States, Thanksgiving is being mostly forgotten about as everyone now gears up for two month celebration of Christmas. Hell even Halloween barely escaped the Christmas celebration. However, with it's now being in full swing, one does have to wonder if we've actually forgotten Thanksgiving, or is it slowly being turned into Christmas: The Prequel, what do you guys think?

Believe me, I haven't forgotten about Thanksgiving. My mom makes an excellent turkey, my dad handles the mashed potatoes, and I get to see relatives that I don't see often. It is unfortunate though, that my older sister and her family won't be there (their Thanksgiving is spent with my brother in law's side of the family).

I still celebrate thanksgiving...

As for the rest of the country, thanksgiving has been eaten alive by christmas and halloween.

I still celebrate thanksgiving...

As for the rest of the country, thanksgiving has been eaten alive by christmas and halloween.

Has it really?
I celebrate it.
*waits for thanksgiving*

Thanksgiving? Wasn't that bout wasp nutjobs butchering natives?

Well, if you people would celebrate Thanksgiving at the proper time in October, like Canadians do, then you wouldn't be having this moral quandary.

Thanksgiving is the best damn holiday in existence. You get all the friends and family, fantastic food and a day off work, without all that having to run around and buy shit for people while going bankrupt just to meet your commercial expectations. Easter is close, but there is the odd chance that you may be tricked into going to Mass or something.

Nope, Thanksgiving has it right; an orgy of turkey and gravy, a general celebration of food, for food's sake.

It's a sign of the slow cancerous creep of Christian influence into our culture, our government and our personal lives. Every year they tack another couple days onto Jesus worship month.

Don't you think that extending 'Christmas' to ridiculous lengths as well as the move towards calling it the 'holiday season' and just the general apathy of Americans towards church/religion is actually taking the Christianity out of Christmas? It kinda seems that way to me.

Don't you think that extending 'Christmas' to ridiculous lengths as well as the move towards calling it the 'holiday season' and just the general apathy of Americans towards church/religion is actually taking the Christianity out of Christmas? It kinda seems that way to me.
Well, celebrating on the sun's, Mithras', Ishtar's and a couple of other deities' birthday, and celebrating with almost entirely non-christian symbolism leaves Christmas without much Christianity in it anyways.

What's so great about turkey?

I mean seriously, it really isn't that good.

It's dry, really dry, it doesn't taste that good, and it's only good if you deep fry it, which I had the liberty of doing last year, and it was wonderful.

I'd much rather eat pizza or something that actually tastes good.

I saw the Christmas stuff coming out after 4th of July and was wondering if I had missed Halloween. Personally there should be no Christmas decorations on sale until after Thanksgiving. I can only deal with one holiday at a time.

What's so great about turkey?

I mean seriously, it really isn't that good.

It's dry, really dry, it doesn't taste that good, and it's only good if you deep fry it, which I had the liberty of doing last year, and it was wonderful.

I'd much rather eat pizza or something that actually tastes good.

Dude, that's what gravy and mashed potatos are for! And beer! Beer is also very moist, and should be consumed while eating turkey as well (wine being an acceptable substitute.)

And then one must pass out on the couch. It is tradition.

What's so great about turkey?

I mean seriously, it really isn't that good.

It's dry, really dry, it doesn't taste that good, and it's only good if you deep fry it, which I had the liberty of doing last year, and it was wonderful.

I'd much rather eat pizza or something that actually tastes good.

You haven't had my turkey, it's not dry, because I baste it......a LOT, like waking up every two hours over night to baste it (as if I slept the night before TG anway)

Well, celebrating on the sun's, Mithras', Ishtar's and a couple of other deities' birthday, and celebrating with almost entirely non-christian symbolism leaves Christmas without much Christianity in it anyways.

Heh, point in case.

What's so great about turkey?

I mean seriously, it really isn't that good.

It's dry, really dry, it doesn't taste that good, and it's only good if you deep fry it, which I had the liberty of doing last year, and it was wonderful.

I'd much rather eat pizza or something that actually tastes good.... you know... NOWHERE does it state that you have to have Turkey for Thanksgiving...

You haven't had my turkey, it's not dry, because I baste it......a LOT, like waking up every two hours over night to baste it (as if I slept the night before TG anway)

... funny... I basted mine alot... but then again, I didn't have it cooking overnight.

what did you stuff it with that could stand that long in the oven?

what did you stuff it with that could stand that long in the oven?
Kryptonite.

:eek:

*cries*


Anyhoo, I've never celebrated Thanksgiving, being on the wrong side of the Atlantic.

Sounds like some good food though. I'd like to try some pumpkin pie... or this mysterious eggnog I keep hearing about.

Sorry, we can't let foreign devils learn of our secret eggnog recipe, it's only two ingredients away from the atomic bomb.

It's the vegans' fault. They've demonized the hunting and eating of turkey.

can't be... that's what I us... wait... what color Kryptonite?

Orange Kryptonite. It has thermal fluxation properties.

Kryptonite.

can't be... that's what I us... wait... what color Kryptonite?

Sorry, we can’t let foreign devils learn of our secret eggnog recipe, it’s only two ingredients away from the atomic bomb.
*runs to North Korea, eggnog in hand*

can’t be... that’s what I us... wait... what color Kryptonite?
Red kryptonite, obviously.

Though the turkey does sometimes fly out of the oven, saving maidens.

Red kryptonite, obviously.

No you idiot! Red Kryptonite has electrical impulse disruption properties, which is why in inhibits the Super Ego of exposed Kryptonians.

Exactly. My house is a Kryptonian-free zone.

Coming to our planet, stealing our jobs...

But we use Orange Kryptonite for turkey cooking.

And since you're opposed to illegal alien immigration, then might I recommend that you vote for Luthor...

No you idiot! Red Kryptonite has electrical impulse disruption properties, which is why in inhibits the Super Ego of exposed Kryptonians.
Exactly. My house is a Kryptonian-free zone.

Coming to our planet, stealing our jobs...

... funny... I basted mine alot... but then again, I didn't have it cooking overnight.

what did you stuff it with that could stand that long in the oven?

I don't stuff my turkey because I have to make two different stuffings. (well, three this year)

A 25lb turkey takes about 6 hours to cook. We eat lunch at 11am so, I cook all night and most of the morning.

Yeah, they keep trying to force their religion into the holiday started by separatist, fundamentalist Christians. For shame!

In the name of intellectual honesty I have come to save the day!!!! Duh duh dunnnnnn.... It's the "wonderful white people sharing their love of God and religion with the inferior yet helpful Arawaks" time of year. So let's be honest about Thanksgiving? This is the choice of perhaps the only nice thing the Europeans, mostly the Spanish, ever did with the native peoples of this continent. The rest of the time it was attacking them, selling them into slavery, taking them as property, forcing them to make payments in gold to be allowed to live, etc.

Columbus and those who came before him.... (Oh Noes, we'se been told he was da first to get here) took liberty in this land they "discovered.". "In 14 hundred and ninety-two Columbus sailed the ocean..." Awe fuck it already! :eek: Columbus wasn't the first and wasn't the worst to come to the America's an attempt to rape, sometimes quite literally, the Black and Indian people who inhabited this land. Stop pretending it was the great and glorious white man who calmed the savages with their Christianity.

Now I know this has all passed and we can move on with life. I am in no way making this about reparations, or telling people we should give the land back yadda yadda. I'm just asking you to be fucking honest with history. To see it for what it was and not what Eurocentric textbooks have told you it is. Thanksgiving is what you make of it with your family. Making it about some idiotic ideal just because it's "tradition" is just plain stupid.

God damn it, I finally think it's true when people tell me school in the US are making kids retarded. I've always fought against their arguments but I'm seeing more of the light here. At least as far as history goes our schools are filling our kids with ideas of the underdog who always seems to win out in the end. Math is the same, science, reading, writing, and grammar "check. "
We are intentionally making our children blind for patriotic nationalism. How can we ever learn from history is we don't really tell it (cue the canned line about doomed to repeat it)? Anyhow, enjoy Thanksgiving while getting drunk with your family, eating Turkey, and watching football (sweet perfection!). For America and Jesus' sake damn it!

Thanksgiving is a big hassle. Nobody cares anymore. Christmas is much easier, you get a tree, make your kids decorate it, buy them toys, hope that they bought you something wash. rinse. repeat.

I love the (somewhat) new Smunkee even better than the old one :fluffle: It's whole new level of funny that you have reached here.

*shrug*

Actually, it's a tradition in many places to put up the Christmas tree the weekend of Thanksgiving.

What's so great about turkey?

I mean seriously, it really isn't that good.

It's dry, really dry, it doesn't taste that good, and it's only good if you deep fry it, which I had the liberty of doing last year, and it was wonderful.

I'd much rather eat pizza or something that actually tastes good.

Obviously, you (or whomever does your turkey cooking) don't know how to properly cook a turkey. When my mom cooks a turkey, the meat is moist and delicious.

One thing I want to eventually try (or convince my mom to make) for Thanksgiving is a Turducken (although I hear it's a bitch to prepare).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turducken

Obviously, you (or whomever does your turkey cooking) don't know how to properly cook a turkey. When my mom cooks a turkey, the meat is moist and delicious.

One thing I want to eventually try (or convince my mom to make) for Thanksgiving is a Turducken (although I hear it's a bitch to prepare).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turducken

it's mostly a pain to de-bone the duck and chicken......if you can get it pre-de-boned it's not too bad, shove each one into the other, put stuffing in between, roast, baste, freak out the kids, eat, etc.

Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. I tend to stint Xmas in favor of said holiday.

I really don't like Xmas much - not because of the religious aspect, but because of the whole series of expectations about it. It's no wonder that the rate of depression is higher this time of year.

I mean, how would you like to be poor or homeless and realize that the only time of year anyone acknowledged your existence was now. All of a sudden food and gifts are piled high before you. This lasts for a month, the rest of the year you're allowed to starve and fester in peace.

How would you like to be alone - it's bad enough the rest of the year, but now it's horrible. For a year people ignore you, then suddenly it's "oh, poor so-and-so, he/she is alone, let's intrude."

Or you could be in an elderly warehousing facility, abandoned by your family the rest of the year, suddenly, there they are bearing cheap gifts and false sentiments.

'Tis the season for hypocrisy and self-serving.

I hate Xmas. I wish they'd get rid of it altogether.

I think Thanksgiving is more of a "private" holiday. It's mostly held in the home, with your family and maybe some orphaned friends who have nowhere else to go.

Christmas lends itself more to shopping over an extended period of time. You usually do your Thanksgiving shopping in one surgical strike: you go to your favourite grocery store with your list, maybe every blue moon you hit the linens store if the old mainstays are getting threadbare, and then you tuck in at home to cook everything — and stay there.

Or you grab the family and go out to a restaurant if you're not the kitchenly type.

With Christmas — it's going out caroling, to play in the snow, go to church, shopping, see Santa, the kids' Christmas pageant, cruise the neighbourhood to check out the decorations, see your town's performance of the Nutcracker or Amal & the Night Visitors, visit with friends for wassail and eggnog, things like that. Christmas is a much more extroverted season. The grocery stores cater for Thanksgiving by...stocking lots 'n lots of turkeys and generally, more of everything.

On Monday night, they talked about this on the evening news, with the holiday decorations already up, (some even back in September) it seems like here in the United States, Thanksgiving is being mostly forgotten about as everyone now gears up for two month celebration of Christmas. Hell even Halloween barely escaped the Christmas celebration. However, with it's now being in full swing, one does have to wonder if we've actually forgotten Thanksgiving, or is it slowly being turned into Christmas: The Prequel, what do you guys think?
It's all about marketing -- the other religion. The earlier you start telling people to buy for Christmas, the earlier they will start complying.

I'm still getting the same number of requests for T-day donations to the Salvation Army, shelters, and the like. They haven't forgotten.

I don't stuff my turkey because I have to make two different stuffings. (well, three this year)

A 25lb turkey takes about 6 hours to cook. We eat lunch at 11am so, I cook all night and most of the morning.

Smunkee dearest, have I ever mentioned that you're crazeh?

I don't stuff my turkey because I have to make two different stuffings. (well, three this year)

A 25lb turkey takes about 6 hours to cook. We eat lunch at 11am so, I cook all night and most of the morning.
We've started frying our turkey. It's about 1-1/2 hours to cook a 25 pounder.

This year, I think I'm going to shoot a couple of the Canada geese that have infested our pond. We'll probably roast them.

A 25lb turkey takes about 6 hours to cook. We eat lunch at 11am so, I cook all night and most of the morning.

ah, Thanksgiving lunch... that explains the hassles...

we go with the traditional dinner. allows time for people to cook and show up.



I do hope the whole family helps with the clean up and not just the hosting household... :fluffle:

We already had Thanksgiving....turkey was great.....so were all the fixings!!

:)

WAIT THAT'S IT! That's why Thanksgiving is ignored in the U.S., because all of the businesses think they LIVE IN CANADA! :eek:

Thanksgiving gives you a reason to eat like a pig. Who wouldn't appreciate it? You also get to pretend to like eggnog. Who can't support such a wonderous day?

And yes, you really can skip Black Friday, I plan on doing just that and will sleep in the day after. :)

Thanksgiving gives you a reason to eat like a pig. Who wouldn't appreciate it? You also get to pretend to like eggnog. Who can't support such a wonderous day?

And yes, you really can skip Black Friday, I plan on doing just that and will sleep in the day after. :)

and you can also blame that on the Turkey! :D

Obviously, you (or whomever does your turkey cooking) don't know how to properly cook a turkey. When my mom cooks a turkey, the meat is moist and delicious.

One thing I want to eventually try (or convince my mom to make) for Thanksgiving is a Turducken (although I hear it's a bitch to prepare).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turducken

My cousin's had one, and liked it. She didn't mention it being difficult to prepare though -- just a matter of cooking the critter which was preassembled.

It's all about marketing -- the other religion. The earlier you start telling people to buy for Christmas, the earlier they will start complying.

I'm still getting the same number of requests for T-day donations to the Salvation Army, shelters, and the like. They haven't forgotten.

Except, the new reports are all trumpeting about how lousy the sales are, because we Americans JUST AREN'T BUYING STUFF.

They can roll it back to July; it doesn't mean people will buy anything before mid-November. Hell, some insane people shop on XMAS EVE to get the "best bargains." (Me, it's worth it to pay a few cents more not to get an elbow in the teeth from a 92 year old trying to snatch the last sweater in my size out of my hands.)

Holy crap, Ruffy is right.

Except, the new reports are all trumpeting about how lousy the sales are, because we Americans JUST AREN'T BUYING STUFF.

They can roll it back to July; it doesn't mean people will buy anything before mid-November. Hell, some insane people shop on XMAS EVE to get the "best bargains." (Me, it's worth it to pay a few cents more not to get an elbow in the teeth from a 92 year old trying to snatch the last sweater in my size out of my hands.)
But that doesn't stop the stores from trying...and trying. If we haven't done ALL our shopping before Halloween, it's a rare year. Fortunately we don't shop in NYC, so we don't have the over-aggressive 92 year olds.

It isn't Christian propaganda, it's consumerism and capitalism.

Quoted for truth.

Tonight "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" is on. I think it's hard to steal Christmas before you have Thanksgiving. I'll watch it anyway most likely, but I do miss Thanksgiving. Thank goodness the Salvation Army still remembers it.

After all, what's not to like about a holiday devoted entirely to food and gratitude for said food?

*shrug*

Actually, it's a tradition in many places to put up the Christmas tree the weekend of Thanksgiving.

If they'd wait that long, it would be nice. I saw a decorated, lit Xmas tree in someone's house last night as I was driving home.

I usually wait until Dec. 19 to put up the tree, and it's taken down the day after New Year.

If they'd wait that long, it would be nice. I saw a decorated, lit Xmas tree in someone's house last night as I was driving home.

I usually wait until Dec. 19 to put up the tree, and it's taken down the day after New Year.

Some of my friends are already decorating. They are the ones with the lights all over their house and crap though. Mostly they don't put up the tree until after Thanksgiving and don't turn on the outdoor lights until then either.

We put our tree up the Friday after Thanksgiving and it's taken down Christmas day or the day after.

But that doesn't stop the stores from trying...and trying. If we haven't done ALL our shopping before Halloween, it's a rare year. Fortunately we don't shop in NYC, so we don't have the over-aggressive 92 year olds.

Hee, well, I have this lovely new thing called the intarwebs.... and I mostly shop from the comfort of my living room, in my fuzzy slippers. ;)

Some of my friends are already decorating. They are the ones with the lights all over their house and crap though. Mostly they don't put up the tree until after Thanksgiving and don't turn on the outdoor lights until then either.

We put our tree up the Friday after Thanksgiving and it's taken down Christmas day or the day after.

What I generally do with the tree is about the second week of December, invite over my friends for a "tree-trimming party". I provide food, drink, tree, lights and ornaments; they help me eat, drink, and hang up the decorations. Then, generally, we exchange small gifts after it's done.

;) Somehow I've never convinced them to come for the "Tree-Putting-Away Party." ;) But it's all good.

;) Somehow I've never convinced them to come for the "Tree-Putting-Away Party." ;) But it's all good.

an idea... provide the saws, drink and food and they can cut the tree up and use that as fuel for the grill.

on second thought... that might work here... where it doesn't snow... :p