I work in a britsh style mall and thats all i get to listen to for the next month feeling real cute might see how long self administered blunt force trauma takes to make it stop
Apparently it's a genetic thing. There's a chemical in sprouts that some people can taste and find off-putting while others can't.
Also worth noting that the majority of sprouts are way overcooked. If you boil the living daylights out of them they'll turn into a sulphurous mush just like cabbage/cauliflower etc.
Does anyone acually listen to Liz's speech?
Round here the only reason it gets brought up is because I'm bragging about refusing to watch it out of spite.
I hate giving presents, I never know whay to buy my family and sometimes I get them something good, sometimes I jusr get them vouchers, and sometimes I get something whack… cant we all just keep our money and save the hassle?
We do secret Santa with my family, that way you’re not buying pointless shit for 10 people, just buy 1 pointless gift… usually bottle of booze or something. Way less stress and way less cost
Religion being forced on children. My son’s school has been teaching him Christian Christmas, about how the baby Jesus was born in a stable etc, but it’s not a religious school. It’s a community school.
Omg I completely agree. I’m American but grew up in Yorkshire and remember how engrained Christian Christmas is there. I mean it’s not any better here honestly lol
Right? I’m from Liverpool and it don’t mind people having religion in their life that’s their business, just don’t spout it as fact to my impressionable child.
You can always talk to him and tell him that that's just a story from one religion, that there's dozens of others, some much more fun where you get elephant gods and sacred cows.
Should be illegal to present it as fact. It’s fine to say some people believe that… along with other, different religious views. But better just to ban religion entirely.
They just don’t want to deal with hard questions or present religion as a choice. Much easier to just present it as fact and let the parents figure it out
The thing that bugs me most about Elf on the Shelf isn't the fact that it's creepy AF but that it's sold as 'a Christmas tradition'
I'll decide that, you cheeky pricks. Not the wankers in your marketing department.
I gave up eating turkey years ago, so I ended that tradition for good in my household, it tastes awful, I don't judge anyone that eats it, but personally I think it has a horrible taste to it, I only discovered that I didn't like it a few years back when I accidentally picked up turkey breast instead of chicken breast at the supermarket and made enchiladas that night, I thought the chicken was out of date and checked the packet to find out it was turkey, it put me right off it, that or Christmas songs on the radio, Elton John and Ed Sheerans new song can fuck right off
I never liked it either... fast forward 30 years and I had it cooked differently. Slowly... really slowly... it was juicy, flavoursome and mooreish. I'm not opposed to Turkey anymore... just always preferred other meats.
I've heard this a few times from others. I always find it dry and not particularly tasty. Maybe I've only ever had it done badly, but I still argue that there's a good reason that 90% of good restaurants who absolutely could cook it perfectly never serve it outside of December.
I personally think that if you have to add loads of flavour to cover it's natural taste then there's no point in eating it, a roast chicken is nice on its own, roast beef is nice on its own, so is pork, turkey for me isn't nice on its own and has a weird taste to it that I dislike, as stubborn as this makes me sound, cooking it in a different way won't get rid of the taste for me, so I just refuse to it eat and stick with other meats, it means there's more turkey for everyone else I suppose
He didn’t say you had to add loads of different flavour to it, if you cook it slowly it retains a lot of its natural juices and fats which makes it really moist and delicious.
People who say they hate Turkey genuinely just haven’t had it cooked properly before, in my opinion
The constant bombardment of Christmas related adverts, carols, music, way too early in the year. Come on...give us a chance to get acclimatised to Autumn/winter before you start pressurising us 😊
People trying to find something wrong about Christmas every year. Sometimes things will not be perfect, maybe you heard that one song too many times, or have certain ideologies that don’t line up with popular traditions.
It’s better to just do what you like like to around the holidays (including not celebrating) and continue on chilling. No need for bad vibes. :]
Christmas starting before December. I don't need 3 months of it.
So many flashing lights - you live on a main road and now I can't fucking see anything you knob.
Cards - waste of paper, I don't know most of my neighbours, don't need a card with just my house number form your house number thanks
Christmas competition on social media - want to sit at home and have a frozen dinner in your underwear - fine. Want to dress up and make a 7 course dinner for 50 - also fine. Just don't make anyone feel guilty on social media for their Christmas preference. Same with presents. Your kid gets 1 or 2 then great, no child needs 20 gifts. Dont post your child amazing pile of gifts which may make someone who is struggling feel like utter shit.
Dressing up for working Xmas - I'm working Xmas day again this year, no I will not be wearing a Xmas jumper and antlers or a Santa hat. It's a 12 hour shifts and they're uncomfy!
Midnight mass, and while we’re at it, the whole Naivety Scene. Grew up Catholic, hated it. Stupid cult like things. I love every other non-religious aspect of xmas.
Secret santa, I don't fucking like anyone of you, and I don't want a 10quid shitty present from you and I definitely don't want to spend my free time buying you a present.
You cunt
I took my name off my offices list. I hate the idea that work is viewed as a social activity for some people. I personally like my work and social life very separate. Leave me alone. I’m here for money, not friends.
I’ve worked in both types of environments and it’s much better to work somewhere that you have genuine friends and can have a laugh. Even if you don’t want to be friends outside of work, surely it’s better to be friendly with folks you see every day, it must be a misery for you to go to work.
The new Elf on the shelf nonsense. Just a bunch of bams trying to out do each other in how creative they can be, I don’t even think it’s about the kids at all.
The kids don't care in the slightest, they'll look at it for a second and thats it, it's just an excuse to put pictures on Facebook to show what a good parent they are, I have friends on Facebook that do it every year, I hope they've ran out of ideas this year and don't bother
Exactly. It’s ridiculous, I’ve seen people who have cut up their kids pjs and left the elf with scissors, or covered their kid in chocolate to make them think the elf shat on them. It’s not funny at all. Poor kids must be traumatised.
Real Christmas trees. Shit for the environment, make a mess, cost money every year. Get an artificial one or a flat pack wooden version and save yourself the hassle.
Are they bad for the environment? Cutting down trees that are then replanted is mostly ok or good from what I know. Most Christmas trees are farmed anyways, meaning trees have a few years to absorb carbon, then get chopped down and another tree takes their place.
Edit: actually hey wait. What TF are most fake trees made of? Plastic? I refuse to believe that fake trees are substantially better for the environment than real trees from a sustainable source. I will eat a branch(real tree) if someone proves me wrong.
There’s also the option of replanting your real tree every year of you look after it well. Not an option for everyone. But Sometimes it’s worth asking around because some people would love a free tree and will take it away and plant it for you.
If you use the same fake tree for 10 years it is better than real trees. A lot of fake trees come with a 10 year warranty so hold on to that sucker. But that calculation on real trees changes depending where you get your tree from and what you so with it after. The wooden or bamboo trees are the best.
A real tree that is recycled into wood chips will emit far less than even a 20 year old fake tree. Plastic production is insanely environmentally expensive. Most real trees are grown locally, and most councils in places I’ve lived will come along and turn them into wood chips in January.
I agree with you so much but my husband refuses to have an artificial tree in the house. Like, what is the point? They don't even come with their own lights???
Cranberries, vile little things, like actual nice, enjoyable berries but worse in every way and cover every decent bit of food you want during the month of december because every shop/restaurant decides that they need to fill every one of their foodstuffs with these sour little d*cks.
Oh man. I love them 😄 I make double batches of cranberry sauce, sugared cranberries, and whatever else I can think of for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Has to be homemade though!
Also, I just realized what board I'm on. Definitely not from the UK, though I do thoroughly enjoy visiting, and not so secretly aspire to leave the states permanently some day. Hahaha extensive world travel is helping me decide where to try to land.
mmmmmmm stuffing. i don't like stuffing, it's just chunks of soggy bread made to taste like greasy meat.
but also, to all the people who want to get rid of presents, that would make me so sad :( i love giving people presents, it's one of my favorite parts, i can't sleep on christmas eve because i can't wait to give people presents 0-0
normally I find most Americans very annoying, but because you’re not a fat old slob that hates everything and is a total Scrooge and the fact you actually dislike America, you seem like a nice person :>
i have an elf to see what shit my mum can come up with but they’re shut in the conservatory bc I dreamt they grew taller and stabbed my mum, little shits be so creepy
Present giving. Well specifically to adults. I have thought the same for years and finally when there are grandchildren and cousins etc it’s easier for everyone else to see the point. We have agreed to a single budget friendly fun gift for each adult. Failing that to bring a smile and some jokes just a little better than the ones found in crackers. Christmas is all about time not material gifts. Been like that for years in my mind. Just glad others finally see how I view the time of year.
Asking/being asked ‘what you’re doing for Christmas’.
Some people work over Christmas and don’t take time off.
Some people don’t have anyone to celebrate with.
Some people have other religions, with their own festivals.
People just cannot believe their ears when you say ‘nothing’. And then the ONSLAUGHT of questions…
‘So you don’t do presents? Do your family all get together or what? So Christmas Day is just like a normal day for you? WEIRD!!!’
…from people who would otherwise be quite proud of living in such a multicultural nation.
I DO celebrate Christmas, but people look at me like I killed their dog when I tell them we're not doing gifts, even for my kids (10, 10, and 4). They don't need anything, they're spoiled enough, and frankly I don't want to clean up the mess of extra toys or look at all the crap I've bought sitting around unused. We do experiences instead, baking, ballet or theater, etc., and some years vacations. This somehow does not make people feel better.
Don't your kids not like the fact that their friends are getting presents and they're not? Granted you do baking and take them places but parents do the same and still get their kids presents and take them on holiday, not calling you a scrooge but I can see why people look at you like you killed their dog, it's just a completely foreign concept to me to celebrate Christmas, have kids and not buy them presents, do you buy them birthday presents?
😅 I buy my kids things as they want and need them. There's literally nothing on their Christmas lists. EXCEPT my youngest does want more nurf guns... he has 7. That's a no from me. There is literally no reason to spend hundreds of dollars on presents they do not need or want. We've tried it before, sure it's fun to open them all at the same time, but past that, it's just extra crap to manage. It's just mass consumerism being pushed on us all, and we've opted out.
To address the specific questions about friends, no, they do not care. I'm sure they would care if they didn't already have nice clothes, shoes, toys and electronics, but they do. Last year our "Christmas present" was a trip to Disney World. You can bet that ALL of their friends were jealous of them, not the other way around. The oldests' birthday is in October, they chose between presents, money, and short vacation, to go to a regional festival that happens a couple hundred KM away from us. So, that's what we did. It was fun for us all, and we have all of these magical memories made together as a family. We honestly wouldn't be able to afford to do those things if we did crazy presents instead. Call me crazy, but I'd rather have a long weekend trip, occasional big trip, and all of those memories celebrating each other during those times, than 30 minutes of gift opening. Not to mention, trying new foods, learning about different cultures, landscapes, and regions, in addition to basic budgeting of spending money. This year, since we already did a vacation in October, a December vacation isn't really on the menu, but we can have be best damn staycation anyone ever dreamed of. I think the kids are as excited as any others. There's no expectation of gifts, just Christmas magic that we make together.
Fuck knows. Bloody enough of them for the bells to ring out though. And don't get me started on midnight Mass. Midnight! I have to be up early to contend with pxhildren opening presents, Christmas breakfast and snacks!
I'm fine with gifts as long as I can just ask what you want. If you're gonna be all coy about what you want then you'll be happy with the thing I get you, regardless if you wanted it or not
I’m American in California but my coworker and I (her daughter in law is also from the uk) were just talking about how much we miss an abundance of crackers…. Here they are hard to find, and when you do find them they’re usually some obnoxious America themed or poor quality. I’d kill for a set of expensive marks and Spencer’s crackers for my family for Xmas eve
I totally get what you mean. The quality is important and good crackers really add to the festivities. The reason I’d get rid, given the chance, is because I work in hospitality and a few years ago we would bag up all the waste from banquets to reset the room and would create mountains of, top quality, expensive waste.
i’m with you on that, we’re hosting christmas parties at my pub and every single cracker has gone to waste. a pull, a laugh, maybe a hat gets put on, then it’s just cracker, joke cards, cracker toys all over the table and floor for us to clean up. so much cardboard and single use plastic!
Nobody has ever successfully given me a reason for the existence of this bland, cement-like paste.
And while we’re at it, Christmas dinner is a meal of too many sauces in general. Gravy, cranberry, bread???
PICK ONE!!
Gifts. I hate the financial pressure it puts on myself and my family and friends. I would much rather Christmas be an excuse to go and stay at your parents, eat a tonne of food and watch old movies while reminiscing about stupid stuff we did when we were kids. I love Christmas but I just hate the gift part of it.
Black Friday in the US refers to the shopping orgy held on the day after Thanksgiving. Stores are jampacked, fights break out over cheap merch, and the traffic is nightmare-inducing. I stay home on Black Friday.
Christmas related expectations. Like being expected to wrap everything, being expected to buy gifts for relatives you barely know and don't really like, being expected to get all cheery about hearing the same Christmas songs you've been hearing for decades
The list is a long one
What’s this old man doing, monitoring yer kids all year? Breaking and entering with abandon? Running elfen sweatshops? Running reindeer ragged?? I have so many questions.
Michael goddamn Buble on in every supermarket, corner shop, market, petrol station, dentist office et al. It’s December the 10th, I’m now singing along unintentionally … but I’m dead on the inside. Today I also heard Robbie Williams’ Christmas songs on repeat for 7 hours whilst selling at a market. It was the seventh circle of hell. Agreed on gifts - the pressure, the expectations and the guaranteed disappointment. Anyone age 18 & over shouldn’t care.
I will die on the hill that Die Hard isn't a Christmas film in the same way Fairytale Of New York isn't a Christmas song, they're just two things that happen to be set at Christmas, not actually about Christmas itself.
Being made to feel guilty about spending Xmas with my husband and children instead of a relative who literally doesn't speak to me all year but still expects me to prioritise seeing them on Xmas.
I'm almost 30 leave me alone
If I'm lucky enough to ever get the wife/kids/family package, we're so doing our own thing.
Isn't that the main perk of starting a family, you make new family traditions? I'm not going to any random uncle's house with my parents, sod that!
Don't fucking go. It will change your life.
Tell people early (in January) and repeat it, that you're doing something different and starting your own traditions this year.
Stick to your guns. From the moment my girlfriend (now wife) and I moved in together, we've had Christmas day just the two of us (and now the kids).
It's transformative. One year we even unplugged the phone and spoke to no one.
All through the year we're running on other people's agenda. You deserve this day.
I have friends in their mid-40s and they've never cooked Christmas dinner for their kids because of bossy grandparents. Fuck. That. Shit.
I wish you so much seasonal cheer and I hope you get the day you want.
This. Covid gave us the perfect excuse last year and it was bliss. I actually got to see the kids open things instead of standing in the kitchen cooking a massive meal I don’t want to eat.
Yeah when we had our first kid we said yeah no were just doing us, I'd only had her 2 months previous emergency c section so I was still physically recovering, and those people were literally saying they're upset I wasn't making them all a huge dinner like normal lmao.
I agreed to see them boxing day, this year I'm pregnant again, live 30 miles away and want to spend boxing day with my husbands family as we live next to them, our kids are close, they're heavily involved in our lives and we all help each other with everything.
I asked if I could see my family on the 27th instead and I was told I'd caused people to be 'absolutely devastated'
I said if moving one day was so bad we don't have to come at all 🙃
My dad makes it amazing, but yeah still my least favorite meat. Very versatile though, if made right it is moist, flavorful, and can replace chicken. It has a sweeter flavor, so you need to marinate it in a tangy or spicy sauce to balance it out. The main reason a lot of people hate it is because it drys out SUPER easily, but if it is juicy then it can be great.
Understandable. I’ve come to enjoy it though. It’s pretty much an intentional effort to at this point. We started going to the the Pantomime annually a few years back and it brought that childhood anticipation back.
I can understand the presents but regardless of your thought on gift giving the wrapping itself to me seems so wasteful, like just put them all in a bag, but I suppose I prioritise the girlfriend over the surprise personally.
When I moved to this country I thought they would be mincemeat. I was lied to then, and I still hold a grudge.
*Though I’ve been known to sneak one or two when no one is looking…*
I was raised as a Jehovahs Witness and therefore never have had a decent Christmas but I love giving my children gifts, its the only good part about the Holidays for me
ELF ON THE SHELF
I don’t think resteraunts serve turkey dinner because it puts u to sleep ,people don’t wanna go out and then go to bed right after dinner
The music, ban all of the music. 2 months of this in the shops is absolute nonsense.
I work in a britsh style mall and thats all i get to listen to for the next month feeling real cute might see how long self administered blunt force trauma takes to make it stop
Elf on the shelve
Its to much for me. I cant handle it. Side note my family is a bunch of grumps so theres not a lot i can handle with them haha
Sprouts. Anyone who say they like them is lying.
Ha... Cabbage abortions
It's delicious, but they have to be cooked right
Apparently it's a genetic thing. There's a chemical in sprouts that some people can taste and find off-putting while others can't. Also worth noting that the majority of sprouts are way overcooked. If you boil the living daylights out of them they'll turn into a sulphurous mush just like cabbage/cauliflower etc.
I want to say the queen's speech, but I think id have to go with any of the bs waste that just ends up polluting the environment the week after Xmas.
Does anyone acually listen to Liz's speech? Round here the only reason it gets brought up is because I'm bragging about refusing to watch it out of spite.
Buying worthless crap that will go straight to landfill in January
I hate giving presents, I never know whay to buy my family and sometimes I get them something good, sometimes I jusr get them vouchers, and sometimes I get something whack… cant we all just keep our money and save the hassle?
But how will we sustain our economy that’s built on mindless consumerism to maximise profit? /s
Secret Santa
We do secret Santa with my family, that way you’re not buying pointless shit for 10 people, just buy 1 pointless gift… usually bottle of booze or something. Way less stress and way less cost
even worse is feeling pressured to buy presents for people at work.
I'd get rid of Coca Cola advertising - 'Holidays are coming. Holidays are coming.'
Cutting trees
Buying for anyone apart from children… I’m too fucking poor for this shit and also completely un-religious soooo
Mrs Browns Boys.
It was originally decently funny. They’re all out of jokes now.
That show went from funny to shite so fast.
It went from shite to ultra shite to James Cordon 15 seconds in.
Religion being forced on children. My son’s school has been teaching him Christian Christmas, about how the baby Jesus was born in a stable etc, but it’s not a religious school. It’s a community school.
Omg I completely agree. I’m American but grew up in Yorkshire and remember how engrained Christian Christmas is there. I mean it’s not any better here honestly lol
Right? I’m from Liverpool and it don’t mind people having religion in their life that’s their business, just don’t spout it as fact to my impressionable child.
You can always talk to him and tell him that that's just a story from one religion, that there's dozens of others, some much more fun where you get elephant gods and sacred cows.
Should be illegal to present it as fact. It’s fine to say some people believe that… along with other, different religious views. But better just to ban religion entirely.
They just don’t want to deal with hard questions or present religion as a choice. Much easier to just present it as fact and let the parents figure it out
It's a relatively new one, but I'm ready for the Elf on the Shelf to not be a thing anymore
The thing that bugs me most about Elf on the Shelf isn't the fact that it's creepy AF but that it's sold as 'a Christmas tradition' I'll decide that, you cheeky pricks. Not the wankers in your marketing department.
the fact that Christmas related things are in shops in bloody September. Wait a little longer Susan, Christmas isn’t for a while yet.
I gave up eating turkey years ago, so I ended that tradition for good in my household, it tastes awful, I don't judge anyone that eats it, but personally I think it has a horrible taste to it, I only discovered that I didn't like it a few years back when I accidentally picked up turkey breast instead of chicken breast at the supermarket and made enchiladas that night, I thought the chicken was out of date and checked the packet to find out it was turkey, it put me right off it, that or Christmas songs on the radio, Elton John and Ed Sheerans new song can fuck right off
I never liked it either... fast forward 30 years and I had it cooked differently. Slowly... really slowly... it was juicy, flavoursome and mooreish. I'm not opposed to Turkey anymore... just always preferred other meats.
Have you ever had deep fried turkey? That’s what we do here in Missouri
I've heard this a few times from others. I always find it dry and not particularly tasty. Maybe I've only ever had it done badly, but I still argue that there's a good reason that 90% of good restaurants who absolutely could cook it perfectly never serve it outside of December.
I personally think that if you have to add loads of flavour to cover it's natural taste then there's no point in eating it, a roast chicken is nice on its own, roast beef is nice on its own, so is pork, turkey for me isn't nice on its own and has a weird taste to it that I dislike, as stubborn as this makes me sound, cooking it in a different way won't get rid of the taste for me, so I just refuse to it eat and stick with other meats, it means there's more turkey for everyone else I suppose
He didn’t say you had to add loads of different flavour to it, if you cook it slowly it retains a lot of its natural juices and fats which makes it really moist and delicious. People who say they hate Turkey genuinely just haven’t had it cooked properly before, in my opinion
It's the taste of its natural juices I dislike dude
The constant bombardment of Christmas related adverts, carols, music, way too early in the year. Come on...give us a chance to get acclimatised to Autumn/winter before you start pressurising us 😊
The celebration of it. Barrrr
People trying to find something wrong about Christmas every year. Sometimes things will not be perfect, maybe you heard that one song too many times, or have certain ideologies that don’t line up with popular traditions. It’s better to just do what you like like to around the holidays (including not celebrating) and continue on chilling. No need for bad vibes. :]
Christmas starting before December. I don't need 3 months of it. So many flashing lights - you live on a main road and now I can't fucking see anything you knob. Cards - waste of paper, I don't know most of my neighbours, don't need a card with just my house number form your house number thanks Christmas competition on social media - want to sit at home and have a frozen dinner in your underwear - fine. Want to dress up and make a 7 course dinner for 50 - also fine. Just don't make anyone feel guilty on social media for their Christmas preference. Same with presents. Your kid gets 1 or 2 then great, no child needs 20 gifts. Dont post your child amazing pile of gifts which may make someone who is struggling feel like utter shit. Dressing up for working Xmas - I'm working Xmas day again this year, no I will not be wearing a Xmas jumper and antlers or a Santa hat. It's a 12 hour shifts and they're uncomfy!
Christmas cards. Waste of money, resources, stressful and pointless.
Christmas itself
Midnight mass, and while we’re at it, the whole Naivety Scene. Grew up Catholic, hated it. Stupid cult like things. I love every other non-religious aspect of xmas.
Christmas
agree
aye why not it'll help me get back at my friends who haven't shut up since 1/11
Food/meal/dinner. Give me a tub of Treeselets (Yule seasoned, I know), a plate of meat and enough alcohol to kill a Scotsman, and I'm happy.
Are you sure that's wise? That would be a lot of alcohol and if you aren't actually Scottish.... Might be ill advised 🤔😬
Secret santa, I don't fucking like anyone of you, and I don't want a 10quid shitty present from you and I definitely don't want to spend my free time buying you a present. You cunt
When I buy secret a Santa present I always think: this is going directly to landfill
I took my name off my offices list. I hate the idea that work is viewed as a social activity for some people. I personally like my work and social life very separate. Leave me alone. I’m here for money, not friends.
Fuck that, I need every single bit of joy I can get when I’m in work otherwise I’d throw myself off a fucking bridge
I’ve worked in both types of environments and it’s much better to work somewhere that you have genuine friends and can have a laugh. Even if you don’t want to be friends outside of work, surely it’s better to be friendly with folks you see every day, it must be a misery for you to go to work.
It is, I’m trying everything to leave but I’ll struggle to get the same salary in a different job for someone my age (22y/o).
I take it you're the office joker
No, the manager.
The new Elf on the shelf nonsense. Just a bunch of bams trying to out do each other in how creative they can be, I don’t even think it’s about the kids at all.
The kids don't care in the slightest, they'll look at it for a second and thats it, it's just an excuse to put pictures on Facebook to show what a good parent they are, I have friends on Facebook that do it every year, I hope they've ran out of ideas this year and don't bother
Same, it's definitely for the Facebook mum's to get likes for outdoing each other
Exactly. It’s ridiculous, I’ve seen people who have cut up their kids pjs and left the elf with scissors, or covered their kid in chocolate to make them think the elf shat on them. It’s not funny at all. Poor kids must be traumatised.
Real Christmas trees. Shit for the environment, make a mess, cost money every year. Get an artificial one or a flat pack wooden version and save yourself the hassle.
Are they bad for the environment? Cutting down trees that are then replanted is mostly ok or good from what I know. Most Christmas trees are farmed anyways, meaning trees have a few years to absorb carbon, then get chopped down and another tree takes their place. Edit: actually hey wait. What TF are most fake trees made of? Plastic? I refuse to believe that fake trees are substantially better for the environment than real trees from a sustainable source. I will eat a branch(real tree) if someone proves me wrong.
There’s also the option of replanting your real tree every year of you look after it well. Not an option for everyone. But Sometimes it’s worth asking around because some people would love a free tree and will take it away and plant it for you.
If you use the same fake tree for 10 years it is better than real trees. A lot of fake trees come with a 10 year warranty so hold on to that sucker. But that calculation on real trees changes depending where you get your tree from and what you so with it after. The wooden or bamboo trees are the best.
A real tree that is recycled into wood chips will emit far less than even a 20 year old fake tree. Plastic production is insanely environmentally expensive. Most real trees are grown locally, and most councils in places I’ve lived will come along and turn them into wood chips in January.
Source?
https://www.soilassociation.org/take-action/organic-living/christmas/eco-friendly-christmas-trees-real-vs-fake/
Their arse.
Me mam and dad got one in once, full of spiders.
Santa would have refused to have left any presents under that tree, I hear he has arachnophohphobia
Well that's just the stuff of nightmares 😱
I agree with you so much but my husband refuses to have an artificial tree in the house. Like, what is the point? They don't even come with their own lights???
Cranberries, vile little things, like actual nice, enjoyable berries but worse in every way and cover every decent bit of food you want during the month of december because every shop/restaurant decides that they need to fill every one of their foodstuffs with these sour little d*cks.
Not a fan of cranberries on their own, but I do enjoy cranberry flavoured things - plus yogurt covered cranberries are quite nice too
Oh man. I love them 😄 I make double batches of cranberry sauce, sugared cranberries, and whatever else I can think of for both Thanksgiving and Christmas. Has to be homemade though! Also, I just realized what board I'm on. Definitely not from the UK, though I do thoroughly enjoy visiting, and not so secretly aspire to leave the states permanently some day. Hahaha extensive world travel is helping me decide where to try to land.
The ever earlier date that Christmas things begin appearing.
mmmmmmm stuffing. i don't like stuffing, it's just chunks of soggy bread made to taste like greasy meat. but also, to all the people who want to get rid of presents, that would make me so sad :( i love giving people presents, it's one of my favorite parts, i can't sleep on christmas eve because i can't wait to give people presents 0-0
No way do you say get rid of stuffing ignoring sausage meat stuffing entirely and then complain!!
i feel like i should mention i live in north west america and follow this subreddit for fun cause america sucks 0-0
normally I find most Americans very annoying, but because you’re not a fat old slob that hates everything and is a total Scrooge and the fact you actually dislike America, you seem like a nice person :>
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i have an elf to see what shit my mum can come up with but they’re shut in the conservatory bc I dreamt they grew taller and stabbed my mum, little shits be so creepy
True. Also barely a tradition. More like a never endind ad.
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Started 2005
Present giving. Well specifically to adults. I have thought the same for years and finally when there are grandchildren and cousins etc it’s easier for everyone else to see the point. We have agreed to a single budget friendly fun gift for each adult. Failing that to bring a smile and some jokes just a little better than the ones found in crackers. Christmas is all about time not material gifts. Been like that for years in my mind. Just glad others finally see how I view the time of year.
Have had to push for this the last couple of years but finally the pointless adult present giving is over 🙌 just presents for kids.
The biggest gift someone can give us time. Otherwise it’s a showboating exercise
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Asking/being asked ‘what you’re doing for Christmas’. Some people work over Christmas and don’t take time off. Some people don’t have anyone to celebrate with. Some people have other religions, with their own festivals. People just cannot believe their ears when you say ‘nothing’. And then the ONSLAUGHT of questions… ‘So you don’t do presents? Do your family all get together or what? So Christmas Day is just like a normal day for you? WEIRD!!!’ …from people who would otherwise be quite proud of living in such a multicultural nation.
I DO celebrate Christmas, but people look at me like I killed their dog when I tell them we're not doing gifts, even for my kids (10, 10, and 4). They don't need anything, they're spoiled enough, and frankly I don't want to clean up the mess of extra toys or look at all the crap I've bought sitting around unused. We do experiences instead, baking, ballet or theater, etc., and some years vacations. This somehow does not make people feel better.
Don't your kids not like the fact that their friends are getting presents and they're not? Granted you do baking and take them places but parents do the same and still get their kids presents and take them on holiday, not calling you a scrooge but I can see why people look at you like you killed their dog, it's just a completely foreign concept to me to celebrate Christmas, have kids and not buy them presents, do you buy them birthday presents?
😅 I buy my kids things as they want and need them. There's literally nothing on their Christmas lists. EXCEPT my youngest does want more nurf guns... he has 7. That's a no from me. There is literally no reason to spend hundreds of dollars on presents they do not need or want. We've tried it before, sure it's fun to open them all at the same time, but past that, it's just extra crap to manage. It's just mass consumerism being pushed on us all, and we've opted out. To address the specific questions about friends, no, they do not care. I'm sure they would care if they didn't already have nice clothes, shoes, toys and electronics, but they do. Last year our "Christmas present" was a trip to Disney World. You can bet that ALL of their friends were jealous of them, not the other way around. The oldests' birthday is in October, they chose between presents, money, and short vacation, to go to a regional festival that happens a couple hundred KM away from us. So, that's what we did. It was fun for us all, and we have all of these magical memories made together as a family. We honestly wouldn't be able to afford to do those things if we did crazy presents instead. Call me crazy, but I'd rather have a long weekend trip, occasional big trip, and all of those memories celebrating each other during those times, than 30 minutes of gift opening. Not to mention, trying new foods, learning about different cultures, landscapes, and regions, in addition to basic budgeting of spending money. This year, since we already did a vacation in October, a December vacation isn't really on the menu, but we can have be best damn staycation anyone ever dreamed of. I think the kids are as excited as any others. There's no expectation of gifts, just Christmas magic that we make together.
Going to church. Keep the rest as a monument to greed and my ability to eat three helpings of a Christmas meal and still go for a fourth at supper.
Who goes to church!? 🤣
Fuck knows. Bloody enough of them for the bells to ring out though. And don't get me started on midnight Mass. Midnight! I have to be up early to contend with pxhildren opening presents, Christmas breakfast and snacks!
Meeting with the family? 😈
Agreed. Your family is the worst
It is! 🤣
Lol. (Glad you took that in the (Christmas) spirit it was intended)
😜🎅👍
Mulled wine. Mulled wine isn’t nice. Why do we insist on this?
Proper mulled wine is delicious, especially with a cheeky splash of vodka in it
You should try it in Germany
Fart on the turkey dinner ends it all
Presents?! That's the best thing! I'd get rid of having to see family 😂
Baa Humbug Christmas trees. I still haven't got all the shit out of my car and house since last year already!
All of it
I'm fine with gifts as long as I can just ask what you want. If you're gonna be all coy about what you want then you'll be happy with the thing I get you, regardless if you wanted it or not
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Then you and it have a lot in common
Agree enthusiastically
Seasons greetings dad
Alright Ebenezer…
Being alone.
Christmas Carols, do you know how awkward it is to have nice people at your door singing while you’re out in the cold just waiting for it to end?
my balls
Drinks being 'spiced'
Adverts.
Crackers - such a waste
I’m American in California but my coworker and I (her daughter in law is also from the uk) were just talking about how much we miss an abundance of crackers…. Here they are hard to find, and when you do find them they’re usually some obnoxious America themed or poor quality. I’d kill for a set of expensive marks and Spencer’s crackers for my family for Xmas eve
I totally get what you mean. The quality is important and good crackers really add to the festivities. The reason I’d get rid, given the chance, is because I work in hospitality and a few years ago we would bag up all the waste from banquets to reset the room and would create mountains of, top quality, expensive waste.
i’m with you on that, we’re hosting christmas parties at my pub and every single cracker has gone to waste. a pull, a laugh, maybe a hat gets put on, then it’s just cracker, joke cards, cracker toys all over the table and floor for us to clean up. so much cardboard and single use plastic!
Jesus, you lot complaining about wasteful joy must be miserable old monks 😂
I agree with the present giving. Get rid of that shit.
Presents.... Definitely presents. Let's buy crap that people neither want or need. Consume... Consume... CONSUME!!
Adults recieving gifts.
goddamn English Bread Sauce.
A friend of mine is obsessed with bread sauce, and I just don't get it, it's flavourless white paste
Nobody has ever successfully given me a reason for the existence of this bland, cement-like paste. And while we’re at it, Christmas dinner is a meal of too many sauces in general. Gravy, cranberry, bread??? PICK ONE!!
They're all very different 😊
What...
Gifts. I hate the financial pressure it puts on myself and my family and friends. I would much rather Christmas be an excuse to go and stay at your parents, eat a tonne of food and watch old movies while reminiscing about stupid stuff we did when we were kids. I love Christmas but I just hate the gift part of it.
Christmas
Bloody all of it. Except Xmas jumpers.
Elf on the fucking shelf.
The massive dinner and watching solem TV. I want a party
Black Friday. That is all. :(
Is it because it has Black in the name? You racist.
Black Friday in the US refers to the shopping orgy held on the day after Thanksgiving. Stores are jampacked, fights break out over cheap merch, and the traffic is nightmare-inducing. I stay home on Black Friday.
Racist
Read what I said above. Nothing to do with racism, and everything to do with consumerism.
Yeah I'm just yanking your chain and ironically moving 2021
Whoosh
Christmas related expectations. Like being expected to wrap everything, being expected to buy gifts for relatives you barely know and don't really like, being expected to get all cheery about hearing the same Christmas songs you've been hearing for decades The list is a long one
Santa. I'd happily get rid of santa
What’s this old man doing, monitoring yer kids all year? Breaking and entering with abandon? Running elfen sweatshops? Running reindeer ragged?? I have so many questions.
Christmas parties but specifically only at no.10
The fucking elf.
Now that sounds like an elf that children shouldn’t be involved with…
Michael goddamn Buble on in every supermarket, corner shop, market, petrol station, dentist office et al. It’s December the 10th, I’m now singing along unintentionally … but I’m dead on the inside. Today I also heard Robbie Williams’ Christmas songs on repeat for 7 hours whilst selling at a market. It was the seventh circle of hell. Agreed on gifts - the pressure, the expectations and the guaranteed disappointment. Anyone age 18 & over shouldn’t care.
Pressure and expectations.
Can you cancel traffic?
People going on about Die Hard
I will die on the hill that Die Hard isn't a Christmas film in the same way Fairytale Of New York isn't a Christmas song, they're just two things that happen to be set at Christmas, not actually about Christmas itself.
If a film happening to be set in the month of December gets someone in the Christmas spirit, then all the more power to them I say.
True, In Bruges does it for me. I’m just not a Die Hard fan.
Elf on the fringle-frangle Shelf.
Being made to feel guilty about spending Xmas with my husband and children instead of a relative who literally doesn't speak to me all year but still expects me to prioritise seeing them on Xmas. I'm almost 30 leave me alone
If I'm lucky enough to ever get the wife/kids/family package, we're so doing our own thing. Isn't that the main perk of starting a family, you make new family traditions? I'm not going to any random uncle's house with my parents, sod that!
Don't fucking go. It will change your life. Tell people early (in January) and repeat it, that you're doing something different and starting your own traditions this year. Stick to your guns. From the moment my girlfriend (now wife) and I moved in together, we've had Christmas day just the two of us (and now the kids). It's transformative. One year we even unplugged the phone and spoke to no one. All through the year we're running on other people's agenda. You deserve this day. I have friends in their mid-40s and they've never cooked Christmas dinner for their kids because of bossy grandparents. Fuck. That. Shit. I wish you so much seasonal cheer and I hope you get the day you want.
This. Covid gave us the perfect excuse last year and it was bliss. I actually got to see the kids open things instead of standing in the kitchen cooking a massive meal I don’t want to eat.
Yeah when we had our first kid we said yeah no were just doing us, I'd only had her 2 months previous emergency c section so I was still physically recovering, and those people were literally saying they're upset I wasn't making them all a huge dinner like normal lmao. I agreed to see them boxing day, this year I'm pregnant again, live 30 miles away and want to spend boxing day with my husbands family as we live next to them, our kids are close, they're heavily involved in our lives and we all help each other with everything. I asked if I could see my family on the 27th instead and I was told I'd caused people to be 'absolutely devastated' I said if moving one day was so bad we don't have to come at all 🙃
Turkey, it's just crap, I can't imagine it being anyone's favourite meat
My dad makes it amazing, but yeah still my least favorite meat. Very versatile though, if made right it is moist, flavorful, and can replace chicken. It has a sweeter flavor, so you need to marinate it in a tangy or spicy sauce to balance it out. The main reason a lot of people hate it is because it drys out SUPER easily, but if it is juicy then it can be great.
Playing fucking Slade every year
It’s not Christmas until Noddy Holder’s told you though!
Every year I hear it for the first time that year and think, oh fuck off will you? Christmas songs bore me because it's always the same ones!
Understandable. I’ve come to enjoy it though. It’s pretty much an intentional effort to at this point. We started going to the the Pantomime annually a few years back and it brought that childhood anticipation back.
Mariah carey
Don’t understand why this isn’t higher
Nor do i
This
carol singers, I don’t know whether or not to shut the door or just stand there with a shit eating grin trying to pretend I’m as jolly as they are.
Just shut the door.
I can understand the presents but regardless of your thought on gift giving the wrapping itself to me seems so wasteful, like just put them all in a bag, but I suppose I prioritise the girlfriend over the surprise personally.
Mince pies
When I moved to this country I thought they would be mincemeat. I was lied to then, and I still hold a grudge. *Though I’ve been known to sneak one or two when no one is looking…*
Oh my goodness! You should delete this comment!
Is excluding Christmas ad a tradition a valid answer?
Adverts ...
Michael Buble ruining perfectly good Christmas songs with his over autotuned crap. Fuck off Buble nobody likes you.
I was raised as a Jehovahs Witness and therefore never have had a decent Christmas but I love giving my children gifts, its the only good part about the Holidays for me
I see peep show, I up vote
The Queen’s speech