I hate Christmas. Who's with me?

jackieblack

DomRavioli wrote: »

in 14 years I have never had a thank you from anyone who came through my doors (to be expected), nor their families or next of kin.

I think that is disgraceful! :mad:
I always make a point of thanking someone who's helped me, no matter what day of the year it is.

Jagraf

DomRavioli wrote: »

I love Christmas Day; hate the build up apart from a party we have gone to for the last 15 years where we get to see old friends.

I spent the last 14 years working shifts (including christmas eve night/christmas day morning, christmas day time, christmas day night, new years eve night and new years day morning), and both my parents and both siblings work shifts. This year, I have to work christmas day, my parents are off, my sister is on call (so could have to go at the drop of a hat), and my brother flies back at 10pm Christmas Eve (a quick 2 hour round trip to the airport!).

We as a family don't have the luxury of having time off when it is co-ordinated, this is the first christmas I will spend with all of them for 7 years, and I cannot wait to see my brother (who I haven't seen face to face for almost a year!).

So to all those who say you can have family days when you want - I work for the NHS (we don't close for holidays, and I'm permanently on call as a senior duty officer), my sister is a social worker for at risk children (again, permanently on call), my mum works in healthcare, my dad works in transport and spends most days on call, and my brother is a flight attendant - again always on call/standby.

We don't get the luxury of weekends, let alone "family days"; we look after the vulnerable and sick, usually without a thought from the public on days like christmas where we would rather be with our families, but instead we look after everyone else's families. The last time we were all together at any occasion was around 8 years ago; schedules are not flexible.

It just makes me so sad and a little angry that you all take this for granted. Every christmas day, there are doctors, nurses, paramedics, police, fire, even the AA, who aren't spending christmas with their loved ones, but looking after someone else's loved ones.

To the OP - perhaps it would be wise if you took that day and helped others - Take a box of chocs to your A&E department, volunteer with the elderly who don't have any family, just don't sit on your behind and do nothing.

I think sometimes people don't like christmas because of some of the things you have probably been working on.

My daughter was ill in hospital one year over christmas, every other year I have had to spend christmas without seing her (through divorce), one year three days before christmas we found out my mum had breast cancer, most of the last decade we have struggled to make ends meet through debt so couldn't afford it etc. I live for times I can spend time with people, rather than seeing it ultimately as"christmas day is family time".

Looking after someone else's loved ones is hard on Christmas Day, but you do a hard job every day.

Rebel_Cause

I like the actual day and period because I get a couple of weeks off work!

I hate the hype and build-up towards the day. The incessant adverts and how people indebt themselves for one day, I just don't get it!

I started getting presents with in October and more or less done, don't worry, I haven't been hypocritical, I have used my debit card! LOL

Pollycat

DomRavioli wrote: »

That's your opinion, but in 14 years I have never had a thank you from anyone who came through my doors (to be expected), nor their families or next of kin.

Why is lack of verbal appreciation 'to be expected'?

If I invited people over for a meal - Christmas dinner or any other meal - and didn't get a 'thank you', it would be the last time they were invited.

Jagraf

Pollycat wrote: »

Why is lack of verbal appreciation 'to be expected'?

If I invited people over for a meal - Christmas dinner or any other meal - and didn't get a 'thank you', it would be the last time they were invited.

I think Dom was talking about work.

Pollycat

Jagraf wrote: »

I think Dom was talking about work.

:rotfl:

I see now. Silly me.

But I still don't see why no thanks should be expected.

jaylee3

going_nowhere_fast wrote: »

I actually love Christmas but hate the way all my friends, family members, colleagues, TV shows, adverts etc all show big family gatherings.

I'm a single mum to one child. We never get included with siblings celebrations, friends are with their own families and my parents sadly passed away.

LO is happy spending the day just the two us, playing with new toys and would be happy with beans on toast for Christmas dinner! But I miss being part of a large family gathering, I feel the odd one out and worry that LO will find Christmas boring alone with just mum when they are a teenager / young adult.

We have no visitors over the Christmas period because everyone is so 'busy', we never get invited over and I have stopped inviting them to ours because quite frankly its upsetting to be reminded they have no time for you or your child.

Don't get me started on the lack of phone calls. I realised last year that although I ring family to wish them merry Christmas they have yet to ever ring me so this year I wont be bothering.

I feel for you so much, and that is very sad, especially as you have siblings..... but I think you would be surprised at the amount of people who are more like you, rather than the people you name in your post (who supposedly have amazing HUGE family Christmases.)

In my road, there are around 20 houses that I can see from my house, and the vast majority of them have people living there who have very few visitors, and most of them have very few at Christmas.

I think the 'big huge family Christmas' type of scenario that we see on the tv on adverts and Eastenders and Corrie etc, is the exception, rather than the rule. I have siblings and cousins and do see some of them between mid December and the 23rd to swap pressies, but then it's just me and DH from then to New Year's Eve, apart from Boxing day when we go to DH's parents house.

I can't be doing with people around my house at Christmas, and DH is same. Our parents go away, (usually from 22nd/23rd to 4th/5th January,) and have done for the past 10 years. It caused my sister and brother to kick off when they started to do it, but were told to suck it up by our parents.

I bet your daughter thinks you're the best mother in the universe, and it makes me sad and angry that you're putting yourself down like this! :mad:

She will have the most wonderful memories of her childhood, and the Christmases that she has shared with you.

Jagraf wrote: »

This reminds me of my ex who always had to give me a figure of just how many people he had round in his big house for Christmas Day. I always felt in competition, although I dd have family.

I still wait for his figures .... "We have 25 for christmas lunch" or "we've had to borrow chairs from all the neighbours". It's funny now but at the time I just felt inferior.

The funniest thing is that he doesn't even like his family it just looks good for the photographs.

Sounds like someone is trying to prove something.

I wonder if it WAS so great for your ex? Things are rarely as amazing as people make them out to be.

As for Christmas... Well I do like it, but I have to say that I am sick of it being rammed down our throats from November 1st, and am sick of all the commercials too. I do like it, but don't feel immense excitement, especially as I don't have children. (Although I do have nieces and nephews, and friends with children, so I must say that I do feel a bit of their excitement.)

But as I said, we don't see any of my family after 23rd December, until New Year's Eve. Except we do see DH's family on Boxing day, when we have a buffet with his folks and his brother and wife, and their 2 kiddies. Me and DH usually go for a Christmas meal on the 24th too, at a village inn we love. We just have a buffet on Christmas day.

We do like the Carol service, and Christingle, and the Christmas morning service at the local Church though, and also, we go to a couple of Christmas Nativity plays (of my nieces and nephews.) Also, we enjoy the Christmas films, (and programmes,) and I do like the house being decorated, and all the lights we put over it. We don't have a lot of food and booze, but do have a few special treats. And of course the pressies are nice. But I can understand people who get irked by all the Christmas craziness. And don't even get me started on Black Friday. :mad: That just brings out the worst in people. Just awful!

Oh and I have to say that I find it hard to believe that nobody said 'thank you,' to someone working in A & E, in 14 years!!! Also, I think it's out of order to try and guilt trip people who are not working Christmas.

System

I love Christmas.... of course its not the same now the children are grown up and all but 1 left home but i hate the financial side of it.

gabriel1980

burlington6 wrote: »

Everything but what Christmas is actually about.

I mentioned presents

Pollycat

jaylee3 wrote: »

As for Christmas... Well I do like it, but I have to say that I am sick of it being rammed down our throats from November 1st, and am sick of all the commercials too.

Just closed the curtains in the study and the house across the way has got Christmas lights in their window. :eek: