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No – and neither am I.
I see adverts are starting to appear on the TV and other areas of the media, supermarkets are stocked to the rafters with mince pies and I’m being pestered to put together a pressie list of what I’d like – top of that list will be for personal peace and others to have a sense of timeliness.
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Yes, gathering nice items piecemeal as and when I/ we see them. The "big present" mentality is over for us, we like to assemblage instead.
No
My local town has of this week put up the Xmas lights - but not switched them on.
I can only hope they got a discount from contractors for putting them up early. And I don't want to see them switched on until very late November at the earliest.
[url= http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/omg-where-has-all-the-time-gone-cake-issues ]Just started[/url]
I'm making my travel plans and that's it until the 24th
deluded - MemberI see adverts are starting to appear on the TV and other areas of the media, supermarkets are stocked to the rafters with mince pies and I’m being pestered to put together a pressie list of what I’d like – top of that list will be for personal peace and others to have a sense of timeliness.
Point one : I've got three children. There are two - count 'em, TWO - paydays until Christmas. Even if I only spent £50 each on the kids, same on the wife and bought my Xmas dinner from Iceland I'd still be expecting an outlay of £2-300. We'll be spending considerably more than that and I don't want to use credit or have to bounce bills.
So when do you think I should start preparing for it? A week before? ("Oh damn, I've spent all my pay on bills and bike things and didn't prepare for Xmas because some miserable **** on STW said it's not the done thing. You don't mind, do you kids?")
Or perhaps I should prepare for a few months before so that we can all enjoy Xmas without worrying about credit card payments, or the mortgage not being paid?
Point the second : Now bearing in mind what I've just said, put yourself in the shoes of someone who is trying to sell Xmas stuff. Maybe in advertising. When is the perfect time to advertise your Xmas goods? When people still have money to spend, like a couple of months before Xmas? Or would you leave it until December, a week after many people will have received their last paypacket? I don't think you work in sales or marketing, do you?
This is simple stuff, you don't have to be a genius to work it out, yet we still have the same handful of threads appearing every year. And in the real world there are barely any Xmas adverts appearing on the TV yet. I seem to have kids' TV on all the time - it's on as I type - and can only recollect seeing the Disneyland Xmas ad so far. But I don't spend all my time glued to it so may have missed them.
Christmas shopping all done (back in January), working christmas eve into christmas day so that I get the 23rd, 26th and 27th off to go riding.
Just wrapping paper and maybe the odd little extra prezzie I spot while doing normal shopping. Too many years working in retail to even attempt to join the madness in December!!
9th of [b]September[/b] in a hotel near Lanark
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Cake - yes.
Anything else - GTF!
We don't do Christmas (or god(s) for that matter) so it's all just a massive PITA, although there are usually some good programmes on the telly this time of year. As far as presents/tat goes we just buy each other, and ourselves, stuff as and when we feel like it. The whole boom/bust thing got pretty tired a good few years ago.
As above, Really. We don't do anything different to any other weekend. No presents, decorations or meal or family. Love it!
Oh, apart form the 25th and 26th when it is time to ignore the phone and go for a ride. I love riding at christmas, it's like you have the whole world to yourself 😀
Yup.. tree is already up..
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We need a show us your tree thread
cloudnine,
You had it up in August last year 😀
http://singletrackmag.com/forum/topic/when-to-put-up-the-xmas-tree
That reindeer 😯
Only one option..
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Christmas starts in August at Cloudnine towers..
Mrs cloudnine sells christmas decorations and thats when it all starts arriving. Believe it or not we had orders for baubles in early August.
It's canceled in my house. Can't stand it.
I used to be festively challenged when I was a bolshi young student type
'oh it's a commercialised nonsense, stress, money, mass hysteria.. Blah blah blah'
I've got two young kids now though, and we quite enjoy it all
yunki,
... and so do I enjoy it - just not in October.
no.
actively avoiding the Stollen and Lebkuchen aisle in the supermarket too, for weeks. It's not just UK/Woolworths where Christmas starts 1st week of September.
I make a lot of my gifts and have to ship some to Australia so have to think about it now really
thanks for reminding me. I plan on cooking rib this year so I need to go round to the farmers to order it in the next few weeks. 45 days hung and purple and gooey when it goes in the oven 🙂
its not what it used to be, i may be looking through rose tinted specs mind.
i do like christmas and with a 4 year old it does make it nice.
i think it has got alot more commercialised mind, back in the day if you couldnt afford it, you couldnt afford it, now with credit its all gone mad.
overheard the wife talking to her mate about their 12 year old son, ALL his mates have already had xbox ones for christmas, they couldnt afford it but the look on his face they caved in and got it on intrest free!
sign of the times i guess
I love it, and start thinking about appropriate gifts early. Actual Christmas spirit stuff, including decorations wait until December though.
Starting my annual seasonal Christmas tree installation job this week. Ho, ho, ho!
Mrs CD started planning this Christmas as soon as Christmas ended last year. She obsessed by it like at 35 year old child. God knows how bad she'll be once we have kids!
One of our first jobs in January is to order Christmas cards for the shop. Stock for the shop is ordered in February. It starts arriving in July, so I spend a lot of the summer pricing Christmas cards.
We run out of space to store the stock around mid September so that's when it emerges in the shop.
Once the kids go back to school that's when the mums start asking for stuff.
One lady has to sort cards and present for 90 of her husband's staff. She wants as early a start as possible.
I hate Christmas but lots of people love it and can't wait.
Is it December 23rd yet?
I love reading the "No, no,, we don't celebrate anything. Mrsxxxxx & I spend the time in a remote bothy, with ear muffs on & bags over our heads" type replies that predictably pop up on Xmas/Easter threads.
These days I chuckle at the irony of moaning about Xmas starting early by moaning in October. 🙂
Gave my mate his kids (my god children) Xmas presents yesterday, no chance we will see each other again before the big day.
Other than that, nothing done
I used to run the tills & computers in a very large garden centre for several years & had exactly the same thing. Hated the event itself as I'd been dealing with it one way or another for the previous 11 months.One of our first jobs in January is to order Christmas cards for the shop. Stock for the shop is ordered in February. It starts arriving in July, so I spend a lot of the summer pricing Christmas cards.
We run out of space to store the stock around mid September so that's when it emerges in the shop.
Once the kids go back to school that's when the mums start asking for stuff.
I hate Christmas but lots of people love it and can't wait.
Since I quit that job, 17 years ago now, I've really started to enjoy it again but to me its more about Mrs. Pinkster's birthday as that's the 25th December too. We have a little Christmas celebration followed by a big birthday one.
We've booked a trip away with the kids for the few days running up to Christmas (3 days in Disneyland Paris - they are 4 and 7 so the right age for it) and had a few conversations about what to buy the kids but that is about it.
Some christmas lights up in Aviemore already (not switched on though).
Divorce is great - means no crap, no build up, no having to do the whole "but its what my family do every year...."
Kids will be getting their presents on Reyes other than that I will be enjoying clear roads and trails.
Its the most wonderful time of the year... ding dong ding dong, i love Christmas.... mainly due to the kids tbh....
In the words of the great Blackadder...
"May the festive Yule log fall from your fire & burn your house down".
Practicing some of the Christmas treats - marrons glace are going to be homemade this year, and I haven't got them right yet. Other than that, I need to find out who wants what in the way of Christmas puddings, gingerbread, candied orange peel etc and start buying the relevant ingredients. I'll think about presents later, thanks!
Christmas presents for the boys are done from us, grandparents and great grandma plus our closest friends' children too and the overseas relatives. We'll be doing the present swap overs at various social things in November and December AND Mrs gd is awesome at organising this stuff. It also spreads the cost over about four months which is handy.
Conversely we will be one of the last to put decorations up and first to take down.
If by preparing means looking where to go skiing for Christmas then yes we are. Otherwise not a chance yet
Don't have any close family so not too keen on Christmas, but bought a friend some boots for her Christmas present yesterday while we were meandering around a shop. Thought I might as well buy something that she needs and wants, and she was umming and arrghing as to whether she could afford them. So that's all my Christmas presents bought in one easy go.
No I hate Christmas and all it stands for
takisawa2 - Member
I love reading the "No, no,, we don't celebrate anything. Mrsxxxxx & I spend the time in a remote bothy, with ear muffs on & bags over our heads" type replies that predictably pop up on Xmas/Easter threads.
this is the best bit, it's fun to watch how much effort people put in to avoiding something (making a point so that everyone knows how much better they are)
Edric 64 - Member
No I hate Christmas and all it stands for
To me as an atheist and not that bothered about the religious side of it all I see it means a lot more these days. Considering how far people have spread out over the last few decades, the number of young people leaving their home towns and striding out to do something other than their parents did etc. It was always great to have a reason or time when all the family had some time off and were able to get together. If you simply see it as a chance to step away from what you do everyday and get together with friends and family then it's probably a lot better.
We made the puddings and cakes at the weekend, plus I started a brew which hopefully will be ready in time.
mikewsmith - MemberTo me as an atheist and not that bothered about the religious side of it all I see it................ together with friends and family then it's probably a lot better.
I agree with you and also point out that it's a long, long time since the majority of the population thought of Xmas as a religious festival. I'm in my mid 40s and don't remember it being much different when I was a child to how it is now. Yes, we got dragged to the odd school concert and had to learn the odd religious song but I don't think many kids of my age thought of Jesus being more important than piles of presents and a huge meal.
And what's wrong with that? Christians hijacked a mid-winter festival, now it's been stolen by Bacchus and Mammon. (And recently a host of cute little penguins in Santa hats. Puzzlingly!)
I'm looking forward to the Rapha Festive 500 on strava, I hope they run it, it falls well with racing and working commitments.
I'm going to turn my hand to Beef Wellington for the lunch.
I'll be burgling all my neighbours houses on Christmas Eve
Only thought about it so that we can book holidays from work. OH is working 25th so she can get two days off after, which gives us 11 days off in a row. First time since we were kids.
Off to a hopefully snowy Scotland.
[i]I'm going to turn my hand to Beef Wellington for the lunch.[/i]
That's nothing, I'm wrapping my penis in bacon.
I am not concerning myself with the Christy-mouse just yet, whatever the telly says I should be doings. If I spot something worth getting then I will but, I'm not going to of my way for it just yet...
My Missus seems to already be 20% planning / 80% Dreading it though. and I have to say the 2-3 months of increasing stress and panic from her just helps to ruin it for her and half of those around her, if I want anything for Christmas it's for her to calm the **** down about Christmas.
A low stress, low fuss Christmas is all I want, I'll do the catering because I tend not to make a total bloody mess of the kitchen and do a reasonable Roasty...
We'll probably take the kids out for a walk after they've attacked the present pile and watched the Gruffalo again, Have dinner, more presents and possibly a family film, then turn off the telly and force them to play board games with us till bed time... That would do for me, Boxing day can be lazy one, possibly with a short ride for me, and I'm not driving down to my parents till the day after, Sod 'em, they can wait.
I have simply requested vouchers from everyone for Christmas (I may even apply a £10 Cap so nobody feels they have to go silly on me), I honestly don't want people expending effort or vast sums on me when I really don't intend to reciprocate...
I will not be making much effort for anyone other than 'er indoors and our kids, and even then I don't intend to spend loads... The kids are still young enough (five and two) that having lots of little (cheap) things to open on Christmas day will make it far more enjoyable for them than one or two huge spend on one big "As seen on TV" type pressie...
Afterwards, I might stick my fork in a pudding...
Christmas at the Hobos is a pretty expensive time tbh. One of ours has his birthday in December too so after a couple of years we realised we needed to plan better.
This has worked for us for about 7yrs and once you get on top of it you just tend to forget and enjoy. Mrs Hobo saves about £120-£150 per month on dd into a savings account that her sister saves into as well. By Christmas we end up with about £1500 (Easier the second year) in the account which means we never ever spend a penny we don't already have.
The other big bonus is that throughout the year, if anything catches our eyes we can take advantage of opportunities with sales etc. Last weekend my daughter was looking for a bike at £270. The following weekend they had a sale and had the model up that should have been £350 down to £270. Straight in an bought it. The year before we did the same with my lads bmx.
It doesn't dull down Christmas as you can then enjoy getting the presents without the guilt of wether you can afford it and you can pat yourself on the back for being so organised.
The other benefit being that if the sheesh hits the fan you still have the cash to bail you out of trouble.
Not even given Christmas a thought yet. Its never been my favourite time of year and since my mum died a week before the festive season a few years ago its become something to get out of the way with as little fuss as possible. My dad feels the same way and as he has started to really suffer from some of the more restricting symptoms of congestive heart failure I suspect this winter will throw up a few problems.
Probably order a few presents online come mid November but that will be the extent of any forward planning. I like keeping things simple.