Time to compile a list.

I'll start.

1. The sound of any Christmas carol being played on a soprano sax.

2. Simp-ly…hav-ing…a wonderful Christmas time…

3. Holliday traffic

Wrapping presents.

oh, and Egg Nog.

having a cheesy christmas open house for work.

Before I was married, seeing every goddamn jewelery commercial with some "romantic" asshole proposing to his girlfriend. Arrggh.

4. being surrounded by ignorant thoughtless people in the stores....who leave their carts blocking the entire aisle while dragging their wailing kid on the ground.

8. Bill O'Reilly's insistence that 'Merry Christmas' isn't offensive but 'Happy Holidays' and 'Seasons Greetings' is.
9. Every Christmas movie is on except the one you want to watch
10. John Madden wearing a Santa hat
11. Non-alcoholic egg nog

Christmas comercials before Halloween.

-long lines at the post office.
-not spending christmas with your family (family has no significance in my life)
-fighting for parking spots
-christmas presents
-christmas music

i mean, really, i could go on and on forever... i hate christmas. just call me miss scrooge.

this one's a biggie for me.

-getting incredulous looks from folks when I tell them I'm not paying for a Christmas tree (to be fair, we do have a small potted tree, that we decorate with lights and ornaments and bring into the house on Christmas eve).

-getting holiday cards from people you rarely talk to, but feel the need to include one of those "brag letters" on holiday stationary talking about all the wonderful things they've done all year (but haven't been arsed to tell you about until Christmas)

- holiday tchotchkes

I spent most of my teenage and adult life HATING Christmas...until I had a kid. Then I found the joy in it.

But this year I'm torn, I love it and alternately hate it.

Why?

-I can't wrap presents to save my soul
-I make little money compared to my well off siblings and parents and yet they lists they give me for xmas don't even come close to what I can afford to spend for them. BIG fights in my family over this one this year. ugh
-I hate Christmas shopping- If you can't find it online you're fucked and if you do, it's more then likely they'll screw you on getting it shipped on time
-Not only am I not able to enjoy it due to serious morning(read:all day) sickness, I now have the sore throat/head cold/death feeling that my son had last week, on top of it all rendering this week before xmas useless for me.

-I can't eat anything that's fun and festive and can't indulge in stuff I'd normally like due to above reason. Fuck that.

-Oh, and I second Daystar's reason. Oh god does that piss me off when people can't go through a store properly with their cart. jesus.

Fucking right on. I always have the urge to send a brag letter back about the babies I've slaughtered, churches I've defaced, and innocent little 17 year-old girls I've turned onto smack. But I guess I just don't have the balls. Someday, someday . . .

- being single at xmas after a seven year relationship

- hanging out with family that i don't really like

- all that fucking christmas cheer

- stepping on pine needles in february because no one bothered to vacuum after ditching the tree


but, some of the most awesome things happen around xmas, too...

- getting drunk and looking at xmas lights while pondering life (my roommate and i did this a lot last year. we also watched 'the shining' with only the lights of the tree and windows on.. scary)

- mistletoe. how awesome is mistletoe? it's like a "get out of sex offender's jail free" card. kissing rules.

I will second and third that one.

the exact same reason why i don't send christmas cards.

oh yeah, my biggest pet peeve for the past four years. NO COMPANY CHRISTMAS PARTY. my company is a multi-million dollar nationwide company and you know what we get for our "holiday party?" a fuckin pizza party in our conference room during our "lunch hour." how ghey is that! ugh.

Sending thank you cards for presents you've received. I hardly even do this anymore, but it was painful when i did.

Shopping for Gareth.

my christmas day is usually spent driving quite a bit.

my dad lives an hour away. so, normally we all drive to him.
then i have to drive back to my mom's family's. if the roads are bad....make that a total of 3 hours of driving.

we were going to go to chicago to celebrate with my dad's family this year. but, that plan has now changed and we're celebrating this weekend because it's the only weekend everyone can get home to ohio.

which is nice. but i'm STILL driving back out to him for christmas dinner on christmas day.

so, i never get to spend much time ON christmas with my mom's family anymore.

Just be happy your closest family don't live 8.5 hours away. That's another thing I hate about Christmas.

you're right! thanks for putting that into perspective.
i'm sorry your family is so far away.

mistletoe poops

people in santa hats

lushes crowding up the bars

missing the xmas specials for like the twentieth straight year

2 more of my friends moving to Portland.

Christmas parties.

Seriously, every 2nd or 3rd night there's an industry party. I've spent the last two weeks either drunk or hungover - and there's still another week of this. I think I might go back to drinking icewater and eating speed for these things.