ash48 | Christmas cheer....

*phew* I'm back in (vidding) business. Seems like forking out $20 is the answer after all. Though still no idea why QT has a trim option but no way to export the file.....

Anyways..

It's Chrissy eve. All is prepared for a day of present opening, family merriment and food.

I have a love/hate relationship with Christmas. The extreme excesses of Christmas bother me greatly - especially when the planet is groaning under the strain of excess consumerism. I am seriously considering starting a campaign against the blatant waste of Christmas crackers (bon-bons). I personally banned them a few years ago and I feel that if everybody stopped buying the silly things, then they'll stop making them. Because really? What good are they? A product made mostly of paper, with a cheap plastic thing inside it and a joke. We pull it and it goes bang (minds out of the gutter please!), we don ridiculous looking paper hats, share our silly joke and that's it. Then ALL of it goes in the bin. Makes no sense to me....

Or am I being a Christmas grouch? I can be a little bit ba-humbug this time of year.

The love part is spending time with family, sharing gifts that have been really thought about and relaxing because really there's nothing else to do. And I also get a lot of glee from watching my daughter open presents. That's always been pretty magical.

So. MERRY CHRISTMAS to you all. Or HAPPY HOLIDAYS if you don't celebrate it. Or LOVE AND SMISHES just 'cause. I really do hope you all have a wonderful time.

Check you on the flip side. <3 <3
Sarah

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I actually asked my mom and dad last year if we could PLEASE not do Christmas presents at all. I just felt SICK with the thought of going out and buying things that were just going to get stuck on a shelf or something. I made a donation to a local group that works with homeless pregnant women instead. And they made donations, too. It was really nice.

This year we are doing presents, as there are little things that we each want/need, but unlike in years past there was no money amount or present number to aspire to. Just the few things we wanted, many of which were made, that we'll put under the tree. And then all the family and food and such. We've done pretty much no running around, and the major stress has been that mom was worried raccoons would get in and eat all the shortbread she made for the neighbors.

all of which is to say, I definitely sympathize with your hatred of the excess. ♥

Happy Holidays to you and yours, my dear.

Sounds similar to me and my family. This year we agreed on no presents at all. It has certainly saved on a lot of stress with running around and trying to come up with ideas of stuff that could actually be useful.

And I think the donation presents are such a great idea - from what I hear more and more people are doing it. It makes so much more sense than buying presents just because we have too.

Thanks darlin'. All the best for Christmas. Hee! And *snuggles* your adorable icon!

<3

The Christmas crackers we get over here for New Year. (That doesn't make them any better...) And we also had to think over Christmas practices a few years ago and decided that presents make sense for the children and not really the grown ups (who run into the shops after Christmas and exchange all the presents they don't like...lol..)

But we enjoy the Christmas feeling that does exist despite the wild shopping madness around us. And we actually have a little snow this year! Doesn't happen very often.

And about being grumpy around Christmas...I get this idea in my head...about a "Sam and Dean hunt the Grinch down" vid....lol...lol...

*cough*

Merry Christmas!

~ Kerstin

Hey Kertsin,

I remember spending a Christmas in Europe (Amsterdam) and it was quite a different experience to the one I have now. And it just might be because of the snow! I just loved it. :)

Hee! And Sam and Dean can hunt me down any time!! :D Though a vid of Sam and Dean hunting down the grinch sounds awesome... remind of this the same time next year... might just have to do that!

All the best for Chrissy hun. Hope it's a good one. )

I too have a love/hate relationship with Christmas - although I have to admit that as a non-Christian I could actually do without it altogether (I'll celebrate the Solstice, thank you, when the year turns and the days start to get longer again here in the UK - far more meaning for a atheist scientist like me!)

The plastic tat in Christmas crackers really, really annoys me. My MIL makes the crackers, so they have stuff inside them that is personal to the recipient and not a waste, on the whole.

We keep presents small and simple, even for the kids, and always something that is wanted or needed and not rubbish. I hate the part of giving gifts where you buy something because you have to rather than because you know the recipient will love the gift. I really dislike the conspicuous overconsumption of the commercialised Christmas we get presented these days.

Yeah - it's kinda weird celebrating Christmas and not being a Christian (like myself) and yet going along for the ride....

And my mum used to make the homemade crackers which were a lot more personal and contained a little gift that was special. I like the idea of that.

I really dislike the conspicuous overconsumption of the commercialised Christmas we get presented these days.

Yeah - I'm not sure why it just seems so "in your face" these days. I'm sure it's always been like that - maybe it's just been in the last few years I've actually noticed it.

I hope you have a lovely day.
xx

I am in a much better mental state this year than I have been in the last half dozen or so. I chalk it up to my new hobby (vidding). The act of creating something has made me so much more happy.

And the NASA/Space:1999 vid is now up. And yes, it will probably languish in obscurity cause the fandom is actually Astronauts but that doesn't matter cause it made me happy when it was finished. :)

Merry Solstice...

P.S. your friending were one of the best presents I received in 2009.

Nothing like vidding to improve the mental health I'll say. Works like that for me to.

I hope your vid doesn't languid too much in obscurity... it's great vidding. :)

P.S. your friending were one of the best presents I received in 2009.

Wow - what a lovely thing to say. :D I've really enjoyed getting to know you over the last few months. :)

I'm not much into Christmas as it is, but this year it all felt especially, I dunno, pointless?

And no, you're not a grouch. This things ARE silly. We don't know that tradition here in Germany, but my BF's stepfather is from England, and, the first year it was funny to me, or last year when his grandparents where around (they are so cute and funny and enjoyed every little detail about Christmas so much), but usually: Laaaame.

Anyway, done with the rambling now. *lol*

Yeah. What was it about this year? It seemed especially pointless this year - maybe with all the other woes in the world, it just heightened the fact.

I think I always hate the lead up to Christmas - the rush and stress and pointless gift buying because we "have" to.

But I usually enjoy the actual day (only if I'm not having to do the food making!).

Hee! And it's not rambling. It's sharing your thoughts!! :D

xx

Christmas cheer....

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