The OFFICIAL start to the holiday season!
By raychill
@raychill (6525)
United States
November 22, 2007 9:12am CST
I've tried to avoid SO many Christmas-esque discussions since September when some people seem to think it starts. However, to me and to a lot of other people (namely awesome people (kidding) and people who work in the media and of course, Americans since other countries don't celebrate this and Canada already had their thanksgiving.) the Official start of the holiday season starts today.
The Macy's Day parade is celebrating their 81st annual Thanksgiving Day Parade. To me, this is the official start of the holiday season because I don't actually get excited about Christmas UNTIL then. Santa Claus is always a sight at the Parade and that's, again to ME, when the "REAL" Santa comes out...therefor starting the Holiday Season.
Then, the Friday after Thanksgiving is when the Holiday shopping season OFFICIALLY starts with Black Friday, the biggest sale day ever probably. I'm not sure that's true, but I think it's pretty close to the truth.
I just think when you start celebrating the holiday season too early (Before Thanksgiving) it really just loses it's spirit. It makes it less exciting and I just don't like it.
I don't start my own christmas movie marathons until December, but TV starts playing the Christmas oriented commercials and things of that sort and the channels will start playing some movies and that's fine too.
This weekend I'll start putting up my Christmas Decorations, though I won't get my tree until about 2 weeks before Christmas (I get real trees, I loathe fake trees)... and Now I can be excited!
So to me, TODAY, Thanksgiving Day, is the official start of the Holiday Season.
What about you?
Did you think it started back in September? Or November? Does the season just never End? or are you, like me, and think that Today marks the official start of the Holiday Season?
3 people like this
6 responses
@lecanis (16647)
• Murfreesboro, Tennessee
22 Nov 07
I think it's a huge commercial monster that eats up half the year if people let it. :P
I guess I don't really know how I feel about when the winter holiday season starts. I celebrate Christmas with my husband, and he celebrates Winter Solstice with me, so we kind of have a dual winter holiday. I don't really like to see or hear anything about it until into December though, honestly.
2 people like this
@PurpleTeddyBear (6685)
• Canada
22 Nov 07
Good answer lecanis! When I think holidays I right away think Christmas!
To me that means December! So sad to see Christmas stuff in the stores before Hallowe'en has come and gone.
@raychill (6525)
• United States
22 Nov 07
What holiday isn't a commercial monster?
I don't really like Christmas till December either, but this is the Holiday season. I think Christmas and the holiday season, while one in the same, are also two different things. I won't really watch christmas stuff or think about christmas till december but I'll decorate beforehand and I won't hate on christmas stuff being out as long as it's after thanksgiving.
I also hate christmas stuff being out before Thanksgiving. It's ridiculous when Halloween hasn't even passed and people are out getting fake christmas trees and things like that.
My neighbors across the street have had christmas lights up since about 3 weeks ago. It makes me wanna smack them!
2 people like this
@UnselfishShellfish (1306)
• United States
22 Nov 07
After the parade is over, I feel the same way: The holiday season has started. I'm watching it right now. The always popular Rockettes just got finished performing.
My Christmas tree and lights will go up this weekend sometime. I'll probably get it out tomorrow and start decorating.
1 person likes this
@raychill (6525)
• United States
22 Nov 07
Exactly! I'm glad you feel the same way. One of my boss' was talking about how she won't let her daughter get her photo taken with santa until after the parade. She knows that the santa's in the mall aren't the "real" santa because he's at the parade!
It's so true. This is the official start. This weekend I"m gonna decorate too. Now i can be excited for the holidays coming up!
@GnosticGoddess (5626)
• United States
27 Nov 07
I'm totally with you on this one. Thanksgiving for me does start the Christmasy Holiday season. I don't like hearing Christmas music and have Christmas things stuffed into my face until now. I like to enjoy each of my Holidays and season and get through them before getting to another one. Though I often Christmas shop earlier - but no decorations, no music, ect until after Thanksgiving for me :)
I was hoping to get my tree up last Friday but I didn't get much sleep the night before (hubby stayed at his sisters and I came home to sleep but could only sleep for like 3 hours, got up & started cleaning at 12am then had to be at work at 3:30am) so I came home and took a nap. That took it all out of me as I had to finish cleaning the house too. Plus my hubby was feeling crappy that day too and didn't feel like doing anything. So hopefully sometime this week we'll be able to get to it. I have started wrapping my Christmas presents though :) I love doing that LOL.
I hate using real trees. No offense I just hate 'killing' trees to use for that purpose when you can use fake ones over and over...plus I am a worry wort and worry about fires. But that's just me :)
@GnosticGoddess (5626)
• United States
27 Nov 07
LOL - that's very true about the trees. It even helps our ecological system by growing the trees and it is an honor I could imagine in the tree world to be breed a Christmas tree :) - yep I'm a nut too - love the bug thing LOL.
I usually wait until my tree is up too to wrap my gifts. But my niece and nephews was coming over (last Saturday) and I had my nieces present already and I thought the tree was going up the day before anyway so I wanted to get the presents I have wrapped. I just recently started buying. Goody's - where I work - was having a most excellent sale last weekend (not this past) 60% off store wide plus my 20% discount and I decided to open up a charge card through them to save an additional 15%! So I got several gifts out of the way - including my nieces. And I just got my first pay check this past week (all goes toward Christmas gifts) and so I ordered a crap load of things off the internet too - though they haven't come yet. Not to mention that it was getting close to Thanksgiving and I was started to get excited about Christmas. I LOVE buying for people :) Gets me excited LOL.
@raychill (6525)
• United States
27 Nov 07
I agree that it's sad to kill the trees, but I don't know the way I look at it is that's what they're born for. It's stupid, but it helps me. ha ha. It's like they're excited to be picked because they get to be a Christmas Tree! but... to explain my psychosis I also can't kill bugs because I think their family will come after me.
no joke
I started decorating this weekend but I want to look for a few things elsewhere before I put everything up. I'm definitely gonna do it this weekend. I'm glad to know other people like to wait and celebrate each holiday individually. I just don't understand Christmas when we haven't even had Halloween!
I don't normally wrap gifts until I have my tree so I can put them under it. Plus I haven't gotten all my gifts yet...unfortunately!
I hope your hubby feels better and you guys get to it this weekend!
1 person likes this
@PurpleTeddyBear (6685)
• Canada
22 Nov 07
Hi raychill,
When I think holidays I think Christmas! To me the "holidays" start in December. I am Canadian so our Thanksgiving was in the beginning of October just like you said. I think it is sad though that Christmas stuff floods the stores before Hallowe'en has come and gone most times.
PurpleTeddyBear.
@PurpleTeddyBear (6685)
• Canada
23 Nov 07
Very true that not everyone celebrates Christmas, so it is the holiday season.
@raychill (6525)
• United States
22 Nov 07
well holidays are christmas, but it's also a season to me. It's like, Santa Claus is a spirit. I don't know how to explain it but Obviously everyone doesn't celebrate christmas so it's a "Holiday Season" to celebrate whatever holiday you celebrate.
I think it is also december when Christmas season starts, but the holiday season officially begins, to me, after Thanksgiving...starting with the parade. And of course that's in America cause if the holiday season started after your Thanksgiving, that would be silly!
I hate to see Christmas stuff before thanksgiving, yet alone Halloween.
A while back I'd read a lot of people who thought the holiday season started when the "ber" months started and I was like wtf. NO! September is NOT the holiday season! I'm glad to see others think it's not till later also!
1 person likes this
@Flight84 (3048)
• United States
25 Nov 07
I think of the holidays with the parade too. People start getting excited way too early for Christmas. We had a few teachers at the daycare who had already decorated their classes for Christmas before Thanksgiving! I think Michael and I are decorating next weekend and getting our tree (I hate fake trees too!) either next weekend or the week after. It's hard not to notice Christmas with stores putting some stuff out before Halloween is even over. I don't participate in all that early shopping crap either, especially Black Friday. Grrrrr! Too many people! Everyone gets all crazy and rude too. I know Christmas is on the way by the time they start playing the Grinch. I'll start watching Charlie Brown and my Grinch movie (the cartoon version) after we decorate. I like the holidays, but people just try to start way too early for me. I have to feel it in the air, so to speak. There is a certain crispness and smell in the air when the holidays are close, you know? I'm getting giddy now and I'm buying some decorations tomorrow.
@raychill (6525)
• United States
25 Nov 07
I don't normally get the tree until about 2 weeks before christmas. I always go with my dad and we pick out trees. Then he, of course, has to help me get the tree in my apartment. I love the trees with the soft needles, but I think I have to get the other kind this year. It took me months to get all the needles out of my apartment last year cause they all fell off when I tried to put my tree outside!
Ha ha. Yay for decorating! I really want to go to michaels and look for some stuff but I'm scared the shopping center is still going to be packed... and the closest dollar store I know of is in a walmart shopping center which will probably also be packed still. I hate packed stores :(
I like to listen to Christmas music when I decorate, but I think it's still early for music, so I might wait till next week to decorate.
I am a bit excited for christmas ;)
@3lilangels (4639)
• United States
25 Nov 07
well i feel the holidays start after thanksgiving as well.i hate to see all the stuff in the stores like months ahead of time.then i just can't seem to get into the sprit then.so now i start and decorate and all that good stuff.oops sorry about the caps.my cat keeps pushing keys om me.pattie
