[dropcap]It’s[/dropcap] hard to not be a complete Grinch at Christmas when you have basically three months of celebrating the one day holiday.
Christmas decorations there, Christmas decorations everywhere. It’s the middle of November and already shops and shopping centres have plastered Christmas decorations everywhere. Every shop window has some sort of Christmas theme in it, and I know that Christmas is when they sell the most and have the most business, but can we please, please wait to put up the decorations until the end of November.
When you are constantly seeing these decorations everywhere it can become quite sickening. With Christmas constantly being thrown in your face and the expectations of Christmas getting higher and higher each year it can lose the appeal of Christmas and make some people (like myself) turn into a Grinch.
Various stores have been stocking up on Christmas products and supplies from as early as the middle of September. One of these stores is Boots who have had their Christmas stock in since September. This is far too early to have Christmas products in store. Some people do like to get all their Christmas shopping done early, but to have your Christmas products in stock and on sale in Autumn is a bit excessive.
Then there are the Christmas songs. Christmas songs are bearable for like the first week of listening to them but by the time it comes to Christmas it can be very annoying and repetitive. There are only a number of Christmas songs that are bearable and even those can get quite irritating after a few weeks. The fact that most Christmas songs are from years ago and there hasn’t been a good Christmas song in years also doesn’t help much either. It’s the same songs each year in and out and when they start to be played from the 1st of November until mid January it can be quite frustrating by that stage.
Then there are those crazy people who already have their trees and Christmas decorations up and it only mid November. There is a time when it is acceptable to put up Christmas decorations and that is any time from the 1st of December. November is not a Christmas month so please for all us who suffer from Grinchitious can you refrain from putting them up so early.
Christmas is meant to be the most magical time of the year but sometimes it feels like the most stressful time of the year. When you are constantly being bombarded with Christmas ideas for presents and people bragging about what they are getting their family and friends there is almost an competitive feel to Christmas.
Can we all agree to make sure that Christmas doesn’t start earlier next year? Can it start on the first of December like it really should do? And shops can you cool it a bit with the decorations?
Aine Conaty
Image by Time and Date