Comments on: Holiday Inflation http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/ over 5 billion neurons served Mon, 23 Jan 2012 02:58:47 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1.2 By: DianeAKelly http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21957 DianeAKelly Sat, 17 Nov 2007 00:52:38 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21957 Our solution to the out-of control Christmas dilemma is simple -- everyone over 18 gets homemade cookies. Kids get books. Every year. It's led to some snarky comments from the kids, but none of the adults in our family seem to be upset about it. It helps that I bake well. Our solution to the out-of control Christmas dilemma is simple — everyone over 18 gets homemade cookies. Kids get books. Every year. It’s led to some snarky comments from the kids, but none of the adults in our family seem to be upset about it. It helps that I bake well.

]]> By: Gwenda http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21937 Gwenda Fri, 16 Nov 2007 20:17:44 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21937 For the past couple of years, we've experimented with not really celebrating Christmas. We beg our families not to buy us anything, and say that we won't buy anything for them. Yet, we always end up getting something for most of them at the last minute, in desperation, because they are incapable of not buying for us. This year, we're giving everyone Heifer.org thingies and that's it. They can talk about us behind our backs. For the past couple of years, we’ve experimented with not really celebrating Christmas. We beg our families not to buy us anything, and say that we won’t buy anything for them. Yet, we always end up getting something for most of them at the last minute, in desperation, because they are incapable of not buying for us. This year, we’re giving everyone Heifer.org thingies and that’s it. They can talk about us behind our backs.

]]> By: Claire Eddy http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21878 Claire Eddy Fri, 16 Nov 2007 04:22:27 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21878 "I’m going to observe ‘every day life’ religiously." Amen. I may need a tee-shirt if I can please make one with your permission to survive the upcoming season--which appears to have started this past August. I used to love Christmas. I still do. I try and fight against the onslaught on commercialism. And my son wonders why there is an orange in his stocking every year. --claire “I’m going to observe ‘every day life’ religiously.”

Amen. I may need a tee-shirt if I can please make one with your permission to survive the upcoming season–which appears to have started this past August.

I used to love Christmas. I still do. I try and fight against the onslaught on commercialism.

And my son wonders why there is an orange in his stocking every year.

–claire

]]> By: Madeleine Robins http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21817 Madeleine Robins Thu, 15 Nov 2007 07:28:59 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21817 I have, I think, a setpoint for holiday merriment. I like Christmas; I re-read <i>A Christmas Carol</i> every year, and love stuffing stockings and all that stuff. I also like Arbor Day and Twelfth Night and St. Swithin's Day (only because I love the name). All lovely events. But the minute they trip my "that's quite enough of <i>that</i>" switch, I'm out. At our house this is known as Mama Has Lost The Holiday Spirit, and everyone else goes out to a movie for a few hours. I have, I think, a setpoint for holiday merriment. I like Christmas; I re-read A Christmas Carol every year, and love stuffing stockings and all that stuff. I also like Arbor Day and Twelfth Night and St. Swithin’s Day (only because I love the name). All lovely events. But the minute they trip my “that’s quite enough of that” switch, I’m out. At our house this is known as Mama Has Lost The Holiday Spirit, and everyone else goes out to a movie for a few hours.

]]> By: Ken Houghton http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21780 Ken Houghton Wed, 14 Nov 2007 21:45:18 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21780 That's <em>A Charlie Brown Christmas</em>, iirc (certainly not Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown, which would be the merger of a bad David Bowie movie and a Lieber/Stoller song). The pre-Global Warming days when you could talk about "waiting for January snow flakes," instead of hoping for February ones. The episode in which we learned that Linus really was a Van Pelt. <a href="http://www.booksamillion.com/ncom/books?id=3950766026276&isbn=0679740384" rel="nofollow"><em>The Battle for Christmas</em></a> is highly recommended in if you want to see how the growth isn't just post-1919. (Insert Phythonesque "You got presents? Oranges <em>and</em> chocolates??" here.) It really is "run by a big Eastern syndicate." Or maybe they've relocated to Hyperabad by now. That’s A Charlie Brown Christmas, iirc (certainly not Merry Christmas, Charlie Brown, which would be the merger of a bad David Bowie movie and a Lieber/Stoller song). The pre-Global Warming days when you could talk about “waiting for January snow flakes,” instead of hoping for February ones. The episode in which we learned that Linus really was a Van Pelt.

The Battle for Christmas is highly recommended in if you want to see how the growth isn’t just post-1919. (Insert Phythonesque “You got presents? Oranges and chocolates??” here.)

It really is “run by a big Eastern syndicate.” Or maybe they’ve relocated to Hyperabad by now.

]]> By: Eat Our Brains » Blog Archive » I Can Be PWNED? http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21768 Eat Our Brains » Blog Archive » I Can Be PWNED? Wed, 14 Nov 2007 18:54:37 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21768 [...] Holiday Inflation [...] [...] Holiday Inflation [...]

]]> By: Sean Craven http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/comment-page-1/#comment-21749 Sean Craven Wed, 14 Nov 2007 16:06:29 +0000 http://eatourbrains.com/EoB/2007/11/14/holiday-inflation/#comment-21749 One of the get-around-to-it notions that I've always wanted to do was the creation of a personal set of seasonal celebrations. (As an agnostic who identifies as atheist I am dreadfully offended by the word holiday.) Midsummer night is on the list, I'd want to hit up the shifts in the seasons... Part of the motivation would be to ditch conventional rituals in which I don't take pleasure. But part of it would be the creative fun of coming up with names and rituals that would please me and mine. On the other hand, take a wrong step and you've got Festivus. It would be tricky. One of the get-around-to-it notions that I’ve always wanted to do was the creation of a personal set of seasonal celebrations. (As an agnostic who identifies as atheist I am dreadfully offended by the word holiday.) Midsummer night is on the list, I’d want to hit up the shifts in the seasons…

Part of the motivation would be to ditch conventional rituals in which I don’t take pleasure. But part of it would be the creative fun of coming up with names and rituals that would please me and mine. On the other hand, take a wrong step and you’ve got Festivus. It would be tricky.

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