For some, there is no more conflicting time than the Holiday Season. We all know what it is supposed to be: a time for reflection, a time for family, and a time to take all the promises and intents of a year passed, and birth them anew for the coming one; so often though, it can seem anything but. A rat race of obligations and added duties on top of your regular workload, only to wrap the whole thing up by January to a great big – what was it all for? So without any further ado, your top 5 conflicts of the holiday season.
#5 The Ever-lengthening Holiday Season – Seriously, does the Holiday Season start in June now? It feels that way. And though I am clearly being a bit hyperbolic, you can rest assured that merchants everywhere are squeezing every possible shopping day that they can out of your time. From pre-holidays sales, and post-holiday closeouts, to New Year’s Day shop-a-thons, and after New Year bargains. The holiday music, the malls, the crowds, the Egg Nogg—I love it—for exactly a solid 5 minutes. After that, it’s all sharpening elbows and grabbing for the last pair of gloves.
#4 New Years Eve Pressure – Nothing quite articulates the “well, there’s another year of my life wasted” sentiment more than the metaphorical (or literal) turning of the yearly calendar page. Call it the existentialist muck that we all get mired in, but it has more potential toward creating inward loathing than a trip to your ex-lovers house where you yell to a second-story window from the street below for some answer as to “why it didn’t work out?” Not that it happened to me. I swear; it was a friend. New Years Eve itself, with all it’s high pressure to see and be seen, and televised minute by minute updates of what all the great people in great big crowds of the world are doing, can create a real feeling of loneliness, if you are so predisposed. That said, if you can get your mind right and look on the bright side, what a great chance to take stock of the year that has passed, decide for yourself which version of NYE you want to partake in, and march boldly to your own drummer. Take one long look at the 12 approaching months and prepare to make the coming year your beach—as in vacation, of course!
#3 The Family Function – Of course everybody loves their family and enjoys the time with them—in theory! But quite often these events can turn much more into bickering sessions on the verge of all-out civil war. Whether it’s a trip to a long-lost aunt’s house, or a visit from a grandparent you haven’t seen in years, there is a lot of awkwardness to be had here. Please wear the most hideous sweater possible so you can at least have a laugh with yourself.
#2 Presents! – It is hard to not act like a big kid inside when just salivating over the thought of presents. And to be as absolutely diplomatic as possible, I must admit: when you get that great and unexpected gift from a friend or acquaintance, it is truly awe-inspiring. There really is no feeling like it. The feeling of giving them does in fact feel better too, when you truly know you expect nothing in return. That said, about 90 percent of all gifts are just junk from the junk store that will do nothing for you. If we just took a fraction of what is spent on bad pajamas, ridiculous desserts, and overpriced decorations we could no doubt do a lot more humanitarian good in the world.
#1 Winter Weight – While it may be fair to say that nobody actually loves gaining winter weight, we certainly enjoy the benefits of trying (how else do you explain those cookie crumbs currently sprinkled on your shirt?). Whether its just our bodies natural reaction to acclimating to the colder climate, or simply the fact that you ate 10 Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups last night on the couch—the weights-a-comin’! Let us all be thankful for the wonderful sugary sweetness of all those goodies while the weather is still such that we can wear clothes that cover it all up, as January is coming up fast!
Please join us next month for the next installment in all things conflicting: Love/Hate New Years Resolutions!
