26 thoughts on “Your Argh Holiday Tradition: Everybody Croon”

  1. Gets me every time, even if it is too early. But this year I’m planning to break my ‘no Christmas stuff before December’ rule and buy as many presents as possible next week, so I can deliver them when I go south next weekend.

    1. Technically, on this side of the pond, Christmas starts the day after Thanksgiving.
      I have no idea when it starts for non-turkey-consuming peoples. But then I’ve never understood Boxing Day, either.

      1. But that’s just consumerism. The Christian run-up starts four Sundays before Christmas Day, and of course religiously, Christmas is just that day. (Curmudgeonly vicars forbid the singing of Christmas carols until after midnight on Christmas Eve.)

        I celebrate the winter solstice, and the sun stands still for a three-week period centred on the shortest day.

        We need more holiday time at Christmas because we don’t do Thanksgiving. And, of course, even with Boxing Day it’s just a remnant of the old Twelve Days of Christmas. But I don’t take my tree down until after Twelfth Night (I take the bits that work for me from the whole pagan/Christian mash-up).

        2. No, consumerism here starts the day after Halloween. I’m not kidding, we have Christmas crap in the stores that long.
          I think it may be a secular tradition to wait until after Thanksgiving and then put the tree up. But absolutely not before Thanksgiving. Don’t let the holidays touch each other.

  3. My tradition is usually to get out my Christmas decor the day after Thanksgiving, but I inadvertently got my house decorated for Christmas last week, and it feels weird not to have to do it today. I’d been decluttering like crazy, and decided to sort through my Christmas stuff to see what I could donate to a tag sale of Christmas stuff tomorrow, and as long as I had everything out, it seemed silly to put it away back in the closet. I’ve got it down mostly to a few pieces of Wachtersbach china (mugs and bowls), fridge magnets made out of Christmas cards, and a bunch of quilted things, which is enough to feel festive without clutter.

    1. My stuff is all upstairs in the attic, and the stairs are full of stuff so I can’t get up there right now. I do have a Christmas tree in the bay window of the guest room, so that’s something.

      And the Drifters, of course.

  4. We have a summer Christmas season and I luuurve it. It’s END of the year.

    Our school year starts in January and ends in December so it is a wrapping up time for studies and the year. This year the school year ends on 12 December so that’ll be the start of the season. 16 December is the first public holiday of the season so a lot of industry goes on year-end shutdown. (A lot of maintenance people get to work on machinery and equipment!) Family holidays to a game park or beach-town and, sadly due to effects of apartheid policies, a huge migrant labour force that will go back “home.” 1

    Christmas decorations showed up last week in the stores. Not for sale, mind you, but decorating the stores. Ugh.

    I think I’m more of a Festivus kinda gal but I need to air my grievances to the people that need to hear it. 😉 Wrestling will be optional.

    Thanks for the Drifters. Merry merry and Happy happy to all.

  5. Tim Minchin’s song “White Wine in the Sun” sums up the Antipodean christmas experience quite nicely.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fCNvZqpa-7Q

    An excerpt:
    “I don’t go in for ancient wisdom
    I don’t believe just ’cause ideas are tenacious it means they’re worthy
    I get freaked out by churches
    Some of the hymns that they sing have nice chords
    But the lyrics are dodgy
    And yes, I have all of the usual objections
    To the mis-education of children who, in tax-exempt institutions
    Are taught to externalise blame
    And to feel ashamed and to judge things as plain right and wrong
    But I quite like the songs

    I’m not expecting big presents
    The old combination of socks, jocks and chocolate’s is just fine by me

    ‘Cause I’ll be seeing my dad
    My brother and sisters, my gran and my mum
    They’ll be drinking white wine in the sun
    I’ll be seeing my dad
    My brother and sisters, my gran and my mum
    They’ll be drinking white wine in the sun

    And you, my baby girl
    My jetlagged infant daughter
    You’ll be handed round the room
    Like a puppy at a primary school
    And you won’t understand
    But you will learn someday
    That wherever you are and whatever you face
    These are the people who’ll make you feel safe in this world
    My sweet blue-eyed girl”

    1. I love this song, it’s our Christmas too. I’ve obviously been an Argher for a wee while though because The Drifters is part of my annual tradition now too.

  6. I was just yesterday wondering if it was wrong to look this up on my iPod before you posted it, Jenny, and I decided to wait. I’m go glad I did. Yesterday we mucked around with lights (only 50 of the 100 lights that are already on the house work – grrr – but we are getting a few smaller strings and will replace the half-dead string) and put up my new pre-light small trees on the front step.

    Next weekend I’m off to a couple of Christmas markets with friends and then it’s hauling all the Christmas stuff out of the basement and getting ready. TB wants to go to his parent’s place for Christmas but I’m still putting up decorations (though if we go I will have to pull them all down as I can’t leave them up with 2 unsupervised cats). I will be Christmas-y!

  7. Thanks for the smile! I love this tradition too.

    And as I have been spending a fraught week with my youngest a smile is what I needed.

    I’m thinking of leaving the country so I don’t have to spend a month with her at Christmas. She had me in tears this morning. Yesterday she told me she had no use for me in her life. So why then does she come to torture me during vacations instead of staying with her father and the woman he lives with who can do no wrong?

    But lest you think I’ve stopped liking her – we all had Thanksgiving at her and my ex’s place yesterday and she was the best part. We get along very well, and the ex just kept saying that it was wrong. Hah! We both agree that it’s absolutely right that we become a blended family, she gets children (all be it adult children) by association, and I get a break from the stress of being in charge of everything. She is lovely and a breath of fresh air.

  8. I was raised Christian, so I don’t really celebrate any day but the 25th.

    I remember making a Birthday cake for Jesus, and maybe getting a pair of high waisted jeans.

    I’m disabled and quit work to raise my kids, therefore, I don’t celebrate any of this shit.

    This made me smile.

    Thanks.

    Cherry Tea

  9. Like the other Arghers, I love this tradition. Let the holidays begin!

    I spent the day driving to Medina (3 hours from Dayton) to meet and joyfully bring home an Australian shepherd named Kai. He’s a year old, insanely high energy and scary smart.

    I’m so happy.

  10. This year I overindulged and treated myself to a gorgeous set of Christmas china. I’m already looking forward to setting the table on Christmas Eve with it.

  12. Thanks for this. Love the tradition. My holidays got off to a rough start. One of the new kittens, Harry Dresden (about 14 months old) had been refusing to eat on and off for 5-6 days. I thought it was just a hairball but last night he wouldn’t eat at all and was really lethargic, and I was already planning to bring him to the emergency vet (my regular vets have hours on Saturdays 8-12 for emergencies only) at the crack of dawn. But of course I also HAD to be at the shop I run by around 9, because it is Small Business Saturday today. He didn’t even complain in the car, which completely freaked me out.

    The vet on duty was new, and she was just lovely. Lots of tests later, and the poor boy had to stay–almost 105 degree fever and a tender belly. Normal blood tests, including feline leukemia, and iffy X-ray. They gave him something to bring down his temp, antibiotics just in case, fluids, and anti-nausea meds and the vet called me at 12 to tell me he had made a huge poo and she thought, gotten rid of whatever was in his stomach. Temp was already back to normal. He still has to stay until Monday just in case, but she thinks we’re out of the woods. But I already have sick cat PTSD after losing 4 cats in 3 years, including my beloved Magic and Mystic in January, so this was really rough.

    There will be drinking tonight. Just sayin’.

    In the meanwhile, I managed to stay upbeat and cheerful at the shop and hold it together somehow, and I am very grateful for good vets and techs that I trust and the wonderful friend who had been lined up to pick Harry up for me if he had been able to go home.

    Will still hold my breath until he gets through the next couple of days with no more issues, but I think we’re okay. OY.

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