Things That Drive Me Nuts - Christmas

Surprisingly, Christmas hasn’t been too bad this year, but traditionally I have been a bit of a Christmas grump. Christmas and new years is like a rude interruption to my year. The TV is completely crap although in recent years this has been alleviated by rampant piracy.

The biggest thing is I feel guilty when I receive presents. I think of all those people around the world who didn’t have the luck to be born in a great country like Australia with a supportive family, who I don’t hate. Christmas is an orgy of consumerism, any cultural or religious significance to this time takes a backseat. Most of us have so much we don’t need more.

Christmas was originally a pagan festival that was hijacked by the Catholic Church - a strategy they used many times. The pagan deities were replaced by Catholics saints, Yuletide was given a veneer of Christian respectability and eventually renamed. Over the years, commerce has also had a large influence over the Christmas we celebrate today.

I think Christmas can be redeemed. There are quite a few good things about it that go along with the irritating stuff. Most people make an effort to be nice, and it can be good sharing a meal with relatives and friends you don’t see very often.

Because we already have so much, I think we should stop giving each other presents and instead donate the money we would otherwise spend.