Tis the Season..........Kind of.

Psst, come here, I want to tell you a secret.

I hate this time of year, truly and honestly, for the last 3 years it has slowly gotten worse. This year my feelings about it may have hit an all time low.

I have a list, if you care to read it.

1. Christmas music, novelty Christmas songs should be banned, they were funny once, now not so much. And as for some of the traditional songs well they suck too. for example "I'll be home for Christmas", well, no I won't be I'll be at Mom's, and while it is "home" in a sense, it is not my home really, I rent the place I live in so, I won't be there either. Christmas morning, there will not be that moment when my kids wake me up to see what "Santa" has brought them, they will be doing that with their mother. With luck and planning, I'll get to see them later in the day. Just like last year, So I'm planning on getting up about 1/2 an hour before I go get them.

2. Gift giving, if it is like last year will cause heartache for the weasels of death. Just before the holiday, my brother decided that "to save you money" our kids were not going to exchange gifts, that in itself would have been alright if we were not all together at Mom's for the gift exchange, and my kids and his did not exchange anything, The boys felt like crap about this, and let me know in no uncertain terms how they felt. If recent conversation with my brother is any indication, the same thing may happen this year.

3. The total lack of planning by anyone in my family, right now, the boy's mom and I are still ironing out the details of the holidays, as youngest has a hockey tournament right in the middle of Christmas break. I have no idea right now when I am getting them, and If I get them on Christmas day, then I have to let my brother know as soon as possible as he and his wife always have the family for dinner on Christmas day. My sons have never been there for this, and it involves a large gathering of family, and some of them have not met my kids and I don't want any pressure on my boys to have to behave to other people's impossible standards. Plus, if my brother does not want gifts exchanged between our kids, but everyone else is doing it, it will create a whole new level of awkward for my sons.

4. Feeling like i have to put on some fake, cheery personality so that I "don't ruin anyone Else's day" F***k that, what about my day? It would be nice if one time some one said "This day must be hard for you" Yeah, it is, between my desire to have the boys on Christmas morning, to wanting to get them what they want, without having to worry about money, to feeling as though I somehow failed them, to hoping that people will not push subjects on them that they do not want to discuss, and have made clear that they don't, to wanting everyone to just get along, I have enough to deal with without worrying about how I am feeling could ruin someone Else's Christmas. How about everyone else doing things to make me feel better?

5. Pressure about Church on Christmas Eve. I do not like going at the best of times, Christmas Eve service is the worst, there are too many people, no parking, people who do not seem to understand that there is a service earlier in the evening for those with younger kids ( the service ends at midnight, kids who are not in double digits should be at home, in bed, visions of sugar plums etc.)
I hate going, and when it is over, I want to leave, I do not want to have a conversation with people I only see once a year, I just want to go to bed.

6. People, everywhere, the mall, the roads, just everywhere. I get it , you need to shop, but for the love of everything, try to have some manners, just because you failed to plan crap out and waited for the last minute to do something, does not mean I have to suffer. Nor should the people who work in the stores. Here is a hint, the girl working the cash has absolutely no control over the inventory of the store, chances are there are no more in the back, if they are out, they are out, asking for a manager will not change that, freaking out won't either, I have seen some pretty bad behavior on the part of some people who are supposed to be adults, grow up, and on that note, the same with the gaggles of teens in the malls and stores, I get it your friend sent you a text, and OMG, you have to respond right away, in the mall walking and texting is like driving and texting, you cannot do both and see where you are going, bumping(or crashing) into me and glaring at me, just gets you the stink eye. I have better things to do than watch out for your sorry ass. And, there are lines everywhere, especially in the food court, if you are in line for 5-10 minutes before you order, this would be a good time to make up your mind, if you can't then you fail at life.

7. The endless loop of charity commercial for those organisations that send relief overseas, I get it, believe me, I have been to a few of those places, but there is a great deal of people right here, in this country that need our help too, why not clean up our own yard first.

Bah Humbug!