I love Christmas the lights, the glitter, the good will to all men, the church services, the breathless anticipation on kids faces, the whole kit and caboodle and the odd glass of champagne too

I love it, wish it was Christmas everyday - just a break for my Birthday

Cooler

Can you lot of Xmas lovers get lost to another thread!

I am a rebel in the secret santa set ups - I think its pathetic. I dont even have any idea of how much anything costs. I regularly give Sara $20 for milk etc as I am never sure what is enough. So I jut go buy some random thing I want to buy and stuff the bloody stupid budgets. As if I dont have enough to buy and I hate shopping. Or I get that amount worth of scratch cards.

I like christmas though, I like any holidays. I like being nice to people and people generally being easy going. I love christmas lights and the bbq and the children you see on the street being excited.

I hate all the pets left at home alone or given in like people just forget their responsibilities. My poor dog and chickens are being left home alone in January and I am already worried about them.

Viv, ffs, only xmas negatives here!!!

That was my negatives - dont get me started on the bloody positives.

Heres a negative - I hate christmas cards (sending them not getting them) - so for the last 15 years I send 4 cards.

anyway - I realised my christmas card list have all gone and bloody died on me. Now its like I dont even have a card responsibility at all. selfish gits.

What irritates me is the whole Santa in department store thing...

"And what do you want for Christmas?"

Teaching kids to be materialistic, sadly the economy lives off materialism.

That does my head in. What does Jeebus have to do with money?

Now now Viv, you don't give to recieve!

miserable git - I used to LOVE father christmas. You spend 50+ years with the real life problems, cleaning, working, trying to get by. Get a bit more fantasy in before you realise it was all a sick joke I reckon. I encourage my kids in every imaginery dream they can have. It doesnt make them materialistic at all if you bring them up the right way - the world does that. Its a far bigger problem than santa and has come about years and years later. I wish I could pretend some nice bloke cared enough about me to come in the night all the way from the north pole with things that I have wanted.

actually never thought of that - I never got any cards back anyway! Thats actually true but hey, they did love me honest

No it's the commercial side of Christmas, the side that stores use for $$$. The spirit of Christmas I like.

Could you not just pretend that some nice bloke cared enough about you to come in the night all the way from the north pole with things that you have wanted?

I hate all the family negotiations. Does my ****ing nut in. What food to have. Who's buying who presents. How much to spend. Whose house to go to on the day. And on and on and on ... and someone always gets miffed and says, "Well I'm not coming then," like some sulky 14 year old teenager. This year I have decided to say **** 'em all - and you will find me on patrol at my local beach.

We never had family negotiations. Everyone said they were coming to me, they would then buy me and my family crap presents whilst I would sweat blood finding the perfect present for them. Not one bugger ever said they weren't coming, well not until one year when I said I was not doing christmas for everyone, we were having a 4 person family christmas for once. They all sulked and then found they could afford to go away or go to a restaurant. Families should be shot at christmas.

Disclaimer: last comment was a joke in poor taste.