Most and least favorite holiday

Yeah I would love to not join in the gift exchanges but I feel obligated to do so, it's one of those things where you know you'll be judged for if you don't participate. I don't join any celebrations at work, interactions are so forced and I remember a couple coworkers outright admit they hate socializing with other coworkers outside of work hours, why would I want to interact with those who really don't want to be bothered?

Also I do remember there being cases where store employees were trampled and even killed on Black Friday and it was a day after everyone is supposed to be thankful for what they have, it's pretty messed up if you really think about it. Also yes people do become happier in January until the weather gets extremely nasty by the end of January and February and tax season comes around, in terms of accidents I believe most accidents actually occur during the holidays due to people rushing which is so stupid.

I believed in santa claus but I always thought about how he could fly to every house in such a short period of time as well, I believed in him the longest since there was at least a reasonable explanation for how he got in the house. As for the tooth fairy and easter bunny, I realized they weren't real much earlier on since there was no explanation for how they got in the house. If anything I thought the concept of a tooth fairy and easter bunny was kind of creepy, I always thought the concept of a bunny or fairy going through your house without your knowledge and even into your room while you sleep was extremely creepy and weird.

At least santa just stays in your living room rather than wandering about but even then I started questioning if he was real when I would be up all night on Christmas Eve and there was still presents in the morning even though people say he doesn't go to houses where someone is wide awake, I was eventually told he wasn't real but I had pretty much figured it out on my own and no one had to tell me the easter bunny and tooth fairy wasn't real especially since there was one video my parents made where they forgot to hide the eggs and they said the easter bunny forgot to come to the house even though he remembered to go to every other house imaginable so that pretty much gave it away lol.

You're right that you get judged if you don't do those holiday gift things at work or those potlucks too which I hated also. In hindsight, I too wonder how many people really felt the same way I did but nobody wanted to admit it.

I used to quote the saying "Don't mix business with pleasure" which I think is a good rule of thumb. I only went to the movies once with a co-worker. And one time I stayed friends with a co-worker or so I thought, after I left the company. But she ghosted me-----twice. That's a whole other thread.

People do seem to run lights or speed more during this time of the year. It's stress---not joy.. And NO GOODWILL towards all MEN. (And women!)


LOL I never believed in the Easter Bunny. As for the Tooth Fairy, I just thought of it as flying straight to my bedroom, not around the house. Then it left. It wasn't creepy to me, I think.

Sigh....thinking of all this decades later now. I wondered how somebody could survive in the North Pole where it's so cold and that stuff about elves making toys never made sense to me, LOL.

Thanks for starting this thread.

Oh trust me I bet a lot of your coworkers felt the same as you did but just didn't want to admit it. Most of my coworkers put on a fake act but there has been a couple who outright admitted their disgust when it had been just me and them away from others. I think people see me as very trustworthy and good at keeping secrets so I've experienced several people admitting stuff to me but they would never admit to anyone else since they knew there would be pushback.

This applies to all celebrations including birthdays as well since even birthday wishes and cards seem very forced to me and some coworkers don't even try to hide the fact that they don't give a crap. Also I agree that the whole thing of elves making toys never made sense to me too. Also living alone in the North Pole with elves sounds quite lonely and impossible to do. Also imagine all the stuff he would have to carry for just one trip around the globe lol. These are all the thoughts I had as a kid even though I kept my mouth shut and played along with it and you're welcome for making this thread.

I don't mind it when people vent to me as well since it does imply trust which is good. I also hate birthday celebrations at work too because I don't like the attention and it's just an excuse to pig out on food. I know it has good intentions but I'm just not that big on celebrations and in a lot of cases those celebrations seem rather forced as well. I'd much rather treat my birthday as any other day since it's really nothing special for me and don't get into all the hype.

Yeah I'm not a big fan of the Fourth of July either. People get obnoxious with their fireworks and sometimes they do them before and after the Fourth of July which is annoying.

Yeah holidays aren't the same as they used to be and I think that's the case with everyone as they get older. Some people pass away while others find different traditions which is perfectly fine if that's what they want to do. I agree that the Fourth of July is one obnoxious holiday due to the fireworks people set off even before and after that holiday. People have gotten extremely inconsiderate about fireworks since they don't care and I have a fear of houses catching fire since I see that on the news every year and I have witnessed a firework malfunction up close once too.

I think my favorite holiday is split between Thanksgiving for the food even though I dislike family interactions and halloween since I do like candy even though I rarely eat candy myself and I never do anything during these holidays as well. I agree those two holidays involving fireworks are super annoying and people use it as an excuse to be inconsiderate. I think the Fourth of July may be worse since the fireworks tend to go on for at least a couple days longer than New Years. I dislike New Years not just because of the fireworks but also the ridiculous hype over a new year acting like that will change things when in reality nothing will change other than the number in the year itself.

It can be dangerous for sure, as well as annoying and loud. They do it much longer on NYE, well past midnight. Some people work New Year's so need to SLEEP. Everyone doesn't party on 12/31st.



Yeah, there seems to be injuries every year. Professional shows are different. Noisy but safer. I'm talking about people setting them off around here or shooting guns up into the air. They do the latter more on NYE than the 4th.



I've heard fireworks as early as July 2nd, during the DAY. They can go past July 4th too, especially if it falls on a Friday or Saturday.

For many years I thought we were supposedly celebrating an upcoming New Year. But it's about surviving the OLD year. Still, I don't get the forced optimism because it's a new year. You don't know what that means or what it will bring. For me, it's just flipping the calendar. I've had horrible DECADE and since 2000 even started, it's been going down the tubes. That's over 20 years. Yet every year it's HAPPY New Year.

NYE = Excuse to drink and be a fool. All that screaming and yelling cause it's a new year. We don't do that for a new MONTH or even DAY.

Yep people get injured every year from fireworks and guns, I see news footage of injuries and houses burning down and I know that it didn’t have to happen. Yeah people launch fireworks way too early and way too long, it’s rather inconsiderate. I don’t get the forced optimism too, it’s rather cringy in my opinion since it’s just simply a new number year. Life continues just the same and people get disappointed and say the current year is the worst year they ever experienced, it’s just annoying and all a show and it’s definitely an excuse to drink and be obnoxious.

Yeah I've noticed people think you're a loser if you don't like New Years Eve. It's just an excuse to drink and be loud. Also I agree we do slap a smile on everything and in some cases it's to be professional in a work environment but it's still annoying. It's very obvious when people are putting on a smile as an act and genuinely smiling.

My relationship with big holidays has changed, depending on how well I'm doing. I do much better, as I'm feeling better.

Exactly, rdgrad. It was a very difficult thing to try and "feel" as joyous and celebratory as everyone around me when I was very ill. Making the effort was almost painful.

I've done a lot of reading and self-therapy surrounding my particular diagnoses, and I understand much better where the gradual dislike and discomfort around holidays & birthdays came from. I subsequently have a great deal of compassion and patience for anyone who feels the same way I did when I was in the worst grips of my illnesses.

There are traces of these pains remaining. They bubble up a bit mostly around thoughts of absent loved ones. But that's grief, and it's to be expected.

I still have short bouts of anxiety before every occasion, but I think that will just be me and my worry that people might unexpectedly drop by---and my home is almost never in the condition I wish it was in!

Generally speaking, I enjoy almost all holidays again, thankfully---as I used to when younger.

I try really hard to keep all the old traditions going, especially around that king of all the holidays, Christmas. But money has been tight for so long, it's been a real challenge---on top of losing so many beloved relatives.

I would have to say, Thanksgiving is still at the top of my favorites list, however. The rest don't signify as much for me anymore.

My husband is a nice man but he is a bit clueless about celebrating without being almost completely inebriated throughout. He can't ever let his hair down, or be warm, enthusiastic, or romantic, without a lot of beer in him. And that is a huge turnoff. I think that's part of what I deal with, as well. He's also clueless about birthdays. I was never really into big birthday parties and stuff, but now they've almost completely fallen by the wayside.

So, that takes an awful lot of the fun out of just about every celebration. If you can't do it sober and completely conscious, with other people's enjoyment taking priority, then why bother? And I'm tired of being the only one who really does all the cheerleading, and all the actual labor involved.

I agree with you that a good holiday is one where no one fights and Christmas is no longer my favorite holiday. I used to love Christmas as a kid due to the gifts and seeing the decorations up. I still do like seeing other people's lights but I don't like decorating myself. You'd be surprised how many arguments I've seen over decorations especially when they don't work. It is so petty and trivial and there's so many other things to be more concerned about. I've also seen people get offended when they didn't receive anything or not what they wanted.

Also the forced happiness and commercialism as well as unnecessary stress and witnessing arguments are what made me dislike the holidays and that goes for other holidays as well. I agree they are just lonely now and it really shows among others and it becomes extremely obvious that the happiness is forced when the holidays end and people fully admit to being so glad it's all over and genuinely seem happier and calmer when January rolls around.