Pre-Christmas Update and Thoughts
Dec. 21st, 2006 10:18 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
andrewduckerDown in Devon, at my parent's place. My two brothers Mike and Hugh are also here, along with their respective girlfriend/wife Tamsin and Meredith, plus of course Nephew du Jour Noah. Oh, and Tara, Alsatian par excellence.
Desperately tired, due to my 9am flight requiring a 6:20am awakening. I got an hour's sleep in on the plane - falling asleep while we were still taxiing and being brought back round by the sound of my ears popping on our descent into Exeter - but frankly my eyes still feel like they have large chunks of grit in them. I'd be in bed right now, except my parent's temporary accomodation (they've yet to sell their house in Kent, having retired to Devon six months ago) only has two spare rooms, one of which has Hugh/Meredith/Noah in it, and the other has Mike/Tam in it, leaving me sleeping on the sofa. Which will be tricky while they're still playing Settlers of Catan at the table behind me.
All of which whining is pretty much besides the point, which is of course that I'm now off work until the 2nd. Well, I'm on call the 28th/29th, in case of production problems, but that just means not leaving Edinburgh or getting drunk during the day - something that won't kill me. My brain hasn't entirely relaxed yet - we've just started a whole bunch of refactoring and redesign and I've got lots of ideas zipping around that I want to discuss/put into action, but I'm slowly moving all of that stuff onto the back burner, and I'm hoping that by turning up three days early for Christmas by the time I get there I'll have managed to reach some kind of relaxation maxima and be able to enjoy it properly.
Speaking of which, something thatzarabee said a few days ago has been percolating in the back of my head (the post now seems to be gone, so I'm probably violate LJ ettiquette by mentioning it ever existed, but what the fuck). Her main reason for not liking Christmas seemed to be related to the fact that there's so much cultural coercion around enjoying Christmas. You _have_ to enjoy Christmas or there's something wrong with you - it's the celebration of happiness Goddamit, and if you don't enjoy it then you're a bad person. surliminal was telling me that at a recent party one of her friends accused a different one of being a bad mother because she didn't make a big fuss about Christmas, for goodness sake.
It's therefore not surprising that people rebel against Christmas on a primal level. Most of you lot detest being told what to do, and will instinctively do the opposite if someone tells you that you have to do something. You're also largely a bunch of grumpy bastards, so a festival of enforced happiness is pretty much guaranteed to have people marching in the streets, or at least complaining in their journals. And this was pretty much my position until a couple of years ago, when I realised that being anti-happiness just because some people were over the top about it was letting them rule my life just as much as if I'd had fun because they told me to. I enjoy seeing my family (intermittently), and having a few days off in the middle of nowhere, exchanging presents with them, and going for long walks with the dog is a good thing. As a fully paid up adult I don't have to buy into any aspects of Christmas I don't want to, so equally I'm not going to resent those aspects either - they just won't figure into my Christmas at all. Which leaves me free to enjoy the bits I will naturally like.
I can tell I'm tired because there's at least three points in there that I wants to use a specific word and had to change my sentence because it just wouldn't come. And I can't think of a way to finish this off neatly, so I'm just going to call a halt at the end of this sentence, right here.
Desperately tired, due to my 9am flight requiring a 6:20am awakening. I got an hour's sleep in on the plane - falling asleep while we were still taxiing and being brought back round by the sound of my ears popping on our descent into Exeter - but frankly my eyes still feel like they have large chunks of grit in them. I'd be in bed right now, except my parent's temporary accomodation (they've yet to sell their house in Kent, having retired to Devon six months ago) only has two spare rooms, one of which has Hugh/Meredith/Noah in it, and the other has Mike/Tam in it, leaving me sleeping on the sofa. Which will be tricky while they're still playing Settlers of Catan at the table behind me.
All of which whining is pretty much besides the point, which is of course that I'm now off work until the 2nd. Well, I'm on call the 28th/29th, in case of production problems, but that just means not leaving Edinburgh or getting drunk during the day - something that won't kill me. My brain hasn't entirely relaxed yet - we've just started a whole bunch of refactoring and redesign and I've got lots of ideas zipping around that I want to discuss/put into action, but I'm slowly moving all of that stuff onto the back burner, and I'm hoping that by turning up three days early for Christmas by the time I get there I'll have managed to reach some kind of relaxation maxima and be able to enjoy it properly.
Speaking of which, something that
zarabee said a few days ago has been percolating in the back of my head (the post now seems to be gone, so I'm probably violate LJ ettiquette by mentioning it ever existed, but what the fuck). Her main reason for not liking Christmas seemed to be related to the fact that there's so much cultural coercion around enjoying Christmas. You _have_ to enjoy Christmas or there's something wrong with you - it's the celebration of happiness Goddamit, and if you don't enjoy it then you're a bad person. surliminal was telling me that at a recent party one of her friends accused a different one of being a bad mother because she didn't make a big fuss about Christmas, for goodness sake.It's therefore not surprising that people rebel against Christmas on a primal level. Most of you lot detest being told what to do, and will instinctively do the opposite if someone tells you that you have to do something. You're also largely a bunch of grumpy bastards, so a festival of enforced happiness is pretty much guaranteed to have people marching in the streets, or at least complaining in their journals. And this was pretty much my position until a couple of years ago, when I realised that being anti-happiness just because some people were over the top about it was letting them rule my life just as much as if I'd had fun because they told me to. I enjoy seeing my family (intermittently), and having a few days off in the middle of nowhere, exchanging presents with them, and going for long walks with the dog is a good thing. As a fully paid up adult I don't have to buy into any aspects of Christmas I don't want to, so equally I'm not going to resent those aspects either - they just won't figure into my Christmas at all. Which leaves me free to enjoy the bits I will naturally like.
I can tell I'm tired because there's at least three points in there that I wants to use a specific word and had to change my sentence because it just wouldn't come. And I can't think of a way to finish this off neatly, so I'm just going to call a halt at the end of this sentence, right here.
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no subject
Date: 2006-12-21 10:35 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 02:13 pm (UTC)What are your real reasons for Santa-hatred?
no subject
Date: 2006-12-21 11:40 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 12:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-12-21 11:50 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-12-21 11:58 pm (UTC)Choose how you want to celebrate, do whatever makes you feel relaxed.
People who don't like christmas are fair enough but they should still try and enjoy themselves over the festive period.
For years I always worked this time and while I'm not a big fan - I still like the fact I now have a choice as to waht I do over this period.
My family don't do the family meet thing at all, we just phone each other usually and catch up.
This year I am spending time with milady's family - which is a new and interesting thing.
Good luck to all in their xmas endeavours.
no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 12:18 am (UTC)There can be an expectation, not just of enjoyment but of a particular set of behaviours to express that enjoyment. Also there is a certain amount of "food is love!" (or "material goods are love"), which needs to be kicked against, I think. Just a minor note - you've produced a postively irritating amount of good sense.
no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 01:03 am (UTC)I remembered your parents place as much bigger than that!!
You forgot to recount the opposite experience - I was disallowed Xmas as a kid (Jewish) and more or less not even allowed to make a fuss about Hanukkah - hence I am all for Xmas, enforced jollity, large meals etc etc. You should all try growing up Jewish :-P
(And yes Andy IS actually Jewish. But not really..)
BTW I have just spent an hour making the laptop password fingerprint thing work with the fucking wi fi network and NOT RINGING YOU at 1am... You should be very fucking proud of me :)
no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 02:16 pm (UTC)Christmas
Date: 2006-12-22 04:38 am (UTC)Re: Christmas
Date: 2006-12-22 02:17 pm (UTC)I'm sorry your Christmas won't be great!
no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 09:03 am (UTC)So have a very merry happy and jolly one!!!
no subject
Date: 2006-12-22 02:52 pm (UTC)Although the whole issue of 'enforced happiness' totaly reminds me of Dr Who's 'Happiness Patrol' with Sylvester McCoy. Very scary!