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I don’t think I’m that unique when I say that I’ve always really loved Christmas. I love my family’s traditions, I love eating good food, I love days spent in pajamas, and I love giving people presents. I always have and I’m sure 95 percent of people who celebrate Christmas feel much the same, but my real question is, how? How do you actually enjoy the holiday season?
This isn’t addressed at the kiddos. They have every reason to celebrate Christmas and the holiday season. I’m talking to the majority of the people that read this very site. The working adults. I’ve been post-grad for two years now and while last year I thought, “Oh, it’s just because it’s so different from last year,” I can affirmatively say after this year that that is not the case.
I think being an adult with a real job is ruining Christmas for me.
I’ve realized this slowly over the last few weeks honestly; it wasn’t something that just slapped me in the face, it’s been an agonizingly slow and depressing realization that started after Thanksgiving when I went back to work. I woke up that Monday morning and was just not quite as peppy (read: caffeinated) as I usually am. Now I’m not saying I wake up every morning shitting red and green glitter with doves singing me the song of the wild like some Christmas Cinderella, but I genuinely like my job and while I’m not a fan of the usual early wake-up, I really don’t mind going to work on most days. But today there was just a dreary cloud following my every sluggish step. I pretty much shrugged it off because everyone has their days, right?
Wrong. That cloud has slowly gotten bigger and darker ever since. It’s growing right now as I type this. This past Monday when the cloud finally felt like it was starting to pour, I finally realized why I was feeling this way. My brain is in Christmas break mode right now and I am very much so not on Christmas break. In fact, I have actually been quite busy at work lately. It’s slowly sucking away, perhaps not my love for but my enjoyment of the holiday season. I haven’t even been able to listen to Christmas music. I put it on in my office once so far and just couldn’t stomach it because I wanted to be baking cookies and Christmas shopping, not pulling reports and making creative.
Prior to the last two years, I’ve had 20 years of pure Christmas joy for, pretty much most of December; being able to do all the fun Christmas holiday traditions, even if that meant binge-watching Christmas movies all day and making 500 delicious buckeyes with my sisters all day (yeah, we did that on accident one year — sorry, mom). Now, I rush around on the two days I have off a week, usually slightly hungover, trying to accomplish all my usual errands as well as my Christmas errands. It’s so sad that I even call them errands now instead of “traditions.”
I want to enjoy my Christmas traditions and feel like it’s “‘tis the season again.” Is this how it feels now or is this something that will wear off as working the majority of the holiday season becomes my new norm? Someone please advise or I fear I might end up just another holiday office Scrooge. .
Respond
“Is this how it feels now?”
Bad news- yes
Good news- you’re not the only one
Do you take time off during the holidays? One thing that always helps me is not working during the week between Christmas and New Years. My old company was actually closed during this time span, while my current one is open, but no one is really here so everyone takes PTO. It’s a big help in being able to enjoy the holidays. Plus, I know that I’ll have three months of 60+ hour weeks once the holidays end, so it’s an extra motivator take the time off and enjoy the time with my friends and family because I won’t be seeing much of them for some time.
I’ve only been at my current company for one year (as of Thursday actually) so I don’t have PTO to take until then really. Might have to look into that this coming year though.
It will become the new normal. Just like working all through the summer becomes normal. I’m five years out of college and finally at a job where we get the week between Christmas and NYE off and at this point that one week feels like I’m getting a 3-4 week college style break again
Looks on the bright side, it’s going to only get worse and worse for the rest of your life
I work for a boss who doesn’t celebrate holidays, any of them. This feeling has been growing for years.
I’m currently in a job that needs at least one person at the office 24/7/365. I don’t have to work christmas but I’m honestly considering coming in for overtime because the alternative is spending the day at home alone. gods this is depressing at least I’ll be out of this position soon
Agree. My boss has made her stance on Christmas clear (she hates it) and won’t allow any work sanctioned events. I also have a muti-million dollar grant application due on NYE. Cheers
I felt the same way a few years ago. I travel a lot for work and usually get burned out towards the middle of November. Going back to work after January 1st made me pretty depressed after spending such an awesome few weeks with people who I don’t see too often.
A few things that helped me included saving at least a week of vacation for the last week of the year and taking a shit ton of vitamin D to deal with the gloomy skies.
“Is this how it feels now or…”
Answer: yes, at least until you work long enough to get enough vacation to just casually peace out for half the month. I get my third vacation week next year and I’m definitely plotting to use it for a real Christmas break as opposed to a destination vacation.
Working for a boss that is of a culture without December holidays,means he really doesn’t get that I am on auto-pilot until Jan 7th