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It doesn’t feel like Christmas

By Catherine Toth Fox • December 9, 2012 • Musings, The Daily Dish

It’s Dec. 10 and it still hasn’t sunk in.

Christmas is just 15 days away.

By now, the Christmas tree is up and decorated, the cookies are baked and packed, the presents are bought and wrapped. I’m rushing around to holiday parties and donning whatever red outfits I have in the closet.

But not this year.

I’m just not feeling it.

I was talking with a few friends over the weekend and, apparently, I’m not the only one feeling a little disenchanted this December. One girlfriend hasn’t bought a single gift. Another decided to ditch the tree idea. Another is spending the holiday in Europe.

What’s going on?

At first, I thought I wasn’t feeling Christmas-y because Derek is still in Madison. But that shouldn’t matter. I’ve spent several Christmases alone — and I was way more prepared last year and Derek was in Wisconsin then, too.

I’m at a loss.

The other day I attempted to infuse some Christmas. I went out and bought a new Santa hat and baked a batch of my grandma’s fruitcake.

But it didn’t work.

I still feel like it’s September and I have three months to get my head into the whole Christmas thing.

Anyone else feeling this way?

Because misery needs company! LOL

ChristmasDerek TairaHawaiiholidaysit doesn't feel like ChristmasMadisonnot feeling Christmas
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About the Author

Catherine Toth Fox

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15 Comments

  • Reply islandgirlinnc December 10, 2012 at 2:43 am

    I totally get how you feel but I have young children, so Christmas, regardless of how I feel, is a must to get ready for. I think the problem was Thanksgiving was early and Christmas feels essentially late. Today I was just thinking there’s still 2 weeks to go. I haven’t finished my Christmas shopping yet but at least I started. Don’t know when I bake cookies yet either. I have gone to 1 Christmas party but still it didn’t feel like Christmas yet. I wonder why we feel this way this year?

    • Reply Kamkanani December 10, 2012 at 4:49 pm

      I agree with you, having young children really does help in getting excited for Christmas. For me, that is what Christmas is all about, its for the kids. As an adult, I don’t expect much if anything. The best part of the holidays is the family gatherings. We have pretty big family and lots of kids under the age of 6 yrs (5 of them to be exact) So its pretty exciting for them. I guess it helps to get pumped up if you have little ankle biters around and lots of family.

  • Reply Kimi December 10, 2012 at 5:33 am

    Glad to hear you baked your grandma’s fruitcake – you have a pic?
    Maybe you’re getting older and wiser and think Christmas should be in the
    spirit, not a one day event but an everyday event instead? I feel the same way
    this year too, and I’m much older – don’t know what’s going on.
    Just like a friend who was
    always late – she said every place she had to go to was just 15 minutes away.

  • Reply Harry December 10, 2012 at 5:46 am

    I don’t know. I am just not in the Christmas spirit either. It seems like it kind of snuck up on us this year. It didn’t help that I was starting to see Christmas decorations even before Halloween.

  • Reply M December 10, 2012 at 6:27 am

    Hello Cat!
    Ho Ho Ho Merry Christmas!
    My fake tree is up, shopping is all done, wrapping up gifts has begun, starting to bake cookies. I think it feels like Christmas….

  • Reply Annoddah Dave December 10, 2012 at 6:56 am

    CAT: Funny you should mention this…I’ve been feeling this as well. I blame it on the stores that started to put out decorations before Thanksgiving. It feels like Christmas came and went. It’s sad.

  • Reply Toekinam December 10, 2012 at 10:29 am

    I feel you, I have not started any shopping! It’s so commercialized, I was thinking of making donations to any Hawaii charities and put them under friends and families names as their ‘Christmas presents’ Traffic and malls has been so crazy, good luck and happy holidays =)

  • Reply Roger Dunn December 10, 2012 at 4:26 pm

    Move to Boston or Chicago!

  • Reply Dennis Fujii December 10, 2012 at 4:55 pm

    Its just a Baa Humbug phase. It comes in cycles! Not to worry, the decorations are just the outside trimming, its what’s you feel that counts!

  • Reply Nick Abramo December 10, 2012 at 9:27 pm

    think of how grateful you are to be alive and how wonderful your existence can be

    and if that doesn’t work, watch A Charlie Brown Christmas and pay close attention to Linus’ speech

  • Reply bumper December 10, 2012 at 11:32 pm

    ‘Tis the season! Having kids helps motivate me to appreciate the many joyful and magical things about Christmas. Sometimes we could all benefit from the insights of youth.

  • Reply rayboyjr December 11, 2012 at 8:42 am

    Hey Cat … welcome to the i-Christmas world … virtual-ly the same as any Christmas we enjoyed over the years, right??? … NOT!!! …lots of dazzle and glitz … not much spirit or feeling …

    … maybe we should just go back to celebrating the original meaning of Christmas …

    … and stop worrying about the over-hyped, over commercialized Christmas 2.0 …

  • Reply matt December 11, 2012 at 8:51 am

    I think Cat needs kittens.

  • Reply visitor December 11, 2012 at 3:05 pm

    It’s the “spirit” that’s missing. As mentioned earlier, the holiday season has become so comercialized that we don’t have feelings anymore. The shopping for Christmas is infringing into Thanksgiving. Radio stations begin playing only Christmas music from December 1st, I’m sick of it already. It’s become where everything associated with the holidays are a ‘given.’ Things you MUST do. It’s becoming where it’s not fun anymore. Becoming more of a chore. Need to simplify and bring back the “JOY!”

  • Reply dbjack December 11, 2012 at 6:27 pm

    LOL… I have felt that way since 1969. So this year is no different. Thanksgiving is way better… not sure why. Christmas to me is a holiday that needs to go. Always was about clearing off store shelves for merchants. I randomly through the year buy my son stuff he needs and wants so it seems silly setting aside a ‘special day’ to do what is a habit. And God and I have had a steady truce for a while now. And hey, the Pope said some dummy a few years back hosed the date anyway… for all we know we are celebrating Manuel Jimenez’s birthday.

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About Me

About Me
Born and raised on O‘ahu, Hawaiʻi, Catherine Toth Fox has been chronicling her adventures in her blog, The Cat Dish, for more than a decade. She worked as a newspaper reporter in Hawai‘i for 10 years and continues to freelance—in between teaching journalism, hitting the surf and eating everything in sight—for national and local print and online publications. She’s currently the editor of HAWAIʻI Magazine.

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