decoration vacation.

I'm not really a fan of "the Holidays". I like the idea of giving people presents, but I hate the agony of what to buy. Things have changed: it's probably easier to find good things now that I have my ever-reliable list of where to buy cheap art (Etsy is key!). But this year, I have no money. That means my family is getting framed versions of my photography prints. Suckers!

I used to adore Christmas, used to lie under the Christmas tree and admire it as it twinkled, used to relish in making cut-out cookies and anticipating what I might get from Santa. But every year, Christmas feels less special. I'm not Christian, so there goes the Behbeh Jesus thing. It seems like just another day, as all holidays now do, and it reminds me that my lack of enthusiasm means that I am getting OLD. (No, 23 is not old by any scientific standard, but I just feel like I'm so far behind schedule. Not marriage or kid-wise, as I don't even know if I want to go down that road, but as far as my career and, um, entire future are concerned. I have no job, no apartment, and most importantly, no money. Plus there's that whole lack of emotional maturity thing.)

I also hate all the consumerism around this particular holiday. I read that the reason Christmas advertising began so early this year was because of the economy, to get people to shop again. I know many people will max out their credit cards to pay for gifts and then spend the entire next year making up for it. I don't need gifts and I hate the obligation to buy them. Can't we take a year off? Do we really want people to go further into debt? I mentioned this to my best friend, this whole "no-gift Christmas", and he hated the idea. I suggested he give me money for my birthday, because that's all I really need, and it was as if I had spat on his mother's grave. I don't care if it's impersonal, a girl's gotta eat (Checkers!). I might just ask for Christmas money early and use half of it to buy gifts and donate the other half to charity so I don't have such a guilty conscience.

I also HATE tacky Christmas decorations. You know the kind: the ones you find at Hallmark with big fat cats and angels and Star Trek characters. Yes, I said Star Trek. Observe below. (It has sound and motion when you push a button!)




I also hate super-religious ones and those that combine Jesus with Santa (I didn't realize Santa was present at his birth in the manger!).

On the opposite end of the spectrum are the very lovely Christmas trees you see way up above. They look so Tim Burton-esque, so slightly askew, and just perfectly quirky. Joanna Goddard found them in her search for Christmas decorations on etsy, and I just love them. Because creepy Christmas is okay, but creepy RELIGIOUS Christmas is not.

{Christmas tree set of three,$74 at Middleburg; image via Cookie Magazine's Nesting Blog}