Monday 2 December 2013

Christmas: It’s nice, if you like Christmas

I’m not immune to the “spirit” of the season; the collective effervescence one experiences in shopping mall parking lots, shopping mall check-out lines, etc.

I am not a Grinch, nor a Scrooge. I am an Atheist at Christmas. My partner is a skeptic with Christian leanings; lover of Christmas and eggnog. What to do? What to do?
Relationships require compromise and this year I will be the Queen of Compromise.
Part of me has given up the good Atheist fight this time of year. Like the useful life of our dying sun, my “Festive Lighting: How it Contributes to the Western Energy Crisis” diatribe grows shorter and shorter with each passing year.
But please, dear reader, please, don’t feel I’ve been defeated.
A trickle of blood, festive red, will ooze once more from the corner of my mouth as I express my excitement over the decorative snowmen and Santa Claus plastered around the house. Yes, I am going to buy a present or two, eat too many vegetables (bonus: I’m also a vegetarian), and complain about it for days. Then, on December 27th, I will return to the office and agree with everyone that we’re glad it’s finally over for another year.
Christmas: it’s great, if you are employed in Canada and get two statutory holidays in a row (Christmas Day and Boxing Day). When those two statutory holidays fall on a Thursday and Friday, one could even argue there has been just a little bit of heavenly intervention.
There’s no heaven this year. I’m going to take my Wednesday and Thursday statutory holidays and be the best Queen of Compromise I can be. Happy holidays, everyone!