Christmas: Are they shoving it down our throats too early?

[Pig'sSaysAdios]

"There won't be snow in Africa this Christmastime" seems a tad unnecessary too.

That line seems a bit odd, it's like it not snowing on Christmas is some unthinkable tragedy, almost like they're raising awareness so that they can get the weather to change. They do know it doesn't snow on Christmas in Australia or New Zealand either, right? I think most residents are used to it at this point.

 

[CensoredAlso]

And that one line "Tonight thank God it's them instead of you" has always rubbed me the wrong way.

Well it's just trying to remind people to keep their lives in perspective. We live in "a world of plenty" and it's a very easy to forget that there's "a world outside your window" that isn't so fortunate. Same with the snow line. We wish for a winter wonderland at Christmas, but in Africa the gift they wish for is their very lives.

 

[mr3urious]

There's also the whole depiction of the continent of Africa as this barren wasteland where absolutely nothing can support life that rubs me the wrong way, too. "Clanging chimes of doom"? Give me a clanging break.

That's the very definition of glurge: something that's very sappy and uplifting for the sake of being inspirational, but hides a fair amount of unfortunate implications deep down.

 

[D'Snowth]

That line seems a bit odd, it's like it not snowing on Christmas is some unthinkable tragedy, almost like they're raising awareness so that they can get the weather to change. They do know it doesn't snow on Christmas in Australia or New Zealand either, right? I think most residents are used to it at this point.

Hey, I've never seen it snow on Christmas either, and I live in the northern hemisphere . . . and I guess that goes double for you being out in Texas. But yeah, I mean, I seem to recall Nicole Kidman talking about Christmases in Australia being spent out in the backyard swimming pool.

There's also the whole depiction of the continent of Africa as this barren wasteland where absolutely nothing can support life that rubs me the wrong way, too. "Clanging chimes of doom"? Give me a clanging break.

Australia seems to get quite a bit of that as well, though then again, Wes Dening (an Australian TV personality) actually defends this by admitting, "there's really not much to do in Australia." Then again, I heartell that many Australians weren't too impressed with KANGAROO JACK depicting the continent as being barren and desolate and full of drunks.

 

[mr3urious]

Australia seems to get quite a bit of that as well, though then again, Wes Dening (an Australian TV personality) actually defends this by admitting, "there's really not much to do in Australia." Then again, I heartell that many Australians weren't too impressed with KANGAROO JACK depicting the continent as being barren and desolate and full of drunks.

Bet they apologized to The Simpsons for the way their country was depicted in that one episode ever since then.

 

[D'Snowth]

It's also a continent.

 

[MuppetSpot]

[/QUOTE
What company made the Kermit sitting on a log playing the banjo, I have never seen it before.

 

[D'Snowth]

Bradford Exchange - the same company that my TMS cuckoo clock came from last year.

 

[D'Snowth]

Apparently Festivus Miracles are real, look what I got this year:

I didn't even know these things existed, so these were quite a surprise. Interestingly enough though, Kramer is the only regular of the main four they made for the set (apparently, Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, and Julia Louis-Dreyfus wouldn't agree to license their likenesses for these things).

Apparently, a late-arrival came in the mail today: Soup Nazi. And, that supposedly completes the set.

Gotta say though, out of all of them, Soup Nazi is the one that really looks the most like the real thing, lol.

 

[D'Snowth]

I don't think it's any surprise that the shoehorning of Christmas was a little more excessive this year than it has been in a while: it's almost as if retail and advertisers were subliminally wanting us to skip Halloween altogether and just go straight into Christmas, what with Christmas commercials and decorations being released all October long. It's bad enough that Thanksgiving is always overshadowed by Christmas, but really, Halloween was this year too: I'm kinda thinking that may have had something to do with the lack of Halloween spirit this year - the jumpstart on Christmas kind of ruined Halloween.

Anyway, I keep having this lingering feeling in the back of my mind that this is going to be another lousy Christmas this year, I just sense it: the seasonal outlook forecast is saying that December will be below average this year, but everytime they forecase below average, they're always wrong, so I'm anticipating and dreading another one of those "Blowtorch Christmases" like we had in 2015, where it was warm and springlike all Christmas long. I just have the sickening feeling that's going to happen again.