'Tis the Season to eat some fucking turkey. . .

Okay, okay, normally I save my curses for the body of the post, but I can't help it.  I'm going to write a bitching little post about something that is near and dear to me: the month of November.

I'm sure you've seen this. It's floating around Facebook:

Yeah it's from a few years ago but that's not the point. 

November is a special time in our house.  It's Birthday Month!  My younger sister, my two daughters, and I all have November birthdays.  November 29th is my mother and stepfather's wedding anniversary (their 24th, I believe). All Saints Day (11/1). World AIDS day (11/1).  Veteran's Day (11/11).  Nigel Tufnel Day (also 11/11/11). There are elections the first week of November.  And the whole month is Native American Heritage Month, National Diabetes Awareness month. Then there's Thanksgiving.  And Black Friday (or Shop Main Street or better yet Buy Nothing day!). 

And only then - THEN when the turkey has made us all sleepy and we've watched Nebraska play Iowa, THEN it's time to allow Christmas to creep in. 

And YOUR TURN comes after ADVENT.

I'd say I'm sounding like my stepfather, except my stepfather was a Godly man who never cursed.  But the next holiday after Thanksgiving is Advent.  The great waiting.  When we anticipate Christmas. 

And before you go on calling me a grinch - I love Christmas. It's sparkly and shiny and lights are pretty and who doesn't love CHRISTMAS.  And let me tell you something I love about Christmas - tough as it is, I love that moment in the morning that we grudgingly get out of bed and pad into the living room and get really excited and then OMGOMGOMGCANWEPLEASEOPENIT? PLEASE???

Playing Christmas music in November - in early November - it's the equivalent of chucking some unwrapped presents under the tree.  I want the holiday to remain special which means I refuse to spend 1/6th of the year celebrating it.  I used to think 12 days was a long time to celebrate Christmas. . . 

So here, on the day after Thanksgiving, I will (grudgingly - it's far too early for my liking) decorate the tree.  It will come down on Epiphany when Christmas is over. 

Do I blame you for wanting to celebrate Christmas already?  No, I don't. It's awesome. It's special. It's super cool.  But it's awesome special and super cool because we don't do it every day.  Once we do, it's meaningless.