In this case, less is definitely more. I'll spare you the details but I grew up with parents who felt the need to overspend, overplan and basically ruin the season with stress and over-expectations. I whole heartedly endorse the notion of "napping over spending", in fact it's my new mantra as of today! By spending less time shopping and planning, we find more time to be with family and friends in casual situations. That is where we will find the joy of the season. My good wife and I have a drop in policy that is strongly encouraged year round but especially at Christmas - basically it says drop in anytime if you are the sort that came to chat over coffee or a beer and not the sort that came to see how we keep the house or what we have. That rules out most of my family but includes all of the people we truly like. In fact, it's actually converted some from the latter to the former.

I'm heading to the Mountain for Christmas, where it's all about the food and cocktails at 4.

i tricked my parents into coming here for a vegetarian thanksgiving. I am more than halfway through tricking them into coming here for a vegetarian Christmas. My 14th wedding anniversary is also December 24th.
As for fuss, we have a string of lights, 2 ornaments, a snoopy/santa and advent calendar to decorate with. Don't need a tree. We have also tried to get gift shopping greatly reduced. It is quite relaxing and all about the entertaining, togetherness and whatnot, rather than spending and nerves.
Although, that said, I would encourage readers here to go to pottersblog and spend fortunes on my stuff so I can keep buying groceries. I'm friendlier than walmart.

I thought my assertion that Yule can be used as a pan-Westernism would be more contentious. To assist in that contending, here is the area of wikiality that relates to Yule. Note that is says Yule log persists in Scotland. <p>I have another interesting element of pan-Westernism that I have to dig up from a text I am reading right now but that is for tomorrow.

My sister and I celebrate Chrismukkah but for the rest of the family it is, and always has been Yule, Xmas being a holiday too far for Quaker sensibilities.

Being of the non-christian, non-religious persuasion, Christmas is all about Santa, gifts, elves and relaxation when I was a kid and at my home now. Same with Thanksgiving. I wish we had a day in November.

I propose we all start the trend to adopt the same day our US compadres have off and use up a vacation day. it could be the start of a 6 week prior to Xmas section of the year where we drink a lot, relax a lot and generally prepare for winter in our minds.

I think we need another holiday in November but it should also be called "Thanksgiving", not held on the US one but the week after it - and it should also come about through a grassroots movement out of Saskatchewan.

I wonder if our man Flea can remark upon the mid-winter yule, pagans, and the orgiastic rituals that resulted in a crop of babies around August or September: 'Merry Begot'
Man, where did I learn this stuff, and why can't I remember the whole story?

I fundamentally support your concept of a secular "Yule" holiday season in our Western society. I think the "Yule" season is headed in that direction due to demographic factors. Young people aren't as religious as the older generations, however, they have a lot of warm fuzzy feelings of nostalgia and good cheer that have been a part of Christmas celebrations since the time of Scrooge and as portrayed in numerous television specials since the 70s onward. As well, in our land of plenty, many people have all the material posessions they could ever want but really lack time, companionship and socialization amd respect for one another.

But, didn't George Costanza's father already try this with "Festivus"?

I noticed the merging of American Thanksgiving and Christmas as "the holiday season" in the last 1-2 years and found it noteworthy as I hadn't noticed it before.

I notice Canadians have something going on around July 4th, and now you want to copy Thanksgiving too, huh? Considering the above post, cut the Quebecers loose sometime in November and then EVERYBODY will want a Canadian holiday.

We already have a Thanksgiving, Gary, I think Alan's looking for a "ok, it's almost winter, let's start the party" day. Obviously the name will have to be abbreviated.

Mind you, I just realized our Thanksgiving is on your Columbus Day, so you may have a point there. Moving our day to the week after your Thanksgiving might avoid the copycat allegations.

Listen, it is dark and dreary in November, a good time for an xmas warmup. let's just say that the drinks get poured, the food gets served, and you people have to go to work. I think Canada could find a way to have some fun in Nov.

I think a "name the proposed holiday in November" contest is in Order Alan.

Something wintery.. Something Tundra-esque.

Inukshuk Day?

Hmm. My response to this was much different than everyone else's. I thought Al was going rather for 'we N. Americans work to dang much, don't have big @$$ and long festival-ish holidays like they do in Europe and Japan often enough, and I'm glad we've made it into a nearly two month long schmorgasborg(without umlaut on my keyboard, unfortunately) of good vibes' than "I'm gelling" or GX40 show and tell time(we should really schedule that time I think. Wed would seem to be a good time. SOmething to get you over the hump on Humpday.).
Oh well. Wouldn't be the first time I misunderstood things and won't be the last.

Just how vegetarian(lacto-ovo, vegan, raw, what?) are these holidays, gr? You do do pies at least, yes? I cannot fathom a holiday season without some kind of pumpkin pie. That just isn't natural. My grandmother will climb up out of her grave and spend the next month trudging along I-80 if she hears you don't have pie. SHe was pretty wicked with a wooden spoon when she was alive and I fear for what she'd be able to do with zombie powers.

OH yes, ry, there is a pumpkin pie. We made it ourselves and the darn thing smells GOOD. As a matter of fact, the wife and her family like them so much we don't wait for Thanksgiving, but make pumpkin pies year 'round.
Making a monster dish of stuffed shells for dinnah: ricotta, cheese, etc.

<blockquote class="smalltext"><i>I thought Al was going rather for 'we N. Americans work to dang much, don't have big @$$ and long festival-ish holidays like they do in Europe and Japan often enough, and I'm glad we've made it into a nearly two month long schmorgasborg(without umlaut on my keyboard, unfortunately) of good vibes' than "I'm gelling" or GX40 show and tell time(we should really schedule that time I think. Wed would seem to be a good time. SOmething to get you over the hump on Humpday.).</i></blockquote>I am really having a hard time understanding exactly what the above means. I think it is interesting so this is a request for a clarification.

Japan has a series of 'days' that are holidays. Many of them take on a week or more of merry making. Europe, or so I've been told, has a few as well(Festival, for instance). But over here we tend to do things as singular(Easter is a dinner. Christmas is a day. Holloween is a day. All days. All singular. All followed by 'get back to work') events. Christmas being about the only one where there's an extension(Christmas eve.). But now by essentially melding Thanksgiving/Christmas you could have a 2 month long event punctuated by a day(or two) ala the Japanese having their Valentine's Day really be something like a week long extravaganza(but the women pamper the men there. Go figure.).
Instead of being a bunch of accountants saying 'okay, we've had our day, back to most efficient work schedule, now, now, now people!' it could be just a two month mellow. At least that's what I thought you were saying.

Good point. We up here get Boxing Day after Christmas which leans heavily towards New Years. We also have Good Friday and Easter Monday. These give us good holiday stretches as well as the other long weekends - except for Canada Day which is a fixed date. Longer holiday periods are what we need.