Tuesday, December 23, 2008

Holiday Shcadenfreude:

Happiness at the misfortune of others. Normally I consider myself a pretty empathetic person. However, I have my limits especially when the condition is self induced.

I took a bike ride Sunday afternoon...I intentionally rode past the mall to see all the stressed out holiday shoppers. That's one of the shcadenfreude moments. All the pressure people put on themselves to have a perfect holiday kind made me chuckle. Hey, news flash! There is no such thing as a perfect holiday! Little things will always go wrong, Aunt Gladys won't like someone's haircut, Kevin will get left Home Alone, you can't always afford the perfect gift and the turkey might be a little dry (but still pretty tasty all things considered).

My advice, relax and chill a little bit. It may not be perfect, but I bet any little imperfections will pale in comparison to your increased ability to enjoy the day...regardless of which holiday you might celebrate.

You can wish me Happy Chocolate Day tomorrow...I know many of you celebrate Christmas, so Merry Christmas to you...and I apologize for missing the first day... Happy Hannukkah

4 comments:

Beejay said...

You are so right....it is nuts out there right now. Pushy, shovey, and down right rude.

I am not setting foot in a store until TOMORROW when it gets really exciting. Oh, my shopping is done...I do it for the entertainment value.

kkdither said...

I think working retail for so many years put me off to the holidays. I remember so many mean, stressed people saying "merry christmas" in a not so nice way that when I finally made it to the family gathering, I was as scrooged out as one can be.

OrbsCorbs said...

I was in Piggly-Wiggly early this afternoon. The place was jammed. I think the weather coupled with the holidays is really stressing people this year. It's been difficult to get out because of snow or cold. It's snowing now and they say it will last through tomorrow. It could be quite a mess. I have no obligations until Christmas day. I can stay home, but I'm already getting cabin fever and winter officially started just yesterday. By February I will have gnawed holes in the walls.

Huck Finn said...

Holidays are why Bongs were invented. Dry Turkey? Do a bong. Bad haircut? Do a bong. After enough bongs you very well may leave poor Kevin home alone.... Hopefully he has his own bong too. Speaking of Bongs, pardon me a bit. It is the season ya know.

Today my nephew stopped by and took me out Xmas shopping (yes, I say "Xmas" get over it.) The roads were pure nastiness and slippery with ice under snow. Parking lots were atrochious and he had to pull/push my chair several times through the crap.

Everything was okay though until I got home. Going across the threshold I over balanced and my WC flipped backwards. Somehow I hyper extended my left thumb. Time to find the bong I guess. Going to be mega sore come tomorow.