Christmas Alone Isn't Christmas Pathetic
I've actually never looked at it that way.
And until recently -- until both Gregg's mom and Elmore Leonard had died -- I spent Christmas alone in LA while he went to Detroit.
I loved it.
It's always really quiet here in Venice then, and I get a lot of reading and writing done.
Well, I saw this tweet (see below), and I realized that a lot of people probably feel bad about being alone on Christmas -- not necessarily because they're alone but because there's this notion that Christmas alone is awful.
Maybe it is for some. And I hope their friends recognize that and make them family (in the way we often do, living in LA, coming from all over the world).
But for others -- like me -- well, I appreciate this tweet by Stephanie Foo:
PSA: There is nothing shameful or pathetic in spending the holidays alone, and they can even be enjoyable. I'm loved and happy, but have no family, and often spend holidays alone. A retrospective:
— Stephanie Foo (@imontheradio) December 23, 2017
Read her whole string here. This is one cool woman.
Right there with you.
Well, as long as you don't get visited by three ghosts during the night...
I R A Darth Aggie at December 23, 2017 6:08 AM
And Jacob Marley. Sorry, didn't mean to leave you out, Jake!
I R A Darth Aggie at December 23, 2017 6:09 AM
By the time I retire from work, I will probably be so sick of other people that I'll be ecstatic at the thought of spending Christmas alone watching TV or reading the Advice Goddess blog (if Amy is still around) and other things.
mpetrie98 at December 23, 2017 7:05 AM
I remember I was set to spend to Christmas alone while living in Maine. My mistake was mentioning this to someone at church.
Because I got invited to Christmas dinner at their house. I really didn't like the idea, but what could I do? I had already told them I was staying home alone.
I was feeling, "Gosh, spending Christmas with a family I barely know, conscious of the fact that I'm an outsider inflicting myself on your together time...well, it ranks up there with eating a bowl of broken glass as far as personal appeal."
Over the last several years, I used to spend it with my mother, a family friend and my sister, since they were my only family in Florida. Then, the family friend died, less than two years later, my mother died, then, last year, my sister died.
So, I now spend Christmas alone. Which is really how I prefer it.
Of course, I didn't want anybody to die so that I could enjoy this luxury.
Patrick at December 23, 2017 7:25 AM
If you're old enough to tolerate the idea of spending your birthday alone (at least sometimes) Christmas shouldn't be any different.
Even children often have to have their birthday parties on the "wrong" days, because of their schedules. If they can get used to that, that's a good start to emotional independence. (I know a few such kids.)
lenona at December 23, 2017 10:07 AM
And if spending it alone because there isn't anyone to share it with bothers someone they can always try volunteering at a soup kitchen or something.
(Unless, of course, someone is such a bummer of a person that they would even bring the homeless down on Christmas then maybe they should stay home alone.)
charles at December 23, 2017 12:38 PM
Hey, wherever I have Internet, I'm never alone. I can spend time with family - some who stink, some who are cool, some who go on and on about their latest fascination...
Right here!
Which one of you's the creepy uncle?
Radwaste at December 24, 2017 10:48 PM
'Alone' doesn't mean the same thing as 'lonely.'
I'm normally loath to quote Psych Today, but…
"Solitude is the state of being alone without being lonely."
(As long as you're not 'in solitary.') /sarc
lsomber at December 27, 2017 6:42 PM
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