As time goes on I have noticed that there are many Christmas
traditions which, for one reason or another, do not happen anymore. Here is a
look at five examples, things that are long gone that I really miss or wish I'd
been able to experience.
#5. Christmas TV Commercials
I know what you're thinking, they still do Christmas
commercials! Well, yeah they do but they don't compare to the cool ads we got
in the 80's. Much like the way Super Bowl ads seem to disappoint year after
year, Christmas commercials today just never have that care and quality that
they had way back when. I loved the old time commercials; some are flat out
classics from companies like McDonald's, Coca-Cola, Fruity Pebbles, and even
Oreo had a precious one. Check out the link below and tell me they make ads
like these today.
http://youtu.be/t7kxPYzigCQ
#4.School/Office Christmas Parties
Ah, the good old days when you could openly celebrate
Christmas in school and work. Now schools are afraid to even have Christmas
decorations up. Why can't we include other religions without removing
Christmas? And office parties aren't what they used to be either because of the
PC world we live in. Now everyone is so afraid of sexual harassment or other
liable suits that the traditional parties have been replaced with toned down
affairs.
#3.Believing in Santa
There is a reason why many say that Christmas is for
children. Because it's much more magical when you're young. There is no denying
that, the excitement of Christmas morning just isn't quite the same when you're
an adult. So what do you do, become jaded and cynical and say that Christmas
has no meaning? Yeah, one could do that but I choose to use Christmas as a way
to rekindle that feeling of when I was a kid. I watch the old TV specials, listen
to the music, and the spirit of Santa will always be alive to me. The best parts
of Christmas for me are the memories. So while Christmas changes as you get
older, the little kid inside of me will always love it and will always believe.
In fact I still get excited when I got to bed Christmas Eve, guess some habits
die hard.
#2.TV Variety Specials
Man do I feel like I missed something here. Oh, I got to see
many of the later Bob Hope Specials but there was so much I missed. Andy
Williams, Bing Cosby and Perry Como had seasonal specials virtually every year
in the 70's and 80's. Perry Como would usually broadcast from exotic location,
while Bing Crosby would have his entire family in the special. Then of course
there were the Bob Hope USO Christmas shows which deserve their own article. They
were corny and silly, and I wish I'd had the chance to see them. They all
pretty much followed the same formula. The host would have a few guest stars that
would sing or appear in sketches. They were just fun and for awhile were as
much a part of the holiday as Santa and Rudolph. As I said I did get to see the
Bob Hope specials in the 80's, thank goodness for that. You could add Dolly
Parton, John Denver and the Muppets, Julie Andrews, and Pee-Wee Herman (well, I
actually did see that one and loved it...when I was a kid).
#1.Saying "MERRY CHRISTMAS!"
Okay, it's soapbox time. If you don't celebrate Christmas,
or celebrate another holiday, then more power to you. But I celebrate
Christmas, and get really tired of being made to feel like I have to hide that
from the public because I may "offend" someone. It's a CHRISTMAS tree
not a holiday tree, and I send Christmas cards not holiday cards. I am all for
integration of other holidays and beliefs, that's fair. There should be a
Menorah out with a Christmas tree! But if I want to go around and proudly
proclaim "MERRY CHRISTMAS" then I am going to! This has been a PC
thing for a long time now, and it gets really annoying. To be fair I can
understand Happy Holidays being used sometimes, like in stores which welcome a
diverse customer base. But why do TV Christmas specials, which are 100%
Christmas and the word is used over and over, always end by the cast saying
"Happy Holidays" rather "Merry Christmas"? Well, just my opinion of course but If someone
doesn't celebrate then that's fine, but I am not going to hide the fact that I
do. I adore Christmas for many reasons I won't get into here. And if that
offends you, well.....
And on that note, I think I will stop here. This will be my
last Christmas blog now that the holiday is just days away. Next time I will
have something special to celebrate my 200th blog, and looking forward to
trying new ideas as we get into 2013. But for now, I want to wish everyone at
Manic Expressions a wonderful holiday season, a fantastic New Year....and Merry
Christmas to all!
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