Celebrate without buying gifts.
Why do you need to spend money to celebrate? Spend your time with people instead.
I 100% agree with this. Unfortunately it’s also one of those things that a lot of people say but don’t really mean. Like when they say it’s OK for men to cry.
Oh this man cries, often. And this man thinks it’s completely natural, acceptable, and often enjoyable.
It’s definitely OK for men to cry. Or, it’s equally not okay for a woman to cry than a man. Lol
I totally cry.
I also tend to give gifts when I see something a friend would swoon over, and giving gifts for Christmas is weird.
I also don’t really care about my masculinity or if I’m seen as sufficiently manly.
Same thought. I just said to people close to me that I don’t want gifts neither for christmas nor for my birthday and I’ll never want them. As a kid it makes sense, getting something you really want from someone else because you don’t really have a serious job or money at all so it’s one of the few chances to get something. Now if I want something I just buy it, otherwise I just don’t want it. And if I can’t buy it because it’s expensive why would I want someone else to spend that kind of money? Plus all that thinking about what would be a good gift. And if it’s about “showing you care about me” then really, just say merry christmas or happy birthday.
Everyone close to me knows I ain’t a holiday gift giver. I like giving surprises to people on the fly when they don’t expect it.
Personally I like giving other people gifts. It’s part of the fun. Last year I got my brother a drone and he got me a thrifted, pit-stained t-shirt for a band I don’t listen to that much. I don’t care, I just like to give other people cool gifts!
Gifts can be made or affordable
I know a guy who grew up occasionally homeless. He has ended up as a well paid tech manager and his approach is that his family can usually just afford the things they want, so instead of buying stress gifts the last month of each year, his family picks a charitable cause to donate time and money to instead.
They’ve bought goats for third world families; paid for education, transportation and home construction; fed hungry and clothed the naked.
He’s a cool guy.
Steam games bought tomorrow morning
I’m buying myself a new weighted blanket 🥳
Treat ‘yo self!
My wife got me one of those this year. Really helping me through my covid. Oh yeah, I also have covid on Christmas day, lol. Fun stuff.
I got COVID on Christmas two years ago. You got this!
What a coincidence, I’m buying myself a blanketed weight!
A few years ago, I had ordered a bunch of gifts for my family to be delivered to my mother’s house shortly before Christmas. The morning my flight was supposed to leave, I got an email from Amazon saying my packages were delayed until like mid-January. Given that I needed to be on a plane in a couple of hours, and it was like 3 days before Christmas Day, I ended up just printing off pictures of the stuff I bought and giving everybody a card with them in it. We had a pretty good laugh about it.
Saw people buying gifts at the grocery store this morning. Like cheap perfume gift bundles and stuff like that.
Could be stocking stuffers. White elephant party maybe. Something for the surprise holiday guest so they feel included and welcomed.
Make plans after Christmas day and buy presents on boxing day on discount is what I’d do tbh.
Improvise. Adapt. Overcome.
Count my money while browsing boxing day sales and chuckleing because I don’t actually need anything.
I will buy them and send them late, like I usually do.
No gifts, just a card. And that still caught her off-guard, because she knows I’m opposed to materialism (for the sake of materialism; I still buy nice things for the things I need).
This is why e-giftcards exist
Wait on the gifts I’m getting!
I let my wife handle all the gifts, but I put up the tree and make all the food.
give me your money instead
