All I Want

Posted 12/23/2008 by CtotheB in Labels: , , ,



Happy Holidays Art Star!

Tis the season to give and I hope you have all your shopping done already (unless of course you, like me, are a fourth quarter player who doesn't care when you buy those gifts as long as they get it around* the 25th).

This is the first year in a while that I've really felt in the holiday spirit. Some years I spent the holidays declaring the death of Christmas. I was mad about celebrating a pagan holiday when Jesus wasn't even born in December**, how commercialism and xmasism*** have rendered the 25th unrecognizable, and how people were obsessed with getting a good gift and gave out of obligation. 

One of my main beefs with Christmas is the concept of gift-wrapping. I've always felt like the gift was much more important than the wrapping but there are many people who disagree. Mainly, my mom. 

It doesn't matter what I get my mom but I better wrap it. I could get her world peace for Christmas but if I just hand it to her she'd be like, "You couldn't even put it in a bag?"

Who started this custom? Why must so many trees die for such vain purposes?

About.com has an article about gift wrapping and names these five principles as the purposes of gift-wrapping:
  • To conceal what it is
  • To present the present in a pleasing way
  • To enhance anticipation
  • To spread the festive atmosphere, whether it is Christmas, a birthday, wedding, etc.
  • For traditions sake
In other words: (The CtotheB translation)
  • To deceive your loved ones
  • To make it pretty if it is a lousy gift/To overachieve and be superfluous if it is a great gift
  • To assist your recipient become a glutton for anticipation. Wasn't Christmas Eve enough?
  • To saturate your environment with even more commercialism. Presents=Happiness right?
  • Cuz that's what we always do!
I for one say NO! I will not wrap my gifts for anyone. If you are offended by this, I will gladly take my gift back. 

You may think this is rude of me (perhaps...) but consider this. I think gifts (in order to fulfill the purpose of Christmas) should be given through love and not obligation. The time and effort should be invested in finding the right gift for the right person, not through hours of paper and ribbons trying to make the gift seem good. 

I will make an exception if the gift does not come with pre-packaging. Fine, you like suspense (who doesn't) and the look on your recipient's face, I get it. But if your gift comes in a box from Amazon, Victoria's Secret, or Dillard's, no need to be overzealous. They won't know what's in there and they better be appreciative. After all, gifts should be appreciated as tokens of love not obliged offerings.

Substance over style, all day, everyday.

*For our intents and purposes, around can be anywhere from the 20th to the 5th of January. If you're still in school, feel free to amend this rule to from Reading Day until the first day of spring semester/winter term/J term/whatever your accredited institution calls it.

**I like to think he was born in the summer (preferably on the 14th of August) forever ending the conversation about who has the best birthday ever. 

***I've never understood people taking Christ out of Christmas. Okay, you're not Christian and you may be an Atheist but you can't just take the name out because it offends you. What does X-mas even mean? Is anyone fooled by this? Further evidence of our collective willingness to live without purpose.


2 comment(s) to... “All I Want”

2 comments:

Unknown said...

y'know, i've always wondered where these traditions came from. i mean, yeah, its nice to wrap stuff (in accordance with the about.com explanation), but is all of that really necessary (in accordance with the CtotheB translation)?

What happened to standards?

What happened to not conforming?

What happened to "...it's the thought that counts?"

Merry Christmas, ArtStar.



WHayes said...

Wal-Mart and Target have us all fooled. Takes thinking like this to lift the curtain for all to see inside the disgusting machine.




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