Friends, Jackhammer wishes all of you a very Merry Christmas!
I have the warmest wishes for everyone, despite the fact that the stores in my area began setting up their Christmas decorations on October 1 -- and I am ready for all this to be over. When I was young Christmas didn't start until after Thanksgiving... but then again, record levels of consumer spending in 2011 leads me to conclude that those merchants got what they wanted most by making the holiday shopping season three months long.
Today's local newspaper got me thinking about this issue once again. The houses in my town have an annual contest to see which house can have the most lavish display of Christmas lights. Congratulations to the Sacca family, who took this year's first prize. Everyone agreed that their latest addition, a giant electric ice-skating snowman for the front lawn, is what put their house over the top.
Today's local newspaper got me thinking about this issue once again. The houses in my town have an annual contest to see which house can have the most lavish display of Christmas lights. Congratulations to the Sacca family, who took this year's first prize. Everyone agreed that their latest addition, a giant electric ice-skating snowman for the front lawn, is what put their house over the top.
According to the article, the Sacca family estimates that their Christmas decorations add about $300 a month to their electric bill... other families recently featured on the TV news reported that it costs them over $1,000 a month to power their displays.
You guys know what I'm going to say next, but lest you brand me a hypocrite I must tell you about a gift I received several years ago from my aunt and uncle. I ripped opened the card, expecting to joyfully pluck out some cold, hard cash... or at least a gift card. Instead, I found a certificate certifying that a $25 donation to the Rescue Mission had been made in my name. I was mad. I felt like I'd been ripped off... some homeless fucker had ended up with my beer money.
You guys know what I'm going to say next, but lest you brand me a hypocrite I must tell you about a gift I received several years ago from my aunt and uncle. I ripped opened the card, expecting to joyfully pluck out some cold, hard cash... or at least a gift card. Instead, I found a certificate certifying that a $25 donation to the Rescue Mission had been made in my name. I was mad. I felt like I'd been ripped off... some homeless fucker had ended up with my beer money.
So what did you ask Santa for this year? Unfortunately, in our soul-sucking, spiritless society, Christmas has been all about the loot. Kids don't care about the true meaning of Christmas... I sure as hell didn't. I wasn't worried about what I could give to the less fortunate... I was excited about what I was going to get. I wanted Santa to bring me everything on my list, even a puppy.
As Jackhammer has matured, I have tried to make amends for my greed. This is the second year in a row that I have organized a major food drive at my office. It has become an annual event that runs from Thanksgiving until the Christmas break. This year Jackhammer personally delivered 322 pounds of food to the Food Bank, down from 388 pounds last year. At first I felt bad about the decline in what I was able to extort from my co-workers, because this year the need is greater than ever. But then again, there are far fewer of us in the office this year... about half of us were laid off in 2011. So all things considered, Jackhammer delivered the food and declared victory.
The Sacca family parents said they worked very hard on the extravagant Christmas display "for our children." But what are those brats really learning? Jackhammer struggles mightily with this issue because the secular circus is becoming increasingly nauseating to me as I age, and I am trying, albeit in very small steps, to make Christmas the way it should be. But then... then I remember the joy of being a child on Christmas morning. Am I really willing to thumb my nose at the traditions comprising the very foundation of American culture?
Am I willing to be branded a "Scrooge" or a "Grinch" for refusing to participate in the annual orgy of consumer spending? Am I willing to to stand up and boldly declare that we are spending our money on all the wrong things, and the way we're squandering our resources does absolutely nothing to honor the birth of Christ? Friends, Jackhammer is nearly there... my paradigm shift is almost complete. In the meantime, however, I will continue to send my own teenage nephews their beer money.
The Sacca family parents said they worked very hard on the extravagant Christmas display "for our children." But what are those brats really learning? Jackhammer struggles mightily with this issue because the secular circus is becoming increasingly nauseating to me as I age, and I am trying, albeit in very small steps, to make Christmas the way it should be. But then... then I remember the joy of being a child on Christmas morning. Am I really willing to thumb my nose at the traditions comprising the very foundation of American culture?
Am I willing to be branded a "Scrooge" or a "Grinch" for refusing to participate in the annual orgy of consumer spending? Am I willing to to stand up and boldly declare that we are spending our money on all the wrong things, and the way we're squandering our resources does absolutely nothing to honor the birth of Christ? Friends, Jackhammer is nearly there... my paradigm shift is almost complete. In the meantime, however, I will continue to send my own teenage nephews their beer money.
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