11.14.2009

Conspiracy Theory

I spent five Christmas shopping seasons working at K-Mart in high school and college. I often say that I "survived" 5 K-Mart Christmases with our 30 minute music loop and oh so friendly frenzied bargain shoppers. Definitely an experience.

So let's just say I have some experience with the commercialization of Christmas. But has anybody else noticed how EARLY it's started this year? Last night I commented to some of my housemates after the 5th Christmas related ad came on the television, "Thanks be to God we have Halloween, or they would have started with Christmas in September!"

Whatever happened to the traditional day after Thanksgiving start of the Christmas shopping season?

For that matter, what ever happened to Advent. Which we're still weeks away from anyway?

Some thoughtful (mostly Protestant) folks have been asking these questions for a few years now as part of the "Advent Conspiracy" movement. Check out their video (below) and their website. How might you become part of the Advent Conspiracy this year? I love their tag line: Worship Fully, Spend Less, Give More, Love All.



6 comments:

WideningCircles said...

Thank you for this!

All of the Christmas stuff in the stores two weeks ago was making me crazy already.

Elizabeth said...

I have this conversation often this time of year.

I get that it's commercialism. I too have survived (and that is the real word for it) Retail Hell. I get that the economy has tanked and retailers are just desperate for people to spend money. I also get that when I lived by myself my Yule decorations started going up just before Halloween. :-) I would plan for two trees because the first one would be dead in the first part of December no matter how wet I would make it.

I love Yule.. the smells and the flavors and the... all of it.... including the stupid commercials that you get tired of the third time you see them.

So, I am sorry that you have to live through them too, but at least one person delights in them :-)

Beth said...

Thanks for the link! I'll share with students!

littlemissattitude said...

I've been seeing Christmas merchandise in some of the stores around here (in California) since August. *shudders in horror*

And in the past week, I've already seen two or three houses decorated and their Christmas lights on at night.

Now, I love Christmas lights. That's one of my favorite things about Christmas. But there's just something wrong about having them on before Thanksgiving.

Sarah said...

Spooky!!! I too worked at Kmart for 5 Christmases! You and I are WAY too alike, especially for people who've never met.
Here in Australia we don't really do Halloween, although it's popularity is building with the huge influence of North American TV and movies, and so Christmas really does start in the shops in September. Another good reason to avoid big shops and shopping centres (malls)

Susan Rose Francois, CSJP said...

I had no idea there were KMarts in Australia!!! That is spooky!