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Well, I had hoped to avoid them this year, but this afternoon I feel myself going scooting down the slippery slope of the Christmas Blues. I'm looking for the brake, but haven't found it yet.

Had video chat with my kids this afternoon, I inadvertently said a few things that made me feel like a terrible jerk (I'm sure you all have been there - the more you apologize, the worse it sounds). Totally my fault.

I like to watch a lot of YouTube videos, and ran across what I thought was going to be a happy Christmassy one that featured a Staffordshire Bull Terrier, my chosen breed. One almost never sees these dogs featured in Christmas videos, so I - with happy anticipation - decided to give it a watch.

I think this video might have been what started the mental slide before the video chat. I never should have watched it, certainly should have not watched it to the end, and MOST definitely should not have watched it before talking with my kids.

This video was totally and absolutely dreadful - the worst. Short version: Christmas is approaching, nice decorations in a living room, old guy has one of those Advent calendars that have a piece of chocolate for each day for both himself - and for his dog, a very pretty black-and-white spotted Stafford (showing him giving his dog a bit of chocolate should have been the tip-off to turn the #@#!! thing off. NOW).

After that, he gives the dog a Christmas present, puts on the leash, then takes the dog for a walk in what looks like a major snowstorm (!). He lets the dog off-leash out in the country somewhere, the dog runs off and disappears, the guy has an apparent heart attack while searching for the dog, and drops dead. Final scene shows ghost old guy and ghost dog happily reunited, and romping together through the falling snow.

No, I am not going to post the link to this video.

Geez Louise.

This was, I guess, supposed to be somehow "uplifting". The final credits of this piece of pure dreck are an inducement to send a "generous donation" to some organization-or-other. I kinda feel like THEY should pay ME.

I really should know better.

I NEVER watch movies that feature dogs in a prominent role, because by the end of such movies it seems that the dog almost always dies. And this always totally rips me up. I have had quite enough dearly beloved dogs die on me over the years, in real life - I most certainly DO NOT need to watch something like this as "entertainment".

Oh well. That is my major grump for the day. Am I gonna apologize? Nope.

However, I will leave you all with one of my favorite "dog-themed" YouTube Christmas videos (it is NOT the one described above):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2X3cecTU3w

This one always makes me laugh. It's very short - be sure to watch it all of the way to the end.

Anne

I don't like to watch movies about animals either. I still have PTSD from Bambi! I hated watching Lassie because even tho he always came home, he would be off and lost again. I hate seeing animals die, even in cartoons.
I watched "It's A Wonderful Life" one year when I was feeling down, and it actually made me feel worse! Not sure why but have never watched it since. I do like watching the "Grinch" since I like the message of it.

Christmas can be hard. I have no family to spend the holidays with and usually no plans. Friends and co-workers are all with their friends and family. I don't like to watch the Hallmark Christmas shows either. Most of my Christmas's were not fun family times. So it can be a sad time for me now.

That is one reason I decided to stay at the pot shop until next Friday so I could be part of the Christmas party there that night. I think it will be fun. I am not sure if Linda and I will be going up to Joshua Tree to spend Christmas with her friend there. She was kind of on the fence about it. We'll see...

BarbaraRose wrote:I don't like to watch movies about animals either. I still have PTSD from Bambi! I hated watching Lassie because even tho he always came home, he would be off and lost again. I hate seeing animals die, even in cartoons.
I watched "It's A Wonderful Life" one year when I was feeling down, and it actually made me feel worse! Not sure why but have never watched it since. I do like watching the "Grinch" since I like the message of it.

Christmas can be hard. I have no family to spend the holidays with and usually no plans. Friends and co-workers are all with their friends and family. I don't like to watch the Hallmark Christmas shows either. Most of my Christmas's were not fun family times. So it can be a sad time for me now.

That is one reason I decided to stay at the pot shop until next Friday so I could be part of the Christmas party there that night. I think it will be fun. I am not sure if Linda and I will be going up to Joshua Tree to spend Christmas with her friend there. She was kind of on the fence about it. We'll see...

Good evening, Barbie. I think we must have a lot in common. I also hated "Bambi" as a child, and it was a film that I never once showed to my kids as they were growing up. As for "It's A Wonderful Life", boy, can I relate. I didn't much care for it either - the film is, at bottom, the story of a guy that decides to commit suicide, and then changes his mind at the last minute. Not my idea of a cheery Christmas movie, although I have always liked James Stewart.

I am very lucky, in that my children still seem to like to spend a day or two with me during the holidays. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving here together.

I am sending [[HUGS]] your way, and hoping that your Christmas party is a lot of fun, and that your Joshua Tree plans work out.

My growing-up Christmases in a large-ish family were never Norman Rockwell, or even Hallmark Card, so I can relate there as well.

I can't imagine how tough the holidays must be for you. I am sending warm thoughts your way.

Anne

I guess since I have gotten older I just dont even think too much about the holidays. When my kids were smaller and all the grandparents were still alive and around it was a much more fun time. But since kids grew up, moved away, parents and grandparents passed not much family anymore to celebrate with. Also working the last 18 years as a Travel nurse around the USA I was seldom home anyway. Also nurses work so many of the holidays and I always tried to work for someone so they could spend the day with their small kids. I am perfectly happy to be home on the holidays.I have decorated some, put up my fiber optic tree and I feel festive. I usually fix myself something special for dinner but other than that it is just really another day for me. I get invites from people and sometimes I go but mostly I enjoy my home time. I am not a super social person anyway, that needs people around alot, not a hermit but just selective about who I want to spend my time with.

Like Karen, I spent my working life working almost every holiday, every year. So the actual days of the holidays never meant the same to me. I do remember, while married, the amount of angst about where to go to not offend the in-laws who expected every family member every holiday. That made me crazy.

I love the feel good movies even if they aren't believable. I watch Hallmark all the time. That said, I also never cared for It's a Wonderful Life and was on the fence about many animal movies. And let's not talk about war movies. On the other hand a can read the true history of wars. (Hard to ascertain the truth anymore).