Ten Days To Go...

The first thought in her mind was "Ten days to go." The final countdown was on. 

Ten days from now it will be the day AFTER Christmas. Sure, there will be that week of wind down where some people still want to wish you a merry one, but for the most part on Christmas evening, around 6 or 7, society as a collective whole is just over it. For another year. 

Ten more days to go to deal with overly sugared children and overly stressed parents. Ten more days to go to deal with people who are in that midrange relationship space and have no idea if this means they need to get a gift for the person they are dating or if this means the should not at all get a gift because they aren't in that space yet. Ten more days to go of the constant barrage of holiday music. Ten more days to go of crotchy old people being mad at the word holiday.

Ten more days to go.

She remembered when it was all contained in December. December 1 to December 25. Get an advent calendar and eat a piece of chocolate every day as a reward for making it through. Then it started to creep into November. Which, fine, there was a lot to do so maybe spreading it out a bit more was helpful to a lot of people. She couldn't really fault that. 

But then it was October. And this year she saw her first set of decorations up in August. AUGUST. It was still summer vacation for the kids and they were seeing Christmas trees in Wal-Mart? Just not okay at all. 

But she couldn't blame Wal-Mart, as much as she'd like to, if people didn't buy Christmas stuff in August they wouldn't sell it. 

Last year she asked someone who was buying a set of decorations in August why they would do it so early and the response was, "Mind your own fucking business." So...yeah. Merry Christmas to you too!

Ten more days to go. 

She thought about what still needed taken care of, the list was pretty long. Even starting in August that list was going to be long. You had the choice she guessed, stress about it for months or stress about it for a month, either way there was going to be stress. 

Ten more days to go.

She could say 9, since Christmas day people mostly kept to themselves and there was nothing left to do. But sometimes something slipped through the cracks and you'd have to make a last minute dash out and then it was full throttle, you could practically see the extra exclamation marks when people would tell you Merry Christmas. 

Come on, it's not merry. I'm running an errand on Christmas day, you and I both know it's not great. But okay, Merry Fucking Christmas to you too!

Ten more days to go. 

She wasn't sure she hated Christmas, but it was getting that way. 

Which wouldn't be so bad if she wasn't an elf. 

Merry Christmas, ten more days to go...