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When do you take down the Christmas tree?
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When do you take down the Christmas tree?
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The clothes have no emperor.
-- C. A. R. Hoare, commenting on ADA.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Thexalon on Friday December 03 2021, @01:28PM (24 children)
I'm not even nominally Christian so I never put one up, you insensitive clod!
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 2) by richtopia on Friday December 03 2021, @04:47PM
My athiest tree stands tall all year round. Unless it dies, then it has to come down. Its the maple in the back yard.
(Score: -1, Troll) by SomeGuy on Saturday December 04 2021, @06:35PM (6 children)
The irony is that the tradition of bringing a tree in to the house originally had little to do with religion.
Imagine a long time ago, being stuck in a small cabin with a family during the winter, with piles of snow everywhere, and only a small fire to keep things warm so can't exactly open any windows. The entire place starts to stink. So what do you do? You cut down a nice smelling tree and throw it in the corner to cover up the smell. Oh look, the family wants to decorate it to make it look pretty. Fuck it, it keeps them busy. Let them make a few decorations outside too if they are still bored.
Celebrate? Sure, celebrate the winter solstice. Days getting longer? Who wouldn't want to celebrate that?
Don't throw out the tree until it gets warm enough to do something else about the smell, or the tree stops smelling nice.
...Then one day some creepy child molesters show up and insist all of this has do to with worshiping some shit dick named jebus and his magic sky daddy. WTF?
Of course, with modern air filtration and sanitation, there is no longer a need to bring a dusty, dirty tree in to the house. Unfortunately, consumertards need somewhere to hang their strings of burn-out-your-eyesockets-and-give-you-seizures blue LED lights and something to put their presents of new Apple iPhones under.
(Score: 2, Flamebait) by ChrisMaple on Saturday December 04 2021, @10:29PM (1 child)
Child mutilators.
(Score: 2) by HammeredGlass on Thursday December 09 2021, @12:55AM
No. That was the old chosen people who had the thing about chopping pieces of penis off.
(Score: 4, Informative) by Thexalon on Saturday December 04 2021, @11:11PM (2 children)
The real history is more like: A bunch of Germans would celebrate the winter solstice by decorating up a local evergreen tree in the middle of the village, a practice that might have pre-dated the whole Jesus thing (sources are unclear) and probably had something to do with the evergreens not dying during the winter. Centuries later, rich Victorian Brits brought the tree inside to impress other rich people, keeping the decorations idea though. Rich Americans started doing it to imitate the rich Victorians. During the 1950's post-war boom, middle-class people could afford to do it. So now lots of people and organizations do it in the USA because it's "traditional", not-religious enough that they can get away with it in what are supposed to be secular spaces, and religious enough to make the Jesus-believers happy.
It really wasn't a regular thing in the USA before the 20th century.
The only thing that stops a bad guy with a compiler is a good guy with a compiler.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday December 10 2021, @02:36AM (1 child)
Yeah, it was all Charles Dickens before that. Damn goose looked awful scrawny.
I always wondered what percentage of the population died from Christmas tree fires back in those days
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday December 19 2021, @08:24AM
It was common enough in the 1950s and 60s that I remember news stories about Christmas tree fires. It seems like there were 1 or 2 stories every year. To clarify, 4 Star News was THE source of news, channel 4 at 4 o'clock every day, did 1/2 hour of national news, then 1/2 hour of local/regional news. Maybe not every kid will remember stories of houses burning down at Christmas, but I remember them.
(Score: 1, Troll) by jasassin on Tuesday December 07 2021, @10:45PM
That shit made me laugh. I had to start reading it slowly to savor the fucked up imagery, laugh, savor repeat. I’m going to forward that to a couple friends! A+
jasassin@gmail.com GPG Key ID: 0xE6462C68A9A3DB5A
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 05 2021, @02:34PM (1 child)
The pets last longer, I have no use for religion, and I am their god anyway. A good dog brightens up a room far better than tinsel and lights on a dying tree.
(Score: 1) by shrewdsheep on Tuesday December 07 2021, @08:55PM
Arguably, when cranking up the lighting, the tree offers more options. How about attached fireworks? Or glow-in the dark-paint? Some real kindling?
(Score: 2) by srobert on Sunday December 05 2021, @07:15PM
Neither am I. I still put up a tree right after I eat my Thanksgiving dinner, to celebrate a holiday that I call "Christmas". It's too much fun to let the Christians monopolize it and claim it exclusively for themselves. Christmas tree comes down on the first weekend after the new year.
(Score: 2) by isostatic on Monday December 06 2021, @05:00PM
I'm not nominally christian, but society's celebration of consumerism which times around various pagan festivals dated in the darkest part of the year certainly appeals
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Tuesday December 07 2021, @05:17PM (7 children)
I think that a tree has little to do with Christianity.
The only trees I see in the Bible are:
* tree of life (Gen 2:9)
* tree of knowledge of good and evil (Gen 2:9)
* almond (Ecc 12:5)
* apple (Song of Sol. 2;3 but no iPads to soak up apple juice)
* chestnut and fir (Eze 31:8)
* cedar and myrtle (Isa 41:19)
* sycamore (Zacchaeus climbed in Luke 19:4)
* mustard (Jesus mentioned in Luke 17:6)
* fig (cursed by Jesus, Matt 12:19-22)
The people who rely on government handouts and refuse to work should be kicked out of congress.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Wednesday December 08 2021, @05:51PM (4 children)
Well, don't forget the wooden cross, its a big part of the story.
(Score: 2) by DannyB on Wednesday December 08 2021, @08:34PM (1 child)
I actually almost included that as a "tree".
The people who rely on government handouts and refuse to work should be kicked out of congress.
(Score: 2) by HammeredGlass on Thursday December 30 2021, @10:39PM
The JW door knockers think it was a tree, and not a cross.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 08 2021, @10:48PM
If you are going to include everything made out of wood in the bible as a tree, you'd better be prepared for a rather long list.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday December 11 2021, @09:28PM
What's the difference between the crucifixion and a cow?
You can't milk a cow for 2000 years!
(Score: 3, Informative) by Sulla on Saturday December 11 2021, @01:03AM (1 child)
The whole thing is nothing but subversion done by the vile people of the book, for which, it turns out the Empire did not have enough lions. Per the true faith we would carefully cut branches from evergreen trees to celebrate the coming of spring and make the Lares joyful and satisfied, thus blessing us a good harvest and fewer fires. In spite of popular belief the Christians not only refused to hang up the evergreen boughs but subverted the wonderful Saturnalia to bring fires down upon Rome and harm us for saving them from their foolish beliefs by freeing them from life. People today even believe the Christian propaganda that it was Nero who started the great fire!
And who might you ask started the "Christmas tree"? The Germans, the most filthy hideous deceptive peoples to ever inhabit this world. Oh yes such a smart idea putting a tree inside your dwelling and adorning it with lit candles. I'm sure that made them quite cozy in their mud huts with straw rooves as they burned to death under the weight of their own stupidity.
Ceterum censeo Sinae esse delendam
(Score: 2) by DECbot on Thursday December 16 2021, @07:13PM
If you survive the idiotic burning dead tree foolery for that year, it demonstrates that while $diety may not necessarily love you, $diety_pronoun still has use for you in the future.
cats~$ sudo chown -R us /home/base
(Score: 2) by HammeredGlass on Thursday December 09 2021, @12:49AM (2 children)
No time like the present to repent and be reconciled.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday December 11 2021, @09:36PM (1 child)
Is believing in sky daddies the same as believing in covid vaccines?
(Score: 2) by HammeredGlass on Saturday December 11 2021, @10:56PM
Believing in covid vaccines is less plausible.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 23 2021, @04:39AM
You insensitive clod, I take down the Festivus Pole [wikipedia.org] right after the Airing of Grievances and Feats of Strength!
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Friday December 03 2021, @04:55PM (2 children)
I used to hack them up in February and burn them in the fireplace, when we had one.
Lately, we've got a bit over an acre of yard, so we buy something alive and attractive and try not to kill it before December 25th, then plant it in the ground ASAP.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday December 04 2021, @05:47PM (1 child)
Here they typically use pine. It's not a native species and useless for the garden - the needles do not mulch or compost easily.
The take down period is driven by what day the local municipal authorities arrange a collection.
Buying a living tree in a pot seems like a much more sustainable practice if you have the land.
(Score: 2) by JoeMerchant on Monday December 13 2021, @09:27PM
This year the nurseries we visited were rather sparse on the selection - went with a Yaupon Holly in the "Charlie Brown" size, one string of colored lights and it's good to go.
🌻🌻 [google.com]
(Score: 2) by WizardFusion on Saturday December 04 2021, @01:22PM (1 child)
...if I put one up at all.
Some fairy lights around the window is my limit
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday January 01 2022, @07:12PM
We left an artificial tree up in the corner of the livingroom until June. Planted a live one in the backyard around 22 years ago and finally had to cut it down. It grew at about a 45 degree angle over the fence.
(Score: 3, Informative) by pTamok on Saturday December 04 2021, @11:30PM
The tradition in my family was that the tree came into the house on the 23rd or 24th December, and remained until Twelfth Night [wikipedia.org]. Other decorations were put up from beginning of Advent [wikipedia.org] onwards - the lighting of the first of the four candles on the Advent crown marked the start of the observance.
That said, there is no 'right' way to celebrate it. Do what suits you. If you do it often enough, and enough people join in, it will become a tradition.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Dr Spin on Monday December 06 2021, @10:29AM (3 children)
January 6th - the twELFth day of Christmas.
"As recommended by elves everywhere"
And Santa as well.
Warning: Opening your mouth may invalidate your brain!
(Score: 3, Informative) by isostatic on Monday December 06 2021, @04:56PM (2 children)
25th - 1st day
26th - 2nd day
...
31st - 7th day
1st - 8th day
2nd - 9th day
3rd - 10th day
4th - 11th day
5th - 12th day
Or take it down after 12th night
25th - 1st night
26th - 2nd night
...
5th - 12th night
6th - take it down
Or does 26th count as the first day/night because we start counting from zero, in which case you take down on the 6th or after the night of the 6th
Or is the 25th not a day of christmas?
Either way it's so dark and gloomy I'll be campaigning to keep the outside lights in the hedge up until spring.
(Score: 3, Informative) by Dr Spin on Tuesday December 07 2021, @04:56PM
I guess that the correct formula is "after the twelfth day/night".
In my defence, I admit to not being an elf, although I refuse to say whether or not I am a robot.
Warning: Opening your mouth may invalidate your brain!
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday December 08 2021, @10:53PM
A number of traditions keep it up until January 6th because that is the Epiphany. After that the Christmas season is over and Epiphanytide begins.
(Score: 1, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Monday December 06 2021, @09:51PM
Beebo la-la-loves Christmas!
Beebo la-la-loves the hol-i-days!
Beebo nev-ar takes down the Christmas tree!
(Score: 2) by rigrig on Tuesday December 07 2021, @03:02PM
Because having a Christmas tree up at Easter just feels silly.
No one remembers the singer.
(Score: 2) by microtodd on Wednesday December 08 2021, @03:13AM
Bold of you to assume I even put a christmas tree up!
(Score: 2) by VLM on Wednesday December 08 2021, @05:48PM
No New Years Eve option, huh? Seems like the perfect day.
Time to clean up if you're having a "formal" or "informal" party that night.
Nobody hung over yet, unless you're hitting it really hard.
If you're cleaning up late or starting the party early, sipping a glass of Christmas liquor hits the spot and motivates the labor.
Enables New Years Day to be a chill out paradise no need to get up and do nonsense (like pack away decorations). Its not really a "holiday" if you have to labor, so its nice to have an actual day off.
If you're going to put up "new years" decor this is pushing the limits of lateness, but its technically not too late.
Its also a good time to sort and put away presents and just gear back up for regular daily operations. After hauling around boxes of decor, eat the last christmas cookies, etc...
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday December 12 2021, @08:46PM
It's a winter tree, it remains lit until the first day of spring.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday December 14 2021, @05:06AM
I once took it upon myself to clean up a neighboring lot a little. I knew the previous occupants had been lazy about Christmas trees and didn't put them in the green bin (compostable hauling is part of sanitation service here), but imagine my bemusement when I pulled some vines away from a 2 or 3 year old Christmas tree in the middle of Summer. I'm sure there have been plenty of trees that have self-composted after having been tossed in to ravines; but sheesh. Perhaps the only thing more out of step with what you think of as Christmas Spirit was the missing outdoor bulbs we'd occasionally see when I was a kid.
(Score: 2) by Runaway1956 on Sunday December 19 2021, @08:36AM
We've had natural, real trees all my life. A healthy respect for fire says no tree should be up for more than 2 weeks. A week, give or take, before Christmas, a week between Christmas and New Year - and the tree goes. Any and all other decorations can go or stay, I don't care, but that fire tinder has to leave the house.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 23 2021, @03:50PM
In deference to common practice, for the past ten years I have kept an evergreen shrub about two feet tall alive in a pot on wheels. It gives the appearance of a dwarf fir tree. It gets wheeled into the house shortly after (USA) thanksgiving and then back into the backyard some time after the (euro-centric) observation of new year. It saves on the waste of whacking down perfectly good trees and spending perfectly good money every year on said severed evergreens. All this is to mask the truth that for the pagan rituals that have corrupted the proper observances of Christianity I hold the utmost indifference.
--
Up with which, I will not put. Down with which, I need not trouble.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday December 30 2021, @05:09AM
Aren't we all Jews here?