Christmas Cheer Now Available In-Store

On Saturday morning I made the regrettable error of venturing out in Kingston to do some in-store shopping, where I witnessed one horrific scene after another. Mere hours after having handed out treats to princesses, super heroes and teenagers with nothing better to do, I was met with Christmas music, festive decorations and supposed deals endorsed by Santa himself. While our jack-o’-lantern was still cooling from the night before, big box retailers and local merchants had already shifted gears and started to Chrismasify their respective stores.  All things orange and black had been painted over with red and green, while fake snow, nativity scenes, and classic Christmas favourites pumped over in-store sound systems were impossible to evade. The strike of midnight on November 1st also spelled the demise of wretched spiced-pumpkin dreck, which has already been replaced by seasonal candy cane, gingerbread and eggnog flavored concoctions.  Suffice it to say, my initial shock and backlash to Christmas cheer is at an all time high.  Accordingly, this week’s un-festive poll asks:
[poll id=”235″]
Is November 1st really too early for Christmas?  I think so.  A few years ago I asked our readers to weigh in on a similar question, specifically: Should Christmas lights be switched on before Remembrance Day?  While a majority of respondents agreed that household Christmas lights and decorations should remain out of sight until after November 11th, a surprising number of readers came to the defense of Kris Kringle arguing that the mere presence of boughs of holly and sleigh bells in the snow are not a slight against veterans or members of the Canadian Armed Forces.  There’s definitely truth to that, but I for one yearn for a slight reprieve from the non-stop onslot from retailers trying to sell me on the next greatest holiday.  As a self-confessed supporter of Christmas, I’m honestly thankful that Santa’s workshop hasn’t yet popped up at the mall, that I’ve yet to spot a single car driving around with reindeer antlers and a red nose, or that tree lots have yet to emerge throughout Kingston.

Do you think retailers, including those found online, should hold off on pushing Christmas until after Remembrance Day, or perhaps even until December?  What is your household’s rule for putting up Christmas decorations?  What’s your favorite and most despised part of the Christmas season?

Photo credit to MattysFlicks.