Happy Grumpy November

I woke up grumpy this morning. Why? Because the calendar says November now. Because this, ultimately, means that I now have to jump from enjoying autumn and Halloween and all the best things about this time of year and into the frenzy of bullshit that is holiday marketing, shopping, decorating, wrapping, and everything else.

It was bad enough when I was just a normal person with a normal job and all I had to worry about was the idiotic ads and emails pushing me to buy, buy, buy. But now, as a retailer myself (though not a typical one, anyway), there’s the push on another front to sell, sell, sell to make the most of this time of year when businesses typically rake in the most cash they’ll see all year. And every year it feels like these big brands push earlier and earlier, trying to grab more and more of everyone’s budget, and I’m just perpetually over it all every year.

But it’s now become a season of not just pressure on making the holidays the most magical ever at home, but bringing that same magic to a whole different group of people. And it’s not that I don’t want to make it magical for my customers (many of whom have become friends) – I absolutely do – but it’s exhausting wearing all these hats. It’s the decorating, it’s the planning for sales and deals and promotions and events to get people into the store, it’s trying to persuade people to think more about shopping locally instead of big box stores that don’t care about anything other than your cash and getting product out the door… all while trying to bake the cookies, do the traditions, shopping and/or making gifts, and so much more.

Am I overthinking a lot of this? Probably. I try to opt out on a lot of things when and where I can. Black Friday, for example, I host an all-day holiday movie marathon with snacks instead of trying to do “door busters” to get you in my shop. It’s a small middle finger to capitalism that feels truer to my own values, really, and I’m probably missing out on sales but, if I’m being honest, I don’t want your money if I have to beg and plead for breadcrumbs once a year and then never see you again for the other 364 days. That’s just an abusive relationship all around for everyone.

I want holidays that revolve around more meaningful things. Handmade gifts, sure, but also just thoughtful things in general. No one needs another generic Bath & Body Works candle or Walmart hot sauce set, and your home doesn’t have to look like a magazine spread with how much holiday cheer vomited over the room.

But, more importantly…… I want to enjoy all of the autumn season instead of feeling like we get just 6 weeks of autumn before we shift into the capitalist hellscape that is modern Christmas.