It’s TIIIIIIIMEEEEE!

Mariah Carey is defrosting as we speak, my friends. Whether you like it or not, now that spooky season has bid us adieu, Christmas-themed everything is already bombarding the mainstream.
I am of the belief that, as someone who celebrates Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas, the seasons of celebration go something like this: the clock strikes midnight on Oct. 1 and Halloween officially begins, creating a month-long build that culminates in a spooky celebration. October is Halloween, plain and simple. When November hits, though, is when some controversy emerges. To me, November is basically December (which is basically Christmas), with a brief intermission for turkey, a family fun-run and your uncle’s snores harmonizing with a football game. Besides that fourth Thursday, once we enter the penultimate month of the year, it’s perfectly acceptable, even encouraged, to start indulging in your favorite Christmas traditions and media.

“But, but, it’s not even December yet! What about Thanksgiving?” I hear you asking while holding a pumpkin spice latte (or PSL as the kids call it) and listening to some non-existent Thanksgiving music.

I understand the woes surrounding Thanksgiving’s underrepresentation, I really do. However, when asked, “What about Thanksgiving?” all I can say is, well, what about it? I always enjoy seeing my family and friends, eating together and giving thanks for each other, but to me, Thanksgiving doesn’t constitute an entire season in the way that Halloween and Christmas do. On top of that, inaccurate depictions of the first Thanksgiving have led to severely skewed perspectives of Indigenous and settler relations that definitely don’t make me very inclined to get all enthusiastic about the holiday anyway. As it stands now, in my life, Thanksgiving is an opportunity to run a turkey trot with my friends, visit my family and eat. I don’t see why I can’t listen to “Last Christmas” and drink some eggnog beforehand.

Without celebration, the almost two-month gap between Halloween and Christmas is an increasingly cold and dark time of year, but getting into the spirit early entirely flips the narrative. I will take a November full of listening to Frank Sinatra and Alvin and the Chipmunks over the sound of my chattering teeth any day. Yeah, it might seem a little early to some, but this window of time is short and fleeting. Once the new year hits, there isn’t much to look forward to that makes the frigid weather magical. Just grey skies, early sunsets and scraping the ice off your windshield. Sure, this happens before Christmas, too, but Christmas comes with an elevated sense of whimsy that is lost once the elves return to the North Pole. So while I have the opportunity, I’ll save the seasonal depression for after Santa comes, thanks.

I think the Christmas season is really what you make of it, and if that is a specific amount of time after Halloween for whatever reason, more power to you. However. I would like to question why, Scrooge? Where’s the fun in shortening a season of celebration just because it seems too long? My steak is too juicy, my lobster is too buttery. The beauty of the holiday season is the magic it creates, and listening to your favorite Christmas music is the best way to start the celebration. And honestly, I don’t think innocent souls like me should be faulted for tapping into the holiday spirit now when department stores have Christmas decorations out before September even hits. If it’s the commercialization of Christmas that you’re mad about, believe me, we are in the same boat. I’ve already had a multitude of ads shoved in my face during my hard-earned Instagram reels time, all Christmas-themed, trying to get me to buy a bunch of plastic holiday-shaped crap, or at least stay on the page long enough to sell my information to the highest bidder. As I’ve become increasingly aware of humanity’s overconsumption habits and woes, it’s definitely become easier to see through this aspect of Christmas and how companies take advantage of the warm and fuzzy feeling the holidays bring about. However, I’m not going to let some big corporations take the reins on my Christmas celebration. Rudolph can lead the way, away from the impulse purchase of more polyester to rot on my shelf.

At the end of the day, whatever is in your headphones from now until the new year is your problem. But me personally, I’m going to be wishing everyone a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays and a very Happy New Year through the blaring of “All I Want For Christmas is You” all month long.