The Christmas spirit

The A.V. Club Hipster Dishrag

Yarn: Lily The Original Sugar'n Cream (100% cotton; worsted weight)
Color: Bright Navy and Jute
Needles: US 7s
Stitches: 40

I'm sure you're sick of me writing about these by now. Rest assured that I'm posting this part just to fulfill the FO details for my own purposes, although they do lead into what I want to write about today: the holiday season.

As you already know, I did the design and made these dishcloths as Christmas gifts. Christmas is a week from today. For the most part it couldn't feel less like the holiday season to me. I realized this after hearing two different discussions on the radio about holiday traditions. Aside from the pleasure of preparing and mailing the package and knowing how it's been received, this time of year doesn't feel unlike any other series of cold, gray days. Knitting with a deadline of the 25th evokes it a little,but I finished most of what I wanted to do far enough in advance.

So I'm listening to these people on NPR talk about what they like to do and watch to get them in the spirit, and I'm thinking that I don't really have anything going on that directly reminds me of the season.

What does this time of year mean for me? It means attending screenings almost every day of the week--if not more than one per day--and finding delivery notices on my door that screeners have been delivered. In theory this should all be very enjoyable, albeit exhausting, as the prestigious, awards-grubbing titles are trotted out for approval.

I've been mostly underwhelmed by what I've seen this December, which has made it seem more like a chore than usual. Between the screenings and DVDs, I reckon I'll take in somewhere from 30-40 films this month. It's bad enough to consume at that rate. To spend that concentrated period of time on mediocrities doesn't help. Also factor in that this season's crop is relentlessly downbeat and dreary. Even Marley & Me isn't pure feel-good fluff, something I welcome now.

I don't mean to come off as Grinch-like or ill-tempered. I'm not actively avoiding holiday cheer. I simply don't observe it, not at the movie theater and not in an empty office building. I haven't had the need to go to the mall or do much in the way of shopping, so I'm not visiting the typical spots where it's in abundance. Except for the occasional Christmas-themed episodes of TV series I watch, there's been little to distinguish right now from mid-January or late February. That doesn't seem right.

I'd like to inject some Christmas spirit into these days. After all, isn't the anticipation part of the enjoyment this time of year? When I've been wrapped up in a project, knitting has done its part to summon the seasonal mood. Making something for others feels good, but it's especially true in the final month of the year. Apparently I just need to be doing more of it to make up for the deficit.