To recycle Christmas cards the moment I receive them

[Hellotheresweet]

I open them, read them, Chuck them in recycling.

I just don’t like the clutter and seems odd to set aside space for cards from people I hardly know.

Never binned. Always recycled.

Anyone else so.... brutal!

@Elphame doing something kind for others doesn't mean you value them, there are many reasons for doing voluntary work, not all of them are altruistic.

People send Xmas cards as a way of maintaining contact with those distant friends/relatives or infrequently seen acquaintances, it's just a little "I am thinking of you, hope all is well" kind of things.
I think it's nice that people take the effort to think of, or remember others, at this time of year.

This is slightly off topic to OP post, but it is related. OP I am not referring to you, just to people in general.
I really dislike those FB post saying "I can't be bothered to send anyone cards this year so I am having a glass of wine instead".
I also dislike it when people say they will donate instead of writing cards. Why not do both? Sometimes charity should be closer to home. Try and cheer up those close or distant to YOU. Charity should be a regular thing anyway; a percentage of your income (obviously not if you are in need of charity yourself) that goes up or down depending what you are earning. Not a one donation off to virtue-signal because someone can't be bothered to put any effort in to Xmas cards.

Haha. I hate cards, I ask people not to send but they do, we have birthdays all around Christmas so it's just constant cards and no where to put them. Two of my children have ASC and the disruption to the normal house is stressful enough for them.

We open cards, send thank you notes or reply with cards, and keep them on the unit but not "up". I really wish people wouldn't but I understand why they do. Things just mean different things to different people.

I hate cards, I'm always telling people honestly not to send me any but they persist. They are just a huge waste of time, money and paper. I generally pile them for a bit and then they go in the appropriate bin. I've got cats and three children aged 5 and under, so they get knocked over if I display them and I can't stand the clutter.

I make an exception for homemade ones as that's a more personal gesture and I do appreciate it.

Why not add your name to the bottom of the card with a message like "Happy Christmas to you too" and post them back to the original sender.

If they like your recycling method they will continue to send you cards, if not they'll stop and save you some time and effort.

I get twitchy about too much clutter at the best of times (and this year after months of shielding means I am particularly on edge about the amount of stuff around me).

BUT I do appreciate that other people have taken the time to send cards. I also send cards to people who I know would miss them otherwise. With the ones I receive, I punch a hole in the top corner and thread a big red ribbon through all of them, so they are in one big pile sort of like a book, with the ribbon holding them together. That sits on the side-table looking reasonably festive, but only taking up the same space as one card.

I hate the clutter of cards and do the same

@Guga

Who cares what you do with them? YABU for asking AIBU

@Guga

A boring thread perhaps
Still... 5 pages in would indicate that it has done legs

@mandarinpink

Someone took the time to remember you and buy and send a card to you. You may not like the card but surely you can honor the sentiment. Be grateful someone thought about you. Not everyone has that. You can obviously do what you want, and you've told us you will. But to start a thread like this is mean spirited. Imagine how it will make some people will feel, if you're able........

I don’t give a hoot if the man who owns average three doors down who I haven’t seen let alone spoken to in 3 years has “thought” of me.

I like putting them up until Christmas, they’re like decorations

If you get that many just hide the ones from people you barely know behind the nicer ones.

I get loads from children I teach and recycle them all as I leave school on the day we break up. Then I stop off at the charity shop to donate all the unwanted presents.

I’m the same. Read them and then recycle them if I can. Bin them if not.
DS is 3 and is coming home with fuck loads of cards from nursery, he doesn’t give a shit, he’s not even fussed about opening them, I’ll be buggered if I’m having 30 odd cards displayed written by the parents of kids I’ve never met. In the bin they go. He also doesn’t send them. I’m a bit grinchy about cards.

@MutteringDarkly

I get twitchy about too much clutter at the best of times (and this year after months of shielding means I am particularly on edge about the amount of stuff around me).

BUT I do appreciate that other people have taken the time to send cards. I also send cards to people who I know would miss them otherwise. With the ones I receive, I punch a hole in the top corner and thread a big red ribbon through all of them, so they are in one big pile sort of like a book, with the ribbon holding them together. That sits on the side-table looking reasonably festive, but only taking up the same space as one card.

Now that is genius!

I hate Xmas cards. Birthday cards are different because it's personal to you.
I don't send Xmas cards. But spend a lot of time choosing appropriate birthday cards from Thortful or Etsy

@Porcupineinwaiting

Surely most of the cards you are sent come from people you know, not random neighbours, so why not tell them not to bother?

Actually no.

Friends don’t. None of us do. See one another. Meet up. Email etc

Uni friends. As above.

Few school mum friends. Recycled
Neighbours. Recycled
Work colleagues. Recycled
Distant relatives. Recycled.

Sister - yes and I keep as it’s always lovely message
Aunt yes - as above
My children - hell yes
My other siblings don’t send. Younger the. Me and... We see each other very often and actually hug and prefer to say happy Christmas to each other!

I'm not a particular fan of Christmas cards and send the bare minimum that I can get away with, but I still think it's pretty shitty behaviour. And you seem so proud of it.

@AuntieMarys

I hate Xmas cards. Birthday cards are different because it's personal to you. I don't send Xmas cards. But spend a lot of time choosing appropriate birthday cards from Thortful or Etsy

Me too

The garage guy for example I haven’t seen for three years sure as heck doesn’t even know it’s my birthday let alone send me a card! But I’m mean spirited for not displaying his card!

Unless you get hundreds of cards I can't see how people see them as clutter. Surely all Christmas decorations must be seen as clutter too. We display family ones on shelves and others get stuck on doors, as some PP have said they are part of Christmas decorations. We certainly don't get as many as we used to do.

When my DF died quite close to Christmas my mum used Christmas cards to let people who didn't live nearby know the news. Can't people there are people who don't even bother to open the envelope.

Jesus. It's a way to show someone you're thinking of them and care that they have a good Xmas. There are nice ways to display them. Perhaps you should tell neighbour for example that you immediately bin them so she doesn't waste time and money next year.

I use the Christmas cards we get as part of the Christmas decoration - we’ve got doors with glass panes in them between the front room and dining room, and I blutack the cards up on both sides of the glass - I think it looks nice.

I'd also rather not receive them. Not a fan of greeting cards generally and we are usually away for the whole holiday period so its either a case of recycling them before we go away or when we get back.

"I don’t give a hoot if the man who owns average three doors down who I haven’t seen let alone spoken to in 3 years has “thought” of me."

Ah, but maybe it gave him pleasure as he's lonely/kind/reaching out.
Lovely sentiment from you though.

@mandarinpink

"I don’t give a hoot if the man who owns average three doors down who I haven’t seen let alone spoken to in 3 years has “thought” of me."

Ah, but maybe it gave him pleasure as he's lonely/kind/reaching out.
Lovely sentiment from you though.

Now, where did I place my teeny tiny violin?

I view cards as part of our Christmas decorations. You can't 'display' a text.
I also 'value' the time someone has spent to write and post them way more than a text.

While I'm about it, I don't really rate the 'moonpig' type cards that come pre-written without the sender even seeing them. They are better than a text but not as good as a real card.