I just wish people would stop sending me Christmas cards

[iCod]

They're pointless, wasteful and a poor form of communication. All I do is read the "Happy Christmas from Joe and Julie" and walk them to the recycling.

I haven't sent any for over 25 years and I just don't see the need for them at all.

99% of cards don’t have any news in them.

@cardibachit is quite funny from one mate though
but she did put flowers in a cathedral when Diana died so we often giggle about that 😆

I love them! I (and DH) send about 40-45 between us - neighbours, relatives, and work colleagues (and 5 good friends between us...) We get about the same back. Got 38 so far.

We are quite old though. 😆Our DC are 30-ish and only send about 7 out. Get about the same back.

20 years back, we used to get about 80-90. I'm not kidding. Colleagues, family, neighbours, hobby groups, and friends of our 2 DC... Again, we did probably send about that many out between us.

I do agree that it's weird as fuck to send Christmas cards to people you haven't seen/spoken to/had anything to do with for 10+ years though. WTF is that about?!

Well three is a very insignificant amount I agree, multiply that by tens of millions however 🤷🏻‍♀️

@cardibach im going with 100%

Is that right. Maybe I'm just aware that if a family member sends me a card I'll give them one back. Although it might please you to know a few times when I've been a tad disorganised I HAVENT BOUGHT ONE

I love you @Roobarbtwo
I think sending Christmas cards to your family is a bit working class. Especially if "dear mum at Christmas"

I love Christmas. Can’t stand cards. They don’t bring me joy. It’s entirely possible to be full of joy and Christmassy spirit and still wish cards didn’t exist.

I have no issue with people choosing to send cards. If it makes them happy then so be it. I keep them for a short while before recycling them.

What I do take issue with is the inevitable threads every year full of people moaning they a sent card but didn’t receive one back and how it’s the height of rudeness and unreasonableness. Between 2 kids and a job where I have been lucky to have 3 days off over Xmas, writing a return card (or in fact any card, beyond to my 90 year old nan who I don’t see very often and is deaf so can’t chat on the phone) to some random neighbour or an acquaintance is just not going to happen.

These are relative that just got sent cards each year, I spoke to them if I saw them in between obviously but I wouldn't text them at Christmas particularly. I have never sent cards to anyone other than relatives or texted them at Christmas

I don't have a tree - plastic or otherwise. I don't buy lots of food at Christmas and waste any - I get a takeaway. I'm quite happy to buy three cards over the space of a year

Sometimes I put a gift in the card - money or a gift card

Oh god. I actually thought you had a point until you described something as ‘a bit working class’

@Roobarbtwo okay that sounds like a nice gesture, the card is useful to contain and disguise cash I agree, I hope you have a lovely Christmas

I do agree that it's weird as fuck to send Christmas cards to people you haven't seen/spoken to/had anything to do with for 10+ years though. WTF is that about?!

Yes! I admit my views on Christmas cards are definitely shaped by observing that my parents sent (and received) Christmas cards to people they hadn't seen in years (10 would have been quite recent) as a proxy for "being in touch" . If you want to be in touch with them, you need to do more than send them a card every year!

It’ll be 99.something. Some people do write some news. Very, very few though. And a bet a similarly small number were written with joy and love rather than gritted teeth…

He he he. Ok then. It's a bit Clinton cards.

we all know what i mean.

I only got one this year and haven't sent one in years

But, we have got 5 new sets of neighbours this year so I have sent one to everyone on the street then we all might get to know each other a bit

i think I’d feel quite sad if I had no Christmas cards to put up - they make the place look lovely.

We have a big Christmas party mid December and virtually everyone brings a card which is lovely and then I probably receive another 15-20 in the post, from far flung friends and relatives.

I give about 20-30 in return - every year I try to be a bit more organised and ensure that I write them early enough that they actually have meaningful messages in.

I’m sure they’ll die out in the next decade - much like letters and postcards. But as someone who has lots of money and little time and whose friends fall into the same category, hand written hand posted correspondence feels like the last bastion of thoughtfulness.

You need friends and family who can write messages

Yes why would you send a card to someone you don't speak to?

What I do actually is put a generic message on FB with a Christmassy pic from my life (my tree, my food prep!) and wish everyone a merry Christmas. And no I don't say "I'm not sending cards so have donated to xyz charity".

If people message on the pic I reply.

There are some people not on SM that I want to wish well and I email or text them.

And yunno, I keep in touch with people as the year rolls round. I message them, I call round and chat to them, I go for a coffee or a meal. I don't need to follow that up with a signed folded piece of cardboard.

If literally all you do in your relationship with someone is exchange a piece of card with your name on once a year, I really think that connection is dead and done. I recall when I drastically cut my cards list, saying to DH that I wasn't going to send a card to his cousin whom I would not know if they walked in the room (see? wifework) and he said "well you might not get one from them then" - totally fine!

You need friends and family who can write messages

I once had to pay the postage on a card my gran had forgotten to put a stamp on. The guy at the sorting office asked whether I actually wanted to pay, given that it was past Christmas and he could
just bin it, but I felt bad about that so paid the postage and extra charge and then there was £20 inside, happy days.

I make all my Christmas cards and I hope the recipients feel like you 😔

I am working class. And proud of it. Im quite happy to give my mum a card - and presents - because she had melanoma in 2017 - and I'm very lucky still to have her

I don't say dear mum at Christmas. I've bought her a card - actually not a Christmas card - because the shop I bought them from ran out of them - so I bought her a generic one instead

I'm not obsessed with cards BTW. As I said earlier I can be a tad disorganised and there have been times where I have given no cards and just the presents to my mum and brother

You know what is coming OP...