Christmas Traditions

Do you do the whole 12 fishes tradition, plus pierogies? We always had fried smelts, pickled and creamed herring, pierogies and mushroom soup. When I started cooking, the soup was changed to New England clam chowder, the herrings were replaced with jumbo shrimp cocktail, and the smelts were replaced with cedar plank salmon. But we still had pierogies which my grandmother taught me to make, but her recipe was for 12 dozen, an all-day two-man operation.

Now, I order my pierogies from Millie's in Chicasaw MA, and make the clam chowder and that's what we have.

Christmas is always some form of beef followed by my grandmother's cheesecake, which I've been making since she died in 1985. It's just not Christmas without her cheesecake. And this year I'm making a whole beef tenderloin, 2x baked potatoes, brandied mushrooms and carrots with dill.

 

We eat all kinds of christmas themed food including lutfisk which is fish dissolved in lye. It's somewhat like a jellyfish with a hint of fish. Then later on in the day we usually watch Donald Ducks christmas, this program is huge in Sweden on christmas day (I'm not making this shit up). Last year it was watched by 3,9 million people out of a population just over 9 million.

 

That stuff smells like the inside of a dead cat's ass.

 

We're setting new traditions this year as the wife and I are finally having Christmas at our house. We have lived here 6 and a half years, but always either went to her family in Orlando or to my mom's house in St. Louis. This year we finally just called everyone for Thanksgiving and Christmas and said "if you'd like to see us, you know where we will be."

So I think our first year of new traditions will be a combination of things both of our families do and have done:

Mom, the wife, and I are going to the Nutcracker on Monday at the Fox. Mrs. Mac used to do this all the time, but probably hasn't been in 10 years and I have no idea if I will like it or not, but I'm not going to just say I hate it as I've never been.

Tuesday I am going to cook a standing rib roast (Alton Brown style) and we'll have a family Christmas Eve dinner and then do midnight mass at our church.

Wednesday morning will be presents around the tree and wearing pajamas most of the day, but some good friends of my mom's will be up from Columbus and we're meeting them for dinner and drinks at their hotel that evening.

That will be kind of the end of it, but I think some of those could become new traditions for us. I will probably watch a Christmas Story at least twice all the way through.

 

Here is a wonderful christmas tradition....tipping. Ughh.

I never know what is "expected", who do you all tip and how much?

 

I feel like we could do a whole thread on tipping.

I don't currently have a set of people who provide me year round services that I should tip at Christmas, but I'm sure that when I do I'll find the whole thing awkward and confusing.

 

We tip the mailman. With stamps.

 

We have done a whole thread on tipping. Multiple times actually.

The general consensus is that there is a clean party split, between "fuck you, you don't tip nearly enough for the slavery they do for you, you low-class scumbag!!!" and "why should I tip someone for something I'm already paying them to do? You expendable-income having upper-class white American!!!"

 

We go to church Christmas Eve and then go to my aunt's house. We eat oyster stew and venison fondue. We then do a "white elephant" where we give away shitty gifts that no one wants. Christmas morning, my mom makes a big breakfast usually consisting of quiche and a traditional dutch dish called pannekoeken. We then open presents and hang out. My parents then cook a big meal consisting of prime rib, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, dressing, and a variety of other things and a ton of dessert. After dinner, we usually just play cards (euchre).

 

I come from a fucked up religious background. Christmas doesn't really mean a lot to me. I know however that it means a lot to other people. When I lived in Colorado my friends would always make sure that I had some place to go on Christmas and Thanksgiving. That shit meant a lot to me. So I decided to institute something like that here. Living on an island away from the mainland a lot of people don't have their families around. Its just them being by themselves. I hate that idea. So I decided that I'd make sure that at least one person every year who might not be able to make it home would have a place to go, some good grub and plenty of food. That is the least I can do. I like this idea. This year its a buddy from my Muay Thai gym. Should be good.

Oh! That and my wife and I binge watch stuff. This year its the Saw movies.

 

In the same boat my friends have been nothing short of amazing making sure I have something to do or am at least invited. My family, as they have now all embraced the normal for the most part, have started making plans together as well. A nice meal on Christmas eve and then a movie on Christmas Day have emerged as family traditions. Just as well since most of my close friends have kids now and aren't doing the let's meet up after your family functions and get hammered thing anymore.

I feel like its worth repeating how much it means to have friends who open up their holidays so that those who didn't grow up with it feel welcome and aren't relegated to being hermits for a couple days a year. I think it helps some of us understand the "true" Christmas spirit.

 

My mom yelled at my sister for not being serious enough in a picture, and then later on made my cousin cry and leave the house. Since that's happened before, I'm calling it a tradition! I just need a good name for it.