Having spent my last 16 or so Christmases in Asia, I don’t feel its commercial impact the way I did in the U.S. I honestly don’t miss it. This year we bought a good-sized potted conifer and put it on a small rug in the den by the fireplace (the one we’ve yet to use). My wife and I will exchange small gifts and invite a bunch of friends & neighbors over for a barbeque (it’s around 25c during the day this time of year in Northern Thailand). I know it’s popular to bemoan the fact that Christmas has become so commercial, but I believe that Consumerism is a modern religion and that Christmas in the West perfectly expresses it. Continue reading