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Bad memories for the holidays

#41
Darth Handsome said:
My bad xmas experiences have all but ended. I threw Mrs Handsome out so now I get to eat xmas dinner with my own mother instead of my ******* in-laws. Oorah.
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+1

For 13 years I had the misfortune of celebrating Christmas with my, thankfully now ex, mother in-law. I swear she sat at the right-hand of Satan. I used to comment that she and her sisters were the Sanderson sisters from Hocus Pocus - they would suck the souls out of children, and adults, alike. What a miserable bunch of mean-spirited human beings.


Been happily remarried for 4 years now and have amazing in-laws - life is too short to be unhappy!
 
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#42
Yogi Bear said:
+1

For 13 years I had the misfortune of celebrating Christmas with my, thankfully now ex, mother in-law. I swear she sat at the right-hand of Satan. I used to comment that she and her sisters were the Sanderson sisters from Hocus Pocus - they would suck the souls out of children, and adults, alike. What a miserable bunch of mean-spirited human beings.


Been happily remarried for 4 years now and have amazing in-laws - life is too short to be unhappy!
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My sisters-in-law are hyenas.

Remarried?? What are you, a slow learner?
 
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#44
Xmas morning of 1976, my parents announced their impending divorce to my sister and I. Then we headed off to the big family get-together with grandparents and cousins, while told not to say anything about it until they broke the news to everyone else. Fun times.
 
#46
Kind of a roller coaster around Christmas for me. We were pretty poor when I was a child. Times were rough. The family was tight, but so was money. Then dad got a job at the mill in the late 70s, which was like hitting the lottery in our small town. Things got better for quite a while. Then my sister died in '94. Her birthday was December 18th so we had gotten used to celebrating it along with Christmas. They kind of went hand in hand. It was Jesus' birthday AND Ace's birthday (my nickname for her).

These days I am about as blessed as one could possibly be without breaking any laws. Lots of regional travel for Christmas. Lots of memories..... good and bad. But my kids keep me grounded. I live Christmas through them. I put up lots of tacky lights. They think I do it because I like the lights. I do it because it makes them smile and that is what I live for..... their smiles.

Slo, glad you were able to break the chain. I have learned enough about you through TB to know that you warm Christmas up for others. Some of their best memories are you. And that's just cool.

Mellow, I hope Christmas is good for you this year as well. Things have been a roller coaster for you for a couple years now. You deserve to coast through this one drama free. Here's hoping it happens that way.
 
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#47
Les Ismoor said:
Xmas morning of 1976, my parents announced their impending divorce to my sister and I. Then we headed off to the big family get-together with grandparents and cousins, while told not to say anything about it until they broke the news to everyone else. Fun times.
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Dang. That's pretty harsh. Breaking up is one thing. Following up Santa Clause with that act is just wrong.
 
#49
I have replied to this thread at least three or four times, each time typing all the details of some really dark memories, only to delete them over and over. I don't want to turn this into a "let's brag about our worst holiday memories" any more than it already is.

If you can, don't focus on the bad memories. Focus on being the best mom or dad (or uncle or aunt or brother or sister or friend) you can be. Give your kids an extra hug. If there are things that help trigger bad memories - do what you can to avoid them. Maybe that means not drinking alcohol, or not inviting ***holes to your house. Maybe it means not visiting bad people.
 
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#54
Killed_by_Death said:
The most xMassy thing I'll do is watch It's a Wonderful Life, because my old friend is in there, as Pete Bailey.

...Anyway, if you want a pick-me-up during the holidays, that's the movie to watch.

My friend told me a few times, the people broke down and cried over how they nearly committed suicide during the holiday, until they saw the movie. He said it was a regular occurrence whenever the cast set up chairs to sign things for fans.
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I've watched It's a Wonderful Life every year on Christmas Eve for the past two decades, at first while assembling toys for the kids, now just because...

Other than my mother dying at 37 when I was ten years old, and me driving my car into a tree in my front yard yesterday, I've always enjoyed Christmas-time... :)
 
#60
Back in the early '80s, we would drive to the first ex-wife's grandparents house, about 60 miles away in rural Iowa. We would hit McDonalds on the way, and again on the way home.

Her granny was a sweet old lady, but she couldn't cook her way out of a boil n bag. I had never tried (or even thought of) putting ground sausage in a cake, but she did it. Ground sausage in a golden cake with white frosting. The next year, she skipped the sausage but used salt in place of sugar. I've heard of that happening elsewhere since then, but at the time I couldn't imagine how anyone could make that mistake.

I'm surprised the stuffing didn't do me in, because I'm sure that was swimming with some god awful bacteria that's probably hiding in a pocket in my lower intestine waiting to mess with me further.

Those events were far worse than the holidays I later spent alone addicted to drugs and alcohol.
 

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