No Panty Bunching Here

I am a bad person.

* I don’t get fired up about the things I sometimes feel I should.
* My panties sometimes don’t get twisted into a knot over some things that probably warrant having one’s panties in a knot.
* I work in corporate America (though no longer in big business - not that I cared).
* I shop at Wal-Mart (occasionally, and I really don’t like it because I prefer the cleaner stores and shorter lines of Target, but I do shop there if I need something they have and I’m in the neighborhood).
* I send out religious Christmas cards (to friends who are Christian) and non-religious holiday cards (to my Jewish friends – sidenote: have you tried finding Hanukah cards in a place like the Frontier?)

There is something floating around decrying several stores for calling their Christmas trees “holiday trees” or “family trees.” It urges me to pass it on.

I deleted it.

I’m probably going to hell for it, but it’s not one of those “panty-bunching” issues to me. I am a good Christian. I believe in the religious reason for Christmas. I loathe the fact that Christmas has become more about getting more than the next guy, Black Friday and not offending anyone in its observance than about peace, reflection and Christ. It is, after all, a religious holiday. (Not to mention my prior post on pet peeves about e-mail forwards).

But I’m not offended by Christmas decorations being called holiday decorations. More accurately, I don't have TIME to be offended by it. I'm lucky I even put my decorations up this year - I don't have time to worry what I should/shouldn't be calling them or if I need to be offended by someone else's reference. You know - good will to men and all that.

It does bother me that people get offended by those using the terminology “Merry Christmas” – as if it’s okay for me to be bothered as long as someone else isn’t. But it doesn’t offend me that people choose to use “holiday” instead of Christmas. Again, I don't have time to worry about it or be bothered by it.

Maybe it should bother me. After all, Christmas is as much a religious holiday as Easter.

Though come to think of it – Easter doesn’t seem to cause big controversies. No one seems to get their panties in a bunch about people saying “Happy Easter.” I wonder why...? It’s an even more religious, more solemn observance than Christmas.

Maybe people are right – the East corrupted my sensibilities and turned me into a crazy woman with an all-black wardrobe, an attitude and far too open mind.

Except, looking at that list, I moved to the East with everything but the all-black wardrobe.

Maybe I’m just wired wrong.