jebbypal

That pretty much tears it - I've got to break this durn honesty habit.

1) It's a 3 and a half hour direct plane flight. Except it's never direct. So it ends up being a total of 8-12 hours in airport/travel circumstances.
2) Compound the above by my allergies making the whole "eating" during that time problematic. I tend towards hypoglycemia on most days. And I can't have anything really substantial thanks to the "no liquids" thing keeping me from having ice packs. yes, frozen veggies are an option, but I don't really trust them when you consider most of my foods have no preservatives and I HATE food poisoning.
3) I'd have a total of four days off. NOT RESTFUL.

And the most important:
4) I AM NOT A HOLIDAY PERSON. Look, I'm not scrooge, but quite frankly, I'm not a holiday person nor do I feel the overbearing need to be with family on the holidays. Call it mild PTSD from shit that has gone on during holidays, or leftovers from the fact my parents never made us go anywhere on xmas and so it was just the four of us, or what, but it serves no special significance to me other than turkey and stuffing. Anytime I go home to family it's the same. Two days of the year being national holidays does not make that more significant, more fun, less painful, or any of the above.

5) No, I don't know my plans for the holidays yet because I'm not going to invite myself anywhere. That being said, just because I don't have plans does not mean I need to be invited to your family holiday with your husband and teenage son. I'm sorry, but the only way I want that inflicted on me is if the teenager is being raised by me.

6) I'm getting enough of the "I don't think you should be alone on the holidays" from my mother. (who has also started the "have you had time to find a church?" spiel as well. Hope springs eternal for her apparently since I haven't found one - or looked - for ten years now). Fortunately, what you think has no impact on my life so long as you can keep rude comments like that to yourself.

Conclusion: the holidays don't depress single people (err, people who live alone - you know what I mean). Nosy, judgemental, know-it-alls full of the holiday "spirit" depress single people. And that's only because we're restraining ourselves from bludgeoning you to death because it's the holidays and we figure your family deserves to suffer if we have to.