Category: Holidays

Ugly Sweaters, Other Consumer Christmas Traditions and Their Origins

~ thenarcissisticanthropologist ~ Leave a comment

Did you find yourself online shopping at a place like Ugly Christmas Sweater this season to find the perfect tacky holiday sweater to wear to a theme party?  Did you find yourself wondering when the ugly Christmas sweater party became a "thing"?  I thought Cliff Huxtable (for those who did not grow up in front of the … Continue reading Ugly Sweaters, Other Consumer Christmas Traditions and Their Origins

Thanksgiving and Hanukkah: Giving Thanks For The Fire That Burns In All of Us

~ thenarcissisticanthropologist ~ 1 Comment

I am certainly not even close to catching up to the thousands of bloggers who are talking about this year's first merging of two iconic American Holiday traditions since the late 1800's - Thanksgiving and Hanukkah, also coined Thanksgivukkah, among other cutesy holiday sniglets.Being both American and Jewish (at least by birth on both counts) … Continue reading Thanksgiving and Hanukkah: Giving Thanks For The Fire That Burns In All of Us

Mother’s Day In Context: Celebrating Mothers Around The World

~ thenarcissisticanthropologist ~ 2 Comments

On the second Sunday in May, American's take the day to celebrate the women who bore them, raised them and most likely to have driven them to psychoanalysis:  our Moms! It's a relatively young tradition as far as those go in the U.S. - and one that is typically seen as a commercial holiday.  But … Continue reading Mother’s Day In Context: Celebrating Mothers Around The World

Nursing Your Cinco De Mayo Hangover With Some Cultural Facts

~ thenarcissisticanthropologist ~ Leave a comment

I don't know about the rest of you, but try as I might not to be a rank partying amateur and booze it up on Cinco De Mayo because I can, I did still end up at a Mexican restaurant, enjoying just a bit too much chips, dip and tequila. That being said, the Anthropologist … Continue reading Nursing Your Cinco De Mayo Hangover With Some Cultural Facts

Creepy Consumer Culture Rituals: Pictures With Santa and The Easter Bunny

~ thenarcissisticanthropologist ~ 23 Comments

I don't know If I share this opinion with most Anthropologists or not, but I know I share It with many of my other fellow humans. And that is, Americans do some weird sh*t for our holiday traditions - mostly because of how fervently we have integrated our religous holidays into consumer culture and vice … Continue reading Creepy Consumer Culture Rituals: Pictures With Santa and The Easter Bunny