I was raised Jewish, so I'd always feel kind of left out this time of year. Ever since I've learned it's mainly co-opted Solstice rituals, I've felt much better... But still, it's the the energy and the stress I pick up from others that bothers me the most, and that people seem to feel a lot more lonely this time of year.

I don't deal with it at all.

Time is precious and that's easily observable by anyone with enough brains.

Being forced to deal with Christmas is the adoption of being punished for making a reasonable deduction on what to do in the Christmas epoch. I won't pretend like it's sensible to get into the business of being instinctive and generally just primitive by doing what other people are doing because of the need to affirm society's pre-concieved, solipsistic notion of what is right for me to do.

Things like Christmas are taken with skepticism by me because they're a way to create informational conformity, which is usually the start of despotism, fascism, and other very authoritarian systems.

If I do any decorating at all, it is simply Winter Season themed decorations.

I buy gifts for my grand kids and do the "white elephant" gift exchange with my daughters and sons-in-law.

I have dinner with my family. And, when they pray, I close my eyes and go "lalalalalalalalalala..." in my head until it is over .

I hole up from mid-November until mid-January. Can't stand the commercial-capitalist hype or phony good cheer any more than I can the religious bullshit.

I don't put up any decorations, I don't send cards, I don't give any presents, .....if a fool gives me a present I say..."thank you"

All the fun, none of the dogma

I don't. Seriously, I don't invest too much energy into it. Now that both of my parents are gone, it's just me and my siblings, but I'm the only one who lives out of state, so they never see me for the holidays anyway, but I do send out cards... just haven't for last couple of years. I just spend most of the days leading up to Christmas working and staying home and running out in the snow. Oh, and my cats will get presents. It's just not a big deal for me.

I feel you!!!! I absolutely HATE Christmas. Partly because it was never a HAPPY TIME for me as a child. We were always threatened with no presents and surprised if there was any. This was a sick mind game my Mother Dearest got pleasure in.

As a parent, I played along to make my children happy and to ensure they would never have the disappointment of getting nothing.

As an Agnostic adult I loathe this time of the year. The in your face decorations and the friggin music pisses me off. I am actually looking for a t-shirt (I live in Hawaii) that says "FUCK XMAS"

I also count the days until the bullshit is over and get on with my life.

The christians co-opted most of the fun stuff from other cultures that were observing Solstice.

It is a fun time.

I mostly ignore it. I don't decorate. I switch to a radio station that does not play much xmas music. My "usual" station starts playing it 24/7 next week. My concession to the season and the grand children is to make a xmas tree quilt that I do need to finish very soon. That is seasonal as well as useful. My family does a gift exchange, and we will get together on xmas day for the holiday celebration as well as granddaughter's birthday.

Do my best to ignore it.

I generally take advantage of any extra pay over Christmas by working the Xmas shifts.

I haven't liked xmus since I was a kid and had to go to church on my birthday (it's xmus eve and I was warped a catholick...)
I usually ignore the hype while enjoying the food (I love fish), but get disgusted by the overindulgence and marketing that capitalism pukes on us during the "holidaze"... sometimes I'll reply "hail Satan" to "merry christmas" just to piss off the fake ones... we Atheists know that neither the christ nor The Satan existed, and surely not some fairy tale cloud- floating fuck that likes to kill babies and collect foreskins as a hobby..... my 2 cents for the boatman's fare, coz imma going to hades, if it even exists....
....naw, it's just another fairy tale to scare children at night and to keep the people quiet so those in power might reap the benefit if exploiting an already oppressed populace.....

Just enjoy the secular part of Christmas and ignore the baby Jesus, star of Bethlehem, three wise men, virgin Mary nonsense.

To me Christmas is a day for family. We treat it as a non-religious holiday. A lot of aspects of Christmas are non-Christian anyway so there you are. I also think the debate on how to greet someone for the holidays is silly. I say just be happy they are greeting you in a friendly way. Making a big deal about them not being "politically correct " is kind of childish. I say greet everyone how you want to and smile when they return in kind or however they greet you. It's supposed to be a time for peace and warmth and families.

Fortunately my people don’t bother too much just have a family dinner and a few gifts for the children.

Now I’m in Australia from the Northen Hemisphere it seems just wrong celebrating in 40C so it doesn’t seem like Christmas anyway!

I get invited to "holiday" parties. I can't remember the last time I was invited to a "Christmas" party. If they have food I go.

It doesn’t have to be about Jesus. I have a blast every Christmas with my atheist family. We exchange gifts, watch football, laugh, eat and drink. To me it’s about celebrating life & family in the midst of the coldest days.

i grew up celebrating. it’s a little weird now, but i don’t see any reason to give up my culture just because i’ve given up religion.

Since my family relationships are chances on a good day, holidays are complicated. I take lots of ‘smoke breaks’ outside(I don’t smoke, lol, but I pretend I do, and they pretend to believe me). I stay as superficial as possible.
And I try to laugh.

My late wife was the house decorator,after her passing,I had all of the decorations given away,too many memories,before we married,I looked at the Holidays as just another day,nothing special,this Thanksgiving and Christmas will be my 3rd with out her, 27 years(26 good ones).....

I treat it just like actually most do - as a family holiday and excuse to see people do not normally see. Oh and to take a break from work and relax. If someone gives me free time off, I will not complain as long as there are no strings attached. Besides, its a good excuse to celebrate the real holiday on 12/25: Newtonmas! Yes it is actually Sir Isaac Newton's birthday (at least on the older Julian calendar used when he was born). I send out Newtonmas cards too -- but they need to be bought well in advance because for some reason not everyone stocks them, go figure?

I do Christmas just because I love all the festivities! And I take solace in knowing that Christmas is merely a holiday stolen by the Christians from the Pagans. The tree, the lighting of lights, the gifting, even the praying, which in pagan times was hopes that the sun would return again. I don't go to church, I internally vomit when I read, "Jesus is the reason for the season," and I'm willing to smile at others' little comments about their religion. If that makes them happy, who am I to interfere with their fantasies?

Vodka

ask for money. lol i look at it if its a pagan holiday about good will and peace ignore the so called christian holiday that stole it from the pagans.