What irks me about the holidays:
1) People endlessly complaining about how much they "have" to do, buy, cook, mail. It isn't mandatory, people. You can simplify the holidays and make them enjoyable without giving everyone tube socks for gifts and eating macaroni and cheese for Christmas dinner. Sure, you get pressure to overdo from your family and from the rest of society, but what else is new? Overdoing it during the holiday season is a choice.
2) Anyone who brags about not observing the holidays. You're welcome to sit it out if you want, but frankly, I don't care. (That doesn't apply to this thread -- obviously, we were all invited to weigh in.)
3) This is more than a peeve.
For approximately 6 weeks out of the year, we're treated to endless sermonizing about how 'commercialized' Christmas has become, as it this is some kind of rigidly-enforced law that no one has any choice but to obey. (See #1 for details on that.)
But how much of the rest of the year are the sermonizers the least bit concerned about the commercialization of just about everything you can name, and the materialism that has thoroughly polluted Western culture? They're nowhere! And this is particularly true of our esteemed clergy. Anyone want to take a guess on how many sermons, lessons, homilies are given every year on abortion, "the homosexuals", patriotism, prayer in schools and sports events, which political party should be frequented by "God's people" and the moral imperative to contribute to the Building Fund -- and how many are preached about materialism, the worship of money and status and celebrity? Precious few in comparison. Concern about the central moral problem in Western culture gets put back on the shelf with the lights and ornaments and gift wrap on December 26th.
Christmas music in stores and Christmas decorations up in November don't bother me. That isn't worth fretting about.