I appear to be the target of some elaborate hoax

@Asylum (47893)

Manchester, England

December 14, 2016 11:03am CST

For the past 6 weeks or so we have been constantly bombarded with Christmas tunes in the stores and the general shopping areas. This began far too early, as tends to happen every year these days. With just 10 days left to go, such music is now completely justified. However, while out in the city centre today I noticed that all the shops are now playing the usual tracks that they do throughout the year. I kept checking the date to ensure that I was not going completely insane. My mind keeps drifting to all those movies that I have seen where a person’s reality is manipulated by outside sources for one reason or another. I am quite convinced that today should be 14th December.

24 people like this

23 responses

@MALUSE (69390)

• Germany

14 Dec 16

Maybe the shop-assistants threatened to go on strike if they weren't liberated from Christmas songs at least for some hours a day. Imagine to be bombarded with these tunes from morning to night! Horror! Enough to become a heathen!!

5 people like this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

14 Dec 16

There is no doubt that those persistent carol's must have drove them insane. Of course the solution is to start early December until Christmas, not start in October and terminate mid December.

2 people like this

@MALUSE (69390)

• Germany

14 Dec 16

@Asylum Germans seem to be more sensible in this respect. We don't hear Christmas carols so early.

2 people like this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

14 Dec 16

@MALUSE I wish that we did not hear them so early either. O Tannenbaum is out of place in October.

1 person likes this

Show more comments

@LadyDuck (460346)

• Switzerland

14 Dec 16

Today is 14th of December and I am sure that many customers and the shop-assistants have asked to stop to play Christmas tunes because they were becoming insane. I have enough when I only stay one hour in a grocery store, I can imagine the poor people working there.

3 people like this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

14 Dec 16

I can understand that, but surely it would be more appropriate to begin at a more applicable time.

2 people like this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

14 Dec 16

@LadyDuck The United States began to develop strange habits once they ejected their British mentors.

2 people like this

@LadyDuck (460346)

• Switzerland

14 Dec 16

@Asylum I fully agree, as it was in the past, but we always have to copy from the United States.

3 people like this

Show more comments

@Inlemay (17713)

• South Africa

16 Dec 16

from where I am sitting - the day is looking more like the 16th Dec

2 people like this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

16 Dec 16

That is because you were asleep on the 15th and missed the discussion until now.

2 people like this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

17 Dec 16

@Inlemay Rip Van Winkle had the same problem.

1 person likes this

@Inlemay (17713)

• South Africa

17 Dec 16

@Asylum it seems I missed more than just the 15th - Goodness this is what happens when LIFE gets me! I miss out one some good reads. My apologies

2 people like this

Show more comments

@jillybean1222 (6408)

•

30 Dec 16

I'm actually always disappointed on 12/26 when the radio stations go back to normal music. i'm still usually in the holiday mood for at least another day or two

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

30 Dec 16

The simple solution is to play your own Christmas music.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

30 Dec 16

@jillybean1222 Maybe your radio is running slow, which would explain why you received Christmas music on 26th.

1 person likes this

@jillybean1222 (6408)

•

30 Dec 16

@Asylum well, yes, i do that... but not in my van.... locally, we have 3 radio stations that play all christmas music during december. this year, i was pleasantly surprised that one of them was still playing on 12/26. but it was all gone by 12/27

1 person likes this

Show more comments

@fishtiger58 (29823)

• Momence, Illinois

17 Dec 16

Soon Christmas music will start in July

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

17 Dec 16

We seem to be drawing nearer to that every year.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

17 Dec 16

@fishtiger58 We had one store over here that began promoting so early that they had Halloween stock displayed on one side and Christmas stock on the other.

1 person likes this

@fishtiger58 (29823)

• Momence, Illinois

17 Dec 16

@Asylum I shudder at the thought

1 person likes this

Show more comments

@Jeanniemaries (8237)

• United States

20 Dec 16

Well the carols are alive and well here!

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

20 Dec 16

They are now back to normal here as well, but for some unknown reason for we that one day respite.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

22 Dec 16

@Jeanniemaries A station without Christmas music is rare nowadays.

1 person likes this

@Jeanniemaries (8237)

• United States

22 Dec 16

@Asylum I searched the car radio for carols on the drive home yesterday (5 hours!) BUT never found any. Possibly because all I found was country and static.

1 person likes this

Show more comments

@celticeagle (159887)

• Boise, Idaho

14 Dec 16

Sounds like A Christmas Carol to me.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

14 Dec 16

This was not so common in Dickens' days.

1 person likes this

@celticeagle (159887)

• Boise, Idaho

14 Dec 16

@Asylum .....It's what you said here: "My mind keeps drifting to all those movies that I have seen where a person’s reality is manipulated by outside sources for one reason or another." ....That brought my answer to mind.

1 person likes this

@Bluedoll (16774)

• Canada

17 Dec 16

It would be nice if the store keeps weren't affected and started giving things away for free.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

17 Dec 16

That is not very likely to happen.

@Bluedoll (16774)

• Canada

18 Dec 16

@Asylum I wonder why?

1 person likes this

Happy Lady and Freya the Catblog Cat

@Jackalyn (7559)

• Oxford, England

14 Dec 16

Oh no! It is about now the shops get maudlin. They start telling you will be lonely without him/her this Christmas so you better buy yourself more. It is the 14th but Mylot kindly made it the 15th.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

14 Dec 16

Now I am even more perplexed by how Mylot made today the 15th. I suspect that you are part of this conspiracy to confuse me.

1 person likes this

Happy Lady and Freya the Catblog Cat

@Jackalyn (7559)

• Oxford, England

20 Dec 16

@Asylum They are out to bless us. This is nice.

Belle Starr (Iz)

@BelleStarr (61047)

• United States

19 Dec 16

Nope it is January 6th and that isn't snow I see but Florida sun!!!

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

19 Dec 16

In that case Christmas would be over now.

1 person likes this

@valmnz (17099)

• New Zealand

22 Dec 16

They'll start playing Valentine's Day music soon!

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

23 Dec 16

I was not even aware that anything qualified as Valentine music.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

23 Dec 16

@valmnz A fair point.

1 person likes this

@valmnz (17099)

• New Zealand

23 Dec 16

@Asylum no but i guess it will soon be love tunes to go with all the commercial marketing.

1 person likes this

Show more comments

@Marilynda1225 (80139)

• United States

17 Dec 16

It must be difficult to listen to Christmas music non-stop when you work in the mall or stores. Maybe the needed a break before resuming Christmas music?

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

17 Dec 16

This is almost certainly the case, but starting at a more sensible time would help.

@garymarsh6 (23393)

• United Kingdom

18 Dec 16

CAn you imagine having to listen to Christmas music from September onwards it would drive me insane!

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

18 Dec 16

I agree absolutely Gary, but starting later is the obvious solution to that.

1 person likes this

@TheHorse (207500)

• Walnut Creek, California

15 Dec 16

Is there an official "break from all of the commercial Christmas music" day that we just don't know about?

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

15 Dec 16

There never has been in the past, but I would wholeheartedly condone such a thing.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

22 Dec 16

@TheHorse That would be very welcome.

@TheHorse (207500)

• Walnut Creek, California

22 Dec 16

@Asylum Perhaps it could last a week or so.

1 person likes this

Show more comments

@vandana7 (99102)

• India

15 Dec 16

I will confirm the date once you mention the year...

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

15 Dec 16

I know that we are somewhere around the 21st century.

1 person likes this

@crossbones27 (48542)

• Mojave, California

15 Dec 16

Indeed, I have better Christmas songs, but at the same time not very Christian like. Doubled edge sword in this world. Sorry.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

15 Dec 16

Whether or not a song is Christian does not affect the quality of it.

Arthur Chappell

@arthurchappell (45002)

• Preston, England

15 Dec 16

I read this on the 15th December - I think it is good to still hear non-xmas songs too

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

15 Dec 16

I agree, but very unexpected.

1 person likes this

@redurnet (1799)

• United Kingdom

16 Dec 16

I used to work in a mall and for some bizarre unexplained reason the people in the head office only had one compilation for during the year and one for Christmas. It drove me quite mad as it would endlessly play on a loop and it did so for the entire year I worked there!.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

16 Dec 16

I can imagine how annoying that must have been.

Janice Miller/Liddle

@His_chariot (375)

• United States Minor Outlying Islands

15 Dec 16

They want to get you in the mood to spend. Of course, maybe you are just becoming more sensitive to it.

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

15 Dec 16

I have been inundated by Christmas music to such an extent that the absence seemed strange.

@mommymonky (325)

•

16 Dec 16

Nope. 16th. You must just be crazy

1 person likes this

@Asylum (47893)

• Manchester, England

16 Dec 16

I never claimed to be sane.

1 person likes this