With Halloween in the rearview mirror, that means it should be time to make room for turkey, stuffing, and mashed potatoes. That is how it should be, but according to all the stores and malls, they think otherwise. It may be November, but it might as well be December as the ads for buying Christmas presents, and holiday decorations, are in full force. Holiday cheer is never a bad thing, but there definitely are some trademarks that mark the beginning of the holiday season. I’ve heard the debate of this topic around campus quite frequently since Halloweekend has come to an end, and while I know how exciting it is to think about decking the halls, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves.

I will begin by saying that there is a reason for the song “White Christmas.” Furthermore, just like country music always mentions something about corn and sunshine, holiday music always almost always mentions something about being cold and snowy. This is the perfect time to stop reading and look out the window to observe the green grass, crispy dead leaves that are still scattered around campus, leftover Halloween decorations, and severe lack of blow up lawn Santas.

A Minnesota Christmas is almost always white. It is like a rite of passage to start getting in the holiday mood. We are still sporting shorts, crocs, and short sleeves around campus, signifying just how far we have to go until hot cocoa weather. If one is not cold and trudging through at least a dusting of snow yet, it is not Christmas time.

I will admit, I do enjoy the time I get to start listening to Christmas music, but that time is not now. I do not need a whole extra month to listen to “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” or Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas is You,” even if it is the extra festive version. “No other holiday is celebrated for two months. It’s the twelve days of Christmas for a reason” Senior Vanessa Case said. I am not shy to admit that I am a sucker for Justin Bieber’s “Mistletoe” just like every other girl here on campus (don’t deny it, ladies), but it just doesn’t have the same effect on me as I walk around seeing cornucopias and turkeys. Listening to those songs now just feels wrong, and takes away some of the holiday feels once they do come around. Don’t get those hopes up too soon, Rudolph won’t be up on the rooftop for a while.

Walking into Target, or the mall, and seeing ads come across the media saying it’s time to buy Christmas gifts is the last thing I need to think about right now. As students, we have enough stress in our lives as it is, and don’t need the constant reminder that every kiss begins with Kay a month before we actually should be stressing about it.

The holiday season brings cheer, but also unnecessary stress about hanging up lights, decorating the whole house, and finding the perfect tree, all before finals. I have always found decorating to be much more exciting when Christmas is getting closer. “Growing up, we always put our Christmas decorations up the weekend of Thanksgiving, so that’s just when I’ve always started thinking about Christmas,” Senior Jake Beutler said. For those who get live Christmas trees every year, it would make absolutely no sense to get it now, because it would be dead by the time Christmas rolled around. I think that’s a universal sign saying that Christmas cheer, and the Hallmark channel, need to chill for a bit.

Lastly, there must be no holiday left behind. November is the month of giving thanks, but it is very hard to do that when Target is saying that it is time to buy everything you don’t actually need (what else is new) before Thanksgiving has had its time to shine.

I have always found it ironic that people will leave early from Thanksgiving dinner to go wait outside in the cold for Black Friday shopping, when they could be eating a slice of warm pie, slowly drifting into a peaceful food coma. “I like Thanksgiving, and I think each holiday deserves its own time,” Senior Perry McGhee said.

Celebrating the holidays now, totally skips an important holiday that a lot of people look forward to every year. Watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade has been a long standing tradition, and something I look forward to. Nothing signifies the end of Thanksgiving like waiting for the latest piece of technology in a Best Buy parking lot, or getting trampled by others so they can get the last special edition Barbie. The end of Thanksgiving is what marks the beginning of all things red a green, but until then, everyone should look forward to stuffing their faces with stuffing, not stuffing stockings.