There’s something magical about Christmas in Lubbock, and by magical, I mean a mix of twinkling lights, dirty snowmen (if we even get any snow), and at like 14 families arguing over who hid the ranch dressing.\u00a0Every family has their little traditions. Some of them are sweet, and some of them are flat-out bizarre and utterly impossible to explain to anyone who isn’t from around here.<\/p>\n
This morning on Lubbock’s #1 morning show, The RockShow, we asked listeners to submit some of their more strange family traditions, and boy did they deliver. You guys are weird, and we love you for it.<\/p>\n
Here are just a few of the Christmas traditions Lubbock families swear by, even though outsiders would stare at us like we just microwaved a banana peel for warmth.<\/p>\n
Reading Something Wildly Specific on Christmas EvePhoto by Sincerely Media<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n Most families read The Night Before Christmas.\u00a0<\/p>\n Sam told us that his family gathers in the living room on Christmas Eve\u2014fire roaring, tree twinkling\u2014and reads \u201cThe Cremation of Sam McGee.\u201d The whole poem. Out loud. Every year.<\/p>\n They moved from Alaska to California (Sam now works in Lubbock), and apparently, nothing says \u201cHappy Birthday, Jesus\u201d like a poem about freezing to death. And honestly? Respect. (It’s actually one of my favorite poems!)<\/p>\n Read More:\u00a0Why Lubbock Residents Love Chickies Tasty Treats’ Hot Chocolate<\/a><\/p>\n The \u201cWe Don\u2019t Celebrate Christmas\u201d ChristmasPhoto by Dieter K<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n One listener, Al, shared that his dad believed the Bible said Jesus didn\u2019t want anyone celebrating birthdays\u2014including His own.<\/p>\n So his family literally didn\u2019t celebrate Christmas.<\/p>\n \u2026but also still exchanged birthday gifts.<\/p>\n Listen. Lubbock theology is its own genre.<\/p>\n The Anti-Lutefisk Pledge of AllegiancePhoto by The New York Public Library<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n One of our listeners (who actually lives up in Minnesota, but listens on the KFMX App<\/a>), Bjorn, said his family doesn\u2019t really do lutefisk for the holidays and even felt the need to clarify:<\/p>\n \u201cI tell ya one thing our family DOESN’T do\u2026 lutefisk. Friggin’ crime against humanity!\u201d<\/p>\n No one asked, Bjorn. But we\u2019re glad you\u2019re safe.<\/p>\n Move to Lubbock. Nobody even knows what Lutefisk is here.<\/p>\n Trying to Invent New Traditions on the SpotPhoto by Alessandro Bianchi<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n Some Lubbock families try to spice things up. Listener John announced:<\/p>\n “How about a new one? CHRISTMAS KARAOKE!”<\/p>\n Yeah, John, nothing brings the family closer than dad’s rendition of “All I Want For Christmas is You” off-key and majorly drunk. 10\/10.<\/p>\n Trying to Decorate Outside Despite the WindPhoto by iridial<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n Every inflatable Santa in Lubbock spends December at a 45\u00b0 angle.<\/p>\n Every. Single. One.<\/p>\n If your reindeer don\u2019t look like they\u2019re migrating to Amarillo, is it even Christmas?<\/p>\n And Finally\u2026The Secret Box of TraditionsPhoto by Antonio Araujo<\/a> on Unsplash<\/a><\/p>\n Some families keep a small shoebox of Christmas mementos, random ornaments, quirky crafts from 1998, and whatever else makes no sense but is considered \u201csentimental.\u201d Every Lubbock family has one. Mine’s\u00a0<\/a>green<\/a>.<\/p>\n Don’t question it. Just accept it.<\/p>\n In The End, It’s All Perfectly Lubbock<\/p>\n Yes, some of our traditions may seem unusual to outsiders, but that’s just part of our charm. Christmas in Lubbock isn’t perfect. Sometimes it’s windy. Sometimes it’s loud. But, it’s ALWAYS full of personality. Home, weird, and ours.<\/p>\n Keep scrolling for more Lubbock-based fun in the galleries below…<\/p>\n Inside Lubbock\u2019s Craigslist: What Your Neighbors Are Really Up To<\/p>\n Well, this was somehow better AND worse than I expected. How does that happen?<\/p>\n Gallery Credit: Chrissy <\/p>\n Lubbock Date Nights: Weathering The Storm, Hand in Hand<\/p>\n Lubbock’s wild weather often becomes a compatibility test on date night…<\/p>\n Gallery Credit: Chrissy<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"There’s something magical about Christmas in Lubbock, and by magical, I mean a mix of twinkling lights, dirty…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":72008,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16],"tags":[168,170,169],"class_list":{"0":"post-72007","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-lubbock","8":"tag-lubbock","9":"tag-lubbock-headlines","10":"tag-lubbock-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72007","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72007"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72007\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/72008"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72007"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72007"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72007"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}