I Have No Money for Christmas!
I keep running into a similar problem. More precisely, this problem shows up every year at Christmas. A few days before Christmas Eve I set out to get the necessary gifts. But the chaos is hard to avoid. It isn't a matter of organization, but quite simply a lack of money. I have no money for Christmas! This problem is a truly draining, permanent one. After all, I want to bring a little joy to all the dear people around me, but toward the end of the year that is especially difficult. The reason is my complicated income situation. I don't earn the same amount all year, and especially in the last two months of the calendar year my income drops toward zero. How am I supposed to come up with money for Christmas presents in this situation? There are surely worse problems, but this situation weighs on me heavily and I somehow just feel guilty! Guilty? Yes, because if I had my life more under control, I wouldn't end up in such a predicament in the first place.
No money for Christmas despite a steady job
I have a steady job and still barely get by. The reason is that I can't be scheduled full time every month. It is simply down to my employer. The workload isn't the same all year and depends on heavy seasonal swings. The general economic situation also has a big influence on my line of work. Bread, butter and milk always get bought. In my profession, unfortunately, you barely earn any money once the economy takes a clear turn downward!
No money for Christmas and trouble again and again
I simply have no money for Christmas, and for that reason I keep getting grief. Why grief? Everyone is always angry, or at least disappointed, when they get their gifts from me. I always turn up with inexpensive presents or make things myself. But most of the people around me are usually not convinced at all. They keep asking why I didn't just invest a bit more, or why I didn't make more of an effort. But it isn't down to a lack of willingness or to stinginess. I am anything but stingy in principle and would love to spend thousands of dollars on Christmas presents every year. I just can't, and I can't change this situation overnight, either. Is there perhaps a way out? I don't like giving up and always try to find a suitable solution: maybe I should change jobs again? In any case, I should talk about my problem with the family to find a good solution.