I woke up from my food coma from last week, and now I’m ready for 🎶 CHRISTMAS 🎶. It got me thinking about the holiday traditions that Philly residents still can have outside, despite the pandemic.

Hi, hi! Currently feeling festive in Philly, and I wanted to share a little bit of a recent ponder sesh.

Obviously, it feels weird this year without the normal traditions of the holiday, but Philly has always had activities and things to do outside for the holidays. There’s Dillworth Park, Christmas Village, and Blue Cross RiverRink Winterfest. Yes, it’s cold. It’s not Florida up here, but we always battled the cold to get our mulled wines and take pictures with the big lit-up present installation.

This past weekend I went to a drive-thru light show that we visit every year. It was packed. People are searching for normalcy in these crazy times. I know I was. That’s not to say that marketers shouldn’t act as if it were circa-last year. Yet, how can we address the current times while still keeping things normal without the overused “unprecedented times” or “it won’t be like normal but we’re trying” tropes? I don’t have the answer to that, and it’s something we’re all trying to figure out. A lot of the ads I’ve seen are a bit exhaustive in the reminder that we’re staying safe separately this holiday season. I guess I haven’t seen the right balance yet. But, I’ll be keeping my eyes and ears peeled.

Last weekend was Small Business Saturday. It’s great to support local businesses on that day and year-round, with the pandemic especially. Check out a list of Philly businesses to support this holiday season.

About Marissa Musings: Marissa Musings are short blog posts that derive from an outpouring of random thoughts. My brain can be a very crazy place. Enjoy with caution.