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Festivus

Fun · Seasonal · December 23

Festivus is a playful, low-key holiday known for a bare aluminum pole, the airing of grievances and the feats of strength.

Festivus falls on Wednesday, December 23, 2026. That is 57 days away.

Festivus is a homemade holiday with a short list of traditions and very little decoration. Its best-known symbol is a plain aluminum pole, left unadorned on purpose. Many people value it as a counterweight to a season full of tinsel.

The traditions are simple. There is usually a dinner. Then comes the airing of grievances, when people take turns telling the table how they have been let down over the past year. It is meant to be theatrical rather than bitter, and the best grievances are small and oddly specific, like a neighbor's habit of returning a borrowed casserole dish unwashed.

After that come the feats of strength. By tradition, the holiday is not over until the head of the household is pinned. In practice most people swap wrestling for arm wrestling, a thumb war or a contest to see who can open the stubborn pickle jar. When something unlikely and pleasant happens during the evening, people call it a Festivus miracle.

Part of the appeal is how little it asks of anyone. No gifts are expected, no special foods are required, and the pole needs no lights. Some offices and groups of friends hold a casual Festivus gathering, and plenty of people mark it with nothing more than a quoted line or two over dinner.

The aluminum pole is the one thing people tend to take seriously. It is valued for its high strength to weight ratio, and a broom handle or a length of curtain rod stands in well enough.

Ways to celebrate

• Stand a plain pole, broom handle or curtain rod in a corner.
• Host a dinner and invite everyone to air one gentle grievance.
• Hold a friendly feat of strength, like a thumb war or arm wrestling.
• Point out a Festivus miracle when something unexpectedly good happens.

Dates

All national days on December 23

Also on December 23

• National Christmas Movie Marathon Day
• National Pfeffernüsse Day
• National Roots Day

Categories: Fun daysSeasonal days