There’s a peculiar pocket of time in New Jersey between Christmas and New Year where clocks keep ticking but meaning does not. You wake up, squint at your phone, and genuinely ask, “Is it Tuesday or… a concept?” And just when you think it’s over, New Year’s Day rolls in and casually drags the following weekend along with it, extending the confusion.
Around here, people call this whole stretch all kinds of names: Twixmas (from betwixt, which sounds fancy for wearing sweatpants), Feral Week, Chrimbo Limbo, the Void, and—if you’re feeling especially Jersey—Gooch Week. None of them are official, yet all are painfully accurate.
What New Jersey calls the week between Christmas and New Year
This is the ultimate goal, isn’t it? After weeks of mall traffic, Parkway gridlock, gift wrapping marathons, and tightly scheduled cheer, December 26th through that post–New Year’s weekend becomes its own dimension. A place where calendars are ignored and alarms are considered rude.
You sleep in. You sip home-brewed coffee slowly. You wander the house in pajamas like it’s a lifestyle brand. Showers are optional, but a long, steamy bath feels mandatory.
Photo by freestocks on Unsplash
Photo by freestocks on Unsplash
The post-holiday limbo where routines go to die
Meals become a free-for-all. Cold pizza for breakfast, ham at noon, cookies at 3, and random snacks straight from the box because plates feel like too much commitment. Leftovers are eaten standing at the counter.
Netflix runs nonstop, and “Netflix and chill” finally means what it always promised: watching three episodes, forgetting the plot, and napping through the fourth. Sports, movies, and reruns blur together until your brain is officially mush.
Cold pizza, leftovers, and endless streaming define Twixmas
We lose track of the days because all the usual markers are gone. No work emails. No school drop-offs. No difference between weekday and weekend—especially when the weekend refuses to leave. Every day feels like a Jersey snow day without the snow, time dissolving like salt on Route 1.
When New Jersey time melts like salt on Route 1
So enjoy the weirdness. Lean into it. Because on January 5, 2026, New Jersey boots back up. Alarms ring, routines return, and we step back into the real world—slightly rested, slightly feral, and ready enough.
Some of the best Christmas house decorations in New Jersey
Just some of the submissions we received for the Light Up New Jersey contest in 2025. The winner will be announced Dec. 23.
Gallery Credit: New Jersey 101.5
