Topic: Christmas party season

[Snowman]

I’m off tonight to the first of 5 industry related Christmas parties. How many of you actually enjoy this? I would rather go to my neighbourhood parties, which happen concurrently….I will be leaving early and make sure I get to then after the pleasantries are over.

[mdxtasy]

I'm attending my company's party tonight.  No biggie, just a small gathering of our team and to show some appreciation for their hard work.  Nothing formal, nor fancy.

I don't attend too many functions, but I do make the rounds to say hello.

[random006]

There are a few Christmas lunches I go to; one I actually organize!

Our big department party is a must, if only because it is politically wise to do so.  I will admit that it's usually a lavish affair with amazing food and a live band for dancing.  Unfortunately last year I had to miss my neighbours' party as a result.

The one time I missed it was to attend my kids' Christmas play.  That will always outweigh an office party.

[tpl]

I went to one 42 years ago while at a temp job.  Haven't been to one since.

[Snowman]

I could not find any shoe polish for tonight around the house… so I used Meguiar's Tire Endurance…looks great. 

[mdxtasy]

I could not find any shoe polish for tonight around the house… so I used Meguiar's Tire Endurance…looks great. 

Spoken like a car nut.  Did you use a rad hose for a belt? 

[random006]

I could not find any shoe polish for tonight around the house… so I used Meguiar's Tire Endurance…looks great. 

Spoken like a car nut.  Did you use a rad hose for a belt? 

He should use a timing belt.  That way, he will always say the right thing at the right moment.  Very important at those industry related parties. 

[dr_spock]

I used to be part of the team that organizes our business unit parties.   Anybody want a singing lobster I got at the gift exchange?

[Brig]

I remember great office Christmas parties in the late 80s, to mid-90s in Montreal.  Great fun, major productions (from dressing up, to dinner, to the entertainment).  Always very elegant, with spouses, lots of fun, and taxi chits for those who had imbibed too much to drive, along with Opération Nez Rouge at the ready.  ONR was a donation-only Montreal-based driving service whereby two people came to get you; one to drive you home, while the other person drove your car home for you.  Everyone either had a DD, used the taxi chits, or waited for ONR.  The only thing you had to worry about at the party was feeling crappy the next day.  If you acted like a moron, or danced the Macarena on a table with a rose in your teeth, you laughed it off with everyone else on the following Monday.

The company I work for now only has a family Christmas party during the day, on a Sunday in December, with screaming kids everywhere (if you like that sort of thing -- I don't).  And, to add insult to injury, it's called a "holiday gathering" rather than a Christmas party.  And yet they still have Santa Claus giving out gifts.  (Don't get me started.)  I don't attend.

[ovr50]

In the 70s and early 80s I was in the development business, and the order of the day was the "open houses" that all the suppliers/other develppers/contractors invited you to. You could probably hit about 15 to 20 of them before your liver gave out sometime just before Christmas. They were usually none-spousal events, so all manner of unusual pairings and activities went on. It was fun for several years, but the thrill quickly disappeared after while; and they just got to be tedious and one quit going. Fortunately, at that time, I was still on my first wife, and didn't particularily care what she knew of my activies or not.

I have not been to any event like those in at least 20 years, and I think the age of hosting them is past (partly due to much more awareness over drinking/driving). Today, I would not attend such an event, and avoid company-sponsored social events totally.

[wannabe4x4ing]

I LOVE office Christmas parties.

This year I'm going to the Halliburton Christmas Party with a friend of mine. It's semi-formal and we've got a dance, a comedian, Toonie bar, steak and lobster dinner plus $15 000 in give-aways. I've got my dress and I have to find some cute shoes but I'm really pumped!

[wing]

Personally I rather be watching TV than talking with people I work with....

[Julie]

I don't like parties very much in general.... prefer much smaller, more intimate get-togethers with friends I feel more comfortable with. Sometimes though, a party is nice.

[Loudpedal]

I used to love company Christmas partys.   Get a nice hotel room downtown, head down for the afternoon, go for a swim, hot tub, etc., basically a day at the hotel.   Then we'd get ready for dinner, head to the pre-party hotel room (usually a well stocked bosses room) and then off to the party.  We'd eat, dance, laugh, drink and smoke till the bitter end.   

Now I don't give a rats ass about office partys, and this will be the first year that I don't think I will attend either my own or my wifes.   

I'll miss the dresses though 

[ghost]

prolly one of the biggest one in Canada is the Canadian Tire Corp's (HQ people only and must have at least 1 year with the company) annual Christmas gala that I had the pleasure of attending. They booked off about half of Sheraton Hotel in Toronto. Pretty kewl.
My last one was very neat too. Up on Grouse Mountain. On the way there via a cable gondola, the view Vancouver at dusk was spectacular!

[tpl]

Reading the posts above.... seems as if there ought to be a single day for office Xmas parties with
a) everyone else in the country warned about it to stay at home and watch the TV
b) RIDE taking a day off...sort of... no free pass on hitting someone.
 and then go back to those old days of too much to eat, too much to drink and "pairing off" with Sadie the copier girl...as it were.

[barrie1]

We used to have them every year at work on the last day before Christmas. Usually a gift exchange with a $10. limit which was fun and sometimes rather interesting as well. The office manager would take us out for a nice lunch but you paid your own booze. When I worked out back in the plant we had the usual snuck-in liquids and had to keep an eye on some of the staff to make sure they were OK to make it home alright. They have cut down on this behavior now and I doubt there's any kind of festivity at all anymore. 

[Wolfe]

We used to have a Christmas staff lunch at a nearby restaurant. There would be less than a dozen of us with no spouses. We would eat together then go back to work. This year, however, we will be going out for dinner with spouses. It will be tedious. 

[dr_spock]

Don't like dining with the spouse?


I used to organize the Xmas kid games and activities.   It wasn't too bad.   One year I ran Knoppix for Kids in our computer labs.  Another year I did SuSE Linux.   

One year my team lead was dressed up as Santa and his elves put his suit on backwards, so he looked like a Santa skunk  

[Wolfe]

Don't like dining with the spouse?

  I don't have one yet.

The problem with the dinner is that there will be twice as many people and since we don't have to go back to work afterwards it will drag on longer. More smalltalk over a longer time equals