Sad but true.
Preface: I detest this time of year. I used to just hate it, I hit another level a few years ago.
I grew up with the holidays accounting for the big money for the year. I was not as "commercialized" as it is now.
I apprenticed under Orthodox Jews, I was brought up eating cookies in a Baptist church. We had all sorts of folks, from Catholic, to the Reformed Jew, to you name it.
Respect, common courtesy, and being polite. We didn't have Political Correctness. Yes we had "office parties" , made no difference what belief system, skinny, fat, race, recovering alcholic, or the office drunk...we just had fun.
It was actually a cultural experience - seeing the different foods, how prepared, someone sharing their traditions...folks listened, and respected. Questions asked and answered - no bashing or trashing.
Many times we just headed out and took over the back room of a resturant, hotel meeting room. Some Bosses had BIG homes, we went there and shot pool, table tennis matches, and even shot BBGuns in the basement.
When I was the one in the "authority role", even tho I was getting to hate this time of year, I asked what folks wanted to do. For a few years I asked employees kids - that was smart. Kids are sharp and really know how to bring things into perspective.
"Mr. Steve, can we go to that place that has the fish stuff with pinchers?" Something about kids trying to eat a lobster and crab legs - well there was the entertainment for the night.
Shrimp was popular too, Never show a kid how to flip shrimp tails with a spoon...hilarious, laughing so hard they forgot about gifts.
Climate changed more - and I started informing them to have a party and sign the tab, I had arrangements made at various places.
I left the business. I was ORDERED to attend a Party. I was TOLD I would donate to something so the hosptial employing me looked good in the media.
"Nope, I am a free man, you do not OWN me. I choose to donate to whom I want to, and it happens to be the Children's Hosptial. I do not understand why folks only celebrate only one day a year and act like heathens the other days of the year."
I volunteered to work instead. I worked the holidays
There was a time I enjoyed some of this, folks just being folks and employees kids torn between trying to eat crab legs , and unwrapping a gift.
Picture a red-headed little girl, Jewish buddy of mine seated on one side, Nun on her other, and both cannot crack crab legs fast enough for her. Parents are so thankful, they can actually eat their food for a change.
Jewish wife dancing with the Catholic Father and the Resturant Mgr joining us. Who says you cannot line dance to Jimi Hendrix or slow dance to ZZTop.
Then the kids come from out the kitchen with a Chocolate cake with Reindeer Antlers coming out of it. So it took a dozen red cherries to make a reindeer nose - they had fun in the back decorating it, the Greek Orthodox pastry cook told them that was how it was done...
Political Correctness, Greed, and Commercialization ruined all this.
