I know you can't call them Christmas Parties anymore.
So sue me.

I used to go to them, about 20 years ago.
I never felt relaxed and comfortable at them.
I don't even make excuses anymore.
I just don't go.
I work at a big company so lots of people don't go.
Besides they charge 30 bucks to bring a guest, even if it is an S.O.

Do you go?
Do you go, but wish you didn’t "have to" go?

I used to go to mine, and felt I had to. They were so bad I quit work just to avoid them. (Well, not exactly, but it was a big positive side effect.)

I still have to go to Mr. Nina's parties.

I've always been fairly discrete about my personal vs professional life. Professional friends are just that, and sometimes I feel inclined to invite them over to my personal life. The door doesn't open automatically.

The only positive I can see for the company holiday party is the chance to see someone make a fool out of him/herself. Someone always does.

Reminds me of Elaine in "Seinfeld" when she succumbed to the "drunken make-out, an office classic." Of course, that was better than letting her co-workers see her dance again.

Seems like office parties are a great source of entertainment, and as long as you can stay out of the limelight, they can provide plenty of office gossip for the coming year.

I am glad I am a housewife now.

I have/had three parties to go to this year.

- The first was division-wide, and was the culmination of a global conference for our division. We basically rented the Hilton for three days. The guest speaker was Bill Clinton.

- The second was yesterday - didn't go, called in sick, was working on the house (don't tell) - and it was my department of about 100. It was at a real nice but trendy SoHo place.

The third, and last, is next week, and another departmental thing with about 50 people. It's at a new place on the West Side. I'll most likely go to that one.

My wife and I don't drink, so we go and have dinner and visit, and then leave at a reasonable hour (like 9:00pm). I always enjoy them.

I'm lucky to work for a small company (~35 employees). We hold our Christmas party in the office. This year's party is Saturday night. One of the partners' sister is a lighting designer and she has office space here too. She's turning the corner conference room into a lounge where the bar and comfortable seating will be. The tree and menorah are in the large reception area where most of the food will be laid out. I'm turning the large conference room into a disco with special lighting (including a stardust ball, sound synchronized mushroom light, blue gels over the regular ceiling lights, psychodelics on the projection screen, light wash on rear wall and chasing lights up and down the round support column.) Our systems person is going to manage the music (rock, diso (yeah!), hip-hop, rap, etc.)

We have as much fun preparing and setting up for the party as we have at the party. People bring their families (I'm bringing my new boyfriend this year). It starts at 6:30pm and will go on to all hours...

I never go, much too forced of an "entertainment",

I used to go and make an appearance. Now I grit my teeth and go with dh when he has some function or other. The First Wives Club (that's what we call ourselves) meets in the back after dinner has been served. We narrow our eyes at the Second Wives. We ask the wait staff to bring us the whole bottle of wine. We ask each other in hushed voices whether we've had any *work* done. Once we had a First Wife get all drunk and bitter. That was no fun. She swore a lot.

Well this funny little article just showed up on AP...


Party Advice: Avoid Bare Copier Sitting
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

Published: December 10, 2004

Filed at 5:59 p.m. ET

LONDON (AP) -- British workers have been told: Have a merry Christmas -- but skip the mistletoe, don't dance on the desks and definitely don't perch bare-bottomed on the photocopier. Such are the horrors of the modern British office party highlighted Friday in a welter of advice which, to some minds, would kill the fun.

The Trades Union Congress and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents advised:
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-- Nix on candles, flaming puddings and cigarettes.

-- Careful with the Christmas trees, which injured a thousand Britons in December 2002.

-- Skip the mistletoe. A sexual harassment case is no fun.

-- No dancing on the desks.

-- Use paper cups, not glasses.

-- No indoor fireworks.

-- ``Resist the temptation to photocopy parts of your anatomy -- if the copier breaks, you'll be spending Christmas with glass in some painful places.''

Such advice provoked resentment.

``The purpose of Christmas parties is to encourage team spirit, encourage relationships and so on,'' said Nick Goulding, chief executive of The Forum of Private Business.

``If you tie them down with pettifogging regulations, you really undermine the whole thing you are trying to achieve.

``It is like using a sledgehammer to crack a nut,'' Goulding said -- perhaps highlighting a potentially dangerous practice overlooked by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.

``We are not being party poopers,'' said the Society's Roger Bibbings. ``Some sensible safety precautions will allow people to have a great office celebration without having to call in the emergency services.''

Two other organizations had different gloomy views of office Christmas parties.

Office Angels, a recruiting firm, said four out of five workers -- in a survey of 1,000 in Manchester, England -- would like to have time off in December to shop or participate in children's' events, rather than go to a party.

OfficeTeam, another recruiter, reported a survey of 2,400 which found that one in three workers dreaded the parties, and one in five feared they might damage their careers by getting drunk and misbehaving.

We go to Mr. BeeLady's parties.. They have been widely variable. One I remember was at Beverly Hills Hilton for 500+...never saw so many glittery dresses! We did miss one here in Boston as it was the very night we arrived off the plane "re-relocating" back to Mass.

Now we are in our "startup" phase...The employee count is 7 so, CEO usually hires a caterer and has everyone over to his house for food, drink and Yankee swap. Great for us as it's in the same small town in which we live.

To tell the truth, the best is the one held at my preschool.. The kids are wide eyed and excited and then the "fat guy" comes to hand out gifts..We are home by 7!