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Next Year, Let's Just Go Out to Dinner

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  • Next Year, Let's Just Go Out to Dinner

    We recently had our Christmas party at work. It was fun (well, the party was). We had some good food, and it was nice getting to meet and hang out with the SOs of the people I work with. On top of that, we had a live band. One of our coworkers has a brother who plays in a band, and they always come to our annual Christmas bash.

    However . . .

    There was the issue of setting up the building. Overall, that wasn't too big of a deal. I arrived two hours early to help set it up, as did a few other people. I ran to the store to get some last minute things, as did one of the other people who came in early. We got the place looking nice for the party.

    Then the Monday after the party arrived.

    One of the people who helped set up the party seems to be under the impression that she did the lion's share of the work, when frankly, that isn't true. I heard her gripe about how no one except one person offered to help put the food away toward the end of the party---when several of us were helping put the food away. Then she complained about how it ALWAYS falls on HER to set up these events and then clean up after them afterward. Um, did me and a few other people NOT arrive early to help set everything up? Do I have a different perception of reality than other people have? I try to keep the peace, but it's hard when you try to do your share of the work only to be told that you aren't doing anything.

    That's not all. Some people arrived late at the party, and this person says she's angry at them for that. She's also mad because some people "left early." Basically, a bunch of people left at around 9:30, and I was one of them. When she complained about this, I said, "Well, I thought the party was supposed to end at that time." She said it was supposed to end between 9:30 and 10:00.

    Heck, we started putting the food away at around 9:00, and yes, I was there helping put it away!

    I like having these parties. This is the first place I've ever worked that had a "company Christmas party" with a live band, drinks, food, etc. I love that, but honestly, the post-party bitching almost makes it not worth it. I'd like to suggest that next year, we just all go out to dinner together, but I'm sure someone would find a reason to bitch about that, too.

    It's not just the Christmas parties, either. It's like this almost every time we have any kind of function. Every few months, we have birthday celebrations for the people who have had birthdays during the past two or three months, and every time, some people are accused of not doing enough or of getting the wrong things or doing the wrong things or whatever. Apparently, we can't have some fun together every so often without someone having to get in a snit about petty things.

  • #2
    This year, I put together a joint Christmas party for the two stores in our city. NEVER AGAIN.

    The turn out was poor and the bitching was high. It made me feel so unappreciated. Yeah, the party wasn't perfect, but it was done on a shoestring budget and I put a fuckload of time into it. There were a few vocal dissenters that make me never want to attempt this sort of thing again.

    The ingrates ruin the whole thing for everyone.

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    • #3
      If she keeps up with that she's going to have less and less help and her bitching is going to turn true.

      I know I'd be very unwilling to help set up if I was accused of not helping at all. I'd either not help, or demand that she have no hand in the set up or break down and to stay the hell away from me for the entire duration so I don't have to hear her cry about how "it would've been better if I had done it."

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      • #4
        GWS what you have there is the office "martyr." They do all the planning, do all the prep as well as all the clear-up. If they feel they haven't been gushed over enough then the old "poor me" is pulled out and rolled around. I have a few in my company and in my family. It used to be funny watching my Grandmother, Aunt and Mom play dueling martyrs.
        At my company we used to just get together off the clock with out families for reason other than to get together and have fun. Now days I can't wait until I can get away from them and I won't even entertain the ideal of socializing with them after work. 25 years of some folks is more than enough for any one person.
        Cry Havoc and let slip the marsupials of war!!!

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