Fun with Co-Workers and Bosses

We went to the annual holiday dinner party thing that Keith's work puts on each December. The only reason that most people go is because they also get their year end safety bonus checks at the party. It's basically a long meeting in a fancier setting than usual and with fancier food and real silverware. Boring, but there is money involved. And free dinner. And if you don't go you get questioned by the boss as to why you didn't show up.

The Riverlakes Country Club was the setting. They have a nice dining room and nice golf course grounds with a lake and fountains and fancy houses around the golf course. Rich people's houses. Nobody who works at Keith's company could ever afford to live there. Not even the bosses I don't think.

The food was good, a choice of chicken or tri-tip with green beans, rice, salad, and garlic bread. Then slices of cake or cheesecake for dessert.

Then a long awards ceremony where everyone got a framed photo montage of all the safety stuff they did all year and the giving of the checks. Not very big checks, but a check. They used to give out $250 in cash each year until Uncle Sam got wind of it, so now they have to kind of round up your award so that after taxes you still get around $250. We only got $175 because we have the most taxes taken out possible plus an extra $25 taken out of each paycheck in the hopes that we will come out even this year instead of having to come up with $$$'s to send to the IRS like we usually have to do.

Then after all the awards were given and photos taken of each awardee and all the bosses all hand shaking and smiling it was time for the gift exchange. Everyone buys a gift and they all get put on the table and then your name is drawn to go up and choose a gift. They also do the white elephant thing where you can grab someone elses gift if you want. Last year a lot of booze gifts were given and lots of gift grabbing went on, but the boss doesn't like booze so he said absolutely no booze this year. Damn.

There were some nice gifts going around, but for the most part I think there was a lot of re-gifting going on, people getting rid of crap that they got last year for Christmas and didn't want. Keith got a pair of slippers that are supposed to massage your feet, which isn't a bad concept, but doesn't really work that well. A battery goes in each heel of the slipper and you turn them on and listen to them buzz. They remind me of the old magic finger beds that they had in all the motels. Lucy thinks they are pretty fun, though, so at least we can use them for cat toys.


At the end of the evening they did a raffle thing, giving away flashlights and tool boxes, then the very last item was a Savage company watch, which Keith actually won! I was shocked, we never win good stuff.