man, am I hung over...

[Sandi Papaya]

...and the worst part is, I didn't even drink last night!! 

I helped out at my aunt's work Christmas party last night - the first real Christmas party the employees of that business have ever had. My aunt works for a medium-sized company that distributes food products to several well-known restaurant chains, including a major sandwich-shop chain famous for its "toasty subs."

Anyway, the original person in charge wasn't a very nice person and didn't do much more for his plant employees than a Christmas lunch, but that person's gone and my aunt asked permission of her new boss to throw a real shindig for the employees, and I'm proud to say it was a huge success. There were toys from Santa for every child present, there was a big raffle for some great prizes (including a TV/VCR/DVD combo, and an iPod Shuffle!). We even had a live mariachi band (which was great) for the beginning of the evening - who did a mariachi-style performance of "Guantanamera" (a traditional Cuban song) for my mom, and did an encore of it for the "table of beautiful Cuban ladies" (my aunt, my mom and me) as their finale.

I helped out with decorations, making balloon arrangements and dictating their placement (my aunt's co-workers on the office staff all know about my accident, and didn't want to overtax me), and later, checking off guests as they arrived and handing out raffle tickets.

Later on in the evening we had a DJ (who wasn't so great - didn't do much to get the crowd animated or out on the floor and etc, which is what a good DJ does!). They didn't play a big variety of music, and there was very little reggaeton (or any other kind of music) in the mix - the majority of the plant employees are Mexican, so there was a lot of Mexican music, but there wasn't a big variety of anything else, considering there were more than Mexican people in attendance. There was a short interlude where some of the plant employees who are also breakdancers showed off their moves, which was great fun.

The food was "Mexican" - but not authentic Mexican. It was average...but hey, it was free. And I got a $25 Target gift card for helping out with the party, so it was worth it! It was just a longer evening than I've had in a long while, so I slept in till near noon today.

All in all it was a fun evening. But man, am I tired! I feel hung over...and like I said, there was no drinking at this party!

[Reika]

Glad to hear you had a good time and from what it sounds like you aren't used to long parties so your body would probably react the same way. That was a nice gift to get and hope you have as much (if not more) fun at the other parties you go to this season.

[sweedetobee]

I think that lack of sleep and hangovers from drinking are very similar!!!!!

I'm sorry to hear you're sleep deprived - but it sounded like such a nice event and it was really generous of you to volunteer your time like that!!!

[Sandi Papaya]

Glad to hear you had a good time and from what it sounds like you aren't used to long parties so your body would probably react the same way. That was a nice gift to get and hope you have as much (if not more) fun at the other parties you go to this season.

Ha! I can party like a rock star - when I'm not recovering from a major car accident. But I'm in the final phases of recovering from a car accident I had in late August - I was driving my brother's old car (which was totalled), and was rear-ended at  ~50 mph while my car was at a dead stop on the highway. I spun out over 2 lanes and by some stroke of luck no one else was hurt or hit, but I had fractures in my neck and upper back and nerve damage in my right arm, and ended up in a spinal halo for 3 months, from which I was just released about a week and a half ago. I'm not sure how new you are to the board but I'm not sure if you knew this, so I've just given you the short version of the story.

I just haven't had a night requiring so much stamina since before the accident. Usually I'm the among the first to show up to a party and the last to leave, so it's not a question of not "being used" to that kind of partying, but my body recovering from a hugely traumatic event.

It was a fun time, though. I'm looking forward to being able to party even more in the coming weeks - hopefully the next party I go to will have music I like better so that I can jump up and dance the night away!!!

[Clearbrite]

Your just a party animal!*L*

Sounds like you had loads of fun though*S*And always a bonus if your lucky enough to win something!

Chris also went to his work Christmas party last Friday(1st time in 8 years!)and he won a $100 gift voucher at Myers(department store)

Just in time for some more Xmas shopping..so i already spent my 'half' on some lovely bath/soap stuff..love it!

[Clara Bow]

Sounds like a good time was had by all! I like parties like that and it was cool of your aunt to put it together...

[Reika]

I just haven't had a night requiring so much stamina since before the accident. Usually I'm the among the first to show up to a party and the last to leave, so it's not a question of not "being used" to that kind of partying, but my body recovering from a hugely traumatic event.

It was a fun time, though. I'm looking forward to being able to party even more in the coming weeks - hopefully the next party I go to will have music I like better so that I can jump up and dance the night away!!!

*blushes* I'm really sorry to hear about what you went through and can't begin to figure out how horrible that must've been. Though I am glad to hear that it sounds like you're bouncing back and have a feeling your future dance partners will be in trouble and hope your future parties go even better.

[Sandi Papaya]

Sounds like a good time was had by all! I like parties like that and it was cool of your aunt to put it together...

Yeah, my aunts (my mom's sisters) are pretty awesome. The one who put together this party, the middle sister, is the HR manager at this company and was horrified to hear that these people, who worked SO hard all year, were never given anything more than a small lunch in "appreciation," because the former VP of that division was a racist, insensitive pig who said those "d*mned (insert derogatory term for illegal immigrants here)" were lucky to get that much.

This year they had a nice dinner, a big party, a raffle with nice gifts, and generous toys for all the kids from 0 months to 17 years of age, thanks to my aunt's efforts. I met some of the great staff she works with, including one of the managers she works with and her spouse, who happens to be part-owner of the business my cousin works for (in fact, my aunt's coworker recommended my cousin for the job to her husband). They're a really nice couple. I can't wait to tease my cousin about meeting his boss.