Santa's Twelfth Night Party

I had planned on writing yesterday to fill you in on my dinner at the House of Claus (and it is quite a story...I...well, I have to save it for later) but I got caught up in the current on the way to Santa's Twelfth Night party. And there is PLENTY to talk about, regarding last night's party. In fact, I don't know if the word "Party" really covers it. And I myself did not stay until the end...it was getting a little debauched for my taste (drunken elves after a play in a dinner theater which is itself a piece of the party...or at least it must have looked that way by the time it was disassembled and repurposed for the new set of the new play that took place...but I only heard about that last part.)
I don't think I even want to see the aftermath -- but I guess that's how one would think after turning away from the crazed finish to a celebration, no?

It was quite a nice party, though. It's just that absolutely EVERYONE was there. So then you have the people who don't like parties talking in groups or sulking, and you have the people who are extremely excited about this particular party excitedly being excited (also sometimes in groups)(or in pairs -- one excited person plus one who's trying to keep up). After a few hours of something like that, I'm always ready to move on. But the PLAY was worth watching, and the awards were great, and the overall mood of the party was beautiful.

The theme of each year's Twelfth Night party is the play (the evening culminates in a performance put on by various actors, who rehearse during the later days of Christmas) written by the returning employee who submits the best proposal at the start of the season. This year's play was a fascinating read on movement, tradition vs. change in movement, and changing location. It was set in a church (that looked like a traditional church around the outside) with a dance floor. There was also an elaborate baptismal font, bordered by a railing, with stairs down to an area where I think the actors changed costume...it was very interesting. At a high point in the production, the roof of the church opened, making visible the much higher ceiling of the rotunda at the center of the North Pole complex, which was also decorated.

There were also awards, very funny awards...not for people but by each Department...there were awards for Best New Creation in cuisine from each of the Break Room Kitchens, awards for costume, imagery, religious imagery, decoration scheme design (indoor and outdoor), Christmas Spirit, best new toy, strangest new toy, best defective toy that everyone adds defects to until the end of the season -- NICE!...and the awards from the Library. I wish I had the letter that was the winner from Disingenuous Requests...it was hilarious. It was a letter requesting the companionship of the person in an image on an old party flyer -- the flyer was for a party called "Unforgrezzable", and it featured a tanned, hairy man with a Euromullet wearing nothing but fringed boots and a bit of gold jewelry, holding a painted or artificial green pumpkin (that was a matter of minor debate amongst the Committee) in front of himself at hip level. Unfortunately I don't have the flyer, because some of my colleagues were wildly protective of it and were joking about who would get to take it home and sleep with it. If I can get my hands on it, I will post it!

Frankly, I might have had a better time at the party if I hadn't still been thinking about my dinner at the Claus house the night before. I am packing for tomorrow's departure, and looking forward to getting home and working my way into the new year...it feels like it should be a nice one. But I have to admit: what they say about reading your employee file is true!!