OFFICE CHRISTMAS PARTIES

“When the wine goes in, strange things come out.” - Johann Christoph Friedrich von Schiller


Pre-Christmas parties are notorious in the workplace as they can often degenerate into a complete shambles where bosses may make complete fools of themselves, where sexual harassment often rears its ugly head and where many a staid co-worker is outed as the “wild thing” that has been suppressed all year under that cool office-efficient exterior. I have no problems with Christmas parties as I tend not to drink much, circulate a lot and generally ensure that while everyone has a good time, things don’t get out of hand.

This evening we had our work pre-Christmas party. It was in Melbourne’s Greek Precinct on Lonsdale Street at Tsindos Greek Restaurant. We had quite a lot of people there – about 100, which made for a very noisy and crowded do, but fortunately the weather today was cool, which made a difference. It all went well and people enjoyed themselves. It is important to have several of these social functions all year round, giving people a chance to interact and let their hair down. It is also an opportunity for the employer to thank the staff for all their hard work during the past year and for staff to enjoy themselves in an environment where the usual “rules” of the workplace are relaxed, but where they nevertheless are with their workmates.

The party this evening went very well and everyone had a great time. The theme was “wear a Christmas hat” and the best three hats were given prizes. This created a fun atmosphere and many people had gone to a great deal of trouble to adorn their head with all sorts of flights of fancy. This of course contributed to the levity and the mirth.

The food was Greek and was accompanied by an open bar where the alcohol flowed freely. It was comforting to see that most people stayed sober and the most excessive of excesses was that some got up to dance. Here is what we had:
•    Dolmades – stuffed vine leaves, with a fragrant herb-flavoured rice and meat mixture;
•    Keftedakia – small, round, deep-fried meatballs;
•    Spicy prawns – Tossed in a seasoned flour mixture and fried;
•    Chicken drumettes – Tender chicken pieces marinated, seasoned and grilled;
•    Kreatopites – Fried pastry parcels filled with a seasoned meat mixture;
•    Selection of meat cuts, marinated and grilled.

I gave a brief speech (nothing worse than a long speech at these functions) and the winners of the best hats were given their prizes. Everyone had a good time, there was much laughter, collegiality, and enjoyment. Another year is drawing to a close…