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Work

Who else hates their Office Christmas Party?

31 replies

DickWhittingtonsCat · 14/12/2004 16:37

I love parties but I really hate my office Christmas party which is always a very boring dinner where I have to make smalltalk to people whom I never work directly with and the wives of the people I never work directly with, and then no one dances except for me and about 4 other people, however, dancing provides the only refuge from endless smalltalk. Every year exactly the same people attend, and I suppose I should be happy that they are all still married to exactly the same people, but it sure makes it a predictable party. We never socialise outside work so this is the only time of year where we all go for dinner and smalltalk together, although they are all perfectly OK, just not my close friends. It sounds like I dislike my colleagues, which is not true, and I like many of them, but just don't have much in common with them. This year a lot of colleagues aren't even going and I wonder why I put myself through it and feel obliged to show my face. I went this year as a guest to a friend's very big very grand very lively office Christmas party where there was no room on the dancefloor 5 mins after the music came on and everyone was laughing and joking all evening. Aaaaah! Got that off my chest now as obviously can't say this to anyone at work !

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bakedpotatohoho · 14/12/2004 16:53

me!
i never go to the whole-office party.
this year i am wriggling out of the lunch with the rest of my department, too.

i quite like most of my colleagues but i get bored with the gossiping and turn into gibbering wreck if i end up in conversation with authority figures

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spacedonkey · 14/12/2004 16:55

avoid like plague, dreadful things

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PamiNativity · 14/12/2004 16:57

ME!!
Suffered through the first one on Friday night, stone cold sober (9 weeks pregnant) but having to pretend to drink.
Refused to be dragged up to dance to Bucks Fizz "Making your Mind Up" (yes, seriously) and was the only one out of over 100 people not dancing.
The whole farce gets repeated with a different group of people on Thursday night and horror of horrors I'm on the committee so can't get out of not going.
To make matters worse, the only thing that I was looking forward to was our annual Xmas lunch, but that clashes with the nursery nativity play so I'll miss it!
Bah humbug! Would rather have the money and spend it having fun with people I like!!

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serenequeen · 14/12/2004 17:09

i loathe them with a passion. not going this year as i am on mat leave - hooray!

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PamiNativity · 14/12/2004 17:09

Ooh, that's a good reason for being pg at the moment - won't have to go to the Xmas parties next year!

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bakedpotatohoho · 14/12/2004 17:13

it's always the same unfortunates who end tongue-mashing behind the coat racks. then the breathless gossip. ugh.

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Flumberrysauce · 14/12/2004 17:14

Always dread it and everyone I work with bores me stupid. End up loving it. Can't beat rubbing up against the office cutie and then sharing a 'what could have been' look for the whole of January.

Also free booze, bring it on. I will even lower myself to socialise with accountants for that. How sad am I.

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Cinderellascarrieg · 14/12/2004 17:16

We always have a pub crawl organised by a couple of male teachers who don't get out much...invariably ending up in some ghastly townie theme pub being 'Hello Miss'd! Ugh.

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bakedpotatohoho · 14/12/2004 17:18

(Flumberry, could the two be related? could it be that the free booze has something to do with your change of heart?
office cutie... sigh. wish we had one. )

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PamiNativity · 14/12/2004 17:19

Flumberry - my party on Friday would have been your worst nightmare - about 150 accountants! (my worst nightmare too, even though I was one of the 150)
No office cutie for us either - just sleazebags who view the party as their annual chance to slime up to girls on the dancefloor. Yuk.

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crunchie · 14/12/2004 17:20

I hate hate hate this party every year it is shite.

This year for the 2nd year running we are going to the local c**p nightclub - booking it privately. It will be rubbish, last year I tried so hard to get pissed and failed badly I just couldn't get in the mood!!

OH WELL

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LAMBda · 14/12/2004 17:31

If I hadn't gone to the office party 4 yrs ago, I wouldn't have ds2

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DannieTheMisanthropicReindeer · 14/12/2004 22:16

I am dying to donate the cost of me attending our Christmas lunch to a worthy charity and stay home with the kids. With childcare, trainfares food and drink, we have to be talking big money, and I have a friend with a new baby living in an African conflict zone who could really use it.

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leglepartridge · 14/12/2004 22:59

hate them with a passion. worst one was sitting in a taxi home between boss and his secretary with them necking over my head. close runner up was last years at different firm in posh kensington restaurant which ended up in a huge fist fight between various male employees. police called. we are all criminal lawyers for gods sake. very embarrassing. got thrown out obviously. happily missing this years as on maternity leave.

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cranberryjampot · 14/12/2004 23:06

Well I never socialise with the people I work with as I hear a lot of "flirty" stories from one of the other girls - basically they are all vying for hte attention of the boss [bleugh] It sounds like they all go out, get wrecked, flirt outrageously, get groped and stagger home in the early hours

Anyway I did go out with them on Saturday night and was quite startled to see how sedate they all were. Two of them were in awe of me 'cos I could open a bottle of champagne and I chatted to anyone and everyone. Boss's sister even said "OOh i like you when you're out, you're fun"!!! WTF - I am sooo not fun but clearly they are all socially inept

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Starofbethlibbhem · 14/12/2004 23:07

Ours was really funny last year and I loved it - made up for pregnant sobriety by getting friend plastered in Browns - really lovely meal.

This year we are having a barbecue in Court 5 - the whole lot is being knocked down next year and it will be our last Christmas there. So a group photo, a trip to the new temporary courts and then the party - sounds dubious but I won't be pregnant and intend to pull up my own slack! I intend to make my own fun!

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Starofbethlibbhem · 14/12/2004 23:09

(obviously barbecue will be in the Magistrates garden) amazing what you can fit on top of a multi storey car park these days . . .

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paolosgirl · 14/12/2004 23:35

Hate them with a passion, and make a point of not going EVER. I usually make up some excuse or other, and I don't think I'm the only one from our place who does same .

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LunarSeasonsGreetings · 15/12/2004 08:42

For the last two years I wasn't even invited (well told it I could go but it would be at my own expense when everyone else got it paid for by the company, and anyway as I working in an otherwise all-male office what they had planned wasn't deemed "appropriate" ). So I was actually quite pleased to go to one this year. And to be fair it was quite good, if not your typical office party, with bucking camels and dodgems (see here for a link to video).

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GingerBells · 15/12/2004 09:03

I think it depends if you have good friends at work.
Last place I worked we used to socialise a lot and NOBODY TALKED SHOP - I think that is the key to a good 'do'. We used to have legendary nights out in York a coachload of us, there were some real characters and the whole night was a good laugh.

Where I work now, I don't know people so well. We had a meal out last night straight from work. Most people were driving, no one was drinking, and it was v BORING!!

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hatterselfamerrymerrychristmas · 15/12/2004 09:26

came back from mine last night a bit worse for wear. Ours is 300-odd people in a night club and I feel like a boring fogey. Of the the 300-odd people I work with I would probably count about 5-10 as kind-of-friends - people I genuinely like and occassionally have a drink with or go to lunch with, but (I am beginning to realise) people to whom I will never be as close as for example my school and university friends (ie my "real" friends). The kind-of-friends are not any kind of cohesive group though - they're all from different departments, two of the main ones weren't even there last night, so I kind of feel lost in a sea of 300 people who all seem to be having a much better time than me and who all seem to have soul-mates at work (the nature of my work does actually make that at least a bit likely). We have a cabaret/talent show thing, which (back in the old days grumble grumble) used to be really good. But last night not so entertaining. So I got mildly drunk then wandered through the streets of London, wobbling about (not entirely drink-related, have a funny leg at the moment), looking for a taxi and thinking how stupid, alone and vulnerable I must have looked. Oh well, that's it for a year.

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alilujahcatsg · 15/12/2004 10:02

this morning am seriously wishing I hadn't gone to our christmas bash last night. no hangover luckily but I feel like I smoked non-stop and I haven't had a cigarette in 15 years!

Most of my colleagues are in their twenties and desparately glam. I felt like their mum.

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motherinfestivemood · 15/12/2004 10:06

A big reason for self-employment, I always think.

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aloha · 15/12/2004 18:19

I hate, hate, hate them. So glad I'm now self-employed and don't have to go. Urgh, compulsory fun...the horror!

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sis · 15/12/2004 19:06

I hate them too and manage to avoid them most years.

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