Getting Sloshed on Holiday Spirits

Around this time every year many people find themselves hustling, panicking, freaking out, running, rushing, pushing, pleading and finally begging for this season to finally be over. And when it is, when you can finally breathe that sigh of relief, you did it, it’s over, thank god – it’s then that you get that sinking pit in your stomach of disappointment.

It’s over. That’s it?

It doesn’t have to be.

Rummies, drunks, alkies, booze-bags, lushes – call them, or me, or yourself, what you will – but there is no time like the holiday season to thank your lucky stars to be one, be related to one, or know one.

Because it is them, and possibly them alone, that will have you talking about this holiday season for years to come.

Think about it, you may not remember how fabulous Aunt Ginger’s Christmas ham was or what you got Cousin Edgar in 2005 but you sure as shit remember when Uncle Frank got looped on egg nog and fell asleep on the bathroom floor.

This blog was inspired by an email from a friend who admitted to having too much holiday cheer over the weekend and ended up accidentally knocking over her friend’s Christmas tree. It’s this type of heart-warming holiday story that we will be talking about all year round. Because, if you knock over a Christmas tree, the chances are great that it will still be brought up on the 4th of July.

And let us not forget the company holiday party. I have so many fond memories such as riding the lion statues in Copley Square, hugging my boss for a little too long, being dropped off on the highway because a fight ensued between me and several fro-workers (my new made-up word for friends who are also co-workers), tripping, drink spilling, telling too many people how I really feel – the list can go on and on.

But enough about me, there is always that one person in the company, quiet by most standards, who does something totally outrageous and is forever and ever branded by their behavior of the night. Sure he may have developed a new business model that saved the company millions last year, but he will forever be introduced as the guy who pulled the CEO’s wife onto his lap and asked her if she’d been naughty or nice.

So when the holiday season gets you down, pour yourself a glass of wine or six, make an inappropriate advance at a co-worker, pull at your Aunt Jenny’s hair fueled by suspicion that she is wearing a wig, sit in a corner by yourself and break into a loud, weepy rendition of "The Little Drummer Boy" and get angry when no one else participates - you too may find yourself a holiday legend to be celebrated for years to come.