Christmas Party

We had our work Christmas party last night it was quite the event. I didn't originally thing it was going to be anything more than all of us going out for dinner, but early last week, one of my coworkers (M) asked me what I wanted for Christmas so she could get a present for me for the party. I asked a few questions and by the end of the day, was slightly panicking as I realized I was going to need to find and bring gifts for everyone! Since I've only been working there for 4 weeks, I don't really know anyone well enough to get them really personalized gifts. I was also worrying about financing gifts for all of them. With the help of some online buddies though, I came up with what I thought was a pretty cool gift (everyone got pretty much the same thing for simplicity): little glass milk jugs of hot chocolate power, a small bag of homemade marshmallows and a Christmas tree ornament.
I didn't really know what to expect from the party. It was held at a local restaurant: Clyde's Tower Oaks Lodge. From what I'd read online I surmised the restaurant was a huge place trying to look like a hunting lodge with dead things on the walls and whatnot (Josh said there were fewer dead things than he was expecting). We got there and found our table and I sat down opposite my coworker Ch's husband who was wearing a camo button down shirt and a hat very similar to this one. After about 10 minutes I suddenly realized he was missing his left arm as well. He spent most of the evening quizzing Josh and I about various types of wild game we've eaten (wild boar? check! moose? check! elk? check! bison? check!). The table was set up kind funny so we couldn't easily talk with everyone, but it was still fun. The food was really good even though everyone was picking on me for having ordered the pork belly entree (it was really yummy!!). Josh had trout parm which was also very good (and trouty! according to Josh).
My hot chocolate gifts went over well and I was especially pleased that a third of the table even ordered hot chocolate with their desserts, so I know it'll be enjoyed. I got an eclectic mix of gifts ranging from awesome: my favorite maggie's socks and chocolate from M (who I'm closest with at work) to thoughtful, but not really my taste: a horrific smelling mint/apple candle from Ch (which came in a bag with an old trash food wrapper...) and a bread warming basket (it has a stone you heat in the oven....it would be useful if we ate bread more). The best gift, however, came from my boss in the form of a Christmas bonus with a post-it that I'm going to be getting a huge raise soon!! I'll be making ever so slightly more than I was at my old job so I think I will actually be able to manage to get by on part time hours! I'm still kind of blown away by it since I wasn't expecting it at all. (I'm just sitting here not knowing what to type...I'm really kind of speechless about the whole thing!). They may be a strange bunch to work with, but they're definitely caring and I'm happy to have found a good working environment.

In non-work news (but still pet related): Chloe our cat has been having major smelly butt issues. I think it's related to a couple bad cans of food we bought. Anyway, I'd had enough with the smell the other day and decided she needed a bath or something. I did some research online and found out that cats can be given dry baths by dusting them with baking soda and brushing it out. I decided this might be less traumatic than a wet bath, so I rounded up the cat, the baking soda and a brush. The plan worked perfectly until I got the the "brushing it out" part. I couldn't get the baking soda out and the first thing my brain decided might work was the vacuum. A word of warning: cats don't like being vacuumed!! Chloe has forgiven me and we're friends again though! (and she no longer smells!). Success??