Well, I guess the evening can start when I got changed into Mr Top Gun or Officer and a Gentleman after my shift at work had finished. Came back into the office, TDE and LMA said I looked hot, which was quite nice - rather than walk by myself to the thing, I asked whether I could tag along with them, and they said that MGR was picking them up and taking them in the car, but I was welcome to ride with them.
NBO came over our side of the floor, also was to be chaffeured, and she had a light blue sparkly top on, very nice. MGR came and picked us up, wasn't going to the thing himself, not in the mood, apparently has a sick mother or something - or may not have wanted to turn up anyways, either or. He drove us back to his place, and then let TDE do the driving from there to the pub venue.
Driving around, the girls giggling away, I think I have finally got a nickname at work - if you get a nickname, that is kind of being allowed into the popular group lol - and the nickname will be Sailor. I was going more for a Pilot look, but I'm OK with Sailor LOL. They were considering going to another pub rather than doing their duty with the work lot - well the phrase they used was not as complimentary as 'work lot' but we needn't go into that.
Parked half a block away from the place, in an err loading zone, but after business hours, hopefully the parking inspectors weren't going to be over zealous, and then headed up. My uniform made a good first impression methinks. Got called over by MGO to one of the corners, the girls with him had noticed me, and wanted a Man In Uniform (tm) to grace their table.
One of PFO's favourite movies is Top Gun, so she got the reference straight away, and thus I didn't have to tell SPE and KMI as well. Good corner to just drop the backpack - umbrella, change of top, camera - I had to bring a pack along rather than go without - if it wasn't a white uniform top with the bars on the side, maybe I could have gotten away wearing it out in 'public', but I wasn't going to take the risk Friday night.
Did my first circulation of the room of the evening, bumped into JPH, who was duly impressed by the uniform, ADE and KDA, who are looking perfect coupleish as ever, even though she has got a new job hmm about 1000 kays away starting in the New Year, KSM and JLA, the first had the Desperately Seeking Susan era Madonna look, in a leopard skin top, and JLA a tie dye top that hurt the eyes, eighties sunglasses - you know, the big coverage almost halfway down the cheeks - and a teased up wig - JLA got nicknamed Troll for the night, you know those little plastic trolls that somehow got big, and had the big hair LOL.
Darted out onto one of the balconies, where it looked like most of the team had congregated - smokers, I guess. TDE, LMA and NBO had found hmm quite a few people, CCO, DLU, MWH, GKI, RWR, SLI - all from my floor, MWH being my team leader, wasn't drinking last night as she was doing the dedicated driver thing for a couple of the others. The team is going out on 16 Dec, so she will probably allow herself to not be the dedicated driver then.
Got back to base table (like base camp, just in a pub socialising sense LOL), and the DJ was bored shitless by the looks, not getting any response regards the 80s music - hmm, if I hear 'oh Mickey you're so fine' or Ghostbusters any time in the next six months it will be too soon - and looking at my uniform he said Love Boat or Captain and Tennile - hmm wasn't Captain '70s?
Eventually he put on Village People's In The Navy - which, I have to admit, was fourth on my list of what I could be recognised as - Top Gun, Officer Gentleman, Love Boat, err Village People with that particular song - but still, roll my eyes, and, just as I was getting into it - we want you, we want you, we want you as a new recruit and all - the DJ turned it off. For that damned Mickey song LOL.
KSM and JLA made an appearance at the table, as did some noodle boxes. Hmm, the quality of the food is always a bugbear at Christmas parties, in the hmm almost ten years of corporate Chrissies I have been to, is always a complaint. Well, you can't please all the people all the time, and even though the noodles weren't hmm French cuisine or anything, let's just admit it, we weren't there for the food. Had to agree with TDE though about the nuts, chips and popcorn bowls as finger food, how many hands go into that, because of course, everyone always washes their hands before getting chips. Had to agree, but still, not a nice thought.
GKI was bopping away on the balcony, little bundle of energy, when overworked staff get free time indeed LOL - in the vein of stupid TV shows like When Animals Attack blah blah. JLA was also getting into the music, he had his back to us, but we could still see him bootyliciousing away, KSM could see us cracking up.
Can't remember whether I got up dancing before or after the prize giving hmm. Must have been before I think, because always hate the huge lag time that prize giving entails. AMA took me up, and through the night she continued to be a good foil for me, in the hmm I don't want to get up to dance by myself or ask someone and get rejected, especially at a work function, in front of people I nine to five with - and yes, that song did make an appearance, rolling eyes.
I thought that they were playing the latest Madonna song sometime in the evening, but then realised that the Hung Up song she has, the video looking so 80s and all, appears that Mrs Ritchie is sampling Abba's Gimme Gimme Gimme. As if that song, Madonna's, wasn't tragic enough already, what with the leotards and the boom boxes and all LOL.
And yes, I did realise I was commenting on the video not the song itself, but nowadays the video is more important than the song most of the time. Gorillaz a made up band anybody? In the best possible way of course :)
Prizegiving - I didn't get best costume, not that I was expecting it anyways, despite what LMA and TDE said earlier in the evening. This girl got all glammed up Kiss style, the lead singer with the black star over the eye, not Gene Simmons, with the leather jacket and black jeans look - well deserved winner, even for the make up alone LOL. And then the second prize went to these three girls dressed up as cheerleaders, with Mickey T-shirts, the song not the mouse LOL. I personally think the prize went to the tightest t-shirts with that win, but what would I know LOL - the two dressed up as the Blues Brothers would have been worthier winners and all, in my opinion. The girls won because of six points, if you get what I mean LOL.
And then the door prizes. The time of the night where time slows down and with no background music, and half the people waiting expectantly for their number to come up and half the people ordering drinks, hmm conversation level goes down a bit. Boring. But again, one of those things that has to happen, and had some good prizes again - weekend at one of the hotels around town, DVD players, both mini and maxi LOL.
Got to talking to ADE and KDA again, and a ghost from the past turned up - the original MGO, who I will now call MGT, who was my eye candy at work about this time last year. She's back LOL, how time flies, I think it was about April or so when she left the country - did the whole Canada, States, Britain, Europe thing, and is back working for the company, as a temp, at one of the other buildings we have in town.
Blast from the past indeed - sad to say, but I recognised her from the back and all, and I said to KDA, is she back - well duh obviously. Had a quick word to her before she went off circulating again. She enjoyed herself overseas, but who doesn't - didn't feel I had the time to compare travel stories with her, but maybe will see her out and about again, was good just to have a word with her.
Then I recognised LNE, I am sure I had seen her a couple times beforehand in the night, but she had her hair up or permed or something so had taken me this long. Had a quick word with her and JPH, while the prizes droned on in the background.
One of the annoying things about the night was the fact that contract workers were not allowed in until after 8.30pm, SGR wouldn't come at all in protest and was going to have a night retiling one of her friend's bathrooms, something about employer liability or something. Maybe something to do with JCU's falling down the escalator and almost breaking her back last year when she was employed by the agency rather than the actual company, but still, very killjoyish attitude. If you want to do that sort of thing, get all the agency staff in one team somewhere in the country somewhere, and then have an individual Xmas party for them, after 8.30 if needs be, but to me, if they are in our team, then they are staff just the same as everyone else.
Anyways. What I was meaning to say was that it was nice to see PMA, CMC and MGT turn up. Injected a bit more life into the night. Had a quick chat to CCO as well.
And over the course of the next couple of hours, was a mix of being up dancing - it was a cool enough night thank goodness, so the uniform wasn't too hot, apart from when I was up dancing - and socialising. Also had good chats with CMC, PMA, AMA and LFL.
TDE wandered past as she was leaving, touched my arm and said see you Monday Pauly - although I think it was more I was on the way to the door than anything else. NBO hmm, she said she had a partner, of nine years, and did I hate her - umm, no, why would I, has it appeared I've been making a play for you or something? Would be news to me if she thought that. Just I think she gets a bit emotional on big nights out.
AMA I talked to about her family and whether she had a good weekend when I swapped my days off with her the other week - she was very grateful, and if there was anything she could do for me - well, acting as a foil for my enthusiam for dancing was a great start thank you LOL. PMA apparently used to smoke twenty a day, although she doesn't smoke now she hasn't turned into one of those anti-tobacco nazis that some ex-smokers turn into. CMC said the C word in a joke he was making and PMA said she hates that word.
Had a great talk to LFL, the woman that sits across from me behind the cubicle wall, about how the Mickey cheerleaders won a prize, and the whole V situation. Was clockwatching by this stage, and had changed out of the Richard Gere or Captain Stubbings get up - out of the number of people questioning where I had got the idea, about 40% were Love Boat, 40% was Officer and Gentleman, and 20% was Top Gun. That's how I felt anyways, rather than telling them straight out what I was, I asked them what they thought LOL.
I was clockwatching by this stage, and somehow got dragged up for one last dance, which meant that I would miss the midnight train, thinking I would need some time to get extra food as well. I bailed soon after that, and for once I wasn't one of the last men (or women) standing. True, there may have only been a dozen or so left, but I wasn't in the last group leaving, and yes, that is progress for me LOL.
Went down to New York Slice and was hungry enough for TWO slices - mmm Real Pepperoni and BBQ Chicken. Wolfed it down quickly, burning my mouth in the process as I headed to the train station. Saw NBO at the station, and had a quick word to her on the carriage itself, but she was obviously wanting a quiet one. And after what she had said earlier, I was fine with not talking - could have killed to have a book to read or something lol.
Just remembering back to an entry I wrote earlier in the week, about how I felt I was always on the fringes of groups and popularity rather than in the middle of things. I remember back to Friday night and I think how many people I chatted to - circulation at a function, always a key rather than camping out in one spot - and I wonder if I am indeed one of the popular people at work. Don't worry people, my self doubt will no doubt resurface in a couple of days time.
I sometimes think about sending out one of those 360 degree feedback thing, to both my bosses and colleagues, but wonder if I want to know what others think of me. Eh, the pictures came out well enough though, lots of laugh material there when I take them into work tomorrow. And boy, naval uniform Pauly does look good LOL.
Later taters
Pauly