The Scratching Post: The Stress of Holiday Cheer

Posted Dec 22 2010, 05:12 PM

Oh, Christmas at Ambrosia. The snow has fallen, the tree is up, and holiday cheer is working it's way through even our most grinch-y developer's little hearts. Yes, tis the season!

Of course, anyone who works here will tell you that "the season" really begins some time around the start of November when I frantically begin trolling greeting card sites for our annual company card. While some people may be capable of simply selecting their pre-packaged sentiment du' jour, I, on the other-hand, entirely lack the ability to make decisions without being a total spaz. For weeks I stress and debate between "Season's Greetings" and "Happy Holidays," or the snowman versus the snowflake. I peruse commercial sites, charity sites, and everything in between. I lament the apparent lack of decent graphic designers and rue the exorbitant charges for company logos and custom ink. You would honestly think I were choosing a name for a child instead of a simple holiday card. It's absurd, and entirely obnoxious. Finally, as I had to inevitably pick a damn card, I made the decision to go with the first design I had chosen (of course). The card comes from one of my favorite semi-local charities, Puppies Behind Bars, from whom I purchased our cards last year.

Source: Time.com

This organization works to improve the lives of veterans and the disabled by pairing them with canine companions. My favorite part is that the puppies are all raised and trained, under professional supervision, by long-term inmates. Essentially, Puppies Behind Bars provides inmates the opportunity to contribute positively to a society they have taken something from. The prisoners get to reinforce patience, responsibility, and sensitivity to the needs of another; all while training guide dogs who will, in turn, provide a wide array of services to those who have lost a part of themselves (emotionally or physically). The full circle nature of this organization gives me warm fuzzy feelings, plus more than two-thirds of the funds raised go directly to charity programs.

Now all I have to do is figure out what to wear to our holiday party, and I'll be all set till the New Year!

Jake taking time from wrestling the servers to make the office more pretty.

Not even GingerFEMA can help with such wanton destruction of this Gingerbread house.

With that, I leave my lovely readers with an image of (most of) the Ambrosia Crew from this years holiday party!

From all of us, to all of you, we wish you a happy and safe holiday and a great new year!