Last year, I wrote a column declaring the week between Christmas and the new year “Sucks to Be Working Week.” It seemed to me that, for those of us who still have to work while everyone else gets time off, this week … well … sucks.
Boy was I wrong. Here’s a sample of the messages I received:
Dear Anne:
Sucks to be working? Are you kidding? My boss is in Florida and I’m watching every season of The Tudors on my office PC.
Dear Anne:
This is the best week of the year to work retail. Customers are too exhausted from the holiday rush to be demanding, and we finally get to stop playing the Christmas CD that’s been on since mid-September.
Dear Anne:
I love working between Christmas and the new year. Three-hour lunches and all the leftover Christmas goodies we can eat!
So, to recognize the real nature of these few days when only half of us still have to show up for work, I am renaming this “Slack Week.”
Here are some time-honoured traditions of Slack Week that stretch back to 10 minutes ago when I made them up.
Slack Week prayers: It is customary during this week to stop for a few minutes and count your job-related blessings. For some, this may be limited to “I have one.” But these days, that’s worth celebrating.
Popular Slack Week activities: The festive Office Scavenger Hunt. The first worker to collect a stapler, scotch tape dispenser, annoying cartoon and a diet bar from the desks of vacationing colleagues wins the right to send a message on someone else’s e-mail system, informing those at head office that they are all “pooh-pooh heads.”
Desk vacation: Stick a paper umbrella in your morning Tim’s coffee, position your desk lamp full on, put your feet up and pretend you’re in the Caribbean. Tip: For added effect, the annual sales report can be fashioned into a charming sun hat.
The 10K Big Box Dash: Those who work in larger retail stores can work off those Christmas calories and avoid work at the same time. Walk quickly through all store departments holding any item and saying, “Little Timmy will be so glad I found this.” A prize goes to the worker who manages to keep this up the longest without a customer daring to try to ask a question.
Wishing all fellow workers a happy Slack Week!
