‘TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE DEADLINE

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dec 25 deadline calendar-148598_1280Thought you might enjoy this work-related version of “”Twas the Night Before Christmas”. We can all relate to deadlines!

This is my second year to run this, although as a writer I’m never quite satisfied with my work and I’ve tweaked it a bit since last year.

Not sure what came over me; perhaps I had a few too many candy canes or other holiday treats. 

Wishing you the best this holiday season!

Tami

 

‘Twas the Night Before Deadline

It’s the night before Christmas

And I must confess,

My office is worse than its usual mess.

The desk piled high with all sorts of junk

Files, papers, pens and some unidentified gunk.

My job is creative yet that’s no excuse

For the piles of work that reach to the roof.

Plus Christmas is here! There’s so much to do

Decorating and singing a carol or two.

Who are these clients that want work done this week?

Will they even read email, or must I send Tweets?

So I ponder and think, and work up a sweat

Doing what most creatives do best

Putting off till tomorrow what I could do right away

The deadline can wait just one more day!

Besides, my best work is done under stress

That’s it! I’ll wait till tomorrow when I’m fresh

So I’m off to the mall to visit the Claus

Knowing the shoe racks may cause me to pause

The hustle, the bustle, the music, the fun!

It’s hard to go home when the shopping is done.

I drive past the houses with twinkling lights

Remembering mine is as dark as the night.

And that’s when the all-night decorating begins

Including trees, lights and inflatable snowmen.

I crawl into bed as the sun starts to rise;

Oh no – I forgot my deadline! I cry.

Back to the desk to write something witty.

Can I come up with something more than a ditty?

Will my clients see the humor here, I pray?

It’s Christmas, after all; not just any ol’ day.

Yet the show must go on, the release goes to press,

Despite that my work resembles a mess.

I’m trying to maintain some sort of humor

Happy Holidays to all from a creative Baby Boomer!

‘Twas The Night Before Deadline

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deadline

This week I’m taking a break from my usual career talk and posting something creative.  Not sure what came over me; perhaps I had a few too many candy canes or other holiday treats. 

Actually, I wrote a version of this for my editor at the Dallas Morning News where I’m a Community Voices Columnist.    And I thought you might enjoy this version – we can all relate to work deadlines!

Wishing you the best this holiday season!

Tami

‘Twas The Night Before Deadline

‘Twas the night before deadline

And I must confess,

Not a word written yet not a prose or a jest

The desk piled high with all sorts of junk

Files, papers, pens and some unidentified gunk.

My job is creative, I won’t argue that

It’s hard to think when I can’t see over the stacks

Plus Christmas is here! There’s just so much to do

Decorating and singing a carol or two

So I ponder and think, and work up a sweat

Doing what most creatives do best

Putting off till tomorrow what I could do right away

The deadline can wait just one more day!

Besides, my best work is done under stress

That’s it! I’ll wait till tomorrow when I’m fresh

So I’m off to the mall to visit the Claus

Although the shoe racks may cause me to pause

The hustle, the bustle, the music, the fun!

It’s hard to go home even though shopping’s done.

I drive past the houses with twinkling lights

Remembering mine is as dark as the night.

And that’s when the all-night decorating begins

Including trees, lights and inflatable snowmen.

I crawl into bed as the sun starts to rise

Oh no – I forgot my deadline!  I cry.

Back to the desk to write something witty.

Can I come up with something more than a ditty?

Will my followers see the humor here, I pray?

It’s Christmas, after all; not just any ‘ol day.

Yet the show must go on, the blog goes to “press”

Despite that my post resembles a mess.

I’m trying to maintain some sort of humor

Happy Holidays to all from one creative Baby Boomer!

When You Give A Girl Some Egg Nog

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Egg nog

What one word or phrase would describe your house right now? Festive? Decorated? Santa-ready? Stockings hung by the chimney with care?

My word is un-Christmas-y.

What? That’s not a word, you say?

Don’t argue with me; I’m not in the mood. If I say it’s a word, it’s a word.

Despite my current state of mind, I love the holidays. Both Hubby and I do.  We go all-out: décor outside and in; a fully decorated “real” tree (nothing faux here); an explosion of red and green everywhere.  The highlight for us is our Christmas card, a unique creation that visually tells the story of our year.

We decorate as though we had children. Our four-legged fur daughter just sighs each year when we bring in the tree that blocks her view of the backyard.

We love having people over to share the holidays and have fun in our home.  No grinches allowed!

Yet this year is different.  We’re just not in the mood.

Hubby’s travel schedule has been grueling. This fall my travel was crazy too.  Both of us have shoulder injuries that have us feeling less-than-one hundred percent.  And recently we’ve dealt with sad news of the passing of two friends just at holiday time.

That all adds up. And it’s drained us.

Where does that leave us decoration-wise?

We purchased the dead tree, a.k.a. a Christmas tree, and even managed to get the lights on.  But that’s it.   We added a few poinsettias, thanks to mom and her voracious appetite for Black Friday sales.  In a burst of energy fueled by caffeine and football excitement, Hubby even got the decorations out of the closet and moved them to the living room where they’ve sat ever since.

The boxes and bags allude to holiday décor, with labels that read, “Green and purple glass ornaments”, “Assorted Christmas stuff”, and “Wooden Nativity”.  All are marked “Fra-gee-lay”. 

That last one was our attempt one year at Christmas humor.  Watch the film, “A Christmas Story” if you don’t understand.

To top things off, Hubby took off again this week on one of his whirl-wind business trips.  That means if I want decorations, I’m on my own.

Part of me wants to just sit on the couch, eat cookies, drink some egg nog, close my eyes and hope that Santa’s Elves will magically appear, decorate and leave.   

The problem with that plan, aside from the obvious – that the elves would put the ornaments in the wrong place, duh – is that it means I’ve ceded control of my Christmas holiday.  I’m letting other things take the reins in terms of the way I want my holiday to turn out.

Now that I think about it, I don’t let other people or things take control of my personal brand message in business; why should I let a little tiredness or holiday cray-cray get the best of me and take control of my Christmas?

Well that’s not happening to this gal.  I’m going to pull myself off of the couch, drink my eggnog, turn on the holiday tunes and start decorating.  Watch out; our house will be decorated so well that when Hubby gets home he won’t even recognize this place!

That’s what happens when you give a girl some egg nog.

Merry Christmas!

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ugly sweaters

It’s Christmas Day, and for us that means a quick visit with my sister’s family.  We love flying on the holiday; the airport is full of travelers and people seem so happy. We laugh at those who neglected their holiday shopping until this very moment and are now frantically searching the airport shops for gifts. I’m pretty sure a People magazine and a tin of breath mints will be a “memorable” gift, although not in a good way.

Sometimes Hubby and I have been known to wear Santa hats or other holiday gear for this trip.  Not so much to show our holiday spirit, but more to embarrass our niece and nephews when they pick us up at the airport.  As young adults they are still concerned with being “cool” or “awesome” or whatever you call it now.

We, on the other hand, feel so uber-cool that we can do anything without ruining our hard-won reputations. This year, we’ve taken holiday embarrassment to an entirely new level, with matching ugly Christmas sweaters.

We can’t wait to see their faces when they pick us up!

If I may be serious for a moment: Thank you for your support throughout the year!  I write because I enjoy it, yet it’s your comments, tweets and “likes” that push me to do more.  Today and every day, I wish you joy, happiness, laughter and peace.

WISHING YOU ALL THE BEST THIS HOLIDAY SEASON!