There was no regular Daily Lunch Update (DLU) today, but never fear! I'm now here to update you on today's PCC Holiday Potluck, since if I don't, the rest of this upcoming very eventful weekend will get in the way of it. Also, side note: I find the use of the phrase "Holiday Potluck" very misleading, which is why it annoys me. When I started in 2002, it was much more common to call it a Thanksgiving Feast—and I really wish we still did. And with this year's being postponed into December instead of in November as it has been every other year, due to recent new store openings, that title makes it even more suggestive as a Christmas season event. And it fucking isn't! It's a Thanksgiving tradition, god damn it! Not that I feel strongly about this or anything.

Anyway. Nancy T, VP of HR and currently either the longest or second-longest-employed person working at the office, is retiring within the next year, and when she got up to say a few words—a few minutes after Cate, the CEO, did—she noted that this would be her last of these annual holiday feasts. She also said we've been doing them for thirty years. I approached her after the party was basically breaking up, to get more specifics on the history as she remembers it, and she said the way she recalls it, it began as soon as PCC moved into the office on Roosevelt. I believe that was 1991, which would make her pretty close—if it has happened every year since, then this would be the 29th year.

I also just searched through my history of posts about the PCC Thanksgiving Feast over on LiveJournal, and there are a few other mentions of this history, with no one quite able to nail down exactly when it began, but the estimates I was given on the years they were given, pretty much corroborate Nancy's current estimate. Nancy's mention of it starting with the then-new office location on Roosevelt is a new detail never given to me before. I sent Facebook messages to Goldie and Mimi, both now retired but previously just as long or longer employees, and if they can also corroborate that, then I will finally feel more confident at giving each year a number. Which, for some reason, I just really want to be able to do.

I also told Nancy that if this tradition ever stopped, I would be deeply disappointed. She assured me she's made sure those she'll be leaving behind will keep it going. I suppose it's possible I could be a big part of that as well, if I raise enough of a fuss about it if I feel like there's any chance of management losing interest. I don't feel like that's likely, though. I mean, this current location is actually far, far more accommodating to the size of the office staff for such an event than the old office was. It's way, way better now.

I do miss the beloved elders who have seemed to drop like flies (retire, I mean) over just the past few years. I feel like it won't be long before I'm considered one of the "old timers." And I've been working for PCC 17 years already.

So now, just as I did for Thanksgiving, now I'm going to say a few words about . . . photo stats!

This year's "Thanksgiving at PCC" photo album on Flickr has a record number of photos in it for one reason, and for one reason only: the addition of eight photos, taken on other dates: the two days I helped out working four-hour shifts at PCC Columbia City last week. I took five photos on Tuesday and three more on Wednesday. It just seemed appropriate to include them in my "Thanksgiving at PCC" photo set, and no doubt I will continue to after volunteering to help out at stores in the years to come. Without those eight extra photos, though, the full photo album would include only 18 shots. Even that's pretty high for recent years, though: I haven't had even 18 photos for this photo album since 2013. As it is, though, the full album has a record 26 shots. The previous record had been 22, in 2012.

It can be kind of a challenge to find new things to take photos of at this, it's so much the same every year. This year I managed it. I got the requisite shots of the table setup, for reference next year. I had signed up to volunteer to help with setup, thinking it would happen in the morning before the meal, but then Arvin asked if I could help him and Katherine at about 4 p.m. yesterday afternoon, to get a head start. I told him I only had about half an hour, but I did get quite a lot of the tables and chairs situated before I had to go at 4:30.

I assumed I would do more this morning, but it appeared Arvin had it all pretty much done when I arrived for work. I saw him later in the large conference room at about 10:30 and asked if there was anything else he needed help with, and he said we would do more at about 11. So, I came back at 11, and he was busy helping cook up food, which was not something I was to be a part of. So, I really didn't do any more than the half hour I helped out yesterday.

Oh, well. I have always helped set up for this, I believe every single year I have been in Seattle to attend, which has been every year since 2002 except for 2008 when I was in Las Vegas to see Madonna in concert. That's why this is my 17th of these holiday feasts; if I had been home in 2008 it would be my 18th. Anyway, I also felt better offering help since, yet again, I did not bring any food for the potluck.

There's no reason to feel bad otherwise anyway. The very nature of a potluck creates a vast excess of food, which means if even only half the people there bring a dish, there will still be lots of leftovers. The only way there wouldn't be is if everyone brought only enough to feed one person, but of course everyone who brings a dish brings enough for several. Also, PCC itself provides several staples: turkey, Field Roast Celebration Roast, mashed potatoes, gravy (both mushroom and meat gravies).

And as usual, the foods were fantastic. There was plenty for me to eat even though I don't eat meat. I didn't even go for seconds before dessert like many others did; I was too full and wanted a few desserts. I did skip breakfast at home, although I did snag a protein bar once I got to work. Then I got a few bits of desserts, my favorite of which was salted caramel cashew bars. I nearly fainted, they were so good. People at the table were getting close to giving me side-eye because I was getting so much pleasure out of. "This is one of the most amazing experiences of my life," I said, after half-moaning, "Oh my god. Holy shit this is good!"

As always to-go containers were provided afterward to take leftovers home. I filled three of them, one with bread bites; one with three of the best desserts (incluing, of course, two of those salted caramel cashew bars); one with a "loaf and a half" worth of the Celebration Roast—there was a lot there to take from.

I carefully placed all of that inside a tote bag also then inside my shoulder bag, which I walked home after work. I split the Celebration Roast slices into two separate ziploc bags and put them in the freezer; one will give me a nice protein option to take to Olympia for Christmas, and perhaps the second will last until Easter? It'll be frozen, so why not? I guess we'll see how it fares.

In the meantime, now that I have watched this week's The Mandalorian and written this, I need to caption a few more photos, wrap some gifts to take to Wallace, Idaho tomorrow, and finish up as much packing as I can until morning. I have plenty left to do.

[posted 7:59 pm]