the fruitcake enterprises social review—winter 2025
In the winter of 2025, I engaged in in-person or face-to-face virtual social interaction with the following people on the indicated number of days:
1. Shobhit—36
2. Laney—27
3. Alexia—4
4. Jennifer—3
5. Matthew—3
6. Tony—6 *
7. Jake—5 *
8. Chris—5 *
9. Daniel—6 *
10. Ian—3
11. Karen—3
12. Bella—3
13. Gabriel—2
14. Lea—2
15. Dad—2
16. Sherri—2
17. Claudia—2 **
18. Ryan—4 *
19. Chris—4 *
20. Ben—3 *
21. Tracy—2
22. Danielle—1
23. Jeanna—1
24. Derek—3 *
25. Tom—3 *
26. Andrew—2 *
27. Greg—2 *
28. Dylan—1 **
29. Jasper—1 **
30. Rachael—1 **
31. Steve—1 **
32. Hope—1
33. Chase—1
* Regular attendee at Action Movie Night ** At Claudia and Dylan's "Saint Nicholas Cage Party" Total days in the winter with social interaction: 62 (68.8%, a -+0.7 percentage point change from fall)
. . . Only 33 people ranked this quarter! I haven't socialized with this few people since winter 2022—and that was only 23 people, and largely because of the lingering effects of covid. The Omicron strain of covid had whipped through the population by the end of 2021, and I actually made the choice to work from home through the entire month of January 2022. With just a few exceptions, I did most of my socializing virtually that month. So what's the deal with winter 2025, then? I think I can tell you, actually: an unusual lack of parties or get-togethers. There was just one party that added names to the list: Claudia and Dylan's "Saint Nicholas Cage" party on December 21—barely making it into the "winter" season by being on the first day of it. Aside from the biweekly Action Movie Nights, there were no other parties. Nor did we have any work "team socials," although there are future ones on the books for spring, for both Merchandising overall and for my now-five-person team managed by Gabby. In any case, neither Gabby nor Amy made the list this time around, nor did anyone else I work with. As you can see by the points allocated, the vast majority of the time was spent with Shobhit—comfortably far ahead of Laney, with 36 points versus 27. Alexia comes in third with less points by an even wider margin, at merely 4. She's usually much higher, but she's had a lot of work travel to contend with. She might get more points in the spring, as will certainly several coworkers, and multiple people during my Birth Week who only rarely appear here. My Birth Week alone should stretch the list a fair amount next time. Gabriel and Lea might have had 3 points each, if not for the Oscar Party debacle that resulted in Shobhit and me turning around and going back home. Instead, they both had only 2—something I feel compelled to note since Shobhit is so eager to say I "drop everything" for him. I saw him all of two times in a three-month stretch. Had I even gotten that third, it would have averaged once a month. It's not like I spent that much time with him. Danielle is really far down the list: I saw her only once. We've talked months ago about making an effort to see each other more often, but we need to get more vigilant about actually making that happen. Even Tracy, who once pulled big numbers here, managed only 2 points this time around. Setting the Action Movie Night group aside, I've seen most of my friends so seldom these past few months that Jennifer and Matthew actually managed to rank #4 and #5, respectively, with only 3 points each—and they got 2 points each for 2 days in a row when they came to stay the night on New Year's Eve. I'm really glad they came, though; my New Year's would have been far less fun without them, while Shobhit was in India. Shobhit really pulled up from behind after that trip left Laney far ahead of him—and he was gone three and a half weeks, nearly a third of the winter. It would be tempting to say Laney monopolizes a lot of my social time, except so many of her points are for joining me for movies that I'd had gone to with or without her, and thus there would be no time for socializing with others even Laney were unable to join me (and I cherish all the time we spend together). Aside from that, we just have our twice- (and sometimes thrice-) monthly Happy Hours, and roughly one Braeburn Condos theater movie day a month. To be fair, she'd still rank #2 even without going to the movies with me all the time. Anyway, let's get to the who did what with whom where and when!
Saturday, December 21: with Shobhit, walking to Pier 50 Saturday, December 21: with Claudia, Dylan, Jasper, Rachael, Steve, and more, Saint Nicolas Cage Day party at Claudia and Dylan's house in Port Orchard Sunday, December 22: with Laney, Christmas Dive Bar Monday, December 23: with Laney, Happy Hour at Fonté Bar Tuesday, December 24: with Gabriel and Lea, pizza, chai and cookies at their place in Federal Way Tuesday, December 24: with Dad, Sherri, Jennifer, Matthew, Hope, Chase, Ian, and Bella, out for dinner (Tea Leaf) Friday, December 27: with Laney, to a movie (Babygirl) Sunday, December 29: with Laney, to a movie (A Complete Unknown) Tuesday, December 31: with Jennifer, Matthew, Ian and Bella, pizza dinner at my place, drone and fireworks show at Seattle Center, and staying the night at my place Wednesday, January 1: with Jennifer, Matthew, Ian and Bella, hanging out at my place before driving to Olympia Friday, January 3: with Karen, lunch over Zoom Friday, January 3: with Laney, to a movie (The Fire Inside) Saturday, January 4: with Alexia, triple feature at my place (Frankenweenie, Corpse Bride, and The Nightmare Before Christmas)
Sunday, January 5: with Laney, Braeburn Condos double feature (Paddington and Paddington 2)
Wednesday, January 8: with Tony, Jake, Ryan, Chris G, Chris B, Derek, Tom, Daniel, Greg, Nico, Santiago, and one other guy, Action Movie Night (Pulp Fiction)
Thursday, January 9: with Laney, to a movie (Better Man)
Saturday, January 11: with Laney, to a movie (The Brutalist), and Happy Hour at Pike Brewing
Sunday, January 12: with Gabriel and Lea, hanging out, snacks and chai and dinner at their place
Tuesday, January 14: with Laney, to a movie (The Last Showgirl)
Thursday, January 16: with Laney, DIY Happy Hour at Starbucks Sheraton Grand Seattle Hotel lobby
Friday, January 17: with Laney, to a movie (One of Them Days)
Saturday, January 18: with Laney, Mike Leigh / Marianne Jean-Baptise double feature at the Braeburn Condos theater and AMC Pacific Place, respectively (Secrets & Lies and Hard Truths)
Wednesday, January 22: with Shobhit, Tony, Jake, Ryan, Chris G, Derek, Tom, Andrew, Daniel, Nico, Jeff, and another guy, Action Movie Night (Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In)
Friday, January 24: with Laney, to a movie (Presence)
Saturday, January 25: with Shobhit, at "Celebrating New Parmanent Artwork" on the Seattle Waterfront
Saturday, January 25: with Laney, to a movie (September 5); Happy Hour at Alder & Ash; and to another movie (Nickel Boys)
Sunday, January 26: with Shobhit and Alexia, watching a movie at our place (Thelma)
Monday, January 27: with Shobhit and Laney, Happy Hour at The Gemini Room
Tuesday, January 28: with Tracy, out for dinner (Nordstrom Cafe)
Tuesday, January 28: with Shobhit, out for dessert (Salt & Straw)
Wednesday, January 29: with Shobhit, out for drinks (Diesel)
Thursday, January 30: with Shobhit, walking home from work with me
Saturday, February 1: with Laney, to a movie (Dog Man)
Sunday, Febuary 2: with Shobhit, for a walk to Pike Place Market and Lower Queen Anne
Monday, February 3: with Shobhit, walking home from work with me
Wednesday, February 5: with Shobhit, Tony, Ryan, Chris B, Chris G, Daniel, and that other guy, Action Movie Night (Strange Darling)
Thursday, February 6: with Laney, to a movie (Companion)
Friday, February 7: with Shobhit, walking home from work with me
Saturday, February 8: with Shobhit and Laney, double feature at our place (Marcel the Shell with Shoes On and Memoir of a Snail)
Saturday, February 8: with Laney, Happy Hour at Bar Vacilando
Sunday, February 9: with Shobhit, out for a walk to Volunteer Park, and up the water tower
Sunday, February 9: with Laney, to a movie (I'm Still Here)
Tuesday, February 11: with Laney, to a movie (Love Hurts)
Wednesday, February 12: with Shobhit, walking home from work with me
Thursday, February 13: with Shobhit, to a movie (Paddington in Peru)
Friday, February 14: with Karen, lunch over Zoom
Friday, February 14: with Shobhit, Danielle and Jeanna, hanging out in the early evening: Seattle Center; Olympic Sculpture Park; and Seattle Great Wheel
Saturday, February 15: with Shobhit, Dad and Sherri, Gina and Beth, visit in Olympia
Sunday, February 16: with Tracy and Claudia, visiting Claudia in Port Orchard
Tuesday, February 18: with Shobhit, Pramala Jayapal Town Hall
Wednesday, February 19: with Shobhit, Tony, Jake, Ben, Chris B, Chris G, and Daniel, Action Movie Night (The Fall Guy)
Friday, February 21: with Shobhit, walking home from work with me
Saturday, Saturday 22: with Shobhit, out for a walk to Franz Bakery factory outlet
Sunday, February 23: with Shobhit, SAG Awards viewing at Central Cinema
Monday, February 24: with Shobhit, walking the Seattle waterfront after work
Tuesday, February 25: with Shobhit, out for dessert (Salt & Straw)
Wednesday, February 26: with Laney, Happy Hour at Kedai Makan
Wednesday, February 26: with Shobhit and partially with Laney, walking home from Kedai Makan
Saturday, March 1: with Shobhit and Laney, walking down Pine toward downtown
Saturday, March 1: with Laney, to a movie (My Dead Friend Zoe)
Monday, March 3: with Shobhit, Seattle Men in Leather Artists Media Show at Vermillion
Wednesday, March 5: with Shobhit, Tony, Jake, Ryan, Ben, Chris B, Derek, Tom, Andrew, Greg, and Daniel, Action Movie Night (The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension)
Thursday, March 6: with Shobhit, out for dessert (Salt & Straw)
Friday, March 7: with Shobhit and Alexia, out for dinner (Rajdhani Thali Restaurant in Issaquah)
Saturday, March 8: with Shobhit, Alaska Cruise & Travel Show
Saturday, March 8: with Laney, Happy Hour at Piedmont Cafe; photo op at First Hill Park; and to a movie (Mickey 17)
Sunday, March 9: with Shobhit and Alexia, watching a movie at our place (Batman)
Sunday, March 9: with Alexia, second movie of Batman Double Feature (Batman Returns)
Monday, March 10: with Shobhit, out for drinks at Naked Night, CC's Seattle
Thursday, March 13: with Karen, lunch over Zoom
Thursday, March 13: with Laney, out for drinks at Vermillion
Friday, March 14: with Laney, to a movie (Black Bag)
Saturday, March 15: with Laney, Braeburn Condos double feature (Death at a Funeral 2010 and Death at a Funeral 2007)
Sunday, March 16: with Shobhit, Waterfront Park Firepit Social at Pier 62
Wednesday, March 19: with Shobhit, Tony, Jake, Ben, Chris G, and Daniel, Action Movie Night (Godzilla Minus One)
Thursday, March 20: with Laney, to a movie (Novocaine)
1. Shobhit—36
2. Laney—27
3. Alexia—4
4. Jennifer—3
5. Matthew—3
6. Tony—6 *
7. Jake—5 *
8. Chris—5 *
9. Daniel—6 *
10. Ian—3
11. Karen—3
12. Bella—3
13. Gabriel—2
14. Lea—2
15. Dad—2
16. Sherri—2
17. Claudia—2 **
18. Ryan—4 *
19. Chris—4 *
20. Ben—3 *
21. Tracy—2
22. Danielle—1
23. Jeanna—1
24. Derek—3 *
25. Tom—3 *
26. Andrew—2 *
27. Greg—2 *
28. Dylan—1 **
29. Jasper—1 **
30. Rachael—1 **
31. Steve—1 **
32. Hope—1
33. Chase—1
* Regular attendee at Action Movie Night ** At Claudia and Dylan's "Saint Nicholas Cage Party" Total days in the winter with social interaction: 62 (68.8%, a -+0.7 percentage point change from fall)
. . . Only 33 people ranked this quarter! I haven't socialized with this few people since winter 2022—and that was only 23 people, and largely because of the lingering effects of covid. The Omicron strain of covid had whipped through the population by the end of 2021, and I actually made the choice to work from home through the entire month of January 2022. With just a few exceptions, I did most of my socializing virtually that month. So what's the deal with winter 2025, then? I think I can tell you, actually: an unusual lack of parties or get-togethers. There was just one party that added names to the list: Claudia and Dylan's "Saint Nicholas Cage" party on December 21—barely making it into the "winter" season by being on the first day of it. Aside from the biweekly Action Movie Nights, there were no other parties. Nor did we have any work "team socials," although there are future ones on the books for spring, for both Merchandising overall and for my now-five-person team managed by Gabby. In any case, neither Gabby nor Amy made the list this time around, nor did anyone else I work with. As you can see by the points allocated, the vast majority of the time was spent with Shobhit—comfortably far ahead of Laney, with 36 points versus 27. Alexia comes in third with less points by an even wider margin, at merely 4. She's usually much higher, but she's had a lot of work travel to contend with. She might get more points in the spring, as will certainly several coworkers, and multiple people during my Birth Week who only rarely appear here. My Birth Week alone should stretch the list a fair amount next time. Gabriel and Lea might have had 3 points each, if not for the Oscar Party debacle that resulted in Shobhit and me turning around and going back home. Instead, they both had only 2—something I feel compelled to note since Shobhit is so eager to say I "drop everything" for him. I saw him all of two times in a three-month stretch. Had I even gotten that third, it would have averaged once a month. It's not like I spent that much time with him. Danielle is really far down the list: I saw her only once. We've talked months ago about making an effort to see each other more often, but we need to get more vigilant about actually making that happen. Even Tracy, who once pulled big numbers here, managed only 2 points this time around. Setting the Action Movie Night group aside, I've seen most of my friends so seldom these past few months that Jennifer and Matthew actually managed to rank #4 and #5, respectively, with only 3 points each—and they got 2 points each for 2 days in a row when they came to stay the night on New Year's Eve. I'm really glad they came, though; my New Year's would have been far less fun without them, while Shobhit was in India. Shobhit really pulled up from behind after that trip left Laney far ahead of him—and he was gone three and a half weeks, nearly a third of the winter. It would be tempting to say Laney monopolizes a lot of my social time, except so many of her points are for joining me for movies that I'd had gone to with or without her, and thus there would be no time for socializing with others even Laney were unable to join me (and I cherish all the time we spend together). Aside from that, we just have our twice- (and sometimes thrice-) monthly Happy Hours, and roughly one Braeburn Condos theater movie day a month. To be fair, she'd still rank #2 even without going to the movies with me all the time. Anyway, let's get to the who did what with whom where and when!
Saturday, December 21: with Shobhit, walking to Pier 50 Saturday, December 21: with Claudia, Dylan, Jasper, Rachael, Steve, and more, Saint Nicolas Cage Day party at Claudia and Dylan's house in Port Orchard Sunday, December 22: with Laney, Christmas Dive Bar Monday, December 23: with Laney, Happy Hour at Fonté Bar Tuesday, December 24: with Gabriel and Lea, pizza, chai and cookies at their place in Federal Way Tuesday, December 24: with Dad, Sherri, Jennifer, Matthew, Hope, Chase, Ian, and Bella, out for dinner (Tea Leaf) Friday, December 27: with Laney, to a movie (Babygirl) Sunday, December 29: with Laney, to a movie (A Complete Unknown) Tuesday, December 31: with Jennifer, Matthew, Ian and Bella, pizza dinner at my place, drone and fireworks show at Seattle Center, and staying the night at my place Wednesday, January 1: with Jennifer, Matthew, Ian and Bella, hanging out at my place before driving to Olympia Friday, January 3: with Karen, lunch over Zoom Friday, January 3: with Laney, to a movie (The Fire Inside) Saturday, January 4: with Alexia, triple feature at my place (Frankenweenie, Corpse Bride, and The Nightmare Before Christmas)
