Next week, there is a company wide event, culminating in a 700-person strong party. Because of this event, there was no staff Christmas party at the end of 2023, but one tradition has carried over - there is a theme. The theme for this year is "level up" which is lame, because it is so open. But, I am pretty sure there are a going to be a lot of Mario Bros. characters floating about.

Today, I went to a costume shop and got my outfit organized.

Top Gun.

Lame for sure, but since Tom Cruise and I have a lot in common (we are about the same height), it will be fine. So, I picked up a set of pilot overalls, and a colleague is going to go as Ice Man - and has the same get up. With the success of Maverick recently, there will likely be more of these at the event, but at least it is something. No one is ever forced to dress up for these events, but the fun people do.

Some people are lame.

It is interesting to see the people who don't dress up though, as often I can see in their eyes that there is some kind of jealousy, like a wish that they had the balls to dress up and make a fool of themselves. Granted, there are some things that I am not willing to do either.

Karaoke.

Dressing up though, that is something I don't mind doing. I used to throw costume parties a lot, and have been everything from a priest, to a French maid - fishnets and all. I am not sure I would go in drag to a company party though - or as a religious figure.

Does Tom Cruise count as a religious figure?

I am kind of looking forward to seeing how the week is going to play out though, as it is going to be an incredibly busy week. So much so, I am unsure when I am going to find the time to post. It is an early morning to late night thing, every day, Monday to Friday. And as I am facilitating Tuesday through to Thursday, I don't really have gaps throughout the day either. And then there is the slight problem that half the country is on strike on Thursday and Friday, so there is going to be a lot of additional tasks on top.

Some short posts for once?

I go through phases where I think that it would be good to write some shorter posts and just get some quick thoughts out of my head and opened up for discussion. Perhaps after that, I could expand on them when I have some time, factoring in what people have said. I have also considered writing posts based on comments that I get, and starting a discussion that way.

Would people like to be mentioned in a post like that?

It wouldn't be just as opposition as to what is said, probably the opposite. I think it is interesting to explore the different perspectives of people, and the value they bring to the table with their experience. I like the idea of having a pool of quality contributors participating in the discussions, like a digital reference group. Too much of social media is through stranger interaction - not familiar.

Strangers put on masks, especially when they think they won't get caught, or when they are trying to be something they are not. On the internet, it is easy to fake knowledge and experience, because information is only a Google away, but it is soon apparent who knows what, with a little drilling down into the subject. What is interesting is, that there seems to be an increasing expectation that people should know a lot, because it is at their fingertips, but that is not knowledge. Googling is not experience - it is just parroting what is read. There is no skill in that.

But it seems to make some people feel good.

I just wonder, what would their face by like in real life, as in similar conversations, they would have nothing to say, while others spoke at length from experience.