Pinch hitting! We should definitely do that.

I enjoyed pinch hitting when I was a brand new buffista but I'm not sure I like the idea of a deadline as early as March for Slackers. One of the best gifts I ever got was (iirc) delivered in June.

I'm one of the people spending all year ruining Christmas. My gift has been sitting here while my schedule has been kicking my ass for months and I haven't mailed it.

Seems fitting that I haven't gotten my gift either.

I will not participate in the gift exchange in the future.

Sorry for the late response (the rain that usually arrives with the season surprises everybody completely, as usual too, so there were electricity problems for the last couple of days).

So it seems like people still wanna play with Secret Santa, with a slacker deadline of March, right? I'd love to organize that.

And, as I said several times on the Good Riddance thread, since there are several gifts which were not openly posted about in thread, if there are any giftless giftees from the Goodbye 2009 exchange, could you please e-mail me, so that I could follow what's going on, and see if anything can be done, even at this late date?

Also, msbelle rocks.

This conversation petered out, but I think it's important enough to put out as an official proposal to talk about in Lightbulbs.

Proposal: To set a closing deadline of March 31st for the Goodbye and Good Riddance Thread (I think the actual date is good thing to debate in Lightbulbs), with the caveat that any ungifted Santa or Slacker Santa giftees at that point will have the option to throw their names back into the pool to be gifted by other volunteers (with the wonderful, "shit happens, no hard feelings" attitude Vortex and others demonstrated in B'craxy). This would be a way for people who found themselves unable to gift for one reason or another to bow out gracefully and for everyone to get closure on the year without the thread going on for months.

Seconds?

Second.

Third

fourth

Do we need more? I can never remember. I'll fifth, if so.

Sixth.

Also...

Dearest Slackistas,

I have never, ever, EVER participated in the Secret Santa or even the Slacker Secret Santa thingum. Here's why: I suck.

But? I know I suck, so I just don't do it. I won't get anything on time. I might not even get anything at all. And heaven knows, even if I find the perfect gift and actually purchase it -- on time or not -- I'll never get it in the damned mail. That's not an exaggeration. I once found the perfect T-shirt for my friend, Antipodean (possibly Julie, although not Juliebird, to you). It read "It's all about me," and that was sort of her signature (even though it didn't dwell in reality). That shirt lived so long in my drawer (in the bag!!!) that eventually, I tossed it. Ditto the Girl Scout Thin Mints I bought for Cashmere (okay, I didn't toss those; we ate them). Anyhow, all of that is on account of my sucking. It's a whole big sucking thing. And it's okay. Embrace your fucking suckitude.

If you suck, like me, just acknowledge it, and don't play. Watch all the pretty, nice, friendly, socially ept people play, and cheer them on from the bleachers. And on Christmas (Hanukkah, Solstice, Festivus) Eve, say a little prayer (chant, meditation, medication, whatevs) for them in the coming year.

AND THEN BE DONE WITH IT!

Love,

Cindy (who, verily, sucks)