These days mean more to some of us than others because of our individual experiences and what we hold to be sacred in our own lives. For example I would venture to say that most women in a relationship hold Valentine's Day to be more of a test for how well their significant other pays attention to the hints they have been dropping for months about a specific gift as opposed to the generic card and candy most closely associated with the holiday. Most men on the other hand are confused why the $6 singing card and over sized box of chocolates (that she obviously kept hinting at when she said that she felt like chocolate every time you walked by them) did not achieve the desired effect. Regardless American holidays are rooted in tradition and unfortunately some expectation.
However I take exception to one holiday in particular. In the corporate world this holiday baffles me and angers me beyond even the mild annoyance of National Aviation Day (August 19th...look it up) . That holiday is National Bosses Day. I myself am in management and I think this is an absolute crock! I
will admit that this is not exactly a major American holiday but it is listed on the calender in my office which makes it bad enough.So why does this upset me you ask? I feel that respect is the most important thing in the workplace and I don't think that a card should be what we equate with respect. Especially if it is prompted by an arbitrary date on a calender reminding people to spend money on thanking their boss for doing his job.
No, to me respect means not showing up two hours late for work and drunk (thanks EV). After all the "Boss" probably makes way more than the employees do so why should they give their hard earned money to a greeting card company who in turn gives it to the boss there only to create another fictitious holiday to buy greeting cards for. Now that is a vicious cycle.
Besides what happens to that card once it is read? "Oh, thank you so much for the card. I'll put it up on my huge mahogany mantle surrounded by rare elephant tusks in my huge
mansion that sits at the end of a cul-de-sac in my gated community. Enjoy your shanty, peasant." Cards for this kind of occasion should have been replaced by the invention of text messaging. "Hey boss, thnx 4 not firing me yet. :) TTYL". And what if someone feels like giving the boss a present? They have immediately upped the ante. Its like the kid who give his teacher an apple and automatically gets an A. That brown-nosing mentality would have gotten your ass kicked on the playground. If you give a gift you become that 8 year old little bastard of the class again. And who does that person think they are? The act of openly calling out your fellow employees to match this gift is basically declaring war on the other people in the office.
In the end there are a lot of holidays and traditions that we as Americans can enjoy together and find common ground on. However, should you feel the need to alienate those around you by forcing them to live up to your hallmark standard you should consider putting a mirror in your cubicle to watch your back.
