HOW TO: Throw a Dirty Santa party

Susan sent an email to me and Carol this morning saying that she was really mad because the weather forecasters in western Kentucky had stated unequivocally that there was going to be so much freezing rain yesterday afternoon, they weren't sure whether to tell people to build arks or buy zambonis. The freezing rain ended up not coming and Susan was annoyed because her Un-Intellectual Book Club (hey, that's what she calls it, not me) members were supposed to have their Dirty Santa party last night and three ladies didn't come because they were worried about treacherous roads on the drive back home.

If it had been just about anyone but Susan, I would have asked what a Dirty Santa party was, but knowing her as I do, I was kind of scared. I noticed that Carol didn't ask either, so she either already knew, or was suffering from the same misgivings I had. You just can't tell with Susan.

So I looked it up on Google, keying "What is a dirty Santa party" into the search field. It turns out that I could have trusted Susan because Dirty Santa is something I've participated in several times. They're actually a lot of fun, and the last one I can remember doing was at someone's house -- my mom's? Beth's? Juju's? -- where we tusseled and fought over those gifts and laughed so hard, we were tearful and soundless with mirth.

If you'd like to throw a Dirty Santa party, check out this link from E-How.com. It's probably too late to plan one for this year unless you're just a little glutton for punishment, but they are a lot of fun, no matter what present you end up with. Although I feel I must add that hair-pulling and/or sticking out your foot to trip the person who stole the $20 Bath and Body Works gift card from you is not considered sporting.