If it’s December, it must be nearly Christmas. Here it’s a given that nothing can be counted on to proceed normally.

If something typically takes 2 weeks, it goes without saying (although it will be stated, and probably more than once, during the conversation) that there are the holidays to take into account, so it most likely will take longer. The suppliers won’t be open, the deliveries will be delayed, the traffic will be horrendous or the weather won’t cooperate or a combination of all of the above.

When planning an event, nobody will have time in their schedule to attend, since everyone has a calendar full of work parties, spouses’/significant others’ work parties, family parties, get-togethers with friends to exchange seasons’ greetings, children’s school pageants, charity dinners, professional association cocktails.

Don’t expect to find anyone working regular office hours since there are children to be attended to, specialty food items to be chased down, gifts to be purchased, goodies to be delivered. Starting times inch later, lunch times run over, coffee breaks last a bit longer and the end of the day comes a bit earlier. And of course, during the hours actually present, purchases must be discussed, errands completed or gone tragically awry due to long lines or absent staff (the nerve!) must be described , and of course all of the details of everyone’s plans for the almost-upon-us holidays must be shared.

And of course, things can’t start officially getting back to normal until the day after the final holiday date of Beffana (January 6, officially called the Feast of the Epiphany), which of course marks the start of the recounting of the holidays: gifts received, family visits, New Year’s adventures.

Then life gets back to normal since there are 3 whole months before preparations begin for Easter.