SantaCon NYC (Keep Your 2-Legged Children Indoors!)

SantaCon, not to be confused with SantaCats, took place in New York City yesterday. If you don’t know what SantaCon is, consider yourself fortunate.

It appears to exist for the sole purposes of getting every 20 year old in the vicinity of Manhattan into the borough to drink all day starting at 10am while dressed in full holiday regalia.

I forget about it every year until I walk out to get coffee and begin noticing an inordinate umber of drunk santas and elves before noon.

This is definitely a relatively new occurrence because we never did this when I was in my 20s (or 30s). Not that I ever would have. I’m not a good bar crawl person. I’d be home in bed after three two drinks!

According to the SantaConNYC website:

Santacon is a non-denominational, non-commercial, non-political and non-sensical Santa Claus convention that occurs once a year for absolutely no reason. It’s your chance to spread holiday cheer in the most magical and absurd way possible.

Well at least they don’t take themselves too seriously. What they are serious about, however, is the dress code. “Santa only gets jolly with those in full, head-to-toe costume.  Just wearing a Santa hat doesn’t cut it – you will be jeered off the sleigh.”

Wikipedia provided a rather complex history for SantaCon tracing its roots back to a Danish activist theater group in 1974. I’m not sure I’m buying that.

Seems more plausible that it was influenced by an event in San Francisco called Santarchy which was later adopted by a group called the Cacophony Society (“a randomly gathered network of free spirits united in the pursuit of experiences beyond the pale of mainstream society.”)

All I have to say is that if you have a child who still believes in Santa, then stay off the streets – at least in NYC – on December 15th. Nothing quite like seeing a skunk drunk Santa barf his guts out in public or swearing up a storm in front of small children.

Do they have SantaCon where you live? If not, consider yourself lucky!

HAPPY HOLIDAYS SANTACON STYLE!

REMINDER: If you haven’t already, be sure to enter the Cat Crib Kitty Hammock giveaway! You have until Tuesday December 18th to enter (US and Canada only sorry!).