Christmas Eve Eve

Hello people.  Shortcake elfed again today, and now has almost no voice.  Here's Spatula and Shortcake at the beginning of the day.
 
She photoed for a half hour, and then the line exploded, and she went back to HR.

Except that it took a bit for the line to make it back to HR.  So Shortcake and Jangles spent some time waiting for the people.

Eventually the people showed up, and Shortcake spent the whole day in HR and HR 2 trying to get people to smile on their way.  It was a record-breaking long line.  Longest wait to see Santa ever.  She swore in a few junior elves on the line.  Their jobs were to 1) Wave at everyone they passed and say "Merry Christmas," 2) Smile with Christmas Cheer and 3) Try to be the best elf they could be all year long.  Elfredo, Pooh, Double-A, and Unicorn all seemed to do a good job as far as Shortcake could tell.

At the end of the day, Shortcake had her hated cowlick again.

Do not be mistaken, people. Elfing is a physical trial. Behind all the Christmas Spirit, is a body with sniffles and aches and pains and cowlicks.

First, there's the sleep deprivation that comes from getting up early to be at work on time. And tomorrow, Christmas Eve, Shortcake has to be there at 6am. That means waking up at 4am. That's so early!

Then, there's the subtle discomfort from standing all day. It creeps up on an elf, not manifesting until Shortcake has sat down. Or slept. And then the next time she stands, bam! A mild discomfort in the heel. Not enough to prevent action, but enough to announce its presence, with the promise of more to come.
And, yes, we know you're thinking "get some gel pads for your shoes." Shortcake has some. And she wore two pairs of socks for extra padding. Time is inexorable, and it will wear you down, like water lapping against a rock. Water always wins. So does time. And Shortcake's feet hurt much worse by day's end.

Then there's the sniffles. Shortcake can still breathe out her nose, so it's not too bad yet. Breathing through the nose is taken for granted until it can't be done.

And the tickle in the back of the throat. This scares Shortcake more than anything else. Her colds ALWAYS start in the throat. She talked loudly for 8 hours a day, with improper technique, (she's not an actor, you know) and the throat was sore by the end of the day. If it continued, it'd mutate into a full blown headcold with no voice, runny nose, stuffy nose, headache, fatigue, the works. So Shortcake sucked on cough drops (not the sugar free kind - she once had so many the aspartame gave her a stomach-ache, and she swore never again) and drank tea and overdosed on Princess gummi.vitamins and drank orange juice. And tried to go to bed at a reasonable hour. And tried to eat all her fruits and vegetables.

And this is after only TWO DAYS of elfing! The other elves have been doing this for five weeks! It's been a loooong season, and the effects are showing. So many elves have been sick. So Shortcake didn't complain about her minor woes; she just went out there and spread that Christmas Cheer. To help the other elves out. For Santa.

And now Shortcake is going to bed.  Good night.