I have young children, so you understand how Christmas morning is a big deal around our house.
However, it also presents a real complication for me.
Over the last many years I have had to work on most Christmas Eves plus Christmas Days. I don’t want to ruin Christmas by not being there with my family, but on the other hand these kinds of emergency repairs pay big money so I can’t afford to turn them down. The only reason that I can afford to have a really nice Christmas for the kids is by working these extra jobs. The company I work for has a 24 hour emergency Heating plus A/C phone number, so people can call us 24/7 for help. When customers need heating repairs after hours it costs more, plus if they want help on a major holiday, it costs A WHOLE LOT more. Taking an oil furnace repair job on Christmas will pay triple my normal rate, so you see why I have to take the call! Last Christmas morning I got an emergency oil furnace repair call, plus my oldest child Joe asked if he could come with me. Joe wanted to spend the holiday with his Mom, even if that meant being stuck in a basement plus working on a broken heater! Not only did I take Joe with me, however I offered him his own shirt plus baseball cap with a logo for the Heating plus A/C company on it, to make him know the feeling of being a real employee. It took us about 2 hours to repair that oil furnace, plus I must admit that it has become one of my preferred Christmas memories.