Santa: The Sweetness and the Business

I have a card from my childhood called "Santa and Me." The inside includes a faded photo of yours truly sitting with a very convincing looking Santa Claus. I was young enough in those days to believe in Santa, and to enjoy all the trimmings that came with such innocence. I didn't give a thought to what Santa did outside of Christmas season.

Santa Claus stamps
(photo: USPS)

Kids still like Santa, if trips to the local shopping malls and my town's local Santa parade are any indication. Still, I had imagined that making a living as a man in a red suit and white whiskers was a challenging proposition.

I'm reconsidering that notion, as a consequence of an article about the Santa business originally published in the Long Beach (CA) Press-Telegram and picked up in The Seattle Times' online edition. According to the piece, there's money in the Santa schtick. Some rack up to $30,000 for seven weeks of essentially non-stop work. Many of them are retirees looking for something more satisfying and more lucrative that being box store Ho-Ho-Hos.

Some professional Santas make it into something called the International Santa Claus Hall of Fame. There's even an International University of Santa Claus, run by someone called "Santa Tim". (Full disclosure: I am not Santa Tim.) Somehow, I don't think the Santa of my youth went for a baccaulaureate degree in Santa studies. He was probably an older, portly man trying to make a few bucks in a small town, and he enjoyed making children smile. It worked for me, and I have the photo to prove it. And I still cherish the card, and the memory of a sweet, unassuming time.