It has been a difficult year, in the wake of the devastating LA wildfires, but it’s finally the holiday season! So, let’s drown our sorrows – not in eggnog (gross), but in something far more effective:

PET PHOTOS!

As you know, CreativeFuture’s tradition is to end the year by sharing photos of our animal companions and providing annual updates from our staff members. It’s our way of saying, “Happy Holidays!”

Surprising no one, only a few of us made it onto Santa’s Nice List this year. They happen to be among our newer staff members, though two of them have already been here for several years. Clearly, these pure souls haven’t been subject to our bad influence for long enough. We will keep trying to corrupt them.

Read on to find out who is at the top of Santa’s Naughty List! (Hint: You probably know her well.) Then, behold some charming pet photos, and forgive – or at least, forget – all our sins!

As some people know, Brett Williams, Executive Vice President of External Affairs, and his partner, Rob Haskell, had a child in April, bringing new life to their home and new excitement to their pugs, Beverly and Frances Pugsley.

Brett and Rob were happy to take George to New York and Maine for summer vacation and to Charlotte for family Thanksgiving. In true Haskell-Williams style, they had thought they might get George on an international flight in year one, but that was perhaps too ambitious. George does, though, have his passport, and he passed his Global Entry interview with flying colors.

Sadly, Brett and Rob had to say goodbye to Beverly, who ruled their home for 15 wonderful years, in October. Frances has taken consolation in her new brother, George.

Left: George, AKA “The OG” (Ruth’s name for him: The Original George). Right: Frances, AKA Pugsley.

This year, Brett absolutely loved Adolescence and Sentimental Value and inhaled the novel The Postcard by French author Anne Berest. He is planning to read Keith McNally’s memoir, I Regret Almost Everything, over the holidays.

Despite becoming a father, Brett was naughty this year. Just ask his fellow passengers: He brought a baby on a plane! For three separate round trips!

This summer, CreativeFuture welcomed Alyssa Morvis as our new Coordinator. She went to film school, has formerly lived in Hawaii, and loves old movies. We aren’t sure whether she likes us… But so far, we haven’t scared her away.

The wildfires in January reminded Alyssa to seize the day, so she made a point of exploring Los Angeles. She took her first-ever trips to The Huntington, the Chinese American Museum, and El Pueblo de Los Angeles Historical Monument. Additionally, she returned to concert venues including the Hollywood Bowl and Greek Theatre.

Of the films or television shows that Alyssa saw this year, some of her favorites were Lovers in Quarantine, a silent film from 1925, and season two of The Rehearsal, a mockumentary series about preparing for difficult tasks or situations. We wonder why she was watching that!

Alyssa does not have any cute animal photos, but she does not need them, because she is on the Nice List. She kept the kitchen stocked with snacks. She was firm but tactful when asking the building manager to fix the strange gurgling and clanking noises coming from the ceiling. She remained sensible and good-humored, even when she heard yelling from the C-suite, as she so often did.

We will see whether Alyssa can maintain her composure and stay on Santa’s good side. If not, she will need to get a pet!

When we asked Adam Krentzman, our Community Outreach Consultant, for an annual update, he responded with an elaborate tale of Icelandic adventures. Immediately, we could tell that something didn’t add up… but we’re used to that when it comes to our “agent” of mystery. Here is the email he sent. Don’t you agree that it sounds like a cover story?

As if Hollywood isn’t chilly enough, Adam took another trip to Iceland.

On his third trip to Iceland, Adam discovered that there are only two types of travelers in winter: those who dress sensibly and those who believe a Christmas Cat sweater counts as sufficient arctic attire. After landing in Reykjavík, he quickly learned that while Icelanders have 47 different words for snow, they have none that translates to “what on earth is he wearing.”

Everywhere Adam went, Icelanders nodded politely at the sweater, the way you might acknowledge a brave but confused tourist. One café owner asked if it was “a Hollywood thing.” Another wondered if Adam was conducting research on Iceland’s famous Christmas traditions – the giant mythical Christmas Cat said to eat anyone who doesn’t get new clothes for the holiday. Adam took this as a sign that the sweater was not merely sensible, but spiritually endorsed.

By day three, the sweater had become his calling card. Tour guides remembered him, shopkeepers recognized him, and one glacier guide insisted on taking a photo “for evidence.” Adam didn’t mind. In an industry where brand identity is everything, he accidentally created his winter franchise: The Man, the Myth, the Christmas Cat Sweater.

We never know where Adam has been, but we feel confident that he is on the Naughty List. Just look at him! Nobody smiles that way if they have been nice.

Pictured: Naughty world traveler in ugly sweater.

After Davis Read, Senior Communications Director and Office Giant, ate his way through Koreatown, he decided to give back to his community. He ran for the neighborhood council and was elected in April. Ever since, he has been embroiled in heated controversies over liquor licenses, dumpster removal, and parking.

We would add that Davis recently raised concerns that large abandoned items were blocking ADA access to local buildings. We found that out by reading the meeting minutes. What can we say? Our curiosity was piqued! And we like being nosey.

Last year, we said that Davis’ cat, Martini, would be expected to report to the office once per week in 2025. But we spoke too soon: Cats were banned from the office after one (not Martini) knocked over an expensive piece of art.

Although that was not Martini’s fault, he has been knocking over plenty of things at home – for instance, the Christmas tree.

Left: Martini pretends to be the investigator rather than the perpetrator at the crime scene. Right: Davis anchors the Christmas tree to the wall in the background while Martini plots in the foreground.

In case it’s not obvious already, Davis is on the Nice List this year. He spent hours on the phone with technical support over our printer, until the manufacturer agreed to replace it. He bought his girlfriend a coat just before a rainy weekend. He donated his blood to save babies.

Seriously, our Office Giant is practically a folk hero! He used to make us feel short; now, he’s also making us look BAD!

Content Producer Nim Kaufman said he did not have much to report, but it was a humble brag, because he had his first gallery show in 2025. His cartoons depicted a strawberry knocking out a lime (“fruit punch”), as well as a wallet complaining, “I feel empty inside…” We know that feeling!

Last year, Nim gave us photos of a cat, Princess Cleo, but this year, he confessed that she is HIS GIRLFRIEND’S cat! We feel deceived, but Princess Cleo is so cute that we’re sharing a photo of Nim with her anyway:

Pictured: Not Nim’s cat!

Nim’s sisters each had a child in 2025, so he is now a proud uncle to three nephews. We will have to take him at his word, because we have yet to see any photographic evidence.

Nim has been a little naughty this year. He made visual puns. He appropriated his girlfriend’s cat. He did not share photos of his sisters’ babies. We don’t know which offense is the worst!

Bryan Alkemeyer, Senior Writer, decided the time was ripe for expanding his household, so he began filling it with plants. SO MANY PLANTS: flowers blooming on the patio, vines trailing over indoor ledges, trees growing in the corners. There are now over 20, most of which have personal names. But Bryan thinks his apartment needs more. He won’t stop until it’s a rain forest in there.

Left: Galadriel. Center: Phil. Right: Dragana.

When Bryan wasn’t tending his plants – which was often, once he learned that the secret to caring for plants is to leave them alone as much as possible – Bryan traveled to visit family and friends. He attended an extended family reunion in Missouri for the first time in 25 years, went to a wedding in upstate New York, and visited his emergency medical contact at the Port Townsend School of Woodworking.

Bryan’s favorite films of the year were Sinners, Weapons, and Bugonia. For Halloween, he dressed up as Black Philip, the evil goat from The Witch, and asked strangers if they wanted “to live deliciously.”

Bryan tried to get on the Naughty List with the cool people, but even he had to admit that his naughtiness was an affectation. He gambled, but only $1, which he lost in a gentleman’s bet with our CEO over whether his boss would like a vegan cupcake. He missed work to take a comedy writing class. The closest Bryan came to actual villainy was Long Live Evil, a fantasy novel about scheming courtiers, which Bryan loved so much that he read it twice.

When JC Taylor, Senior Vice President of Communications, reflected on 2025, he was disappointed. In our 2024 holiday letter, he was able to report that he cut off his finger. He had no epic tale of getting emergency stitches after making cucumber salad this year. JC approaches life like a competitive sport, so he would have preferred to improve upon 2024. How else would he claim bragging rights at our annual holiday party?

As JC racked his brain for some area – ANY AREA – in which he had excelled, he realized that he was finishing the year with a considerable hoard of loot. His partner gave him numerous plates, bowls, and mugs from her ceramics class. His colleague gave him avocados directly from the tree. And his friends gave him dozens of vinyl albums for his new record player.

Recalling the generosity of the people in his life, JC congratulated himself. He had set a new record for freeloading.

JC was grateful for the gifts, because his first-ever trips to Kauai, Dublin, and Rome had done serious damage to his bank account. Likewise, he could spare no expense to meet the extraordinary and ceaseless demands of His Feline Majesty, Emperor Mosquito, Lord of All He Surveys:

Left: Emperor Mosquito sitting on his throne. Right: Emperor Mosquito lounging on his divan.

JC was naughty this year – but he disguised it by being so even-tempered and good-natured. Perhaps that’s why people showered him with gifts! But will the same con job work on Santa?

This year, Chief Executive Officer Ruth Vitale went to Las Vegas on a fact-finding mission with JC and our friend Denise Huth, former executive producer of The Walking Dead. While they were there, they had a great time, even though they said goodbye to every dollar they bet on the Wynn’s gambling floor.

Pictured, left to right: Ruth Vitale, Denise Huth, JC Taylor.

For years, Ruth has put “rich dead husband” at the top of her Christmas list. Santa still hasn’t brought one for her, so we thought he could use a few pointers. To do our research, we looked no further than this article from Money magazine. Here are three men who meet Ruth’s criteria:

• John D. Rockefeller (1839-1937), the owner of Standard Oil, worth $341 billion in today’s dollars
• Augustus Caesar (63 BC-14 AD), Roman Emperor and great-nephew of Julius Caesar, worth $4.6 trillion in today’s dollars
• King Mansa Musa (1280-1337) of Timbuktu, home to the world’s richest gold mines, worth an incalculable sum in any currency

Knowing Ruth, we suspect she would prefer someone whose fortune rested on gold rather than military force or oil. But she will consider any suitor, so long as he is quite rich and quite dead. “And anything less than that,” Ruth declared, “is coal in my stocking!”

In fact, she will take any insufficient gift from Santa directly to the dump, where she likes to hang out with the dump manager, Willie Shanks, recently featured in The Washington Post for “finding meaning at work.”

Pictured: Ruth, dumpster diving, next to Willie, shaking his head.

It goes without saying: Ruth has been naughty. Recently, she yelled at some bankers for so long that she nearly lost her mind. But the bankers had their heads stuck so far up their own asses that they would not have heard an air-raid siren.

A bomb shelter is precisely where you should hide if you are on Ruth’s bad side, perhaps because you forgot to back up your work computer or mistyped someone’s name. Santa had best take note, and FINALLY give Ruth what she deserves this year!

Of course, Ruth still has a soft spot for animals, including any that show up in her yard. Here are photos of a turtle, black rat snake, and bear. They’re all named Kevin, after the minion from Despicable Me!

Left: Kevin. Center: Kevin. Right: Kevin.

Now that you’ve read these updates, we can rank our staff members from nicest to naughtiest. Davis is practically a saint. Bryan wants to be naughty but can’t help being nice. Adam pretends to be nice while secretly being naughty. And Ruth is at the top of the naughty list, which is exactly where she strives to be.

We’ll leave it to you to fill in the other names… but we hope that you’ll be too distracted by our pet photos! We’ll find out soon whether the same diversion works on Santa!

Thank you, as always, for your love and support. We hope that better times and needed rainfall are ahead in 2026. But regardless of what the future holds, we’re lucky to have you by our side. Please enjoy some well-deserved time off, and we’ll look forward to seeing you next year!

Happy Holidays!

Love,

CreativeFuture and Pets