Bonenkai

Posted on 2005/12/23 13:33:21 (December 2005).

[Thursday 22nd December]
I took a long lunch break from work today to go and meet the estate agents wnad pick up the keys for our new apartment. After meeting the estate agent at their office, I went with the relocation specialist to the new apartment for a general check round. Upon arriving there, we discovered that the locks were going to be changed - I'd been given the new keys, but the lock in the door was still the old one. This was a little disconcerting, but I was thoroughly assured that it would all be sorted out by the next day, our official moving in day.

In the evening I went out with my team for our bonenkai. A bonenkai is a peculiar Japanese party held at the end of the year - it's name literally translates as "forgetting the year party". Presumably one gets horribly drunk in an attempt to forget all of the bad things that have happened in the past year. It was pointed out to me this evening though that the "nen" part can also be read as age, rather than year, so another interpretation of bonenkai is the slightly less negative "forgetting your age party".

Anyway, in my team's case it was a jolly but very civilised affair - nobody drank a great deal (me included, you'll be glad to hear!) but it was a nice evening out, and surprisingly the conversation was not particularly work related either.

I certainly didn't forget the year, it has been a very eventful one for me, and perhaps because of this, when I look back now January seems like a very long time ago!

"Forgetting your Age party"... What a tremendously good idea. My Gran lived to 98 and I remember her telling me once... "You know Nigel, I still feel like I'm 18 inside.." What a brilliant thing to say! At 18 she had been riding her bike in Edwardian England wearing all those long skirts and a ribbones bonnet (she confirmed). Hope I get to reiterate those words some day... :)))

Posted by Nigel at 2005/12/23 21:42:31.

No long skirts and bonnets, obviously!! :))

Posted by Nigel at 2005/12/23 21:43:50.

What a lovely image I had conjured for a minute there Nigel, of you in a Victorian ladies' garb riding an old fashioned bicycling machine. :)

Posted by John at 2005/12/24 12:57:41.

I need a Bonenkai myself... 2005 was pretty rubbish!!!
IKI IKI IKI IKI

Posted by Lox at 2005/12/24 08:13:07.

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