Chances are that in the last couple of weeks you have been boozing in front of your computer or with your smartphone. Not alone but with some friends, family or colleagues. Maybe you had some red wine in a STORSINT glass from IKEA or another type of juice in another type of glass from another store. Whatever it was, you were engaging in on-nomi which means online drinking in Japanese. White people invented different labels to pinpoint the same activity: skyperitivo, e-apero, quarantini, vocktail (virtual cocktail), all the same thing.
I think it’s something nice to do. Once in a while. After all, not so many people have significant weekly updates to share these days. Take some time to build up some novelty, will you. So next time we can have a fresh conversation about the zucchini you prepared in the oven at 200 degrees Celsius instead of 180. I’d love to hear how you clap your hands at eight o’clock sharp every day except on the days you were serving chicken wings from the barbeque for your invitees. Your personal observations on how you deal with the quarantine are excellent records for the anthropological body of work of mankind, please share.
Are these on-nomis actually helping us in coming together? To a certain extent. Sometimes it’s just something to keep us occupied. Another two hours away from playing Assassin’s Creed or watching Tiger King, well done. Now I feel less bad about myself about how I’m wasting opportunities in life, grazie mille.
I believe that the power of absence is stronger than presence. Leaving space with nothing will create more fulfillment than stuffing the space with just anything. Spending time with someone can foster a connection but not spending time can equally deepen the bond. The anticipation before or nostalgic reminiscence after are often more powerful than the experience itself.
So what are you, a world-renowned and influential writer, trying to say? Shouldn’t I do on-nomi anymore? I don’t know. Don’t listen to me. I’m just keeping myself busy.
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