Birthdays and how to celeberate them

[Spitfire]

Having a birthday comming up next week I have been wondering how birthdays are being celeberated around the world. I know of some cultures where birthdays are not the big thing - but namesdays are celeberated instead.
I myself find it less and less interesting to be celeberated - propably because of my age!
So I tend to gather my closest family and some few good friends for a good dinner either at home or at a restaurant. And thats about that.

"The big ones" - like 40 or 50 - traditionally calls for a big party. Althoug I hate it! Not having a party - but being the center of everybodys attention. At least in the beginning. (Later on nobody remembers why they are dancing and drinking )
What does this fine group of cultured and wellbehaved people think. And how do you celeberate your birthday.

 

[Salv]

Normally my birthday, like yours, is a very low-key affair, just me and my wife and daughter going out for a meal somewhere but, being a vinyl junkie, I was oddly pleased about hitting 45. Purely by coincidence a couple of friends asked me to play some records (I wouldn't exactly call it DJ'ing) at their regular soul night in London on my 45th birthday, so my wife and a few friends went out for a meal first then headed on to the seedy basement bar where the faithful were gathered. I had a box of 45s and another box of albums and played about an hours worth of Stax and Memphis soul records. I drank a few beers, played a few tunes and had one of the best birthdays ever.

 

[IlsaLund]

For me (and my immediate family).... the birthday itself isn't that big of a deal. HOWEVER, there is a mean streak of Party Animal that runs through our blood (all of us), so we use birthdays as an excuse to have a big party. We don't really advertise it as a birthday party, though. Rather, we tell our co-workers and friends that we're having "yet another barbeque," and we let loose and have fun.

 

["Doc" Devereux]

I let loose with two weeks of bacchanalian mayhem. It's the only way to make sure everybody gets a chance to celebrate with me.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

At my age they come along so fast it'd be like celebrating Tuesday. lol

 

["Doc" Devereux]

At my age they come along so fast it'd be like celebrating Tuesday. lol

You mean I've got to wait that long before my next champagne ration?

 

[PeeWee]

Yesterday was my birthday, and I spent it as low key as possible. My wife gave me a few brownies, and my daughter phoned me from college with a happy birthdaygram. It was a nice birthday

 

[olive bleu]

I am not really one for big parties.Not to say that i never have fun at one, but i am not inclined to throw one for myself.I usually wake up on my Birthday with hugs and well wishes all 'round from my family. This usually means the kids piling into bed(followed by the lab) and sometimes gifts are presented.Sometimes that part is held off til supper time, when a special meal is cooked in my honour, and always includes a birthday cake.

That weekend, my sister takes me out to my favourite Mexican Restaurant for beer and tons of food and we then roll accross the street to the movie theatre for a flick and large amounts of popcorn, Coke, and Maltses

My sister and I agreed to stop buying presents about 5 years ago and we treat each other to dinner & a movie instead.The whole routine pretty much repeats itself every year...and I've got a day like that coming up next Sunday! It will be my big 40th...But i just want to celebrate in the usual quiet way

 

[Lady Day]

My birthday is next week as well (Dec. 13th) and Ill be the big two-nine. Eh [huh]

I have never really celebrated by b-day because it so close to Christmas. I generally get the lazy "Well your birthday is so close to Christmas, this present/card/greeting/salutation is for both."

Lucky me.
LD

 

[Spitfire]

A heartfelt congratulations to all who has birthday mixed up with x-mas.
Another reasons why I do not like to celeberat my own birthday tomorrow, is partly that I have heard the same moaning for twentyplus years now:
"It was so horrible doing all the xmas shopping and THEN I EVEN HAD TO BUY YOU SOMETHING TOO!!!!" Hey - forget it will you.
Is it my fault I was born in december[huh]
So CONGRATULATIONS ALL OF YOU!!!!! You deserve it!:cheers1:

 

[Pilgrim]

Our family tradition is that the birthday person chooses a restaurant for dinner. My wife or youngest daughter like to bake and they make a cake of the birthday person's preferred type. We generally give cards there, and give presents when we get home. For our daughters, parties are separate events. They are 17 and 18, so they are just leaving the "parents throw a party with cake" phase.

When both girls are out of the home, I'm gonna get really misty on their birthdays. But I already know I'll have a bad case of empty nest. I'm planning to get my 1958 Fiat Spyder roadster running before then so I don't have to go out and buy a shiny toy to console myself.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Combo birthday / Christmas gifts....

My birthday is next week as well (Dec. 13th) and Ill be the big two-nine. Eh [huh]

I have never really celebrated by b-day because it so close to Christmas. I generally get the lazy "Well your birthday is so close to Christmas, this present/card/greeting/salutation is for both."

Lucky me.
LD

Hey Lady Day -
Mine's the 14th and I know exactly what you mean. I came up with a great fix for that a years ago. Anytime someone gives me a joint birthday/Christmas gift, I return the sentiment. Next time their birthday rolls around in, say, April, I say, "I got you the niftiest present...I'll give it to you in December since it's a combination birthday-Christmas gift." I've also done it with giving them half of something that needs the other half to be operational. When they complain about the unfairness, I say, "Really? But you seemed to think it was OK for you to give ME a combo present." It usually only takes once for them to be cured them of the lazy, cheap habit.

My other half is from the mindset that a birthday's just another day on the calendar, let's just go out to dinner and then you don't have to cook OR do the dishes. BAH! I'm one who believes life is short, Auntie Mame was right, and anything is an excuse for celebration. "It didn't snow today! Let's roll out the liquor and hors d'oeuvres!" I keep crossing my fingers that one day the message sinks in and there's a big mid-December party around here preceding the Christmas party, but I won't go as far as holding my breath...

 

[Dinerman]

I'm going duckpin bowling with my friends to celebrate.

 

[Lady Day]

Hey Lady Day -
Mine's the 14th and I know exactly what you mean. I came up with a great fix for that a years ago. Anytime someone gives me a joint birthday/Christmas gift, I return the sentiment. Next time their birthday rolls around in, say, April, I say, "I got you the niftiest present...I'll give it to you in December since it's a combination birthday-Christmas gift." I've also done it with giving them half of something that needs the other half to be operational. When they complain about the unfairness, I say, "Really? But you seemed to think it was OK for you to give ME a combo present." It usually only takes once for them to be cured them of the lazy, cheap habit.

That is the greatest idea I have ever heard! :eusa_clap I am SO doing that!

Thanks!
LD

 

[Steve]

Even though I'm supposed to be in a stage of life where partying hard is best, I can't stand overly-large gatherings; mainly due to the fact that I am thrown into them far too often.

On my own birthdays, I prefer spending a quiet day at home, reading or writing, boxing in my basement training area if I'm feeling energetic, or taking a walk down to the beach and taking photos as the sun sets. I love the peace and the quiet.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

That's a really great photo, Steve. But alas...sunset in mid-December in Seattle happens around 4:15, and usually, it's not even visible due to cloud-cover, drizzle or downright pouring rain. Not that I'm complaining too loudly about that - I do love having four seasons a year and although our days are short in December, in the summer when sun's up around 4:30 AM and it's still light out at 9-10 at night, it makes up for it. And I do like to sit out on the deck and watch some of our spectacular sunsets for others' birthdays when the weather is more amenable.

 

[Kim_B]

Add me to the list of people who's birthday is close to Christmas (mine is Jan 1st) and get frustrated when people give gifts to cover both. It's getting better - mostly it's just one or two people who do it that I don't see very often. When I complained to my mom about it when I was about 10, she started making me choose a couple gifts from under the tree to hold out for my birthday. I was ok with this idea, but the anticipation killed me!

I've only had one big party, and that was for my 18th. My mom invited all our family and a few of my close friends; it was a wonderful time. My 21st birthday was uneventful, and now I'm approaching 25. I want a party, darn it! I either want to have a big dinner with all my family and friends and a fun restaurant, or I want to have a fancy party with every one dressed to the nines. I've always wanted to have a summer birthday, that way it would break the year up. I know it's a year no matter what date your birthday is, but having it the very first day of the year makes it feel like such a long time to wait!!!!

 

[GOK]

My birthday is next week as well (Dec. 13th) and Ill be the big two-nine. Eh [huh]

I have never really celebrated by b-day because it so close to Christmas. I generally get the lazy "Well your birthday is so close to Christmas, this present/card/greeting/salutation is for both."

Lucky me.
LD

People used to do that to my daughter (19th Dec) and it infuriated me. So I started sending all the relatives combined Christmas/birthday cards and presents, even if their birthdays were in the summer! The point was made and my daughter got to have separate gifts and cards.

I actually think it's quite mean to give a person combined presents (unless they have specifically asked for them). Everyone has a right to feel special on their day.

 

[LaMedicine]

Since Spitfire mentioned different cultures.

Here in Japan, we celebrate birthdays, and certain ages have special meanings.
For kids, we usually have birthday parties at home with friends, then most of us also celebrate with family. Grandparents often come into the picture too.
For my own family, now that the kids are all grown but not flown, we have a quiet family dinner, with cake and a present from the rest of the family.

The special age celebrations are 60, 70, 77, 80, 88, 90, 99 and 100.
There are special names for them, derived from how we traditionally counted ages, and from certain kanji-Chinese characters--letters that can be derived from the numerals written in kanji.

60, which is called "Kanreki" meaning return to the beginning of the calendar is celebrated by giving the person a red hat and vest in traditional Japanese style. Well, nowadays, we may replace the traditional clothing with a sweater or a knit vest or a red jacket or something that can be worn in daily life.
This return to the beginning comes from how the years were named until the mid 19thC. The 12 animals of the Chinese calendar and 5 forces of nature--wood, fire, earth, gold and water (there's yang and ying in all forces)--combined together. 12x5=60. The year of the Yang Wood Mouse, the year of the Ying Wood Ox, the year of Yang Fire Tiger, Ying Fire Rabbit, etc. If you were born in say, the Yang Wood Mouse year, it is another 60 years till the Yang Wood Mouse year comes along. In the old days when life span was much shorter than it is now, 60 was ancient.

70 is called "Koki" meaning rare since ancient days--again due to the shorter life span.
77 is "Kijyu", Happy Celebration, as the letter "Ki" which means happiness/joy is three 7s in kanji in the abbreviated form. Jyu means celebration.
80 is "Sanjyu" Umbrella celebration, as the kanji includes the letters 8 and 10.
88 is "Beijyu", Rice celebration, as the letter rice includes 2 8s.
90 is "Sotsujyu" Graduation celebration, with 9 and 10 included in the letter "sotsu".
99 is "Hakujyu" White celebration. This comes from the fact that the kanji for 100 and the kanji for white are almost the same, minus a horizontal bar on the top for the letter white. The numeral one in kanji is a single horizontal bar.
Hence, hundred minus one=99.
100 is another "Kijyu", only the letter Ki used here means Century, so the celebration is Century celebration.

With these celebrations, we often have big family gatherings to celebrate the long life of our loved ones.

 

[GOK]

LM, your posts are always so interesting. Thank you for sharing that with us - that sounds like such a wonderful tradition. It's lovely to know that there are still some places in the world that revere older people instead of sticking them in homes and forgetting about them.