Departments
飲み競べ
Nomi-kurabe
For several years in the mid-1990s, I worked for a Japanese transplant die-casting operation in central Ohio. Our Japanese colleagues were mostly blue collar workers from the parent company. These men (and a few women) were a stark contrast to the highly educated, immaculately dressed, and slightly stuffy prototype that Japanese corporations often assign to destinations in New York or Chicago. If you can conjure up an image of the Japanese version of "Bubba", you will have a close approximation. These were Japanese who were free from any pretensions of internationalization or cultural refinement. (They particularly delighted in learning the profane American words and employing them at every opportunity.)
On one occasion we threw a raucous barroom party for one of our colleagues named "Shin", who was soon to return to Japan. By 9:30 p.m., all of the attendees had long since passed the state of mild intoxication, or horoyoi ほろ酔い . Suddenly, one of the rowdier members of the Japanese contingent shouted:
飲み競べをしましょう！
Nomi-kurabe o shimashoo
"Let's have a drinking contest!"
I knew better than to enter myself in a contest that I was certain to lose, although a few of the American employees made a valiant effort. (Another word for "drinking contest" is nomikkura 飲みっくら.) The nomikurabe is not unheard of outside blue collar circles in Japan, but I wouldn't recommend proposing one at your next meeting with Sony's board of directors.
