Life Lately #9
Last Thursday, John and I made a very last-minute decision to finally throw our long-overdue housewarming party on Friday. We moved in on 21 November, and with February basically knocking on the door, it was clear—this party was way past due!
Invites went out Thursday afternoon, and we roped one of our Filipino colleagues into bringing his karaoke. It’s not a real Filipino party without karaoke! Friday dragged on forever, but the moment the clock hit 4 p.m., we bolted home and started prepping. Halfway through, we realised we were starving and couldn’t wait for the food we were cooking—so off to the nearest McDonald’s we went, for a Quarter Pounder and large fries. Survival meal.
The menu was a proper spread: stir-fried noodles called pansit from the Philippines, fried chicken wings, grilled pork barbecue liempo, and deer sausages courtesy of my friend Jenna.
By 5:30, no one had arrived yet, and I was joking with John about how maybe no one was coming and no one at work actually liked us, ha! But ten minutes later, the first guest showed up and immediately jumped on the grill, saving us while we stayed inside cooking and frying. From there, people kept rolling in—Mia arrived with a chocolate cake, Jackie with a bubbly drink, and the boys turned up with boxes of beer. Yes. BOXES of beer.
Our dining table disappeared under mountains of food, drinks, and an ever-growing pile of plates. Karaoke was switched on, and the Filos kicked things off—slowly pulling the Kiwis out of their shell and into the spotlight. I lost track of how many songs were sung.
To my surprise, there were some genuinely great singers in the crowd, and most were more than decent. Anyone who grabbed the microphone instantly lost all embarrassment and sang with full commitment. The unforgettable moments? A very drunk rendition of Wonderwall, the boys singing and dancing to Barbie Girl, and the longest, loudest, most unhinged performance of the night—Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen, delivered with pure passion and wildly off-pitched falsettos. I laughed until I cried more than once, possibly snorted too.
I had an absolute blast, and if I had to guess, everyone else did too. I’m still not sure how we managed to squeeze 14 people into our house—or keep them fed, watered, and entertained for over six hours. Guests finally (and begrudgingly) started leaving just before midnight.
Jenna and her sister stayed a little longer to help us tackle the aftermath: a mountain of plates and an impressive collection of empty beer bottles. About half the group was completely drunk—I still don’t know how they managed to walk home—while the rest wisely Ubered.
By 1:30 am, John and I had finished cleaning up and collapsed into bed, exhausted but happy. Hosting is chaos, hosting is tiring—but hosting good friends? Totally worth it. ♡
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