It was the second year in a row that we had our holiday party at Bitoque, the Portuguese BYOB on Notre-Dame, near Atwater. Last year we were upstairs in a space shared with other diners. But this year, we had a large private room in the basement, complete with sound system and dance floor.
We began gathering at 6 pm. Several of us were delayed 30-45 minutes by an accident on Aut 20 near 1st Ave., but we were eventually all seated in time to place our dinner orders. The food and conversation were all great. We also sang Happy Birthday to founding-president Al — funny how it always seems to be Al’s birthday when we have a party!
As we finished dessert and coffee, the dance music was cranked up and the party got into an even higher gear. People danced or talked for another good while. Everyone agreed that the party was a huge success!
A thank you to Steve G for bringing his tablet with a playlist to supply music for the dancing. A special thanks to Ray D for debugging the sound board and making the music distortion-free! And finally a very big thank you to Joanne Bender for organizing the party! Her many tasks included collecting all the names and cheques, as well as visiting the restaurant several days beforehand to make sure the room would be good for us. Merci, Joanne!