Sunday lunch with Ivy (et al)

Met up in Aubourn for lunch with Jo, Tony and Ivy today.

Food was excellent as always. I had a sausage and onion pie which really hit the spot. T had a piece of cod the size of a small whale.

The company was just as good as the food, a great way to spend a warm Sunday afternoon.

Hanging around the Binns'

It was Andy's birthday party this afternoon. He and George invited us round to theirs for a barbecue. Also in attendance were Clint, Emma & Joel, Steve and Patricia and Craig, Helen and Nicola. We hadn't met the last three socially before although it turns out Keren knew Helen from Robert Patt - Lincoln is a very small town sometimes. It was a sunny, if windy, afternoon but very pleasant sat out in their garden. There was enough food to feed around 50 people (even if one of them was me) and the beer and wine were also flowing freely. A great afternoon - happy birthday Andy!

Des and Daisy's Wedding

K and I were at Des and Daisy's wedding in Cambridgeshire on Friday. I was a great day. The marriage service was at a church in the centre of Cambridge so we nipped for a quick snifter in the Avery beforehand. The ceremony was great with a couple of belting hymns - Lord Of The Dance was one which is definite contender for inclusion on the forthcoming album "Christianity's Greatest Hits".

After the service there were some photographs outside the church and then we travelled by car to the fantastically named Shingay-cum-Wendy for the wedding breakfast. The weather was being very kind so we started with champers on the lawn while more photos were taken before moving inside for the meal. Strasbourg pate, venison and banoffi was served and it was all superb. The speeches were very funny and everyone seemed to have a great time. In the evening there was a disco and much "enthusiastic" dancing.

It was a terrific day all round and I'm sure the bride and groom will remember it forever.

Curry night

Tried out the curry house in Metheringham with K, Jo and M & C last night. I arrived early and was well oiled by the time they got there - I'd had a few in the Star & Garter - after a few more pints of Cobra it turned into a very merry evening indeed.

Thursday night's special offer is any starter, main, side, naan and rice for £9.95. Bargain! We'll be back.

One very cool dude

The summer might not be exactly blazing but Oli is determined to make the most of the few rays that we get.

Torn by Johann Lippowitz with Natalie Imbruglia

Over 3 million views now. Amazing!

Housey housey!

Kezza and I are bingoing, Come on lucky number seven.

Update: we won £20... result. That's a £7 profit, if you ignore the beer, and the petrol, and the car parking, and the sausage and chips!

DerryStag

Spent a very drunken weekend in Manchester with Paul Derry and his mates to "celebrate" his impending nuptials. Hicko and I drove over together late on Friday night (after attending a wedding party in Woodhall Spa) - we arrived at the hotel at 1:15am and sat in the bar waiting for the revellers to return. In they shambled in dribs and drabs but not ready for the night to end. Some were still in the bar when it closed at 5am!

Saturday morning, following a full EB at 'Spoons, we boarded the 'folk train' for Edale in the Peak District. I'd mapped out a route from there that took us (via several pubs) to Hope where we got the train back. Weather was a bit hit and miss but we avoided the worst of it and everyone made it in one piece. That night it was out in Manchester again where we saw a couple of Dorii from Hollyoaks before heading to an indie club until the early hours.

Sunday morning was another 'Spoons EB and hazy discussions of the night before. I got home at about 3pm and just sat quietly for a while. It seemed the best thing to do.
Well done Charmo for organising everything and well done Des for surviving.

Look out France, the Masons are coming

We had dinner at Tim & Dawn's last night. Great night, with a thai meal and lots of beer, wine and bon homie.

T & D can expect even more bon homie (and other bon mots) in the coming months as they are hoping to move to France. This is sad news as they won't be our near neighbours any more but terrific news as it means we can go visit.

C'est la vie.

Ashes 2009

It's the start of the 2009 Ashes series. I fear it's going to be more like 2007 than 2005 but who knows? Martin and Charlotte hosted an Ashes party on Saturday night. The idea was to watch the last session and then enjoy a bbq and a few brews.

Unfortunately, the weather in Cardiff meant there was no play to watch so we had to make do with a DVD of 2005... what a shame!

No amount of wet weather could stop the bbq and brews though and K & I were rather wobbly on our cycle ride home.