Fake Stag Do 2010/11

What a weekend!  It's now an annual tradition that we have one weekend per season where we get together for an Imps away game.  It's to fill in the hole left by the lack of stag dos now that most of us are married.  The fixture is picked totally at random and this year it was determined that we should go to Aldershot.  I organised a hotel in Guildford and trains between there and Aldershot - it was all in order and then the weather intervened!

The plan was for Tom to drive Harrison, Ted and me from Lincoln and we would meet Goldsy, Des, Will and Al in Guildford as they were travelling by train.  Before we even left Lincoln we found out that the game itself was cancelled and had to make a decision whether to carry on just for the craic or cancel.  Obviously we carried on.  As Tom pointed out, the football is his least favourite part of the weekend anyway.

We got going on the A1 and there was hardly any snow - we'd had all of ours two weeks before - but once we hit the M25 it started and it was heavy.  Tom's car was fine, it's front wheel drive with a heavy diesel engine over the driven wheels, so we were trundling along without too much trouble.  Of course it doesn't matter what car you're in if the road becomes blocked by other vehicles.  Sporty, rear wheel drive cars like BMWs and Mercs were finding it hard going and some were getting stuck.  We made the decision to abandon our effort to get to Guildford and turn in towards London instead - the logic was if we got stuck we'd rather be stuck in a big city than in the Surrey countryside.

The next junction was the M40 so we took it but pretty soon the traffic came to a complete stop.  We had plenty of time to discuss options and we decided we would bail out early, find the closest bed for the night and just get on with enjoying a few beers in the hope that the roads would be clear by the next morning.  I got on the phone and booked rooms at the Travelodge in Uxbridge - only a couple of miles from where we were stuck but we had to get off the motorway first.

The lay of the land meant that we could see the head of the queue about 1.5 miles up the road - just by the exit that we needed.  As the road began to go uphill it was causing lots of people to become stuck.  There was nothing else for it but to get up there and start pushing.  Tom stayed with the car but the rest of us headed up the road between the stop/start traffic.  Anyone that looked like they needed help got three lads pushing at the back of their car - and very grateful they were, we got lots of pips and thumbs ups for our efforts.

Eventually, Tom's car appeared at the front of the queue, he steamed up the slip road and we all jumped in.  We checked in to the hotel and really felt we deserved the ensuing beers and curry.

Rich Hall

Went to see Rich Hall at the Engine Shed with Ross and Mikey.  Quality show - he's very funny.  Lots of his material is based on the differences between the USA and the UK.  He takes the piss out of his compatriots quite a lot.  Excellent stand-up show - highly recommended.

Sad Day

Sad day today as it was Granddad's funeral.  Very nice service at the crem followed by a wake at the Wheatsheaf in Waddington and then the family went on to Mum's.  K and I gave a lift to Lucy, Will and Sarah and getting from the Wheatsheaf to Brant Road turned out to be quite an adventure.  It had been snowing for quite a while but we hadn't really realised just how heavy it was.  By the time it came for us to go to Mum's, it was very difficult to get down the hill.  We tried Waddington hill and Cross O'Cliff hill before eventually making it down Harmston... just.  It took us two hours to do about two miles and hundreds of people around Lincoln had similar stories.  We're just not used to heavy snow.

Weekend in Wokingham with Jo and Tony

Keren had booked us (and Jo & Tony) a weekend at St Anne's Manor, Wokingham - one of Hilton's country house hotels.  We drove down on the Friday night and met them for dinner and a few drinks in the bar.

On the Saturday the girls used the health club while Tony and I had a round of golf at the Downshire Golf Complex.  I carded a gross 93 which is my 13th round under 100 - I was quite pleased considering it's a course that I don't know.  We had a posh dinner in the main restaurant and then travelled home again on the Sunday.  All the food, the drink and the 4* accommodation set each couple back about £150 - I'm loving Keren's discount!

Best Golf Bloopers - love the guy at 4:19

Evian-les-Bains

K and I have had a week in four star luxury staying at the Hilton in Evian-les-Bains (where the water comes from) in the French alps.  We drove down to Luton on Friday night and stayed overnight there (curry, obviously).  We were able to leave our car at the hotel for the week and get a cab to the airport - which is only 10 minutes from the middle of Luton so very convenient.  We flew to Geneva where we picked up our rental car (was hoping for a Twingo but got a Yaris) and drove the couple of hours to Evian.

It's a traditional spa town although the current Evian bottling plant has moved to Thonon (about 5 miles away).  It's been very grand in it's day and still boasts several large hotels and a casino.  Evian is on the southern shore of Lake Geneva (or Lac Leman as the French call it) and the alps form the backdrop to the town.  All-in-all there is some spectacular scenery.

October is in-between the main summer season and the winter ski season so everything was fairly quiet (which makes getting a table for dinner very easy) - we're easily pleased though and just enjoy mooching about having a look at different places.  Give us a bar and pack of cards and we're happy!

We had one day in Annecy which is an beautiful town that Keren knew from her time as a student in France.  Another couple of days walking and driving in the mountains around Thollon and Larringes.  A boat trip to Lausanne on the Swiss side of the lake where we visited the Olympic museum and the cathedral; and a day in Yvoire which is medieval village to the west of Evian.

It's a beautiful part of the world and a very relaxing place to spend some time.

Ryder Cup 2010

The Ryder Cup is with us again - surely every golf fan's favourite event.  A chance for little old Europe to take on the might of the US PGA.  Unfortunately (for me), Sky have the TV rights to the coverage but fortunately (for me) I have a very accomodating mate called Ross who doesn't mind me moving in to his house for the weekend!

The plan was to go over on Friday night and stay until Sunday but the atrocious weather at Celtic Manor meant the entire schedule was turned upside down.  Who'd have thought it?  Rain in October in South Wales!  In the end, I skipped Friday altogether and went over on Saturday and stayed until Sunday.  We watched a lot of golf, drank a fair amount of beer and enjoyed a good curry.  Oh, by the way, Europe stuffed the Yanks.  Sweet.

Dawn & Karl cutting their cake

This is a live post direct from the banks of the river Sincil. It's Saturday night and K and I are enjoying Dawn & Karl's wedding party. Will try to post a video of K dancing to YMCA.

Langley's Charity Quiz 2010

I was part of Danwood's crack team of general knowledge know-it-alls this week.  Every year Langley's Solicitors organise a charity quiz night for their clients and we have entered a team in each of the last four or five.

There were six on our team and we were delighted to eventually finish second to the team from Dynex.  That's the best ever performance by a Danwood team.  No prizes other than being able to wear a smug expression but that's enough.

Really well organised do as usual, and over £1000 was raised for the Alzheimer's Society.

Patricia and Steve's Wedding

What a terrific day we've had today.  Steven and Patricia tied the knot and Clint and I were very proud to be Steve's "best men" - as we said in the speech, Steve couldn't find one best man so he got two barely competent ones instead.

The day started when I picked Steve up at about 9:30 and we headed to Clint's.  Emma had knocked up a full cooked breakfast for us - even some Buck's Fizz.

Clint's car was be-ribboned and he drove Steve and I out to the Petwood Hotel in Woodhall Spa.  On arrival, we met the photographer and the videographer before getting changed into our finery.  Once we were dressed it was back outside into the beautiful gardens for some more photographs.  We found time for a quick pint just to steady the Groom's nerves!

 

We moved inside for the ceremony where a harpist was providing just the right background ambiance.  Patricia arrived late (as is her prerogative) but she looked stunning.  The civil ceremony was done really well, Steve's Mum and Dad both did readings and Clint and I even managed to hand over the rings on time.

After the ceremony, we moved back into the gardens for group photographs and a glass or two of Pimms.  The weather was superb all day and the beautiful gardens gave the photographer so many options.

After the photos, we ushered everyone inside for the receiving line and the wedding breakfast.  Superb food - a great bit of beef - was followed by the speeches.  Pat and Steve did great speeches and lots of people said that they enjoyed Clint and my speech too - we certainly enjoyed delivering it and got some laughs (and a few gasps!).

After dinner the room was quickly turned around and the DJ and band took over.  The band were superb - they played covers representing all eras from the 60s to date.  Everything they played kept the dancefloor absolutely packed.

S & P had chosen a hog roast for the evening and crackling was delicious, mmmmmm pig fat.....

All round a brilliant day and now they're sunning themselves in the Maldives.