Today I've mostly bin...

[giraffe]

Yes. It was the prize winners' concert from the music festival that she did in March. As it was their 50th anniversary year they had some people who had gone on to careers in music / drama/ dance come back and perform, so it was very varied. Kingsley's clarinet teacher said it was one of the best she has played her piece. As usual I'm a very proud mummy.

[LAT]

How lovely! You have every right to be proud. Well done Kingsley!

[Bunnylump]

Excellent! Well done you!

[Scurra]

Sounds brilliant. Well done.

[MBH]

Sounds like Bunny and Giraffe both had a good time watching and listening to music Well done to the players as well.

I'm just cleaned up and settling down after a busy evening in the Cricket Club. My body is slowly working back into the mechanics of pub work and I was 'flowing' more behind the bar. Still could do with a back-rub though [I'm hoping this counts as 'exercise' and starts to work some weight off]

[clvrlad]

just home from the drinking session with the guys at work
nearly sober as per.......
why is it i dont let my self get that drunk?

[MBH]

Common sense and a liking of staying in control of yourself?

I'm considered to be an old 'wet blanket' with the fact I don't drink - but I can still have a great time on a night out I can understand the idea of A drink relaxing your body and mind a little, but I've never fully understood why anyone would get DRUNK for a second time in their lives - the first time might be lack of knowledge but what I've heard of and seen of hangovers why does anyone do that to themselves a second time?

Before anyone asks, I've tasted most drinks and have been working behind bars since I was 16-years-old - I didn't like the taste, and saw no reason to 'acquire' it. Both of my parents (and the adult crowd I grew up with) were social drinkers, and I had the late-teenage peer pressure to drink which I simply ignored.

While I'm serving drinks - like last night - it amazes me how much people spend getting drink after drink after drink through the night. [OK - there is a degree of envy there, as I can't afford to do so and don't know how THEY can]. I hear the word starting to slur, and see the inability of the guy who does the till-check at the end of the night to add up a string of figures after just a couple of pints (he's in 'accounting' as a profession - so that might explain it ), and I think "WHY????"

I know I'm out of step with the rest of the world - but that just makes me, ME

[Laura]

You're not out of step with the whole world. Don't worry!

[giraffe]

It really annoys me when people ask me why I don't drink and I say that I haven't found a drink that I really like and I'm just as happy with a diet coke, and then they say "Have you tried XXXXX? I'm sure you'd like that." What didn't they understand about "I'm just as happy with diet coke," I don't want to acquire the taste. I also really hate the disoriented feeling I get after half a glass of wine, or the lips going numb and speech slurring after a whole glass.

I too can understand peolpe having a drink or two while they are out, if they enjoy it, but I don't understand the sort of person that goes out with the sole intention of getting drunk. Surely the being with friends and enjoying their company should be the main objective?

Peer pressure as a teenager was dreadful, but when I was 20 I inherited my grandfather's old banger of a car. (It was a couple of months younger than me) Then I could volunteer to be driver and no-one pressured me to drink.

[Bunnylump]

As you know I do like a drink, but I would NEVER dream of pressurising anyone who doesn't. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that if I'm in the company of non-drinkers (my Mum, Dad, Daughter to name but a few) I tend to moderate my drinking because I'm aware that I'm getting lary. I do from time to time have an evening out with other people who are drinking and choose to not drink myself(even if I'm not driving) so I know exactly where you're coming from.

Sadly, I DO like the taste of some drinks (I wish I didn't, it'd help my clarity, my purse, and my waistline) and I will also freely admit that part of the reason I drink is that it helps me to relax in company. I always USED to be a really naturally gregarious and friendly person; these days, as old age creeps up on me I am more prone to being nervous when meeting people or when I'm in new places / situations. When I'm nervous, I go one of two ways: I am either scarily quiet or completely manic. If I have a glass of wine it makes me slightly more relaxed or a lot less "manic". I SO wish this was not the case, and that a glass of diet coke would be ok. All I can say is you're obviously more balanced than I am!!

[clvrlad]

i have to disagree

diet coke is yukky you have to have full fat
and yes im awake
oh and to be totally honest i do drink too much spent £50 last night and b4 you ask no i dont do hangovers :-p
i seldom drink and when i do i have j20/cokes etc aswell as what ever cheap alcholic stuff im drinking slows down my inebriation

[Bunnylump]

Actually I have to disagree, coke full stop is disgusting.

[LAT]

Actually I have to disagree, coke full stop is disgusting.

and I'm with you there - never did like the stuff. The only time I ever drank it was when I worked in a little coffee bar in Soho where we served coke and lemon. The lemon squash lightened and sharpened up the flavour so it was much more palatable.
But then I'm odd too as for hot beverages I like tea with sugar but no milk.
And yes, I do enjoy wine.

[Bunnylump]

Ah well, it'll be me you and Gill in a sozzled heap in the corner!

[clvrlad]

im sure looby will join you
and i might have the odd glass myself :-p

[LAT]

We'll need a biggish corner then!
Any more want to join the sozzled heap?

[giraffe]

It's hard enough to organise a get together, what hope do you have of organising a sozzled heap?

[LAT]

Well I can always try!

[Bunnylump]

We could always be a disorganised sozzled heap...

[Wulfruna]

.....packing up ready to head off to Germany tomorrow for two weeks
As I mention sometimes, I am involved with the German "Kirchentag" which is a massive church-related event happening every two years in a different German city and attracting over 100,00 people, including 4,000 or so international visitors. It is really exciting and shows in an amazing way that the church has a real role to play in civil society - it attracts huge numbers of young people, which is great. Speakers include not just church leaders but major politicians (the Chancellor Angela Merkel will speak, along with several other cabinet ministers.) as well as leading economists, scientists and business leaders.
I help out with staffing the "International Centre" which offers support to visitors from abroad. There will be about 200 from the UK going - you don't have to speak German as there are a number of events with translation and in any case language is irrelevant when it comes to listening to music (of every kind you could imagine) and enjoying street theatre.

This year's Kirchentag is in Munich, which is probably better known for the October Beer Festival.... In reference to previous entries on this Forum, I have every intention of putting the beer to the test while there....and have already been invited to a staff party at the famous Augustinerkeller, which can't be bad We are then planning to stay on in Bavaria for a further week's holiday (for me to recover from the hard work!) so I shall be missing for a little while.

However, I can here exclusively reveal that Scurra himself will also be heading off to Munich with us for the main event (though his parents will be abandoning him when it comes to our own holiday afterwards.... ) The trip is our birthday present to him this year (watch this space tomorrow.... ) ... though he will not be testing the beer as he joins with Giraffe in much preferring coke. I just can't imagine where he got that non-alcoholic gene from