Hello 2006! And a Happy New Year to you too. It feels good, a fresh year ahead, a year for achievement, happiness, fulfilment, productivity and all those other things you vow to forge ahead with... all those things you say you'll do at the start of every year. Never mind that, this year is the year.

2006 was heralded, for me, in Manchester this year, on a visit to my good friend Richard. He live in dangerous parts, he does; a suburb in which Morrissey could likely have preened and posed, penning verse; Doves written mournful songs of the M62; or Elbow could have eaten fried chicken. Yes, this is the suburb in which the high street has more fast-food grease-pits than Addiscombe (now that's an achievement already) and more Indian restaurants than the sub-continent itself. How does the economy support itself there? The competition must be fiercer than Trisha embattled with Kilroy over a new daytime teevee slot.

Thankfully, neither Kilroy nor Trisha were present at the Fab Café, an exciting alt-bar in the city centre, but attending were a good mixture of lovely peoples and Richard's coolio friends, and 2006 arrived in a slightly drunken fashion, and with a Subway beef sub with extra gherkin (the first time they've ever taken heed of my request and given actually oodles of the pickle that I so desire). ♥ gherkin. [And yes, that woman is eating a whole gherkin in a bun in that link.]

One minor hitch of the evening, or, rather, a hitch for my wallet, was the bus fare: £3 each way! You what?! Yes indeed, you what, I incredulously mouthed, unable to quite speak, at the bus driver. That's more than even dear Kenneth would dare throw our way down here.

---

Excitement earlier today, in the form of open-air ice-skating at Somerset House with Dominic. Not having skated for about a decade meant that the first few tentative steps on the frozen surface were trepidous steps into dooooom. Rather luckily, Dom, being an expert skater, made me leave the barriers and actually attempt to venture out and learn to skate, and skate I did! I can't say it was exactly pretty (the arms flailing and wheeling in the air raised a few laughs from fellow ice-admirers, or possibly scared screams) but I only fell over once. Admittedly, this low figure was thanks to Dom adopting the brace position and catching me, often almost embrace-like to prevent an untimely encounter with the ice.
Posted: 03-01-06 23:57 :: Permalink: http://ben.corale.co.uk/archive/v1/217.html

Comments Use the form at the bottom to post your comments. Here is the feedback:

Wolfie writes It's been almost a month since you've updated and some of us are muttering words like "dereliction".

Tsk. Commented: 30-01-06 18:35

The blog author writes Fear not! A new one a arrivée. Commented: 30-01-06 20:12