Busy Busy Busy!

I haven’t posted in two days because of the sheer amount of stuff I’ve had going on!

On Wednesday my brother and his girlfriend came down to London and hung around the flat until Thursday when they went to Paris for a few days...lucky buggers. While they were here it was pretty much constant rain so we didn’t do much. But I did take them to the Wetherspoon’s at Liverpool Street Station which is always a laugh! If you’ve been there you know exactly what I mean. The place is decked out like a stately home from hell. Complete with cherubs on the ceiling which one drunken bystander pointed out to me as “A fine example of Art Deco”. I laughed it off even though I was crying inside. Once I had regained consciousness from my plaster induced seizure, we randomly bumped into a friend of mine. A ‘cheeky chappy’ by the name of Vortex. He was skulking around with a fella from the city and generally up to no good so we made it our duty to contain him if only for a few minutes while we ordered our swill. He has landed a cushy job as an Actuary for a big ole firm in the city and I believe he's on *****....bit of a difference from my situation but I’m pleased to say it hasn’t changed him. He’s still always up for a can of Special Brew, best served spread-eagled on the pavement down Brick Lane on a Friday night! After I had consumed far too much alcohol on a relatively empty stomach (I’m on a diet you know?....no, it’s not because I’m poor!) we made our way through the driving rain to Pizza Express. We had an amazing meal for a ridiculous price. For once I’m referring to the loose change we parted with for the food in our bellies. Yes the bill came to £45 for four people having a starter, pizzas, a bottle of wine and four beers. Remarkable! A good time was had by all and we were in bed by midnight even though we would only have five hours sleep.

We departed for the train station early on Thursday morning heavily hung-over. I could have done without the trip but it was my duty to protect them from the harsh realities of London, and besides I needed some pure liquids in my system. When I’d dropped them off I ended up falling asleep till about eleven when I awoke lazily and went to good old Sam’s for a fry up. As this is the first time I’ve mentioned Sam’s I think I ought to explain. This isn’t your ordinary fryer! Located just a few steps from my door, I rarely leave Sam’s feeling better than when I went in. It’s not their fault of course, it’s just the nature of their trade, like a tobacconist I suppose, specializing in things that make you feel worse than you already do. Still, it's good value and I always get a cheery reception.

Then it was off to the job centre, my fortnightly venture into the abyss. Needless to say I’d rather not be there but it is, and always has been, amazing to me that I can roll up and receive benefits for my troubles. The meeting went well and I always have a laugh with them about not having any luck. Yes that’s 44 job applications now, three interviews and zero job offers. Wow that’s a sobering thought (I’m stone cold by the way...please excuse the opus). Free for another two weeks, I glided down the road and visited ‘me old mucca’ Vortex at his new pad. He moved in on Wednesday and was looking a bit lonely in his cell (all he has at the moment is a bed and a table) We had a good chat and I’d brought him a can of Special Brew as a moving in present...you know something you can position with pride on your shelf in the fridge and say yes I’m a cheap drunk and proud of it, so really the best present to get a man living with a group of strangers for the first time. We had a great conversation covering many topics, some clean some not so. This blog came up as he’s interested in doing something similar; though I’m sure it would be ten times better than this one (he’s a bit of a genius). Currently he’s reading a book a day which took me aback. What a brilliant use of his time. I should learn from him. He’s good like that, he can dedicate himself to a task and really do it!

Anyway all this talk wasn’t going to hide the fact I had work for Lucy Hall (a part time catering company) in an hour. The shift would prove to be a hard one. Don’t get me wrong, the work was easy and it wasn’t even that busy, but the characters they had herded into that auditorium were savage. Whether their hysteria was caused by the racket emitted by the BBC orchestra or spurred on by a deep seated hatred of all things under 40, I wasn’t popular tonight. In fact one man was so incensed by my service (always pleasant I might add) and the measures I was pouring (the industry standard!) he proclaimed I needed to seek psychiatric help. I thanked him for his advice and sent him on his addled way safe in the knowledge that the rat poison, procured from the traps under the counter earlier that very evening, would finish the job for me nicely. Filled with glee, I laughed manically all the way home, much to the disgust of the bus driver.

So now here I am, sockless on my couch, nursing my wounds, safe in the knowledge I have four CV’s ready to post tomorrow and a list of others yet to write. It will be a long day, let’s hope it’s raining!