Once showered and changed, Caitlin, Will, Emily myself and a few others headed for a bar with patio. To be inside on a day like today would have been criminal. I didn’t make a big deal of the end of my cycling, but feeling relaxed, happy and in the mood for personal celebration, the first round was on me. The Guiness was a tad watery and slipped down far too easily. So we got on the jugs of PBR. It was cheap and did the job! We were joined by more folk throughout the afternoon, stayed for some food and then headed back home, grabbing beers on the way.
Will held court on doggy serotonin levels as he rubbed Ben’s hips (Ben, or to give him his full title- Bennington- is Caitlin’s dog. I mention this lest Will come away from this post sounding odder than is strictly true!) Ben duly dozed. It’s always hard to tell quite how inebriated you are when sat down, but as we stood to get more beers from the fridge, we could all tell that our legs were drunk! I made conversation as to the unnoticed but definite advantage that American’s have on dates. Not the fruit but when out, on a date.
Allow me to explain: In America girls drink beer, and happily so. In England, in my humble experience, although beer is drunk by girls it isn’t a common practice. It would seem a great lack of foresight, and would probably count against a guy, should you arrive back at his place and there was no wine on offer. Or if he returns from the bar having predicted that Yes you really would prefer lager. So to the problem of wine- What to pick? Rose is something we guys know little about, but fortunately can be made simple…dry or sweet. And as it’s Rose, even the dry is usually a little on the sweet side. I drink Red wine, and enjoy it, at home or with a meal but not at the pub. To me pubs are for ale. It’s a habit but as I like ale I see no reason to break the habit. White wine, on the other hand, is my stumbling block. I don’t know sweet from dry and all varieties in between. House wine seems a safe bet but also sounds cheap. Not what you want for a date.
So you see, with everyone drinking beer, a simple yet crucial opening mishap is avoided in the USA. Nice work there America! Mind you, a good wine can make for excellent opening conversation, where a conversation about beer invariably arrives at stories of drunken inhibitions and ruinous times. You choose as to what your new date would prefer to hear and guide the conversation accordingly…
Back to the room where Will is lying prostrate on the floor, I have introduced Tim Minchin, and they have in return given me Louis C K. This fella is FUNNY and we are roaring with laughter! Eventually Nicole wants to hit another bar- her new workplace- so a few of us head there. Timmy Condon’s is affectionately (or notoriously, I didn’t work out which) known also as Tiny Condom’s. Either way, I’m delighted to see a fiddler playing and a true bar round which we stand and order drinks. I still haven’t gotten used to the waitress service at American bars. We hit the Rumplemints shots and memory fades at this point. We need to get outta there before Nicole is fired without even working a shift! I do remember breaking a flipflop and we had to buy duck tape to fix (I believe Drew fixed) it so we could get into the next bar. I don’t remember, and neither does Kat, making Nacho’s with her when we got back, but Caitlin tells us she heard that part and the Salsa stains on clothes label us guilty of drunken cooking!
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