May we dance?

May we dance?

Welcome to May! The first week in May was the busiest week ever at work! I had to dash from meeting to meeting, with barely time to grab my salad for lunch. I did have some really good LEAN based project meetings with work though – so that was good!

On the evening of the 2^nd was the long awaited team night out with work… it was really frustrating as it was one of those things that everyone in the teams (H&S, Performance and Quality) moaned that no one organised – so I did – and then no one turned up! Well, that’s a bit of an exaggeration… it ended up being me, Nate and my colleagues Stephen and Andy. It was a good night – but a few ales combined with an empty stomach meant I took a bit of a painful spill on the way home.

I’m going to do a bit of a fortnight round up for you… so hold on to your hats! The Bank Holiday weekend was totally fab. The Friday afternoon, I finished work early – so had a wander around town to grab some bits and pieces in the sun. Went through the new Station (pics below - looks great) and got to see the giant Monty Pythonesque hands they use to direct people... made me giggle!We decided to have a quiet one, as the rest of it was going to be bit nuts! 

In the morning of the Saturday – we decided we would get ALL of the chores done. We got to Market, the Supermarket, cleaned the flat and got several loads of washing done. The Star Wars Party on the Saturday turned into an Ace event. Squeeky and Gitzy did a fabulous job of decorating the place and people turned up in all sorts of costumes. We had everything from Tuskan Raiders to Jawa’s to Luke Skywalker. With the films on and an expressly picked Star Wars related soundtrack in the background, there was laughs, cocktails and conversation until late in the evening.

On the Sunday – we blessedly woke up clear headed and ready to take on the day. We made a snap decision to head to Stoke-on-Trent to enjoy the weather and get out of the house. It ended up being a gorgeous day, and we did the 3.5 mile River Avon walk as well as a good look at the classic cars and the market stalls that had popped up on the day. After a full weekend, we were totally shattered – but managed to have another full day on the Monday. We walked down to Soho House for a celebration of James Watt. As well as Steam engines and attractions – we finally got a chance to go around Matthew Boulton House (which was well worth the £4 admission fee!). In the evening, we went for some cocktails with the aforementioned Squeeky to celebrate her birthday. Had a lovely time... but had a bit of a sore head in the morning...

On the Tuesday evening, I met up with Cate and Jo for a coffee and a natter. This quickly dissolved into wine and chats at the Lord Clifton (in it's glorious beer garden - excellent for soaking up the remaining summer sun) with Alex, Vicky, Tira, Jo, Cate (and briefly) Ollie. It was a classy evening (as the picture below shows!)

 Had a lovely chilled out Wednesday evening with Emma and Jon... it's all about Jobs with my lot at the moment! Job Stress, Job interviews and new Jobs.. Good luck to them all! ^_^. On Thursday - it was all about the excitement.. Met up with Jo at New Street Station at 2:00pm to get the train to Landaaaan. After checking into our Travelodge room (best overheard complaint ever, "No, no... it's a lovely room. It's just there is someone else -in- it!"), we headed for Camden. After a quick wander round the markets, some delicious pie (venison and red wine - yum) and a few pints - it was time to head to the Roundhouse for The Knife!

 The venue was absolutely stunning, but unfortunately - woefully inadequate to deal with an audience of people ranging from 5 foot - 6'9. The gig started with an exceptionally bizarre warm up act...

 A young gent in a wig doing aerobics to electronica? This was apparently to "warm up the crowd" but he got an exceptionally lukewarm reception from most. As he was positioned by the side of the stage, hardly any of the standing audience could see him either. What were you thinking Knife?

The gig itself was terribly frustrating for Jo. As one of the aforementioned short types, she couldn't see anything at all throughout the show. I ended up lifting her up for some of it (to give her a glimpse of the action), but both her and my physiology betrayed us in the end and she had to make do with just hearing. C'mon Gig venues?! Higher stages or a gradient in the floor makes perfect sense, doesn't it? Me and Dan caught about 70% of the show (thank god for big shoes). As it was largely a performance piece with only some of it being played live - it was all in the watching. I definitely enjoyed the experience, although the show wasn't as good as the first time I saw them in 2006. The limited view plus bad vocal mixing meant that no one really got the best experience.

After a scary lost/found phone attack, we headed back to our Travelodge for a bit of a nights sleep. An early morning ensued and before I had a chance to properly wake up, we were headed to South Kensington. Me and Dan bound for the Science Museum and Jo bound for the Natural History. I have a few photos here for you...

 By far, my favourite exhibit was the Google Lab. See the sequence of photos below where you can see a robot (having taken a photo), come up with a sketch drawing of my face and then DRAW IT IN SAND!!

 Welcome to the future! Also really enjoyed the space exhibit, the medical history section and the small (but informative) Alchemy and history of Electronics sections!

By the time we got back to Birmingham (after just 4 hours in the Science Museum and a 2.5 hour train journey), we had to head straight to the pub for a colleagues leaving do. Just a couple of pints were consumed before we headed back home for some chips and an early night.

Saturday - very exciting indeed - we went to see a potential site for our Wedding festival next year. Osgard 2014. I am very pleased to report (well, you can see why as below), that the Wedding is Now Booked! We're sleeping in the Hobbit House (as pictured). How good is that?!

 Technically - the next photo is a cheat as it was taken in the Science Museum... but adequately sums up our Saturday night as we went to see the new Star Trek Movie. Loved it! Laughed, was on the edge of my seat and may (*may*) have had a little cry.

 On Sunday, we had a lie in. We followed this up with a visit to the pub to see Clare and then had a very pleasant afternoon being visited. Caroline and Jo popped over first - followed by Emelie in the evening. It's Tuesday today - and I'm still knackered... thought I would do this (as I had a *few* photos for you 0_o) and then we're getting ready to receive many guests. We also have some serious Eurovision Party planning to do and try to get some rest in before the weekend starts again...

Best get on!