Archive for year 2003

Fanta, taste the orange – not!

On the way home last night, I had to change trains at Canary Wharf, it was four minutes till the train so I dashed up to Burger King, ordered my food and dashed back down the escalator nearly taking out a granny on the way. The train slides into the station just as I bolt through the double doors onto the platform. I jump on the packed train, nab myself a seat, put my brown paper bag and extra large drink on the floor so I could take my rucksack off. At that very moment some idiot slides his bag across the floor to save himself a seat. He doesn’t know his own strength and the bag rebounds off the side of the seat and ricochets into my food, sending a torrent of ice cold Fanta over my piping hot fries and bacon-double-cheeseburger.

He apologies and points out that at least it wasn’t a pint – fair comment I thought, but still annoyed at the lack of food and drink despite spending the better part of a fiver on it. This was further enhanced by the knawing hunger in my belly and knowledge that Byrney had eaten all my food in the house!

Two minutes later there is a veritable Mediterranean sea of yellow frothy liquid running up and down the length of the carriage and lots of people are tutting and shaking their heads at me while I try to eat the driest of the soggy chips and burger. Next the conductor comes along and starts hassling me about bring food on the DLR and spilling stuff everywhere. And that if “I can’t control it then I shouldn’t be eating it on the train” and “how was I gonna be clearing it up” etch etc. I pointed out that my napkins were already soaked and I had nothing to clean it with. Meanwhile the guy who split everything was just sitting next to me grinning like a loon! When I tried to point it out he got off the DLR and I was left there with dirty looks for my troubles!

Another busy week, 50+ hours but much more fun, finally getting into the swing of being a business analyst -whatever that is!

Went to see American Pie the wedding on Monday, quite funny but not as good as the others. I don’t love these films but they make me laugh and in the case of this one it made me physically gag in the cinema, I so nearly puked!!!! I’d give it 7/10 just for making me laugh. Still need to see T3!

After working late on Tuesday, I went with my old team from work to a really, really fancy restaurant. Christine, Mirna and Paula went for dinner here when I was on training to congratulate Christine on her new job within DB, but they had very poor service and for over £50 a head you think they’d be nicer. The storey goes that they were calling the waiters and trying to catch people’s attention for over an hour. They gave 3 drinks orders to 3 different people and none of them turned up! Well to cut a long story short they wrote a “strongly worded” letter the Chef, Mr Jasper Conran, and were given a £160 voucher!

This place is really cool apart from the fact its a french restaurant, its on top of Bank underground station and had a big roof-top garden and a nice bar. The only way up is by a 4 person lift! Here’s the website with photos – Coq D’Argent. I had Scottish smoked Salmon followed by Scottish Angus Steak and finished it off with a couple of glasses of Merlot and a strawberry tart with champagne ice cream! Yes it was rather nice!

Played badminton again on Wednesday, I think I was even worse this week, if thats possible, still it was a good laugh. Wanna keep playing for just a bit of exercise really. Went out for some drinks in Covent Garden with folk from work on Thursday, went to this really strange Thai restaurant. Its like an old mans pub but they serve really good meals. Had a bottle of wine too many (1!).

Seem to be leading the fancy life this week, saw my first lamborghini today as well, the 2003 Diablo in bright yellow, just like the one at www.lamborghini.co.uk, except this one was being driven by a woman who looked about 12 and it had the number plate Y1.

Last day of work for my mum at Walters, Rule & Co, never realised how bad their website was before but that’s beside the point. If you can find the picture of them with Fred McCauley, my Mum is the one on the back left, beside the lady in red.

Quiet Friday night, Stuart’s away in Reading for the festival, Mark and Tim are in Croatia, Derek is in New York (again), Sara is off home to Brighton, so think it’ll be quite quiet despite helping Sinead and Helen move house tomorrow.

Then again I should probably use the time to email and phone everyone I haven’t spoken to in a while and I’ve a pile of emails at hotmail to go through, sounding like an old man now! Nite Nite.

Wow ages since the last post, much has happened since I last posted but I’ve only time for the summary, hopefully I’ll come and put it in soon. The censored highlights include:


• Nikki & Sheila coming down to visit
  
• Jen coming down to visit
  
• Night out in London with Nev, Sam, Byrney, Lynne, Lynne and Elizabeth
  
• The end of training including messy work night out
  
• Phil Brumby’s wedding to Claire Brumby (now!) in Belfast
  
• Me adding more photos of the above in the pics section
  
• New Job (in the same company)
  
• Watching Tim in the London Triathlon while sipping an ice cold drink – sorry Tim!
  
• Red Bull Flug-tag in Hyde Park
  
• Grad and intern charity pool competition
  
• Catching up with Matt
  
• A “Yellow” Party that ended in mayhem!
  
• 100.1 degrees Farenheight day!
  
• Me being rubbish at keeping in touch with people by phone, email, letter or text
  

More updates as I remember them and fill in the drunken blanks in my memory!

James

Day 5- Options Training

Equity Derivatives training today with Bill, pretty good but a complete mind bender on the maths, still we all survived to hit the pub at 5.

Quiet night tonight just relaxing in the flat, need to chill after trying to deal with Pizza Hut, after phoning 3 different numbers and being told “that you dont live where you say you do, that address just does not exist!”, I gave up and shouted at the phone (once I hung up!).

Sri Lanka

Just realised that I haven’t announced that my parents are moving abroad soon, Dad is taking a new job in Sri Lanka based in the capital Columbo. They’re due to start in late September or early October so not long before we have to clear the house and they’ll move almost to the opposite side of the world! Not much more to say except Wow!

Its been a weekend to remember so far for a number of reasons most of which I cannot remember but I’ll do my best to recall as I write this.

Friday was a hectic day trying to get everything finished at work, after a hard slog and missing lunch I phoned my soon to be ex-boss to say bye and thankyou etc etc sure enough I phone him and say thanks for helping me out blah blah blah and he simply says “Ok James, bye”. With that sour note of appreciation I hit pub as soon as he slammed the reciever down in New York.

Several pints in King’s later during which I acquired some strange marks on my chest (thanks Derek), and a fair sized group had turned up to celebrate the end of rotation. After that we all headed to the usual Springbok for more drinks and then finally at 11 we headed to Charlies.

Seemed to spend most of the evening complaining that I hadn’t had any proper food since Thurday lunchtime ( a banana and a small pastry) so 36 hours and many drinks later I was much the worse for wear by the time we headed to Charlies. Soon recovered enough to start dancing like along and enjoying myself until we left Charlies shortly before 3AM.

We dragged everyone out and then I got a lift back to Docklands with Helen, Jean, Helena and Aidean. I dropped them off at the various houses and then headed back to the flat. The taxi driver refused to turn into my street for some unknown reason which he wasn’t willing to explain but so had to walk the last bit.

Highlights of the night include Jim & Tim’s random repetoire where Tim and I sang a set of dums,dees and dohs to any and every tune the DJ played. Makes you realise how drunk and annoying I must have been to have done that, but was a good laugh at the time. Also wierdly saw two randoms dressed up as Elvis dancing on a window sill at 4AM in the morning.

Followed up that night with an early start to meet Nev in town when he got down from reading. We went to a pub in Leicester square called The Sussex where me, Nev and Byrney caught up on the latest news, then headed down to Embankment (via Trafalgar Square, Downing Street and Westminster) to meet Sam & Lynne and her two pals Lynne and Elizabeth. We met them for a drink on the Queen Mary (one of the moored boat/pubs on the Thames). Then headed back to Lynne’s flat in Balham for a couple of cans and a pizza. We all headed out to Leicester square again for drinks in the Walkabout then on to the Porter’s House for a few more with a live band playing. Finally headed to Stockwell to The Swan which looks like a dive from the outside but was a really good place to have fun in. Very strange touches like the live band who played Song 2 by Blur mixed with Roxanne by the Police and Yeah, yeah, yeah by Nirvana. Really good stuff and much better than the usual midi based covers.

Got really drunk, danced like and arse enjoyed some free food, met up with a very pissed Kenny, headed home on the bus singing songs as a group and getting the rest of the bus to join in. Everyone clapped and cheered when we got off the bus, but that was probably relief rather than thanks.

Got to sleep about 5 and then had to get back up this morning and head to Greenwich to meet Jill, Jean, Helen, Sinead, Derek, Gary Sara and some of her pals to lounge in the sun at the park. Really good laugh but I should have taken a book or something to keep myself amused. Sun burn on the nose but it was worth it to spend such a lovely day in the park.

Watching Misson Impossible and savouring 24!