Yikes!!! Clarice with a hang over!

This is a random but entertaining story about my wild night out, on a work night none the less....

Uhg!!! I think I have the 1st hang over of my life today. Its all Fiona's fault. Was just sitting at my desk very innocent like and she said at half 7 "Oh I'm going out strait from work in 30 min to the pub. Come and have a drink with me?"

I tried to throw every excuse I could at her. I was tired, had been working for 11 hours. I had a million things to do at home, I hate social situations, I hadn't eaten any thing but a small bag of pretzels all day, I wont know any one, I wasn't dressed for it, I work at 9am the next day, I'm skint, and I really needed to wash my hair (I wasn't kidding I really did)

Then she said "Look Clarice, I love you, but you can go home with your well balanced meal, clean hair, organized underwear drawer, and shopping list all done. Or you can come out with your best friend and meet new amazing people who may also be good friends some day. When you are old and telling stories to your grandkids what do you want to look back on?"

I tried to protest that one couldn't just party their whole life, responsibilities are some times necessary. So she asked me what on my list couldn't be skipped or done after I got home, or in the morning. What about going for one drink was going to make me a wild party animal living on the edge.

So I decided to go for 1. Got a portion of chips on the way, so I now had pretzels and chips under my belt to ward off the ONE drink I was planning on. Turns out the pub was way out in Leith by the shore. A rather swanky pub, and full of mature proper adults 24 years and older. Talking about important things like, politics, arts, culture, passion, careers, and family matters. There wasn't a shy, or un-interesting one in the bunch. The fact that there must have been about 20 or so people frightened me, but the 4 drinks I had helped wash that away. I don't generally believe in drinking away your fears, but I can say I was cleverly distracted by the sparkling conversations, that I hadn't noticed people kept buying me drinks, so it was an accident of sorts.

I was obviously being a bit more irresponsible than I had intended but it was fun. I had a geography lesson, heard about travels across the globe far and wide, talked about Contemporary dancing with a lovely man from the Czech Republic, and then went outside for a brilliant photography lesson with the nicest digital camera and a truly lovely man from Poland as well. The lesson was all about playing with light, and very cool special effects that you can do with the new digital cameras. The group that dwindled down to the end, was a group of 8, all from different countries. Represented was the brilliant and witty USA, the charming Ireland, the well mannered Scotland, the friendly India, the passionate Poland, the enthusiastic Czech, the sarcastic Aussi, and a laid back New Zealand. Well the famous number 1 turned out to be 1 O'clock, not 1 drink. The pub closed and I was feeling thoroughly pleased with a lovely night.

Then someone said the magic word.... The curse of my life.... "do you guys want to go Dancing?!?!?"

Nooooooo!!!! I put my fingers in my ears, and started to sing. La la la la! I couldn't hear them I wasn't going. But alas I failed, one of them found my Achilles heel. El Barrio salsa dancing!!!!! Dun Dun Duuuuunnnn!

So one actually turned into 3. Had it been 3 drinks not 3 O'clock I probably wouldn't be feeling so ill. Had it been 3 O'clock but no drinking I would be sleepy but fine. However I have learned two very important things about Eastern Europeans they can not only hold a good rhythm, but they can hold one hell of a lot of drink too. There was plenty of partners to go around, some of the best social dancing of my life, and a very caring and affectionate group of people. So I had a late and naughty night dancing drinking and learning to speak Czech.

Now I am at work wishing my computer would blow up so they would have to send me home, blessing the nectar of life called the 'Bacon Roll' and counting down the hours till bed time.

Ah well, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

=)