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Yey, Sexy Puppy!
Jun. 3rd, 2015 09:53 amAs expected, the weekend was rather quiet on account of needing to save money. We did go to Adia and Soma's where we had Chinese food from a place called Good Food which was more average than good in all honesty (but then I'm not a huge fan of Chinese food). We also saw a newsagents which was like a shop in Poland circa 1984 as it had the square root of bugger all in it, with the shelves groaning in their emptiness. Seriously, about two thirds of the shelves were empty, there mustn't have been a delivery in weeks. We also saw more Bottom Biting Bugs and Dog Days, where I'm starting to develop my first anime crush on Princess Milifore, head of the Biscotti Republic. It was a very pleasant few hours - I do like watching anime with good friends as it's such a relaxing evening.
I had intended to go to Sheffield but with my friends crying off citing money issues after CFz, coupled with some looming work that didn't really come, I opted to give it a miss. This was probably the best for my waistline though and I didn't manage to squeeze a mid-afternoon trip to the gym, where I watched two interesting documentaries on Alfred Hitchcock and Gene Kelly. Meanwhile Crysta was around as she needed Wolfie to work on some boots for her, so everyone was happy. I didn't really see much of Crysta, which was a shame, as she headed off while I was in the shower but unfortunately she couldn't really stay any longer as Wolfie was down to work some overtime at 5pm.
Wolfie's job was surprisingly short and he was back before 7pm, while Iargely just lounged about as it's very rare I get a whole day to myself. I think there may be a fair few over the summer as we need money for the attic project and it was most beneficial as I have started to feel exceptionally tired due to work commitments. With a night of staying in planned too, we headed over to a small off licence we were told about in BrewDog the previous week, run by two Sikh guys who spotted the huge potential craft beer brings for a small off licence. For a back street newsagent, the range of beer they have is remarkable, and cheaper than the city centre outlets. They were telling us how well the craft beer venture was going and how they needed to buy new shelving just to keep up. We had limited ourselves do £10 per person but in the end we spent £25 each due to the cosmic range on offer. It was extraordinary and testament to the fact that there is sometimes great finds in the suburbs of cities if you know where to look. This place is about seven minutes' drive from home and so we will definitely be returning, such was the extensive range of beers we have yet to try. We're also on friendly terms with the father and son team, with the son the one experimenting with craft beer in the first place. It must be going well, as they said, as another gentleman came in and must have spent a similar amount to us - and £75 for a newsagents in ten minutes is huge.
We largely had a chilled evening in, buying some food from Morrisons on the way home in an another attempt to save money. We were also destined to go to Stockport in the Sunday to meet up with Ent, Angela, Baloki and Miles for drinks for Baloki's birthday. The plan was to try the two new craft beer bars in the Heatons - another example of good places in the outskirts of cities - but in the end we only tried one, Bottle, due to a preference for real ale and vodka. Bottle was great, an out-of-the-way off-licence in a small bar, with about four tables and eight beers on draft to try. We quite enjoyed it but some people thought the beer was too expensive and so we soon looked elsewhere, settling on the Elizabethan, a JW Lees bar in the centre of Heaton Chapel which was cheap and does excellent food. We sat outside here, even though it was a little cold and windy, and chatted about a range of things over some good pub food. The ale was average, but then I find real ale often is, but it was an enjoyable afternoon around good company.
We had bought a day rider on the 192 after going from Stockport to the Heatons, meaning we could easily head back to Stockport to go to The Magnet, CAMRA's pub of 2015 and a very pleasant surprise as it had a nice balance of craft beer, real ale and spirits so everyone was happy. The bar staff were very friendly and Wolfie got to play with his Minions ball I bought for him in the last place. We could have stayed longer in this bar but time was pressing and everyone left by 8pm for one reason or another. It was quite an early finish really but in the end this turned out to get beneficial as it took us three and a half hours point to point to get back home on public transport, which was ridiculous. Part of the problem was the 192 to Manchester Piccadilly was slower than we thought (plus we had to wait a while for a train back to Leeds on a Sunday night - but at least there were a few furries we just happened to bump into to talk to) but the main issue was the half hour delay on the train outside Huddersfield due to trespassers on the line. We were sat in the vestibule of the train where wheelchairs and pushchairs go, and there was a lively kid of about three years of age with her German parents, who had moved to Leeds from Berlin. They were a nice couple although did bemoan the lack of a cosmopolitan attitude in Leeds relative to home - although they had just come back from a birthday party in the German capital and when I come back to Britain I often feel the same. We talked about a range of things, including politics, where they admitted they were surprised by the poor nature of public transport and lack of good rental controls in this country. I also got to learn a bit more German through the child's books - one was easy but there was a storybook which highlighted that my German is perhaps not as strong as I thought it was. Granted it was all in the simple past tense - a tense I've never actually learnt and just picked up along the way - but it's amazing how many vaguely common words I didn't know. That's where I'm at really with German - I know the words you use every day but examples such as Springseil (skipping rope) I tend not to know. Still I guess I just need to read more, ideally children's books, to pick up this information. Unlike many kids, this one was a delight, meeting all the passengers on the train and reminding me of how I was at that age. She was very friendly and the delay didn't bother us - despite it meaning that we couldn't enjoy another beer in Leeds before heading home - such was the good company, which was a common theme throughout the weekend.
I had intended to go to Sheffield but with my friends crying off citing money issues after CFz, coupled with some looming work that didn't really come, I opted to give it a miss. This was probably the best for my waistline though and I didn't manage to squeeze a mid-afternoon trip to the gym, where I watched two interesting documentaries on Alfred Hitchcock and Gene Kelly. Meanwhile Crysta was around as she needed Wolfie to work on some boots for her, so everyone was happy. I didn't really see much of Crysta, which was a shame, as she headed off while I was in the shower but unfortunately she couldn't really stay any longer as Wolfie was down to work some overtime at 5pm.
Wolfie's job was surprisingly short and he was back before 7pm, while Iargely just lounged about as it's very rare I get a whole day to myself. I think there may be a fair few over the summer as we need money for the attic project and it was most beneficial as I have started to feel exceptionally tired due to work commitments. With a night of staying in planned too, we headed over to a small off licence we were told about in BrewDog the previous week, run by two Sikh guys who spotted the huge potential craft beer brings for a small off licence. For a back street newsagent, the range of beer they have is remarkable, and cheaper than the city centre outlets. They were telling us how well the craft beer venture was going and how they needed to buy new shelving just to keep up. We had limited ourselves do £10 per person but in the end we spent £25 each due to the cosmic range on offer. It was extraordinary and testament to the fact that there is sometimes great finds in the suburbs of cities if you know where to look. This place is about seven minutes' drive from home and so we will definitely be returning, such was the extensive range of beers we have yet to try. We're also on friendly terms with the father and son team, with the son the one experimenting with craft beer in the first place. It must be going well, as they said, as another gentleman came in and must have spent a similar amount to us - and £75 for a newsagents in ten minutes is huge.
We largely had a chilled evening in, buying some food from Morrisons on the way home in an another attempt to save money. We were also destined to go to Stockport in the Sunday to meet up with Ent, Angela, Baloki and Miles for drinks for Baloki's birthday. The plan was to try the two new craft beer bars in the Heatons - another example of good places in the outskirts of cities - but in the end we only tried one, Bottle, due to a preference for real ale and vodka. Bottle was great, an out-of-the-way off-licence in a small bar, with about four tables and eight beers on draft to try. We quite enjoyed it but some people thought the beer was too expensive and so we soon looked elsewhere, settling on the Elizabethan, a JW Lees bar in the centre of Heaton Chapel which was cheap and does excellent food. We sat outside here, even though it was a little cold and windy, and chatted about a range of things over some good pub food. The ale was average, but then I find real ale often is, but it was an enjoyable afternoon around good company.
We had bought a day rider on the 192 after going from Stockport to the Heatons, meaning we could easily head back to Stockport to go to The Magnet, CAMRA's pub of 2015 and a very pleasant surprise as it had a nice balance of craft beer, real ale and spirits so everyone was happy. The bar staff were very friendly and Wolfie got to play with his Minions ball I bought for him in the last place. We could have stayed longer in this bar but time was pressing and everyone left by 8pm for one reason or another. It was quite an early finish really but in the end this turned out to get beneficial as it took us three and a half hours point to point to get back home on public transport, which was ridiculous. Part of the problem was the 192 to Manchester Piccadilly was slower than we thought (plus we had to wait a while for a train back to Leeds on a Sunday night - but at least there were a few furries we just happened to bump into to talk to) but the main issue was the half hour delay on the train outside Huddersfield due to trespassers on the line. We were sat in the vestibule of the train where wheelchairs and pushchairs go, and there was a lively kid of about three years of age with her German parents, who had moved to Leeds from Berlin. They were a nice couple although did bemoan the lack of a cosmopolitan attitude in Leeds relative to home - although they had just come back from a birthday party in the German capital and when I come back to Britain I often feel the same. We talked about a range of things, including politics, where they admitted they were surprised by the poor nature of public transport and lack of good rental controls in this country. I also got to learn a bit more German through the child's books - one was easy but there was a storybook which highlighted that my German is perhaps not as strong as I thought it was. Granted it was all in the simple past tense - a tense I've never actually learnt and just picked up along the way - but it's amazing how many vaguely common words I didn't know. That's where I'm at really with German - I know the words you use every day but examples such as Springseil (skipping rope) I tend not to know. Still I guess I just need to read more, ideally children's books, to pick up this information. Unlike many kids, this one was a delight, meeting all the passengers on the train and reminding me of how I was at that age. She was very friendly and the delay didn't bother us - despite it meaning that we couldn't enjoy another beer in Leeds before heading home - such was the good company, which was a common theme throughout the weekend.
