Hello Wilma!
Apr. 28th, 2016 11:32 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
lupestripeIt's been quite a frustrating week all told, not aided by the fact I have had a most peculiar cold which seemed to present each individual symptom over the course of four individual days. Consequently, on Friday I had a raspy throat ache, Saturday I had a headache and by the time I got to Monday, I was in full blocked up nose and sneezing mode. This is unlike Wolfie, who seems to have picked up the whole caboodle this evening, and while this cold is definitely on its way out, its persistence is something that has hitherto been unknown to me.
The cold probably wasn't aided by our Friday night out, where we had planned to visit Northern Monk as they were launching a new beer, Communion, which was brewed in collaboration with Swedish melodic metallers Opeth. I have known about Opeth for about 15 years so I thought it would be good to join the festivities, particularly as the band were performing a DJ set over at the bar. Alas, we got distracted by a range of tasty treats in Shuffledog and BrewDog, meaning that by the time we had got down there, some five hours after the party had begun, everything was largely being packed away. The draft tap for Communion had run dry but at least we managed to nab some cans, before making a swift exit largely because I had received a direct message from the BrewDog bar highlighting us to the fact that we hadn't paid our tab. We don't normally run tabs, and after a fair few sherberts, we weren't thinking in such terms but with the party over at Northern Monk (which was described as 6pm until late, and I don't really think 11pm is particularly late for a Friday), we thought we might as well traipse back to BrewDog and settle up. This also enabled us to try some more beers, in addition to those we had already tried at Shuffledog in the wake of their Alphabet v Atom Shuffleboard competition they had held the previous night. These beers were largely average and uninspiring, but it was in Shuffledog where we started, spending a good three hours sampling the ten beers we hadn't yet tried. We picked up a tasty sandwich here too and got chatting to the staff, as we often do, remarking in surprise at just how quiet it was. The same was the case in BrewDog, where we called en route to Northern Monk as there was a beer there we hadn't sampled either. As fortune would have it, this was the bottom of the keg and so they put another beer on soon after, a fantastic pilsner to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot, which was taking place over the weekend. By the time we had had this and had spoken to the new General Manager there, making a lasting impression on him of course, we were so late for Northern Monk that we shouldn't have bothered. In hindsight, the next morning, perhaps it was a regret but we had had a good night and I suppose that's the main thing.
In Shuffledog we had spoken at length about wanting to get a dog and these plans came closer to fruition last Friday. I think we both agreed that it would be more noble to get a rescue dog from the Dogs Trust than buy a puppy, plus I think we would feel happier giving a rejected dog another chance, even if that would mean a shorter amount of time to spend as the dog we would be getting would be older. We started looking at dogs we can adopt and I think we are going to look into this towards the end of the year. Speaking about dogs, our friend Tanuki popped up from Cambridge to visit on Sunday, but he did not have his bitch Molly with him, who is currently recuperating after elbow surgery. Tanuki was in fine form, arriving just after 1pm before the three of us headed over to Ilkley to have a walk on Ilkley Moor. I had never walked up on the moors before and the views over the town are stunning, even if the wind was bitingly cold. I liked the little whitewashed cafe halfway up the hillside but the real pleasure was just getting lost on the scrubland, clambering over rockies and dodging dogs going on their daily constitutional. I would have stayed there all day had we not had a dinner date in Leeds later in the evening. Ahead of our walk up the moor, we called in at Ilkley proper, a quaint little town of tea shoppes but few bars. Looking for a place to lunch, we called in at a craft beer shop before discovering at one of our favourite Leeds bars, Friends of Ham, have a small outlet here. Fancying some charcuterie, we popped inside where we had an exquisite cheeseboard, fruitcake and Wensleydale as well as some grainy bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. With a couple of pints of Ilkley Brewery's latest pale ale, it was quite a special lunch and the waiter chappie was telling us that the venture was proving popular some seven months into its opening.
We didn't really want to have a huge drinking session on Sunday, hence why we drove to Ilkley in the first place, but once we had arrived home we thought we ought to scoot into Leeds and grab some food as it was getting late. Tanuki fancied vegetarian curry from an award winning restaurant called Hansa's, particularly when he discovered they served massala dosa, one of his favourite things. We had been meaning to try this place for a while so we consented, but before heading up there, we stopped off at The Hedonist Project to try some more gins and botanicals, with one drink swiftly turning into two. I am glad that gin is becoming a thing again, and the range of different types, when coupled with the myriad of tonics available does present one with a cornicopia of interesting flavours to try. The only problem is, like with cocktails, they are just so damn expensive when you are in a bar, but then I guess you get what you pay for and the quality of the drinks here is exemplary. It's just a shame they'll be closing down in late June to turn into a rum bar, a drink I struggle to get on board with. Anyway, after our two double gin and tonics, we headed up to Hansa's only to discover to our dismay that it was closed. Town was surprisingly dead again, assumedly because this was the weekend before payday in a five-weekend month, but Zaaap was well-populated and as Wolfie had never been and Tanuki fancied Thai food, this is where we ended up. The gaudy street cafe vibe caused some interest, but the food was as good as I remembered it and it set us up perfectly for a couple of drinks to round off the night - at Bundobust (where we discovered to Tanuki's dismay that they served massala dosa but the kitchen had since closed) and Candlebar. We had aimed to get to Northern Monk but like with the Friday, we ran out of time and needed to head back, particularly as Tanuki needed to head off early as we had to get his car MOTed back in Cambridge before lunchtime on the Monday. As ever, it was great having Tanuki around although at times I feel quite uncultured when compared to him. Still, it was great talking about a range of subjects, particularly the arts and philosophy, and I do always learn a great deal whenever we meet up.
The only other things to have happened concern my mother and stepfather picking up their new cocker spaniel puppy, Wilma, on Tuesday and to whom I spoke that evening, with my mother adopting a similar silly voice to that she adopted when we had our last dog, Milly some twenty years ago. I am hoping to go up and see her at some point in the next month, with Wilma already enjoying socks, my parents' garden and looking at the phone quizically whenever it rings. It was great to hear a little bark when I was on the phone too. I spoke to my mother en route to seeing Aremay for another evening of political-based chat. I chose Wapentake as the place to meet and upon perusing their particularly Yorkshire menu online, I was looking forward to having a bespoke Yorkshire pudding for the excellent price of £6. Alas, despite the website saying food was served until 9pm, the kitchen was closed at 7pm so I necked my half of Eternal Darkness by Northern Monk quite quickly before going over to the Co-Op to pick up a prepacked chicken mayo sandwich. Upon returning, I was told they would have made a sandwich for me, which was a little frustrating, but the atmosphre, ambience and service in the bar more than made up for it as Aremay and I had a good talk about the EU Referendum and what the current state of play is. After a few halves of Yorkshire ales, I moved on to Yorkshire specific gin, rounding my evening off with an excellent gin and tonic before walking back into the city centre so Aremay could get his bus. Unfortunately, I missed mine by minutes and so had a lengthy wait until the next one, a wait I didn't fancy with the snowy Arctic conditions under which we have found ourselves this week. Consequently, I headed over to BrewDog where one of the new waitresses was working, so I spoke to her for a while before she convinced me to buy three bottles of beer to take home as they are clearing out their fridge this week. It worked as I brought them all back, although an evening on the sherbert perhaps affected my judgement ever so slightly. Still, it was a good evening and thoroughly worth it.
The cold probably wasn't aided by our Friday night out, where we had planned to visit Northern Monk as they were launching a new beer, Communion, which was brewed in collaboration with Swedish melodic metallers Opeth. I have known about Opeth for about 15 years so I thought it would be good to join the festivities, particularly as the band were performing a DJ set over at the bar. Alas, we got distracted by a range of tasty treats in Shuffledog and BrewDog, meaning that by the time we had got down there, some five hours after the party had begun, everything was largely being packed away. The draft tap for Communion had run dry but at least we managed to nab some cans, before making a swift exit largely because I had received a direct message from the BrewDog bar highlighting us to the fact that we hadn't paid our tab. We don't normally run tabs, and after a fair few sherberts, we weren't thinking in such terms but with the party over at Northern Monk (which was described as 6pm until late, and I don't really think 11pm is particularly late for a Friday), we thought we might as well traipse back to BrewDog and settle up. This also enabled us to try some more beers, in addition to those we had already tried at Shuffledog in the wake of their Alphabet v Atom Shuffleboard competition they had held the previous night. These beers were largely average and uninspiring, but it was in Shuffledog where we started, spending a good three hours sampling the ten beers we hadn't yet tried. We picked up a tasty sandwich here too and got chatting to the staff, as we often do, remarking in surprise at just how quiet it was. The same was the case in BrewDog, where we called en route to Northern Monk as there was a beer there we hadn't sampled either. As fortune would have it, this was the bottom of the keg and so they put another beer on soon after, a fantastic pilsner to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the Reinheitsgebot, which was taking place over the weekend. By the time we had had this and had spoken to the new General Manager there, making a lasting impression on him of course, we were so late for Northern Monk that we shouldn't have bothered. In hindsight, the next morning, perhaps it was a regret but we had had a good night and I suppose that's the main thing.
In Shuffledog we had spoken at length about wanting to get a dog and these plans came closer to fruition last Friday. I think we both agreed that it would be more noble to get a rescue dog from the Dogs Trust than buy a puppy, plus I think we would feel happier giving a rejected dog another chance, even if that would mean a shorter amount of time to spend as the dog we would be getting would be older. We started looking at dogs we can adopt and I think we are going to look into this towards the end of the year. Speaking about dogs, our friend Tanuki popped up from Cambridge to visit on Sunday, but he did not have his bitch Molly with him, who is currently recuperating after elbow surgery. Tanuki was in fine form, arriving just after 1pm before the three of us headed over to Ilkley to have a walk on Ilkley Moor. I had never walked up on the moors before and the views over the town are stunning, even if the wind was bitingly cold. I liked the little whitewashed cafe halfway up the hillside but the real pleasure was just getting lost on the scrubland, clambering over rockies and dodging dogs going on their daily constitutional. I would have stayed there all day had we not had a dinner date in Leeds later in the evening. Ahead of our walk up the moor, we called in at Ilkley proper, a quaint little town of tea shoppes but few bars. Looking for a place to lunch, we called in at a craft beer shop before discovering at one of our favourite Leeds bars, Friends of Ham, have a small outlet here. Fancying some charcuterie, we popped inside where we had an exquisite cheeseboard, fruitcake and Wensleydale as well as some grainy bread with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. With a couple of pints of Ilkley Brewery's latest pale ale, it was quite a special lunch and the waiter chappie was telling us that the venture was proving popular some seven months into its opening.
We didn't really want to have a huge drinking session on Sunday, hence why we drove to Ilkley in the first place, but once we had arrived home we thought we ought to scoot into Leeds and grab some food as it was getting late. Tanuki fancied vegetarian curry from an award winning restaurant called Hansa's, particularly when he discovered they served massala dosa, one of his favourite things. We had been meaning to try this place for a while so we consented, but before heading up there, we stopped off at The Hedonist Project to try some more gins and botanicals, with one drink swiftly turning into two. I am glad that gin is becoming a thing again, and the range of different types, when coupled with the myriad of tonics available does present one with a cornicopia of interesting flavours to try. The only problem is, like with cocktails, they are just so damn expensive when you are in a bar, but then I guess you get what you pay for and the quality of the drinks here is exemplary. It's just a shame they'll be closing down in late June to turn into a rum bar, a drink I struggle to get on board with. Anyway, after our two double gin and tonics, we headed up to Hansa's only to discover to our dismay that it was closed. Town was surprisingly dead again, assumedly because this was the weekend before payday in a five-weekend month, but Zaaap was well-populated and as Wolfie had never been and Tanuki fancied Thai food, this is where we ended up. The gaudy street cafe vibe caused some interest, but the food was as good as I remembered it and it set us up perfectly for a couple of drinks to round off the night - at Bundobust (where we discovered to Tanuki's dismay that they served massala dosa but the kitchen had since closed) and Candlebar. We had aimed to get to Northern Monk but like with the Friday, we ran out of time and needed to head back, particularly as Tanuki needed to head off early as we had to get his car MOTed back in Cambridge before lunchtime on the Monday. As ever, it was great having Tanuki around although at times I feel quite uncultured when compared to him. Still, it was great talking about a range of subjects, particularly the arts and philosophy, and I do always learn a great deal whenever we meet up.
The only other things to have happened concern my mother and stepfather picking up their new cocker spaniel puppy, Wilma, on Tuesday and to whom I spoke that evening, with my mother adopting a similar silly voice to that she adopted when we had our last dog, Milly some twenty years ago. I am hoping to go up and see her at some point in the next month, with Wilma already enjoying socks, my parents' garden and looking at the phone quizically whenever it rings. It was great to hear a little bark when I was on the phone too. I spoke to my mother en route to seeing Aremay for another evening of political-based chat. I chose Wapentake as the place to meet and upon perusing their particularly Yorkshire menu online, I was looking forward to having a bespoke Yorkshire pudding for the excellent price of £6. Alas, despite the website saying food was served until 9pm, the kitchen was closed at 7pm so I necked my half of Eternal Darkness by Northern Monk quite quickly before going over to the Co-Op to pick up a prepacked chicken mayo sandwich. Upon returning, I was told they would have made a sandwich for me, which was a little frustrating, but the atmosphre, ambience and service in the bar more than made up for it as Aremay and I had a good talk about the EU Referendum and what the current state of play is. After a few halves of Yorkshire ales, I moved on to Yorkshire specific gin, rounding my evening off with an excellent gin and tonic before walking back into the city centre so Aremay could get his bus. Unfortunately, I missed mine by minutes and so had a lengthy wait until the next one, a wait I didn't fancy with the snowy Arctic conditions under which we have found ourselves this week. Consequently, I headed over to BrewDog where one of the new waitresses was working, so I spoke to her for a while before she convinced me to buy three bottles of beer to take home as they are clearing out their fridge this week. It worked as I brought them all back, although an evening on the sherbert perhaps affected my judgement ever so slightly. Still, it was a good evening and thoroughly worth it.
