The Story of Tonight

It is a truth universally acknowledged that January is a month to endure before really starting the new year.
 
I have had some post-Christmas/New Year distraction with the Panto, but even after this the January blues still catch up to you. Lucky me then, in having a birthday at the end of this godforsaken month!
 
Some people as they grow older don’t like much fuss on their birthday “it’s just another day”, but not me I like making people feel special on their birthday and am always appreciative of those who make me feel that way too!
 
So it came to pass this weekend (this is a collective blip spanning 26-28 January) when my family and friends gathered around (figuratively and metaphorically) to spoil me rotten with cards, messages and presents – there was even a very fancy box of chocs left in the recycling bin by Simmo!
 
However, the piece de resistance had already been conceived of and booked back in August, when a trip to Hamilton would be combined with an overnight stay in Manchester.
 
With a Birthday Day off work, we headed to Manchester with The Eldest in tow (she was returning to Uni with a load of stuff) and had a lovely lunch at the Hard Rock Café – complete with Birthday sundae – before heading into the city for a bit of a mooch and some shopping. It’s not my favourite thing in the world, BUT I did come away with some belting new Doc Marten Chelsea boots (pictured here holding up an old man) to compliment some new clothes which had recently been sourced for me.
 
Following a quick breather at the hotel, it was a hasty turnaround as we headed out to Hamilton where we shepherded into a private lounge for a pre-show drink, before being walked to our seats (at half time we would be walked back from them to our table where drinks and an ice cream would be waiting). Oh, and the seats? Two rows back from the front. <insert jaw drop emoji here>
 
Even on my third viewing of the show, I still saw new things, I still laughed and marvelled at the cast’s talent and yes, my Pavlovian response to the opening bars of “Wait for It” still saw tears cascading down my face. A standing ovation duly delivered at the close, we headed back to the lounge to collect our coats and then across the road to a bar to talk about what we had seen and play a couple of games of pool on a truly shocking table with cues that hadn’t seen chalk in a long while – my companion ingeniously got around this with the judicious application of some make up to the tip.
 
The next day we had an amazing breakfast at a café in the Northern Quarter before a closing mooch into the city centre and then heading for home and back to reality.
 
Sunday rounded out a perfect weekend with the arrival of the wee ones and my family for a birthday picky lunch and the devouring of a truly delicious cake which my sister had made for me and which my brother in law definitely didn’t mishandle and cause the top to slide off…
 
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: I am a ridiculously lucky man and am very grateful for all those people who continue to populate an increasingly busy and fulfilling life!

Thank you.