Saturday, January 25, 2014

Flaming

Today

This morning my great niece, having gone out on a girlie night for the first time since her baby was was born, complained about her hangover. She blamed the Sambucas, as well she might.

In My Day

Not so long ago this one, but relevant. It was Becky's 30th birthday and we decided to hold a party in Brighton. We started the evening with champagne in the Kemptown Enclosures, then went up to the Kemptown Brasserie which provided a marvellous buffet and a band to dance to. Various relations and friends of Becky's appeared and the wine flowed freely.

The more sober members of the family peeled off at various times, leaving the hardcore party-lovers still dancing and drinking.

I'm not sure now what prompted Nick, the owner, to offer Lizzie a flaming Sambuca. Maybe he thought she wasn't drinking hard enough and he wanted to see her dance. Anyway, one Sambuca led to more and soon others were clamouring for them. This even included Paul who hates Aniseed drinks in any form.  

I didn't join in, preferring to stick to Prosecco. This is just as well, otherwise we might never have been able to find our way home. Becky had rashly offered sofa space to cousin George and her university friend, Andrew.

Arms linked, we gaily set off back to the flat. We needed to link arms to stay upright. As Andrew told me repeatedly and tearfully how much he loved me, no, really, really loved me, I reminded him of the art of walking: "First the right foot; no forward, then the left......." and steered him up the steps into the flat where he collapsed onto the breakfast room sofa. George collapsed somewhere else and was that the night that Becky sprained her ankle getting down the three steps into the breakfast room and nobody heard her shouting?

They were a sorry bunch the next day, especially Paul who, as well as having the usual symptoms, was puzzling as to why he'd drunk the Sambucas at all, given his dislike of aniseed.

Ah well, plus ca change, and all that. There's nothing like a baby needing her morning bottle to help you get over a hangover.....

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