As the trailing dregs of 2007 stuttered by, I struggled to the train station for another intrepid cross-country trek. I blinked in bemusement at multitude of people drunk at 11am, and made it to the station on time.
An hour and thirty-two minutes later, I had finished the last of the Narnia books that I’ve been working my way through since Christmas. I felt vaguely sad that I’d completed the series, although I was proud to have done so before the year waned entirely. I loved ‘The Last Battle’, although I was a little confused and had to read bits of it a couple of times before getting my head around what had actually occured.
Safely in the South-East, I dropped off my goods and chattles, drank a hot beverage before travelling to another emporium of haberdashery. My male companions were vaguely horrified by the pink items I nearly puchased, but in the end I came away with a duvet and a couple of small teal cushions. Very sophisticated.
Our next calling point was Wagamamas. If it was going to be the last meal of 2007 it may as well be a good one. And good it was. Teryaki steak, noodles, beansprouts and other unidentifiable ingredients made me glad I had gone for the seasonal special. This was then complimented by the addition of a cheesecake and the appearance of one of my closest friends. We nattered for a while over coffee, later admiring her very special triangular living room.
Later that evening the festivities began in earnest. There were the obligatory tunes (including a couple of strange ’80’s dittys about Red Balloons that I did not understand), breadsticks, pretzels and people nestled in the very huge (though sadly non-triangular)lounge. The group divided in half, with the more vocal types consigned to playing the DVD version of ‘Who wants to be a millionaire’, while the Capitalists amongst us tried out the newly purchased ‘Simpsons’ Monopoly. The latter was good fun, except that monopoly has clearly tried to enter the 21st century with the banishment of paper money, and the addition of credit cards. This was all fine until you added a somewhat beleagured battery and a twelve year old banker into the mix, myself and Lisa Simpson found ourselves losing and gaining $10 millions in the blink of an eye.
The game was soon abandoned as Phil had created Meringue Slop, which involved Meringue (surprisingly), cream, natural yoghurt, pomegranates, blueberries and blackberries. I think it was one of the most random things I had ever tasted, but it was lovely.
The night was drawing on now, and 11.45pm was heralded by Take That on ITV. Certain sections of the room were mesmerised by this, and we stayed, swaying slightly and mouthing all the lyrics until the fateful moment, “Let’s switch over to the bongs”.
Midnight came, Big Ben did the stuff, the fireworks went on for ages and much celebration ensued. Then we switched back over for more Take That. I was personally thrilled that the last song I heard in 07, and the first in 08 came from their prodigious talent.
The crowd gradually diminished, the phone networks came back online, and we finally crawled into bed around 3am. I lay there feeling glad it was not New Year’s Eve every night!
On New Years day I skipped into the city centre and settled into my starbucks corner… I spent a while chatting to two very lovely south africans, drank coffee and considered the year ahead. It was a useful time. We then traversed to another starbucks, and proceeded to put the world to rights. I then bought the Philip Pullman ‘His Dark Materials’ trilogy, an acquisition which eased my grief at the ending of Narnia. (I have since been ensconced in ‘The Subtle Knife’ it is, quite simply, astounding. I don’t want it to end either).
That afternoon we relaxed and watched, ‘The Shadow in the North’, another Pullman creation, a different genre entirely but a very good plot. Then we all gathered and had tea and Christmas cake in the attic.
The time for heading Londonwards once more was drawing near, but we still had time to watch a large chunk of masonry (well, a plasterboard anyway) fall off the ceiling and land with a crash and a mealstrom of dust. That was a cute addition to the New Year entertainment.
I travelled home, where people were still drunk, although I think that is more acceptable at 11.30pm. Considering the days that had passed I realised it had been a very enjoyable, relaxing and inspiring festive season. Hurrah!
