Friday, December 16, 2005

Lets do lunch, dahling!


Wow - it has been a strange old week. Monday night we celebrated FG getting offered his job. Needless to say we were out of our respective trees by half nine the evening. Staggered into work on Tuesday morning feeling like shyte - how do people drink and survive? I haven't had a hang over or felt that bad in over three odd years. It was horrible.

I survived Tuesday in a haze of just sitting at my desk smiling blearily at people. I was treated well as my team knows I don't do drink ever, so they were being nice.

Wednesday was much better. I was treated to a lunch at the Wolseley restaurant on Piccadilly, opposite/next to the Ritz. The one director in my team, M, (she heads her own mini-department within the larger one) took Richard (her 2IC) and me out as a thank you for looking after her this past year and for all our hard work. It was one of the nicest lunches - the food wasn't very pretensious eventhough I had to ask loads of questions as to what is what as I have zero French and can just about pronounce "frittes". But, having said that, I opted for dessert - just to be wild and daring - and chose to have the vanilla cheesecake. OMG. I think I would happily sell at least two of my books to learn how to make that. It was absolutely mouthwateringly moreish and gorgeous. I ended up sharing with my director, M - it was a substantial piece and eventhough it was lipsmacking nice, I knew that if I had to try finish it on my own, I would end up with a migraine in a nano-second.

After scooting off from the restaurant we made a beeline for Hamleys, bought a gift (700 experiment science kit) for a very lucky ten year old...after which R insisted we go to Mortons. He had recently become a member of the exclusive private club. And as M was feeling even more daring than me, off we went. At the back of my saddo mind I couldn't help but worry about my work that afternoon...but M insisted it would be all right. She left several messages for the Head of the Dept who eventually rang and said I shouldn't worry about getting back at all - it was Christmas afterall.

So, we ended up at Mortons which is at the top of Berkeley Square. A lovely old building beautifully renovated with spectactular views over the Square. We lounged about like IT-girls and boys, drank (non-)alcholic drinks, had nibbles. In the end I invited FG to join us at the end of the working day to celebrate his new job and M's boyfriend got invited too, to take her home as she professed to be too tipsy to figure out where she was.

All of us trooped off just before eight the evening feeling very posh indeed, even if a few of us were a bit unsteady on our feet.

It was a lovely day - I felt ontop of the world, yet desperately longed for my couch.

We are planning to return to the Wolseley just to go and have some cheesecake. Grin. Oh hell, why not, dahling!?

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