31st December - Second Day of New Year Weekend away

I managed to get up just in time for breakfast this morning. I found the appetite to eat sausage and beans even though I'm not a big fan of cooked breakfast. We then made our way into the conference room ready for our morning service. Several people gave testimonies of what God had done for them in 2007 some of which were very moving. We were then asked to write down our prayers on post-it notes and stick them on three boards - one for prayers for self,one for prayers for family and friends and one for prayers for the world. I found this much less intimidating than praying in groups.
After the meeting we shared a simple lunch of bread, cheese, sliced meats and salad.
We then set off for the village of Trevor which was the starting point of our afternoon walk. Our walk took us along the canal and then across the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct which was scary as it had a sheer drop on the far side. I was glad to get to the other side. After the walk we went for a drink in the pub before returning to the centre where Phil had been toasting crumpets for us.
We then started geting ready for the evening party. We met in the foyer - there was a wonderful array of outfits on show - and travelled to the Lord Moreton by car. When we arrived at the place we were shown to our tables. We were then invited to go up for food. There was a wondeful selection of food on offer - sliced meats, salmon prawns and a good selection of salads. The selection of desserts was even better - I had some Dime bar cheesecake and white chocolate cheesecake. The tables were then cleared and moved to reveal the dance floor. The evening started off with a disco and then the band came onto the stage. They played quite a few 80's rock songs and were quite good. After the band had been on for an hour the disco started again. For the last hour of 2007 the band returned to play 70's rock songs complete with costumes. I particularly enjoyed the Queen tribute. As midnight drew near we all rushed onto the dance floor for the countdown. At midnight there was much hugging and cheering and letting off of giant party poppers. I made a point of going over to Phil to wish him a Happy New year as I know he's not a fan of discos. The party went on to 1.30am and then we all went back to the hall. I was shattered so I went straight to bed even though I knew others were staying up. I think this was our best NY party to date - it was an excellent idea to go to the hotel.

30th December - First Day of New Year weekend

I caught the train to Shrewsbury from Oxford Road just after lunch and met Phil at the station. We had an easy journey to Quinta and found that we were quite early. Sarah, Anya and Mike were in the foyer sorting out food and the notice boards. After a very welcome cup of coffee I went upstairs to find the room that I would be sharing with Wendy. I was pleased to see that it was quite a good sized room with one single bed, one bunk bed and one double bed. I unpacked and then went back down to the reception to find that the fire had been lit and quite a few others had arrived. We sat and chatted about what we had done over the Christmas break.
At about 7pm we all made our way into the dining room for our evening meal. The manager of the centre gave us a warm welcome. The meal was really good - roast beef with roast potatoes and vegetables followed by apple pie and custard.
Afterwards I set up the lounge ready for the quiz with some help from Phil and Jon.
I was encouraged to see that most people decided to take part.I started off with the general knowledge round and used all 30 of my questions. As the quiz went on though I realised that we had more questions than we needed so I made the music and seasonal rounds shorter. I was surprised at how well everyone did with Phil's bible characters round - I think that having larger teams helped. I also discovered that Susannah is doing a similar theology course to Phil so her team had a slight advantage. We ended up having two teams tying for first place. It was a good job I didn't buy chocolates as prizes as Kay (predictably) was on one of the winning teams. After the quiz Anya brought in some apple punch that she had made. It was very welcome as reading out the questions had proved to be quite a strain on my voice. I was pleased to see that everyone enjoyed the quiz though.
Tim, Paul, Kay, Julie, Karen and I ended the evening with a couple of games of pool and table football before going to bed just after midnight.

25th December - Christmas Day

I managed to get quite a good lie-in this morning and just about managed to have enough time to open my presents before going to church. I did quite well for gifts - apart from the bracelet and printer cartridges which I was expecting I also received earrings,writing paper and envelopes and bath bombs. The 25+ present turned out to be bubble bath and lip gloss - much longer lasting than last year's present.
I arrived at church to find I was the first one there. Fortunately it didn't take long for others to turn up. We had the usual good mix of regulars and visitors. Joan had her whole family visiting so she was preparing Christmas lunch for 11 people.
The service went well. Margaret asked the children to bring their presents to the front to show them off. We ended with a rousing chorus of "Come and join the celebration". I then headed off home for a relaxing day tucking into Christmas dinner and watching TV. Enjoyed Coronation Street and "Strictly Come Dancing"
Surprised to see Darren Gough win though as I thought this series dancers were better.

22nd December - Blitz Jive Christmas Party - Stockport

I arrived at the Town Hall tonight to find that the doors were still locked. I wasn't all that early - the staff just seemed to think it would be fun to keep us out in the cold whilst they were getting the reception desk ready! Eventually they decided to let us in and I found myself a seat fairly near the stage and near some friends from my Prestwich class. The evening started with a fun class taught by Kevin who seems to do a lot of the Saturday night classes. After the class I danced with a couple of guys I know from Prestwich. I noticed Tony and Sean had arrived during the lesson so I went over and had a chat with them. Tim didn't arrive until about 9.30pm - he said he had problems parking as the car park filled up quite quickly. I had a dance with him and then spotted an old friend from Prestwich who I haven't seen for a while. I had a couple of dances with him. After this I decided I deserved a mince pie so I had a short rest. I then danced with Len and Bernard, two of the Prestwich regulars. I left at about 11.30pm after one final dance with Tim.
I was pleased to see that the roads were fairly quiet so I had an easy journey home.
On reflection it was a good party,but not quite as good as Monday's as there was no dance contest and no chocolate fountain!

20th December - Work Christmas Party at La Tasca

I was one of the first to arrive at La Tasca tonight.We were all given free drinks and we then sat down to hear the results of the "Employee of the year" contest. The award went to our postroom manager, Mike - a very popular choice.
After this, the food was served. There was a good selection of tapas including meatballs, squid and whitebait in breadcrumbs and baked aubergines. Heather was anxious to make sure that Liam (who's a vegan) had something to eat and it looked like her persistance payed off.
After the meal they pushed back the tables ready for the disco. As usual the women from the accounts and publishing departments were first on the dance floor. I soon joined them. Our new computer operator, Mark turned out to be a real live wire - he danced with most of us including me. The dance floor soon filled up when the DJ played music by The Jam and The Clash.
People started to leave at about 11pm so I booked myself a taxi home. It was very cold outside, so I was glad that it arrived quickly. It was good to see that everyone enjoyed the party tonight. I'm looking forward to the Christmas break now.

17th December - Modern Jive Christmas Party at Prestwich

I arrived at the party tonight to find a enormous chocolate fountain in the foyer. The dancing started straight away. I danced with Rob and Sid. Then we had the fun lesson. We had a go at "Awesome Foursome". Each couple paired up with another one and we did some simple moves, changing partners after each one. It was good fun.
Then came the "Dance with a stranger" competition. I was paired up with a guy called Frank, who was also my partner for the lesson. I think we danced well together, but we didn't make it to the second round as the moves we did were fairly basic. When the final six couples danced we saw what the judges were looking for. They could all dance fast and they were good at dips and drops too.
After the contest, I went out to get some goodies from the chocolate fountain. I found they were serving ice cream too - the perfect accompaniment for fruit and marshmallows dipped in chocolate. I had a few more dances before going home.
I really enjoyed myself tonight.

16th December - Final salsa class of the year

Today's class was held at OPUS in the Printworks, because La Tasca was being used for a party. I wish we could use this venue all the time as it is bigger than La Tasca. Attendance at the beginners class was a bit sparse, but more people arrived for the improvers class. We revised three moves we have learnt during the year - the hammerlock copa, the Copa C (which always reminds me of the Paso Doble) and the reverse hammerlock. I managed to get the hang of all of them by the end of the lesson. There's no more classes now until 6th January. I will miss them.

15th December 25+ Christmas party

I met Brian in town and we travelled down to Nigel's by tram and taxi. We arrived a bit early and found Nigel, Kay and Anya still getting the food ready. Karen arrived at 7.30pm closely followed by several others. We went into the kitchen to get some mulled wine and then the food was served. There was a good selection of food available - sausage rolls, mini quiches,sandwiches and dips. I chatted to Chris and we cauht up on each other's news as we haven't seen each other since the dinner and disco. I also chatted to Tim who says he has got a ticket for the Spring ball. He applied even earlier than me! The desserts were brought out of their hiding place under the table. There were mince pies,christmas cake and a big tin of celebrations chocolates. Karen, Chris, Brian and I had fun throwing chocolates at each other.
Then Tim came downstairs dressed as Father Christmas and he and Andrea gave out the gifts. Brian insisted on taking a photo of me sat on Tim's knee whilst he was dressed as Santa! I then went back in the lounge and joined the other who were dancing. Elaine gave Brian and I a lift home at midnight. When we got back to Mum's it took ages to get hold of a taxi, so I was late getting to bed. I really enjoyed the evening though. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone at New year.

9th December - Church Christmas Lunch

After the morning service we set off for the Woodthorpe Hotel for lunch. I gave Pauline a lift and was pleased to see that there was plenty of room in the car park.
We found that we had a room of our own at the back of the hotel which had its own bar. I sat with Doug, Brenda, Nellia, Pauline, Daphne, Jean and Elaine. We were served with our starters. I had Goat's cheese and red pepper tart which was very tasty. The salmon roulade starter looked good too. I was glad I didn't have the soup though as it looked very filling. Then came the main course. I had turkey with all the trimmings. The portion size was generous so I had to leave some to make sure I had room for dessert. The other main courses looked good too especially the cod. I was pleased that I saved room for dessert as the chocolate and Grand Marnier mousse I chose was excellent. The cheesecake and strawberry roulade that the others had looked good too.
We didn't have entertainment after the meal like we normally do. Instead we sat around chatting about our plans for Christmas. Daphne told us all about the carol concerts she is taking part in at the Bridgewater Hall. It sounds like they will be good.
After the meal I gave Elaine and Pauline a lift home. Everyone agreed that the meal was really good and the service was more efficient than at Lynwood Lodge. We will definately recommend going there next year if we decide to go out for Christmas.

7th December - Squeeze Concert at Apollo

Regular readers of this blog may remember that I won tickets for this concert a few months ago. However I failed to find anyone to go with so I ended up going on my own which is really what I prefer when it comes to concerts.
I was pleased to find that the Apollo has a cloakroom - I'm sure the attendant gave me too much change, but I didn't complain. I managed to find a barrier to lean on which was good as I didn't fancy standing for the whole concert. The support act was King Creosote and they were quite good.
Squeeze started their set with two familiar songs - "Take Me I'm yours" and "Up the junction". The audience sang along enthusiastically with the second song. I was pleased and surprised at how many songs I recognised. I didn't realise that "Hourglass" was one of their songs. I particularly liked the colourful videos they showed during some songs. The final song was "Cool for cats". I didn't stay for the encore as I wanted to avoid the rush for the bus.
On reflection I think it was a good concert, but I don't think I would have paid £35 to see it.

1st December - Games Evening

When I saw it was throwing it down with rain tonight I decided I wouldn't bother driving. We decided to go by tram instead and found that Vanessa's place is only 10 mins walk from the tram station. We arrived more or less on time to find some people playing Downfall, Othello and Connect 4. I watched Kay and Alicia play Othello for a while and then had a couple of games of Connect 4 with Charlie, but didn't do very well. Eventually the food arrived. Portions were a little more realistic than they have been at other events, though Kay and I agreed that the black bean sauce was spicier than usual - I had chicken, she had beef. Tim arrived whilst we were eating.
He says he has got a ticket for the Christmas jive at Stockport which is great.
After the food was finished we decided to play Richard's game. We all wrote down the names of famous people and put them in a basket. We divided into teams and took turns in picking names out of the hat and describing the people for others to guess.
Vanessa turned out to be an expert - she managed to get her team to do 8 guesses in 1 turn. Our team came 2nd in the first round. In the 2nd round we were only allowed to say 3 words when we were describing. Sarah took out the duplicate names first. Our team won the 2nd round. After that I noticed it was getting late so we set off for home. We caught taxis when we got to the Midland. Have decided that I won't be driving to the Christmas party. Will get tram and taxi just like we did tonight.