Oh nine
It seems too ironic to me that this New Year my phone decided not to work properly. One button didn’t work. That button was the ‘WXYZ’ button in the bottom corner, which pretty much screwed me when trying to text ‘NEW’, ‘YEAR,’ ‘WISHES’ ‘YOUR,’ ‘FAMILY’ and adding a few kisses. Since the same defect button is also the ‘9’ I couldn’t even default to ‘have a great 09!’ Even my girlfriend’s name has ‘Z’ in it. Sod texts. Simply conveying best wishes to friends became an exhausting test of mental and finger endurance, just when you want to be having fun.
As I tried to enjoy my night in the Duke Of Norfolk [113-114 Western Road], my pasting became more frenetic and fraught with the danger of mixing up friends’ names. The whole thing soon became an irritating challenge I couldn’t snap out of. Instead of simply copying and pasting from other people’s messages – this was suggested to me in hindsight, I juggled a drink and a phone and fired off crap phrases such as ‘top tidings to you at this time’ and ‘av a beaut oh nine.’
Needless to say the night rubbed me up the wrong way from the start and wasn’t really helped by the doo in a pub I usually love. The Duke of Norfolk is great because of its proximity not just to Bankers chippy, but also many international language schools. Hence it often feels really optimistic and full of people who are keen to socialise. Ensuing travel stories combine with a generous 6pm-10pm happy hour -Sunday to Thursday, to create memorable nights. They also encourage board games, have free Wi-Fi access [which incidentally covers the entire block], have amply stocked bookshelves and feature the odd, low-key live music gig. It’s a gem of a place.
It wasn’t happening in there on New Years though, so we changed the scene. We drove up the steep road to Ditchling Beacon [rising from 90 metres to 248 metres in just under a mile] and shortly before midnight I parked up. With my passengers clutching small, smoking bottles of bubbly we watched the fireworks fizz and pop over the fair seaside city.
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Categories:Been there done that, Event type, Food, Clubs and Pubs, Hit list, Out on the town, Special Events
