I Won a bottle of Hendrick’s!

Photo of a bottle of Hendrick's Gin

I’m very pleased to announce that I won this bottle of Hendrick’s gin for coming first place in the circus themed fancy dress competition at the Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club on Friday night. I’m even more pleased that there’s no photo of me in my outfit as it was a rather small leopard skin strongman’s tunic which would only cover one nipple at a time. If the two girls who invited me back to their house at the end of the evening happen to read this blog, I’m sorry I didn’t come, I was very very drunk, and yes I really regret it now…

Drunk Drawing

Last night I went to ‘Melange‘ (which means ‘Mix’ in French apparently) on the end of my road, it’s a very nice bar that has no concept of licensing hours, but unfortunately no draft lager. We went there to see some bloke out the Guillemots play some improvisational music with his chums. It was quite good (too much whale noises though) anyhow it inspired us to do some improvised/take turns type drawings. We were quite pissed by the time we started, below are our efforts:

Unit 2 Needs You!

Unit 2 Crew!

Me and my lovely house mates Eleanor and Sachi are looking for, ideally, another boy to move into a converted factory space in Shoreditch. Available end of March, maybe before. The rent is £320 a month and that doesn’t include any bills. It’s a perfect space to live, particularly in the summer. Surrounded by lovely neighbours we are looking for someone chilled and up for a laugh but also someone who pulls their own weight, does their own washing up but doesn’t live by rotas.

We are me, one architect and a recruitment consultant.

The room is like a blank canvas with a double bed, wooden floors and beams it’s not a huge room but one that you can do what you will with. We are a smoking house but we’re trying to stop!

If you are looking for just a room then sorry that’s just not us. But if you are looking for a friendly house who really enjoy hanging out together then email me at cookie@made-in-england.org or give me a call on 07974143355.

Protest party update

Well I’ve just about recovered now… The protest party when down a storm in London over the weekend, and we all got back home safe and sound. Well apart from my flatmate Alex who failed to bung the bouncer £20 to get into the warehouse party at the end of the evening and a got punch in the eye! Looking pretty swallon at the moment, it’s going to be a cracking colour in a couple of days time! Serves him right really…

Well anyhow those of your who know me, know that me and my brother have a tradition of keeping a book for each other birthday’s. They go all the way back to our 18th when we started trying to drink our age in one day in between opening and closing times, hence the need for a book to keep count. It’s easier nowadays because pubs are open 11 to 11, but back in the day they still closed in the afternoon, so drinking time was at a premium. This continued to our 21st’s when I over ambitiously set the target of doing 21 pints, 20 marshmellows in the mouth, 19 bags of cheesy quavers, 18 somethings. 17 something else’s.. etc. Least to say after that day it couldn’t be bettered so we gave up on the age thing. But we did continue to drink all day on each others birthdays and record the events in little books. We’ve both got piles of them now and they are very amusing to look back on.

Here are a few highlights from this year’s birthday book:

Drinks

11.00am, Champayne (cheers Nico!) at Unit 2

1.30pm, Amstel at The Clarence

2.30pm, Kronenburg at The Hand & Racket

3.25pm, Stella at The Ship & Shovel

3.55pm, Talisker Whiskey (double – cheers Gi!) at The Ship & Shovel

4.45pm, 2x Caipirinhas at Iguanas

5.55pm, Stella at The Anchor

6.30pm, Stella at The Anchor

7.50pm, Kronenberg at Shish

8.30pm, Kronenberg at Shish

9.15pm, Kronenberg at Shish

10.00pm, Saigon Beer at Cay Tre

10pm was the last drink entry, but I didn’t make it home until 4am so needless to say there was some missing here…

Favourite comment from the book:

4.55pm We’ve travelled back in time, to save an ancient species from total annihilation. 22 Caipirinhas @ Iguanas. Latin life. Thunder. Clouds. Lovely. It tastes like Ribena. (uncredited)

Well anyhow, on to the pictures! Below is a selection, you can see more in my Flickr set here.

Protest Party London

Surprise Birthday Party!

Cookie's Surprise Birthday Invite

My housemates threw a surprise birthday party for me last Saturday (3rd of Feb) It was so nice of them and I apprieciated it very much! Think it was a real nightmare for them though, as I’d split up with Dude, my girlfriend on Friday. I think it was her job to keep me away until the appropriate time on Sat, but as it happened I turned up on Friday with a taxi cab full of stuff from my recent eviction. El , Sachi and Josie did an amazing job of keeping me occupied all day Saturday, and away from the house until 9pm when the party kicked off. Had a great night, went to the Russian bar at 4 in the morning… can’t remember much after that.
Sachi made some lovely invites for the party, which I was sent afterwards:

Cookie's Surprise Birthday Invite

My brother’s got a load of photos which he hasn’t sent me yet, but here’s a couple from Dom:

Cookie's Surprise Party 2007

The London Life Drawing Society

It’s a bit depressing to post these on my blog as I know they’re not very good, but my only excuse is the depressing fact that it’s been 12 years since I last did life drawing at art college… Sarah from work dragged me along to it, it was really very good. They meet up every Monday at the Cafe El Paso pub on Old street, yes that right, life drawing in a pub, drink and drawing! Two of the finest pastimes you can do all it one, now that can’t be bad. You can sign up for their next meeting here, you have to be quick though, places fill up fast.

Life Drawing