Monday, October 08, 2007

Nottingham*

* A blog post proffering oh so low quality photographs… we were in a hurry.

A last-minute grand-parental offer to look after Alex, and some equally last-minute hawking about for tickets, saw Emma and I head off to a gig - Damien Rice (singer/song-writer). Unusually, this meant going out, on a Friday, together.

Neither of us were especially au fait with Nottingham – for gig, ‘twas there, nor were we up to date with the Rice repertoire, but still, like that mattered - we were going out, on a Friday, together.

En route:

Emma: You’ll probably have to replace this (car) in the next year or so.
Shane: Nonsense - in ordinary car terms, my trusty Peugeot steed - no ordinary car - is a mere teenager.

Closing in on Nottingham:

Emma: (Looking leftwards) Ugly, those things, aren’t they?
Shane: I like them – they’re so dramatic – bit like the ones on the M1 near Sheffield – they spring out of nowhere, and they’re so close to the road that you do drive in their shadow.
Emma: Unless you’re driving at night.
Shane: Yeah.

Pre-gig dining:

Shane: (thinking ‘I can only just about move following my late enormo-lunch’) I’ll be light-biting – healthily, even.
Emma: You trying to impress me?
Shane: Not now, not ever!
Emma: (amused) This place - its lighting…
Shane: I know where it reminds me of.
Emma: Green tights?
Shane: (blissfully) Mm.
Emma: Bad… but good.

Shane: That was good.
Emma: Mm, apart from the...

Following a bit of work-talk, Emma glanced over some notes that I handed to her:

Shane: I like the fact that I can make lazy reference to ‘Chancellor's annual spending review’ and you know what I’m talking about.
Emma: Must mean that we’re meant to be together… ‘They know their policy frameworks – woo-hoo!’

Shane: We’ll have to get going soon.
Emma: One last drink?
Shane: (checks time) Oh what the heck – it’s Friday, we’re out, let’s go a bit mad!
Emma: Let's.

Shane: We’ll have to hurry if we’re to catch the support act.

Emma: Look! A grand building! Get it!

Shane: Got it earlier.
Emma: Good work, keep moving!

Shane: You see those flowers?
Emma: Yeah.
Shane: If we weren’t in a hurry, I’d get you some.
Emma: And I’d say ‘thank you’.
Shane: You’d be welcome.

Shane: Whew! Tickets?
Emma: They're here.

Shane: I hear music – the support act is on.
Emma: You know you ought to be careful.
Shane: What do you mean?
Emma: Going round appearing to take pictures of strangers’ crotches isn’t generally seen as an ok thing.

Shane: Annnnnnnd relax.
Emma: It’s very… convention-al, isn’t it?
Shane: Mm, makes me want to preach.
Emma: Please don’t.

Back in the car, after a very good gig (that later sparked a weekend of Ricesque warbling, ‘Stones taught me to…’):

Emma: Do you think we’ll be here long?
Shane: No – it’ll clear soon. You can sleep if you like.
Emma: Ta.

One hour of Emma sleep later:

Emma: (Groggy) Oh. I thought I’d been asleep for a while.
Shane: You have.
Emma: Have we moved?
Shane: We’ve come down two levels – only five more to go.
Emma: Hey ho.

And as the in-car digital display begins to flash ‘Brake Fluid – Level Low’ (I was too distracted to take a picture):

Shane: Oh bollocks - my trusty steed’s trying to tell me something.
Emma: (noting the digital display) Bloody teenagers!
Shane: (unimpressed) I'm eyeing you.
Emma: Later, if you're lucky.

And on that note, the steed bucked-up its ideas and got us (and itself) home in tact.
.
And that, was our Nottingham.
.
It was good.

6 comments:

LB said...

Oh you poor loves. Being stuck in that car park is not much fun at the best of times - in its current "only one lane to get out and even then you end up having to reverse awkwardly" state, tis even worse.

For reference, I think you will find that the Official Name for that power station is "daddy's chimneys". Or so I am told every fortnight when we go past them.

And I was fortunate enough to see Damien Rice at Glastonbury this year and I thought he was *fantastic*. Glad you enjoyed the gig.

(and someone was run over and killed by a tram outside the very venue you mention literally 24 hours after your visit. Yuk.)

Bittersweet said...

Oooh. jealous.

I liked the flavour of the evening (shame about the car park).

Zinnia Cyclamen said...

Lazy reference indeed, seeing as the spending reviews have just shifted from bi-annual to tri-annual, in an attempt to reduce the cries of 'short-termist electioneers' from a disaffected public.

I'm enjoying these photo-illustrated posts you've started doing. They're like children's books for grown-ups.

Pat said...

Oh Shane! I clicked on one of your links and you wouldn't believe the pickle I got into. I finally had to switch off and go all round the houses so I'm not clicking on any more and will google Damien. It was fun though!

OldHorsetailSnake said...

This is wunderbar (you know German, right?). And, then again, I need to know what is "ruding".

It is a stranger to me. Ich bin gehabt gewesen.

Anonymous said...

LB - For adding such colour, I... thank you.
Me - It was very good. Your reaction is fair.
Z - Yes, lazy.
Pi - A Pi pickle... I like the sound of that.
Hoss - Where to begin... How about Adam and Eve, without fig leaves? Ja?