Ruinart

Posted on June 11th, 2008 by ray.
Categories: General Blog.

I don’t know if this is “up anybody’s street”, but World Service Restaurant in Nottingham is holding a Ruinart Champagne Dinner on Thursday 19th June.

I would normally jump at this opportunity, but I can’t make it that night :(

Their email as follows:

—– snip —–

Ruinart is the oldest and most prestigious champagne house ever. We have arranged for Vivek Menon from Ruinart itself to come and talk about the Champagnes during the meal, which will complement each of the dishes we have devised.

Canapés

2 Glasses N.V. R de Ruinart, Brut, Reims

* * *

Appetiser

Essence of tomato & basil

* * *

Pan fried Halibut with Spinach and Steamed Clams,
Parsley Butter Sauce

1 Glass N.V. Ruinart, Blanc de Blancs, Reims

* * *

Slow Roasted Suckling Pig with Rosti Potato,
D’argen Prune, Vanilla Sauce

1 Glass 1996 Ruinart, Brut, Reims

* * *

English Strawberry Trifle

1 Glass N.V. Ruinart Rosé, Reims

* * *

Coffee and Bitter Sweet Chocolates

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Bits and Bobs

Posted on June 11th, 2008 by ray.
Categories: General Blog.

I fall out of bed in the mornings and go straight to the gym, and get showered and shaved there after my workout before going to work. The trouble is I normally need a shower to wake myself up properly - so it’s now becoming routine to forget something each day while I’m still half asleep and there’s normally at least one case of having to go back into the house after I’ve locked up.

It doesn’t help when I have to carry with me:

My gym bag with my towels, toiletries and most of my work clothes to change into afterwards
My lunch (which I don’t trust putting in the gym bag  from experience where the tupperwear leaked before)
My shirt for work on a coat-hanger (again, not in my gym bag as I don’t want it creased)
My laptop bag
Wallet, Phone, Car Stereo Face Plate (normally in the side pocket of my gym bag as I’ve run out of hands by this point)

Today I got to the gym and then remembered my fucking wallet was at home still, along with my gym card.. So off I drive back home, by which point there’s little point in going back to the gym before I’m due at work, so got showered and changed at home and then straight off to work. What a wasted morning.

Finally heard from the other party’s insurance yesterday regarding my car. All seemed fine and said I would get a call from their repair centre in Nottingham which I did later that afternoon.  Apparently they can’t fit my car in until the last day of the month which is piss-poor. The car hire company also want a hefty deposit from me for the use of a loan car whilst mine is in for repair. This is all pretty shit considering I’m not the one at fault here. Going to have to call the third party’s insurance and explain that I’m not waiting until the end of the month, and whilst I will pay an excess on any hire car - I’m not forking our money even if it is just a deposit - it’s their customer who’s screwed up my car, so they should be giving me as little grief and inconvenience as possible.

On other notes, I’ve been catching up on films:

War - Enjoyed
Crow 3 - Utter Shite
Shrooms - Utter Shite
Golden Compass - Enjoyed
3000BC - OK, but not really going anywhere
Diary of the Dead - A bit crap really. Would probably have been worse but anything is good after seeing the Crow 3
Wild Hogs - Took it for what it was and really liked this
AVP2 - It was what I expected I suppose, so can’t grumble. Needed more predators though!
Blade Runner: Final Cut - Still an awesome film
Donnie Darko: Directors Cut: Only started watching this, not really in the mood for it yet

What else is happening? Well today I had a voicemail from Derbyshire Police, so instantly thought “shit, what have they found out?”. Besfore I set about wiping my hard drive, I remembered it was regarding an email I sent a while ago querying their motorcycle RTC and fatality statistics.

For anyone intrested, I’m starting a one-man crusade to get some proper representation as these statistics are being used to justify the extra police resource being targeted solely at bikers and is also pushing insurance premiums up all round. I’m sure everyone’s heard how X% of bikers are killed each year, despite bikes only making up Y% of the traffic on the roads, blah blah.

My quarrel is that “motorcycles” are used to describe all two-wheeled vehicles with engines,  and there’s a helluva big difference between a fully licence rider on a fully faired bike wearing fully armoured leathers and boots and a teenage knobhead who’s only done a CBT ragging a scooter around built up areas wearing only a grade B helmet and a tracksuit and trainers (or a suit for all the office workers buying scooters). All I want is a breakdown between motorcycle and Scooters, as there is a big difference between the riding habits, riders and vehicles themselves, especially when the overwhelming majority of RTC’s are in built up areas often under 40mph which is pretty much the sole hunting ground for scooters (bikes are also on motorways, country lanes and other national speed limit areas).

When/If I get these figures, then I want to make it a bit more public,  so writing to my MP and a few letters to local papers. Whilst this is to get some unjustified pressure of my back being a biker, it also might encourage the powers that be to address some of the problem areas as well and offer some more training past the basic CBT, especially as 125’s nowadays are considerably faster than they were 20 years ago.

Anyway, I’m waffling

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