Most people know I don’t bother with birthdays. I haven’t done in decades.
But, with my birthday falling on a Monday this year (and the fact I’ve worked the past two years on this date), I really wanted to have a day somewhere with the dog.
So, I made plans for next Monday. I was really looking forward to it.
And then my beloved broke her wrist.
I might reschedule. Back to 70 hour weeks for a bit then.
I’ve not had a lot of luck in catching the Hold Steady on tour. Mostly because they don’t often have dates beyond London.
I did once see them in Newcastle, at the Riverside, a few years ago; they were silly good. Last January, i had a ticket for a London gig, but there was a lot going on in the bar, so i ended up not going.
I actually made it yesterday, though. Sort of. I couldn’t stay over, since I needed to be home this morning for the dog. Train times didn’t work out (eight hours overnight), so that left the bus.
Unfortunately, with a late-ish start to the gig, I had to miss half of it. Next time, I’ll find someone to watch the hound.
Still, they were ridiculously good.
And, since we have a keg of their beer in the bar right now, I did squeeze in a visit to Hackney Church’s tap room. It’s well worth a visit.
It already feels like a long time ago, but we closed the bar for 10 days, so we could have a break and do some work in the bar.
Beginning in Peterborough, we visited familiar places.
A walk along the river was quickly abandoned due to an insane amount of flooding.
We did find a new (to us) micropub though.
After two nights in Peterborough, there was a day/night in York (which was also flooded).
Then, after a day at home, we were off to Edinburgh. We met up with a brewery rep for a couple of drinks; he introduced us to The Guildford Arms, a lovely old pub.
Another discovery was the Fierce bar, which had opened since our last time in Edinburgh. Fortunate, since we’re quite fond of their beer (we’ve had a few kegs in the bar). Weirdly, the bar person had been in our bar.
We spent the following day mostly in Leith.
It was good to fit in a couple of brewery taps, as well as some bars we’ve previously visited.
Of course, we took the customary picture of the cool T3 in Leith.