Jump, Jive and the Hartford Wailers

 

Where is the loo sir?

                                                               Rockabilly Hairstylists


Last month, I went to a very fun event at Bloomsbury Lanes Bowling Alley in London. It was a sort of craft/music/vintage Rockabilly Hipster Fair that I really enjoyed. They served beer (Ice Cold Asahi=Awesome) and had a DJ spinning lots and lots of cool 50's Rock and or Billy, as well as 60's soul. Nothing that you could complain about, unless your a douche or bag-hole of some sort, that's right, I said bag-hole, I'm trying to invent a new "swear", but that's another story.

I had a swell time at the event and bought a Sailor Jerry tattoo flash poster of a swallow that is really cool, and incidentally I now really want inked on my bod. The rockabilly folk were decked out in their cool vintage gear and the ladies especially were cool in their 1940's era pin-up girl garb. It really is a sexy retro look and something I hope that catches on and most girls will wear this season. Unlike the look in London at the moment of wearing nylons as trousers. Its a look I don't quite understand and most people should never ever attempt to pull off.

So last night, me and the Mrs. went down to Bloomsbury Lanes again for a night out. They advertised 50's music, hula-hoop contests, free popcorn and jive dancing. Most, if none of this did not materialize. The beer was good and the Lanes were retro cool as usual but none of the advertised events happened. No popcorn, no hula-hoops, no 50's music. It was more like a regular night club with dance music blasting. We had to drink tequila and beer heavily in order to stand it. My Mrs. can attest to how much as she is bed ridden with a hangover. Thanks Bloomsbury Lanes! I recommend going to the next Rockabilly Vintage Fair as it was an amazing event, but, be weary of the event I just described. It was not as advertised and little fun for anyone over the age of thirty, though the Asahi's were still good.

Cont'd:

I wrote about Hockey Day in London last week and promised more about what happened at the event. At this point it seems anti-climactic and I don't remember much about what happened anyway. I said "Things got Canadian." All that really means is we got stupidly drunk on Canadian beer, talked about hockey, and took the piss out of the English for a while and few gloves were dropped and very little blood was spilled. A nice escape for us expat Canucks in the land of cucumber sandwiches and Real Ale and I recommend The Maple Leaf in Covent Garden. One thing, forget about the Poutine as cheese curds are illegal in the UK. Bloody Health and Safety!

Hockey Day in Canada...I mean, England!

On Sunday I headed down to the Maple Leaf Tavern or Pub, or whatever it's called, in Covent Garden, for a fun filled afternoon of Canadiana. My girlfriend was working across the street at the BAFTA Awards so it was a perfect place for me to plant my ass for a few hours filled with hosers, poutine and heavy Canuck style hockey game binge drinking. I'd not seen an entire hockey game in about a year, so I was pretty stoked about it, to say the least. The Maple Leaf was going to show three games that day, but I was mostly interested in watching my hometown Maple Leafs, the lovable losers that they are, suck for three straight stress induced heart palpitation filled periods. I do miss that twist in my stomach when I see Tomas Kaberle not take that shot on the power play, I sure miss that Czech sonofabitch!

I showed up at the pub around 3PM and the Edmonton Oilers vs. Ottawa Senators game was in the second period. The place was busy already, Canadians piled in like a can of delicious Brunswick Sardines (product placement-give me free sardines please!) I decided to sit down and enjoy a 4 quid pint of thirst quenching, crisp and clear Sleemans Honey Brown Lager (#2=free beer please!) and catch the vibe of the place.

This was the largest gathering of Canucks I'd seen in one place since setting foot in Blighty and for some reason found it a tad disconcerting. I think I'm used to the diferent Brit accents I hear in my day to day life and the sound of Canadian accents bouncing back at me was a bit too much like being at home.

I spoke to a few Canucks and we all exchanged previous addresses: Windsor, Brampton, Toronto, Markham, Victoria, Calgary and so on. I was uncomfortable at first, until the beers (Sleemans and Mooseheads #3) started to kick in...that's when things got a bit...Canadian.

To be continued: Part 2 in the next couple of days.