Soggy Toast, Ugh

Its bloody freezing and we're at a dog show, our last of the year. It's indoors but that doesn't really seem to make much different to the temperature. The fog doesn't lift all day and the temperature tops off at 1 degree. Actually, it's good to at least get a bit of winter. We just need some of the white stuff now.

Naturally, my battle scars get a few more comments. Possibly because the bluey blackness is now being ringed by a nice tinge of yellow. I am nothing if not colourful.

The show itself has some surprisingly tough courses for such a low key event and possibly we don't give them the respect they deserve and we pick up two eliminations, although we also come away with a 2nd and a 5th.

Back home, apparently the wanderer has returned, looking fairly sprightly for saying he's spent a night on the cheap cider. Wait until he graduates to a night on the Leffe, for which L volunteers to train him up, she is after all, the expert.

She drops me a text to braggingly say that she's having cheese on toast and a hot bath. Not at same time, I hope. Soggy toast, ugh. Sounds idyllic though, to someone who's freezing in a draughty barn with a flask of parsnip soup and two muddy collies for company.

In the evening we head over to Derby, where the big news at the moment, that is to me, most people probably don't give two hoots, is that the infamous Rockhouse is being revived.

The Rockhouse was a stylishly run down hell hole of a place on Babington Lane, situated above the Reliance Electrical store. It opened in 1984 and existed until 1996 when it was renamed The Future Club but under the same management. It constantly had a battle with the authorities over various issues:- alcohol, drugs, noise, a touch of fraud and general debauchery. It finally closed for good in 2001.

Since then, the place has been a nightclub called Supanova and recently another club called First Floor. So it's never been away really, whether they'll bring back the Health & Safety nightmare along with toilets that were open to the elements I doubt but welcome back all the same. The main thing is that they're going to be having bands on again. The venue used to attract a lot of medium sized bands at a time when Derby had a thriving gig scene with the Dial, the Wherehouse and others. Now with the Royal pulling in some good bands too, Derby seems to be on the up again. It officially reopens on Friday 19th December with a gig by the Pigeon Detectives.

In the Flowerpot, I start with a weak 5% beer, move on up to 5.5% and then finally settle on 6.5% Burton Bridge Old Expensive. We're both well tottering by the time we get the bus home. Then we tuck into a late night chilli, that L prepared earlier.