deathpixie | Perfect weekend

Seriously, best weekend I've had in ages.

Friday afternoon my parents came down from Wodonga on the train, and by happy coincidence I was allowed to leave work an hour early as there wasn't much to be done. Which meant no hanging around. *grins* We caught the tram back to St Kilda, passing through Dad's childhood subhurb of South Melbourne (we could see his old house from the tram) and then went for Thai food at Tien Tien, which is round the corner from Acland St. Great food. Afterwards we went to the St Kilda RSL (Returned Serviceman's League)which is basically a social club for veterans - cheap booze, cheap pool, band playing in the visitor's lounge, and a provate members bar for actual vets. Which, since Dad is one, we got into. I defended the family honour with the best bloody night of pool I've had since I played Pebblin in LA at the end of Walkabout, and we had such a good time we didn't get to bed until 2am. And you wonder where I get it from? ;)

Saturday - brunch with Phil at the Fubar (real name, seriously!) and then we took ourselves up to Optus Oval in Carlton for the Carlton -v- Sydney Swans game. Mum, Dad and I are all Swans fans, and we were seated with the rest of the visiting fans behind one of the goals. Since the goal end changes every quarter, this meant we were sitting behind Swan goals twice, and those were the best two quarters, I can tell you.

AFL (Aussie Rules football) is one of the fastest football games you'll see, and this one was no exception. Especially the last quarter - the Swans were down by several goals going into it, but in a nail-biting finish, they managed to score four or five goals in the last twenty minutes. Cue much cheering and shouting. Phil seemed to enjoy himself, the experience much improved by the Typical Football Blokes (TM) sitting behind us and regaling us (unintentionally) with commentary worthy of Roy and HG.

After the game we headed back into the city, the Portland Hotel on our minds. Unfortunately there was no seating, so we ended up at the Bridie O'Reilly's in Little Collins St for food and an ale or two, before heading back down to St Kilda. Mum and Dad needed an early night after the excesses of Friday, so Phil and I took ourselves to the St Kilda Inn (my local) for a jar or two, only to find our local band discovery, Twitch, had finally returned. So, there was slightly more beer and dancing than had been intended.

Sunday, the folks and I had brekkie in Acland St before they headed into the city to do their own hting before catching the train. I had a date with the laundromat and some cleaning up, and after the two previous nights I was ready for a quiet one, which is what I had. It didn't hurt Le Tour de France had started and I had pretty cycling boys to watch.

Speaking of cycling, I have a new helmet and a repaired bike, so Rossi is back on the road for the first time since the accident. I chose a slightly different route into work today, avoiding the scene of my previous downfall, and despite the dreams of roads like glass and worn-out tyres and lots of falling over, I came to no harm, even with various sleep-deprived, drunken Greeks popping out of nowhere to be happy about the Euro Cup win at me. Cecil ran like a dream - BRM replaced the gears and chain - and the new helmet is far more comfy than the old one, and is the same colour as the bike. Now to get muggins in the 4WD to pay for it.