Oh, probably one of the reasons I didn't go clubbing last night was because I can't remember going clubbing on Saturday night. The meal at Craig's was nice and drunken with lots of silly singing and dancing. Then apparently we went to the Shift. Apparently Andy was there and we all danced a while. Apparently one of the speakers blew and the music stopped. Apparently Andy brought me home and put me to bed! Oops. Minker me!

Yay. It's my birthday on both sides of the world. That means I'm old everywhere. Bah humbug. It's 9am on my birthday morning and for some reason I'm up and about. And not too hungover. Had a party here last night which was fun and decided (probably wisely) not to go clubbing after all! Of course now I'm at a loose end. Matron.

So, here we are again. It's coming up to 6.15pm Saturday night, and it's the start of Davie's birthday weekend. Yippee! Firstly advance birthday wishes to the lovely Stevie P and Richie Bean. It's weird not celebrating to a greater or lesser extent with them... particularly as Steve and I had a joint party last year. Anyway I gather the London boys will be Fridge-ing and RVTing and LA3ing. Sigh. Wish I could be there. Meantime, I'm having a party on the roof tomorrow, and then stumbling off to Arq, the only real club for Sundays. It's not the RVT, but we've had some good times there so far.

What else is new? I've kind of seen Andy the dentist a few times, which has been nice, and we're hopefully hooking up again later tonight and maybe going to the Midnight Shift. Craig over the road is cooking dinner tonight too, so I'm being nicely spoilt! Other than that, a bit of work, a coffee here, dinner there, the usual stuff. In awe of the Playstation 2 too, and trying to work out what games to buy. Recommedations please - I particularly like platform games. Ta. Charlie's Angels DVD came with the PS2, and I've bought the Matrix and Garry's bought Kylie Live in Sydney. Well we had to. I sense a few quieter night coming on...

More news as it happens. Easter wishes from a soon to be older Davie!

Oh. And I've finally got round to buying a Playstation 2. Yippee!!

I'm a very tired Davie. Bed now. Things are good. Sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep...

I did post something last night, but Blogger ate it. Sigh. Reported much gym and eating activity. Work. That's about all. Out for a date with Andrew last night which was lovely. Couple of drinks and then Vietnamese. Back here so he could sober up a little before driving home. Honest! :o) He's seemingly a lovely man, and he's very sexy and tactile. We like that. We're hopefully doing it all again tomorrow. Had nice feelings about it all day. Watch this space. Worked 2-10.30pm today. It's a long day. Managed to use the paging system without thinking whilst some famous Aussie poet was doing a reading downstairs. Oops. We got some free wine at the end of the shift, so 6 of us went and sat in the park in the rain and sculled it whilst nattering about life etc. Haven't done something like that since I was probably 16.Nice feeling. Off to bed now as on an early start tomorrow. Urgh. But going to bed smiling. Night night.

Well that was the weekend that was...

Friday night was a couple of drinks down at the Oxford with Gregg and we were joined by Martin. From there we hit the Beresford and caught up with a few people down there. On to the Barracks where I was very sensible and left reasonably early as I had to be in work on Saturday.

Saturday night finished work and came home to doze on the day bed a while. Eventually went out to grab some fast food and ended up just seeing who was in the Oxford :o) Martin was there with some mates and so I tagged on in and we hit the Barracks. Martin was v. drunk (you'd never catch me in that state, honest) so I caught up with Richard (no Russell though) and we finally all legged it down to the very heaving Pheonix. Fun. Russell was there and the boys introduced me to their friend Andrew. Very nice. Indeed. We left about 2 or 3am, I've no idea. Up we went onto the roof. Most pleasant on an evening when it's still about 23C. And you're doing what we were :o)

Sunday. Andrew left early and I stayed in bed. Brunch with Adrian and then Pete dropped round the dining table that they've so kindly given us. Bless 'em. Then a few people were going down to the Green Park Hotel for some beers. I joined them. It was great! Almost like the olden days of the Beauchamp. Think RVT with less dancing. Lots of nice looking men being very sociable. Lovely. David Bassett was there and Gary J, John and Andrew, Little Ian, Mark, Adelaide... fun. Went to join Garry at the Shift but it wasn't the same. Home and made some phone calls as I promised myself I would once the UK boys had gone home. So, spoke to Stevie P, Big Steve, Darryl and Nick. Lovely to hear them all. More phone calls over the next weeks. You could be the lucky recipient!!

Today's been a lovely day too. Slept until 9.45am and had a leisurely breakfast. Phil (who's just recently moved back here from Melbourne) dropped in unexpectedly and so we arranged a late lunch after I'd been to the gym. I did that, which was great... I've got no excuses not to really give this a go this time. Fixed hours, more time in the day than I've ever had, the gym just down the road. I'll be like Schwarzenegger by Christmas. Yeah right!! Went for a huge chicken salad in a café in Victoria Street that I'd forgotten about. Cheap and fantastic. Coffee in Stanley Street which I'd also forgotten is a great place to watch the world go by. Back here to chill a while, and then Martin called to drop in some CDs and we ended up going for coffee too. Or a milkshake as it turned out. And then back here to update this. And Andew called to see if I want to do dinner on Wednesday. Of course I do. That's like a date then :o) Off to the supermarket now to find something for dinner and then a relatively early night I think. Yes indeedy.

All is well with the world. I live in possibly the most beautiful city in the world, and today the sun was shining. I went for a walk in my lunch hour and got all shivery with the fact I live here. Marvellous.

Things have calmed down, you'll be pleased to hear.

Oh, but it didn't stop there. I worked Tuesday and then had a lovely meal with Darren that night. We ate then just stood up on the roof drinking wine and taking in the view. I had such a great time with him. Hopefully a good friendship will come from that. Bless him. Wednesday was quieter and I worked both then and Thursday. Thursday night me and Darryl hit the town for his last night. Oh dear. We hit the Oxford and Stonewall and then followed a pack of sexy men to Arq. It was great fun. Chatted to Triple F Steve for the first time properly and danced and danced and looked at the lovely men. Think we finally left around 7am. I called in sick. Oops. Finally Darryl had to go to the airport and for the first time in around 3 weeks I was back with no English mates here. Felt very strange. Still great to be here and sharing with Garry and so on, but if felt so natural to have more mates around. Hey ho. It made me realise how much I do miss everyone from home.
So, left alone I did what any good gay man would. Went on the prowl :o) So, that was Friday afternoon taken care of :o) Drinks Friday night with the boys. Worked Saturday and then me and Garry had a good old style Saturday night. Until I met up with Alan and John who I spent the night with in October showed up. Suddenly there was a change of plan and we were in a cab...
Into work Sunday with a spring in my step. Home, changed and to the Shift and caught up with the gang and Glenn & Rick from the States. Realised that Wayne G was going to be playing at Arq and so that was my next decision made as I had the Monday off. Hit there and had a ball. Good music, spent time with Rich and Russ and also to Chris. Stories there, but more stories to follow as he finally left here at about 2pm Monday after dancing, flirting, snogging, drinks in the Oxford etc. Etc. Slept until about 6pm, had more noodles from Thai downstairs (can anyone see a pattern here??), and then went onto the computer to see what was going on. Steve, Rich and Russ's flatmate ended up here with 2 bottles of wine which we had on the roof... and he finally went home on Tuesday. Oh dear. I am that trashy bitch :o)

Ay ay ay. So, another year another Mardi Gras mad time. It was so fantastic to see the boys here. I hope they had a good time - it looked like they were having a great time! We did almost constant minkering for 3 whole weeks. Darryl was a bit ill for the first week which in retrospect was probably for the best as we couldn't have done the whole time at such a frenetic pace! Almost too many highlights. The events went something like this.

i) Darryl arrived. Minkered as reported, then we had a few days off.

ii) Harbour Party as reported. Incredible. Arq. Fantastic. Dr Darren. Also fantastic.

iii) Woof on the Thursday. Great too. Good music, good venue. I so wasn't going, but hooked up with the boys who had a spare ticket and suddenly... there I was at City Live! Great crowd, good music and a lot of fun. I left the boys to it as I had to work the next day :o(

iv) Quieter night on the Friday. Beresford and Barracks I think. Didn't overdo it.

v) Mardi Gras day. We had invited everyone here for a drinks party and to watch the Parade, what with the views of Oxford Street from the apartment and the roof. People started arriving at 3pm ish and it became a steady flow the longer the night went on. The straight couple at number 2 had a party too, so we just all combined on the roof and in fact spread along all the rooves as we're the only residential one! I think everyone had a good time - the view was fantastic. We shifted heaps of booze too. Lots of bottles to clear afterwards! From there to the party which was fun. Only gripe was I lost everyone quite early on apart from Darren and Darryl. I wasn't complaining too much :o) But I hardly saw any of the aussie guys and only hooked up with Garry again at 7am! Deborah Cox was the first show and she was fantastic. It all gets a little blurry after that, but we danced mostly in the Dome, with forays into the Hordern and the RHI. Decided not to wait for Alcazar as Paul & Alan were over it. Apparently they were very camp. Alcazar, Not P&A! Back here to shower and then on to the Barracks. Well me, D & D. It was fun. Dancy, cruisy, fun.Think we stayed until about 12.30pm and finally everyone went their separate ways. Slept until about 6pm then up and pottered. Noodles from Thai Panic (shop below the apartment!).

vi) Showered and changed and hit ICE at City Live. P&A already there, Darren meant to join us, Darryl bottled out. It was great. Music was good, people very sexy. Spent time with P&A, David Bassett, Rod & Tony and saw Rich, Russ & Steve there at the end. Got the fairy bus to Bay33 at 2.30am to continue the party. Spent time with David and Peter and Paul and Darren failed to show. The music got a bit harder. Gonzalo and Rachel Auburn finished it off, but we decided to leave a bit before the end as Rachel was getting a bit 'pots & pans'.

vii)Arq. Absolutely great. Only problem was that P&A had to leave for their flight at 8.30am. I dutifully carried on until about 12.30pm when I finally thought I should call it a day. Came home to chill but Darryl and Darren had other ideas. We ended up having coffee and I forced some potato wedges down my neck. Then we hit the pub. We drank and drank and eventually I left them all to it about 9pm. Finally crashed at about 10pm, having had only 4 hours sleep in the preceding 60. Ay caramba.

I know it's been a long time. Will update all the Mardi Gras action after the boys have finally gone. It's been fantastic and I'm going to be so sad by the weekend. More later.

Jesus. Minker major. It's Monday evening and I'm still recovering from the most incredible weekend. More details soon, but last night was the last ever Harbour Party (well at least in its original guise). Imagine the music of the Vauxhall Tavern, but with an open air harbour setting with views of the Bridge and the Opera House and 5000 sexy men. Ay caramba. Just incredible. I haven't really got the words to do it justice, it was one of those 'you had to be there' things. Wayne G played a blinder and it was great to have some UK people there with me - Darryl, and Paul and Alan and the lovely Dr. Darren all the way from Misty Moor. Plus Aussie mates too. All in all an incredible experience, akin to something almost religious. Recovery at Arq which continued being fantastic. Sydney really comes into its own at Mardi Gras time. Less than a week until the party. Yeehah!

Urgh. Feel a bit rough. Bit of a minker last night. Darryl has arrived safe and well, yesterday morning. We went and had brekky and then I signed up properly at the gym and am going back next Monday to get a program sorted. Also getting a trainer once a week, so I've no excuses. None. Oops! Met Adrian for coffee and it all got a bit social as loads of the guys were out too. Then we went for one beer... and I don't really have to tell you what happened next! Met loads of people from London - one of whom I haven't seen for about 6 years! Today's been spent doing very little other than vegging. Back into work at 8am in the morning. Bed time now...

Happy birthday to my sister Sue. I'll ring later tonight! Oh, and I missed blogging sister Karen's birthday on the 2nd. And Michael's on the 12th. Happy bidet one and all!

Not a great deal has happened since I left you last, other than work. Wednesday met Adrian and Russell for coffee after work and then had a lazy night in front of the telly. Thursday managed to drag myself to the gym after work and then Martin popped in for a glass of the old vino and a natter. Last night I got in and made an omelette with the last of the roasted veggies and then slumped in front of My Best Friend's Wedding. The perfect thing. Garry came in and tried to drag me out, but I was too tired. Maybe I'm just getting old. Great news yesterday though - Garry's got another permanent job - and if he passes his probation will get sponsored! Yippee - it means he's be able to stay sharing the apartment here, which is great news. This morning (Sat) I'm again off to work. They've been pretty good with my request for days off over Mardi Gras. I've got Harbour Party day off and the Monday after, then I've got Mardi Gras weekend off and hopefully (as this roster isn't out yet) the Monday as well. That means I can go to ICE and not really care how minkered I get... Darryl arrives on Monday at 8am and it'll be great to see him. Paul and Alan and Dr. Darren arrive a week today so it's all happening! It's going to start and get busy out and about too as people start to filter in. We're having a big Mardi Gras party here, what with the view and everything from the apartment. I'll try and take some digi-cam pics so you know what on earth I'm on about! Right. Brekky. Oh, and you'll be pleased to know my diet has become way healthier since settling in here. Now if only I could maybe drink a little less. It would help me afford some furniture too!

Well I've had a pretty good couple of days, let me tell you. I went and priced and measured everything at IKEA, then got depressed as I realised I can't afford to buy anything for ages... and I so want to buy some nice stuff for this place. All in good time I guess... I ditched the gym as I couldn't be bothered, so I did what I often do in these sort of situations... I cooked! Made roast lamb with potatoes dauphinois and felt better. Garry and I had a slobby evening in front of the telly and then I had a really good night's sleep. Today was a good day. Up and had healthy brekky. Tidied and sorted room and took laundry to be washed. There's a communal machine here but I needed the time! Went and bought some bits, some food and then hit the gym. Finally. For the first time since September! Yippee. Felt good about that. Came home and went and picked up some Harbour Party tickets for Paul and Alan, then came home and cooked again. Just call me Nigella Smith-Oliver. Loads of roasted veggies and pasta, and then went the whole hog and made some feta cheese and rosemary bread. Fabulous! I guess this means I'm feeling very settled in my new home. Gotta love that. Darryl arrives on Monday too, which is going to be fantastic. Just hope all the days off I requested from work have come through OK. Will know more tomorrow...

A year has passed since I wrote my note...

Well not quite, but it's a week since I put fingers to keyboard. Most of that week has passed in an alcoholic haze. People keep dropping in to see the new apartment with bottles of wine and it's rude not to drink them. And then go and buy more. And then fall out of the front door into the nearest bar. Almost literally. The early part of last week held the moving/leaking dramas, but that's all sorted now. Work's been fine - had my review and they're happy with me. Had a long chat with the boss about some marketing ideas I'd had and he seems quite impressed. Other than that, the weather's not been up to much so no sunbathing or anything. Today is the start of the new regime for me - been already eating better here just because I'm more settled than the recent limbo-waiting-to-move weeks. Trial week at the gym later today and have two days to sort out admin stuff. Yay. May also go quite mad and treat myself to something nice. Like a DVD player. Watch this space...

Oh, and in the move I missed the Minkered... one year anniversary. Those were the days. I'd do the odd interesting post then...

In the new place. Great. Apart from the leaking ceiling in my bedroom, the light fitting full of water, the fused lights and the ceaseless rain the last two days. Joy.