Dancing Shoes

It's been a long time since I was in a club that was so hot that I had to tie my hair up in a ponytail. That was exactly what happened on Saturday night at the brilliant Yellow Reunion, at Moho Live in the Northern Quarter. It was like a furnace in there!

We were initially feeling a bit out of touch with the kids as we walked up from my apartment (it was 11 pm, we were usually in our pj's at this time, we didn't even know where the club was) but once inside it didn't take long to get into the swing of things.

Clubbers were (shock horror) our age or older, and everyone was having a VERY good time. A bit of a wedding reception vibe, only without a bride, or a conga.

Spent most of the night dancing on a stage to classics such as Jazzy Jeff's Summertime, Rose Royce's Carwash, and Nomad's Devotion. Much fun.

As I looked out over the very happy, hands in the air crowd, I couldn't help but wonder if Dubai hosts such hilarious club nights (has the Hacienda's reputation travelled that far?).

Had to sleep for a large part of Sunday. Can't believe we used to indulge in such capers week in, week out. We were younger then!

Ladies Night

Had a great time at the ever popular Thirsty Thursday last night. The lovely Emma James came up with the idea of a 'ladies only' networking event many years ago, and they're always a hoot. Great meeting new contacts whilst having a hair consultation! (only girls will understand this.)

The highlight of this month was the irrepressible David Guest making an appearance. Apparently he was staying at the Mal and wanted to meet the ladies!

Onto the delicious City Inn restaurant: great food as always, and I do love the decor. A bit like sitting in a box of sugared almonds! If the sun shines in Manchester before I depart these shores, I shall try and get onto the terrace. Despite the rumbling trams, it's a real gem in the city.

My lovely friends are arranging all sorts of treats before I go. It will be the simple things that I miss the most (interrupting one another, screeching about Britney/Liz Hurley/ANTM). Loving you all ladies.

One Life, One Suitcase?

Spent much of last night packing up my worldy possessions.

And much of it throwing stuff away too. Quite how I am supposed to travel to Dubai with just one suitcase (20 kilo limit, I ask you!) is beyond my comprehension.

Had one quite frightening moment when I attempted to add up the total value of all the clothes/shoes I was never going to wear again (Moschino green heels, you know who you are). Had to stop adding up as felt a little bit ill!

Still, my lovely friends and work colleagues are having daily bags of 'gifts' delivered to them - granted they are diverse in nature: one day tuxedo trousers, the next a hoodie, the next gym shorts (what was I thinking...?) still, one woman's trash is another woman's treasure, as they say.

Nice to know they are going to good homes.

Creatures of Habit

Routines. Depending on your viewpoint they can be restrictive or comforting, but we all have them as we go about our daily lives. My apartment overlooks the lovely Angel Meadows and part of my morning ritual involves getting ready whilst looking out at people setting off to work through the park.

This morning, as usual, two gorgeous Jack Russells were chasing one another (and their owner) around for a good 20 minutes before I left the house. You couldn’t help but smile at their canine exuberance (and speed) as they hurtled around the park, tails wagging. One of them almost toppled over as he lapped his owner. Apparently they aren’t so keen on dogs in Dubai – you can’t walk them in parks and only on certain areas of the beach. So no more morning dog watching for me. I shall miss those little guys.

Questions, Questions

If you’ve ever moved house, then you’ll understand the stress, nay, panic, that can grip you in the run up to the Big Day. Times this by, ooh, a trillion (hey, I work in PR, it’s in my nature to exaggerate) and that’s how moving to another country makes you feel. Well, me anyway.

It’s not just the usual boring and tedious list of people/utilities/banks etc that you need to notify of your whereabouts, it’s the little day to day things that are currently niggling away at me each night. Such as:

How big a bottle of shampoo should I buy before I go (will I use the giant sized Paul Mitchell in 6 weeks?)
When should I get my hair cut and coloured (who knows how long it will take to find a hairdresser I love when I get to the other end)
Do GHD’s work in Dubai?
Where are the instructions for the central heating in my apartment (new tenant will need these)
Can I still download the Jonathan Ross podcast each week from the Radio 2 website (I am officially old)
How different exactly is the TV situation out there: Lost/Britain’s Next Top Model/The Apprentice are priorities for my viewing.

I’ve never been a brilliant sleeper, you can imagine the state of my sleep at the moment! It’s really not easy being a girl.