playing with kites, again
I was back out in the Chilterns this weekend, and the Red Kites were certainly taking advantage of the thermals. I don't think I've ever seen more than five at a time, but you'll see a largish group and two minutes later there's another lot, so the reintroduction programme has clearly been a great success. You certainly don't see that many rabbits, although there are still some about.My mission was to form part of the lighting crew for Sir H's 60th birthday party (Sir H being the landlord of the production company for whom I do a lot of work, are you keeping up at the back?). We converted what is normally the covered carpark (a farm equipment shed in a former life) into a party venue, blacking out the walls and ceiling with drapes, and building a stage and dance floor at one end. There were to be some 250 guests seated at tables, so it was trestle mania in there as well. We started this epic on the Friday morning, and worked all through the day on Saturday to get it finished. Sir H has three sons, and between them they can just about manage a whole chin, nice enough boys, but one senses that unless the operation is very carefully managed there won't be much of the Chiltern estate left in a few years time. Any way, come party time (did I mention it was themed around Top of the Pops?) the place was overrun with 'bright' young things dressed as pop stars, and even, for an unknown reason, a nun. There was, apparently, one of the princes, I'm afraid I wouldn't know which even if I'd been introduced. Certainly the waitressing staff were all a-quiver, and cameras were banned.
The catering was weird, they started with potted shrimps and smoked salmon, so far so good. This was followed with bangers and mash served with tomato ketchup and gravy, potentially very good, if a little strange. If it had been my party, however, I wouldn't have sanctioned Morrisons regular sausages (£1.19 a pack) and Bisto instant gravy mix, but that's just me I guess. On the other hand, good blotting paper for all the wine that they chucked down their necks. Pudding (and I think we are in pudding territory here) was a small tub of Ben and Jerry's icecream, in Vanilla, Strawberry or Chocolate flavour.
We had the best band in the Chilterns, apparently, and Sir H's son sung a few numbers with them. It has to be said, the assembled infants of the great and the good, partied with a will and with enthusiasm, and generally speaking were very polite and well behaved. When we started pulling it all down at about 3.00 am, there were still many of these young things milling about, searching for more booze mostly, and whilst they did get in the way, they did keep coming and telling us what a wonderful party they'd had. Around about 5.00 am, as the sun was starting to rise and the mists were burning off the fields and the lake, we were interrupted by a very dishevelled female of the species, party frock all rumpled, and hay in her hair, accompanied by two beaux, and still more than a little pissed, trying to persuade one of us to drive her (and beaux presumably) to her hotel. Ever so politely we directed her up the hill to the big house, and she tottered off, one assumes a servant of some sort looked after her, if not, the farm staff were out and about tending the livestock by then anyway.
We did have a proto 'get orf my land' moment, when number two son spotted two of the crew down by the lake (one of these gents is a six foot rastafarian with muscles, and ever so charming with it), as it happens, I think they volunteered to take the lights and run the 200m cable out so that they could have a crafty spliff. As it was I told the young gentleman that they were picking out one of the heifers to stick in the back of the truck next morning, for a couple of moments he did actually believe me.
All down and packed away by 11.00 am, and then we just had to drive to Kent to unload, and home to get some sleep, I managed 1 1/2 hours over the weekend, slept quite well once I was home though.
posted by Lampy @ 7/17/2006 12:03:00 pm
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