Wednesdays are very busy and the longest day in our week. We have several commitments and late in the afternoon it is time for FB’s Ballet Class. By this time of day I, along with other mothers who bring their girls to class, are totally over it. We are ready to be home, showered, in our PJ’s on the couch watching really bad reality TV. But we can’t. Not yet, not for another several hours…
Now, let me be clear. We just adore watching our girls do ballet. They are little kids running around in pink tutus, playing with ribbons, fairy wands, tiaras and bunny ears. It is just the cutest spectacle you could watch. That is why we make the effort. We are just tired. So the way it works is this, we get our girls ready for class and then we sit on various exercise equipment – mats, bouncy balls etc, at the back of the studio. We watch with delight, giggling like crazy people at the cuteness of our little ballerinas, while we chat and catch up on each other’s lives. It is a lovely social outing that puts a little extra brightness into our busy days.
Three weeks ago the Ballet Teacher announced that they were starting rehearsals for our end of year recital. Therefore mothers were no longer invited to sit and watch, quietly enjoying a chat in the back of the studio. We were banned for secret squirrel business.
My friend B-Bug noticed a bar down stairs and negotiated with the manager to open for us giving us a quiet space to sit and chat whilst having the added benefit of enjoying a glass of Sauvignon Blanc for the hour. We have done that for two weeks and it was working well. It is kind of like a group therapy session with benefits.
Wednesday of this week was a day we were all struggling with. We arrived at class, took one look at each other and words said out loud were not required. The look was enough. We went downstairs ready for our ‘session’ and were troubled to find our bar was closed to us for a private function.
After a few mutterings we got strategic, stood on the edge of the road and did an assessment. We realised a few blocks down were a number of buildings containing bars and so this is how it started. Our Wobbly Wednesday Pub Crawl.
Our first pub was the closest to ballet class and it was an Australian Bar called ‘Skippy’s’. In true Australian form, it was a bit dark, a bit dingy, and the tables a bit sticky. There was a pool table, small stage and the typical Aussie guy at the bar wearing a blue plaid flannelette shirt (I am not making this up!). I felt right at home.
We looked at the menu which wasn’t too bad and went to order our glass of Sauv Blanc, only to find they didn’t have any in stock. They lost points immediately. I suggest they get that sorted before Saturday’s big game. Luckily they served cider, which is remarkably difficult to get over here. I am a cider drinker, especially on a hot day. We ordered ‘hand cut chips’ and were happy to find they were proper hot chips, although not hand cut. Clearly a packet of Birds Eye crinkle cut chips had been opened. We did not care, they tasted like actual chips.
Over our drinks we discussed how this would work. We would research the bars around us and every week check out a different one. We have nearly two months of being banned from ballet class. Which is a little upsetting since watching my FB in her pink tutu is one of my most favourite things to do- ever. However I am happy to have found an activity that can take my mind of that small matter.