Well, what a great birthday weekend.

On Saturday I was in Oxford with Dad who's birthday present to me was a new mattress for my sofa-bed futon. The last had got rather lumpy and unpleasant but the new one is sheer decadance and luxury incarnate. So if anyone wants to come stay the accomodation offering round mine has got a lot better. I came back to London on Saturday afternoon to pick said mattress up, lash it to the roof of the Micra and then chug back to the Bush. Now then, does anyone want a secondhand futon mattress? Don't believe everything you hear about it being lumpy and unpleasant.

That evening, by happy coincidence, a reunion of my housemates from Fernie had been arranged. It turned out to be my 35th birthday, and Amy (honorary O'Sullivan's resident) was turning 25 on Sunday. Double whammy. I was offered the chance to make all the arrangements and thus a night out in Shepherds Bush was arranged. Drinks in the Vesbar, tasty Ruby Murray across the road in the Ajanta Tandoori, then round the corner to poncy bar/pub The Defector's Weld (sic). It was the first time we had all got together for over a year: Mike, Andy, Deke, Corrine, Amy and Ali - thank you.

On Sunday I had arranged my birthday party. I thought that with the number of people I know who have had kids the best thing to do would be to have a child friendly do in the daytime. So I did do and it was a top do too. The weather was capricious: it didn't rain but clouds came and went and one minute it was lovely and warm the next decidedly cold. In other words, classic conditions for the Great British Picnic. We all met by the Albert Memorial in Kensington Gardens and ate and talked and played with the kids. I loved it! And I even managed to get both my god-daughters together in the same place at the same time..


Many thanks to everyone who turned up - and the nice messages from those who couldn't make it


So then - mates, cakes, pressies, the great outdoors. Could it get any better? Well yes, it turned out it could...

You see I had invited a girl along to the picnic. Someone I've just met and like rather a lot. By the end of the picnic I liked her even more. We then went to a cafe in South Kensington for some warming coffee, then a pub, then dinner at mine. I made her my Chorizo Risotto, told her I thought she was great and found out she thought the same about me. Blimey.

Her name is Cath and I think you could say that we are now an item.

:)