Half our social universe was there and a lot more besides. It certainly felt like half the universe was there by the end of the evening-- the place was packed. It was amazing. There were friends of mine there from the International Women's group, Elvis' work, a bunch of folks from my language school, Lady Jane and Sir, the couple who own the Late Night Bar of Evil, too many others to mention. Harold and Maud where there, Harold running around with a camera the size of his head and acting all important, which is right up his alley.

It was a cocktails and canap� sort of affair, held in the bar. Incidentally, the bar does look less cold when it's full of people. The aubergine couches are just the right height for me at least-- very comfortable, and I was wearing my high heeled boots as well. The short people seemed to be comfy as well. I kept looking for legs swinging in the air because they couldn't touch the floor, but I couldn't see any. Excepting, of course, for those of a child about seven.

Honestly, what kind of person brings their children to a do like that? The kiddies looked bored as hell, and I don't blame them. The parents kept sniping at the kiddies for being bored and restless. The rest of us kept tripping over the kiddies. If you can't get a babysitter, you should just stay home and make everyone happier.

The food was fantastic. There were these kebabs with fresh tuna and cherry tomatoes and something else that I can't remember, grilled with a balsamic vinegar sauce, that was superb. I'll have to try and make it at home. I wasn't crazy about the asparagus and crab tartlets, but the arancini were great. The mini creme brul�e were not really brul�ed, but tasted good. I only had one of those, and none of the chocolate ones. I'm proud of that-- they were terribly hard to resist.

Mainly, I just drank free champagne and chatted with my friends. All in all it was a great evening, and I'm so happy for my friend that it was such a big success with such a big turnout.

Around 1 am, we went to the pub. All that free champagne left me wanting a nap. Just a teeny one, mind you. Fifteen minutes would have been perfect. So I had a chat with Pooka Boy, who said he'd wake me up. I dozed off sitting up, so as not to attract attention.

Unfortunately, he didn't tell Elvis about my plan. Elvis saw my closed eyes, woke me up, and fed me an espresso and a bottle of water. We agreed to go after he finished his beer.

Of course, once that time rolled around, I was wide awake. My second wind had blown in and I was raring to go. Elvis, being sensible, went home. I, being me, went to the LNBOE with Horatio, Pooka Boy and Miss Kitty, who swore they'd take very good care of me. Miss Kitty, who had spent the evening bar-hopping with some girlfriends, had switched to Coca Cola an hour ago, maybe more. Pooka Boy had driven, and had been taking it easy all night so he didn't have to walk home. It was 2 am at the time, and I told Elvis I'd be home by three.

Right.

I had forgotten, of course, that NOBODY gets out of the LNBOE by three. What was I thinking of? I must have been drunk. Miss Kitty stuck to coke, Pooka Boy had one drink and then coke, and I had red wine in abundance. I also had a heck of a lot of fun, although I still wish Elvis had come along, too. After Horatio left, Pooka Boy had a long, long talk with Miss Kitty, for which I made myself scarce. Seems he still has the hots for her, and I didn't really want to listen to his declarations of undying lurve.

Pooka Boy is about the only person who ever leaves the LNBOE at 3 am. Not last night! Which was a good thing, since he drove Miss Kitty and I home.

At 5 am.

Which, you know, isn't too bad. Miss Kitty begged me to make sure that Pooka Boy dropped her off first, but it wasn't necessary. I think he might have heard her.

I got home and gave the sleeping Elvis a goodnight kiss, and he pulled me down for a hug. It was nice, so I thought I'd stay there for just a minute.

At 9 am, I got up, got undressed (I was even still wearing my eco-pelle jacket!), took out my eyes and washed my face, brushed my teeth and got back into bed-- on my side, this time. I stayed there until almost four, which is some sort of record for me. Aside from the fog caused by too much sleep, I felt fine.

Elvis got up whenever, feeling fine.

Miss Kitty, however, sent me a text around half past one, assuring me she felt "like shite."

Poor Miss Kitty. All those colas for naught.