Alf's Imperial Army at a party in my flat
Pixel 5 - 275369/1073741824 sec, f1.7 at 219/50mm
The third house I flatted in (about 1986 or 87) was a house on Onslow Road, Khandallah down in Wellington with 3 other people. One worked the night shift somewhere, we never saw her unless she was out making another cup of coffee. So addicted to coffee. One was a legal exec at a Featherstone Street law firm and the other was Alistair. He worked in the same building as me, Cumberland House on Willis Street.
It was Alistair's birthday at some point and he had a party. I was to be in charge of the music as I was the one that owned the stereo. I'd never been to a flat party before and knew nothing of music for parties. That party was to be memorable for 2 reasons.
The first was that Alistair had some mates in "Alf's Imperial Army and most of the 2nd Duke of Wellington's Own (Boots) Regiment of the time turned up to our flat. There was red coat uniforms and doc martin boots everywhere.
The Party was going ok, everyone enjoying themselves until I put one of the albums from Madness (I forget which now) on the stereo. Let me tell you the Army went bloody rapsberry. Such a good time was had from then on with those boots on our floor. They bloody loved Madness to the point that was all that was played the rest of the night. Every time I play Madness now I think of those crazy bastards in red coats and white helmets and heavy black boots stomping around our flat and I try to dance like they did that night.
The other memorable thing was Alistair has bought some fireworks from an importer where a few days later there was news items in the paper about returning fireworks bought from that importer as they were illegal. Alistair thought no bloody way he was returning them so kept them. When we set them alight is was pretty obvious why they should have been returned. Best fireworks ever.
As an aside and sort of related. I wanted to play Madness, It Must Be Love when we got married. But Gabba thought Madness was not appropriate for the Cathedral we got married in. I had to settle for slipping the cassette into the car stereo cued to that track when we left.
The photo
I've learned to take a photo with my phone whenever I'm out on a photo mission now. I think I've come to the conclusion more pixels is better. My D70 just doesn't have the trouser now. Anyways, it's Bean Rock Lighthouse in front of a whole Rangitoto Island taken from Tamaki Drive moments before the rain arrived.
Right, I'm going to play some Madness and have a bit of a boogie in my man cave
)