Separation

Hour after hour went by and still there was nothing further from the quarterly magazine client for the issue which is supposed to go to print next Friday. With only a couple of emails in the bag, I gave up and did my own thing. Doing my own thing involved going up to Clontarf Castle for a bit of a (not all that great) blip shoot, and then suddenly it was time to get the DART across town to Blackrock to meet up with our friends we'd had to cancel on last time because of complications with my car.

We ate in Dali's. They're a bit scabby in terms of only offering a 2-euro reduction for early bird compared with their normal set menu, but I suppose it could be worse. Starter and main course were quite good (rabbit risotto, and baked cod). Carl warned that dessert had been disappointing the last time he'd eaten there, and he was right (my warm chocolate chocolate cake with marmalade ice cream didn't live up to its description). Still we had good crack and enjoyed our time around the table. As usual, the extras (wine, dessert wine, pre-dinner drinks) brought the bill way beyond the point where we felt we were getting good value, despite having booked an early bird.

A couple of drinks in the Breffni pub went down ell and then it was separation time. carl and I went in opposite DART directions while our companions ran for their bus. My DART was funereally slow, so I had lots of time to study my fellow passengers. It's all rather sad, really, this disconnected travel and lack of interaction, but I guess that's the way society has gone. Oh how I'd love to be back in the '70s!