Last night I had a rare night out in my old stomping ground of Shoreditch! The uber trendy bohemian hang out for East Londoners and these days it’s not even there to rival Camden, it has its own level of ‘cool’ in its very own right!

The thing is… I was there in the beginning when Shoreditch was transforming from the industrial to the arty party it’s become and I really feel like I was one of the pioneers yet at the beginning of last night I just felt a little bit old really. I don’t like that, I don’t like that at all! And… I resented looking at the young hipsters walking down Brick Lane like they own it; as if they’re the first to have come across this shabby chic scene!

I wanted to scream at them in their perfectly mussed up hair, vintage togged clobber and say ‘YOU think you’re the first people to have discovered Shoreditch? Bore off! I was here when that dress you’re wearing was in Top Shop! Dragon Bar was just a door you had to knock on and hope the person opening it thought you were cool enough to come in and Hoxton Square was just The Electricity Showrooms! I was here for Whirl-Y-Gig! Yep! That’s how cool I am. Oh! And when we drank in The Old Blue Last it was a rough old East End boozer, not a cocktail in sight and believe me, it was US who turned that place around for you today!

I felt intimidated by the sheer bravado of youth walking along the streets, jaunty boney hips jutting out declaring their ownership far more succinctly that a flag in the ground. They were saying ‘What are you doing here? You don’t belong, Shoreditch is ours now!’ and it made me want to pout my bottom lip out and say, ‘Oh darling, twenty years ago, you weren’t even born, I so belong. I was cool enough to be here when I was 14 and I’m still here today at 34. Only THIS time I can put my credit card behind the bar at Medicine and you still have to sip all night on the one lone cocktail your Saturday job earnings will allow for… Shame…

Then I looked down at my hips and could feel no boney bits, just a squadge, turned my eyes to the Vibe Bar with the loud pumping music blaring out and suddenly I didn’t think I wanted to go in anymore. I instead felt a bit tired after my frantic trip down memory Lane watching all the youth of East London snarl at each other as if to say ‘these streets are ours and what of it?’ Oh let them have it I thought, I’m too tired to argue… I’ve been up the last 5 nights with a poorly baby and don’t even have the energy to party into the evening let alone the night… And what I have these days, oh I’d choose it over my hair extensions, a size 6 bottom and too cool for school clothes any day! All of that was building to all of this and I looked once again at the youngsters down Ely’s Yard, saw them having fun, being young and didn’t envy them one bit! I’m glad I’ve grown up so well and glad I have that amazing party youth to think back on but I don’t want to do it again! And it doesn’t even make me feel old, just, I don’t know… happy really.

Been there, done that you see! And happy to not be doing it again! But… I was still there first and we definitely did it better!

MY LIFE WITH TWO!

This week has been a week of winter bug! Florence got it first, then Jimmy and it’s been a constant washing week as I try desperately to get all the bedding clean so that we can start again each day! I don’t know what my son’s aversion to the bowl is but he certainly has one and I have had it tipped upon me more than once in the last few days.

I hate to see them so poorly and Jimmy has looked so sad at times. At least with Florence she understands that she will feel better and you can explain medicine will help. Jimmy is too young and just thinks you’re trying to poison him every time you come anywhere near him with the rehydration drink or a syringe of paracetamol…

The thing I mainly worry about when they’re poorly is that they lose too much weight. Both of them are skinny minnies and it only takes a day or so for them to look TOO skinny. I tried to tempt them with food they’d love and we made pizza at home which was also a fun activity and turned out really well. Florence astounded me with how grown up she is when Jonny told her not to take another dough ball because she wouldn’t eat it but she insisted. She of course didn’t eat it but when Jonny came back in the room a bit later Florence said, completely un prompted, ‘Daddy, I’m sorry I took that dough ball. I was wrong, I didn’t want it and you were right’. I just thought that showed an incredible amount of maturity for just having turned four and it was just another moment to make my heart swell with pride.

They’ve both been so good really, we haven’t had much sleep but I don’t mind because we’ve had lots of snuggly time on the sofa and both of them have just dealt with it all so well! On to a healthier week now though I hope – I don’t think my washing machine can take much more!

Under the weather but enjoying pizza making!

Follow