Friday 12th February -

Another weekend, another trip to York and once again I was met with dinner cooking and chilled foreign lager - just what I wanted after a long two weeks waiting and a seemingly longer drive from my hometown. With a suitcase full of pinstripes and pvc I was ready for the weekend.

There were plans to leave the house and be sociable, meet people, talk, drink beer, but there were also distractions like two bottles of wine and The Last Dance. I don't really know where the time went or what we talked about but before we knew it the clock said 10.30pm and it was too late to think about anything else. 10.30 became 3am, then 4am, before our stories ran out and bed called....

Saturday 13th February -

With nothing to do quite so good as bacon, eggs and oatcakes while watching the entire first series of Spaced we stayed in again, drinking York dry of tea.Then it was embarrassing-photos-from-our-past time although in these modern times it involved my first program for Rockworld on dvd and video footage of a very young keyboardist, with much shorter hair...

As the day progressed into the evening it was decided that we better get ready to leave the house. It was the re-launch of York's goth night Darklands and as I knew what I was wearing, where it was and how to put it on (not inside-out and upsidedown, take note) I was ready first. It was ok because there was beer in the fridge and boy hunting for 'the right length lace gloves' to laugh at.

Just as my patience was begining to wane, and the beer had run out, he was ready. One cab ride, and one miserable cabby, later we arrived at Stereo and once we had taken care of the essentials (beer, smoke, coat-check) I got to have a proper look at the venue.

Norwich's alt club nights could learn a thing or three from Darklands, these guys knew how to make an evening an event. Guest DJ's, smoke machine, cobwebs, candles, projector screen and graveyard scenes reflected the effort the attendees made in dressing up. I had chosen my pvc swing dress and patent platform brogues complete with petticoat, seamed stockings and the obligatory victory rolls in my hair and it felt worth it walking into the bars' backroom. Even the entry stamp was a bat with 'Darklands' on it.

Even 200 miles away I bumped into old friends - and made some new ones - danced with Sphere Editor Dom and ducked as the guy wearing huge white wings walked by. Revelations were made and met with smiles, Sailor Jerry was purchased and drunk and randoms got overexcited. Everyone was so friendly that I was really disappointed when it finished. Cab home (slightly more cheery driver) but lack of alcohol in the house made us drink tea, smoke too much and talk again until the wee hours of the morning...didn't really want to sleep.

Sunday 14th February -

Indoor picnic was in order as we watched the second series of Spaced then the day seemed to run out and it was time to go. After delaying the inevitable for as long as possible, and watching a brilliantly underrated film called 'Repo Man', I got into my car and drove home, exhausted and fuzzy, but with next weekend at the front of my mind.