Fall Party

With her technician Jason leaving the lab for medical school back in August, Ashley and Jim had decided to host a party at the start of October for the lab in order to allow us to catch up with Jason and see how things were going, as well as the usual glut of good food and alcohol and general merriment. Never one to turn down an invitation to their place, a good number of work folk were present and, as the evening was pleasant, long dining tables were set up outside with candles and a fantastic ambience. With a general tuscan theme to the set-up and cooking, there were treats galore to be had - the hors d'oeuvres alone were plentiful enough that im sure they could've made a meal themselves (the chicken liver dish was particularly yummy) but, naturally, this was followed by pasta (home made, none the less) and some divine lamb and stuffed pork, with some very italian accompaniments (the panna cotta salad - is that right? - was equally wonderful). Now after all that, you'd be hard pushed to find room for the desserts available but we all somehow managed to indulge a little (who wouldn't for tiramisu??).

Of course, the evening wasn't just about food but also a chance to hang out and socialise with the work crew outside of the work - as well as the catching up with Jason (although i didnt have to do a lot of this as id seen him about campus quite a bit!). Highlight of the evening for many, i think, was when Kelly, myself and Yusuf (the boss) went off into a fit of somewhat hysterical laughter over something which i will not go into here - at least initially. It then turned into us all just laughing at each other, and the fact that Kelly and I hadnt seen Yusuf laughing like that before. Suffice to say Ashley (the instigator of it all) was, like Queen Victoria, not amused. At least at first. She saw the funny side of it after a glass or two more of wine! :D. Anyhow, Jim and Ashley (as always) were the perfect hosts and the evening was (again, as always) a great pleasure indeed! Heartfelt thanks to them both!