What's Making You Happy Today?

They made Larwood the scapegoat for the aftermath. There was an Australian series made about it back in the 80s which the BBC showed. Hugo Weaving played Jardine. I remember watching it.
I remember the series well!
 

When he was young, my dad saw Bradman captain the Australians against the Poms at Lords.

Apparently, there were some sort of pins, or badges, for sale to commemorate the match and his older brother bought one. While they were watching the match, his older brother put it in his mouth and then almost choked on it.

As a result, decades later, my dad's main memory of the day was his brother almost choking to death, rather than Bradman's batting.
 



This gave a chuckle. Rule, Britannia.

That's a fine chap from Liverpool 8 no doubt. You do meet those sorts in Chinese takeaways at 11 o-clock at night in the UK. The optimum strategy: maintain a rapport; keep off football; remember you're local and one of them, alter your accent as appropriate; don't ever elaborate on your global world citizen local lad done good credentials, as in Cider With Rosie it might end rather badly. If it turns tactical: forget your takeaway and skedaddle.
 
That's a fine chap from Liverpool 8 no doubt. You do meet those sorts in Chinese takeaways at 11 o-clock at night in the UK. The optimum strategy: maintain a rapport; keep off football; remember you're local and one of them, alter your accent as appropriate; don't ever elaborate on your global world citizen local lad done good credentials, as in Cider With Rosie it might end rather badly. If it turns tactical: forget your takeaway and skedaddle.
Voted Brexit, simple as.
 
I've been going to an excellent chinese take-away about once a week for the past couple of months. They mostly cater to the couple of thousand chinese expats here and have all the good stuff you don't normally get in chinese restaurants. Mostly I get yibin ran mian and they always ask wether I want the orginal taste (a.o. rather spicy). Always answered yes of course. Today the lady said "now that you've had it a few times, do you want even more taste" and she finally gave me the real thing 😍😍😍
 
I've been going to an excellent chinese take-away about once a week for the past couple of months. They mostly cater to the couple of thousand chinese expats here and have all the good stuff you don't normally get in chinese restaurants. Mostly I get yibin ran mian and they always ask wether I want the orginal taste (a.o. rather spicy). Always answered yes of course. Today the lady said "now that you've had it a few times, do you want even more taste" and she finally gave me the real thing 😍😍😍
You've not been initiated until you've drank baiju and not the stuff that tastes like saki. The real deal, the closest experience to glue sniffing you will ever have.
 
You've not been initiated until you've drank baiju and not the stuff that tastes like saki. The real deal, the closest experience to glue sniffing you will ever have.
I don’t know about the hinterland that Pauly Chase comes from but alcohol isn’t really a complement in Chinese cuisine. It’s not like French or Italian where vino is paired with the course. You get green tea to cleanse your palate from one course to the next.

Of course people still break out alcohol (and add ice and water and soda and other horrific things) during banquets and parties but that’s just to get sloshed and see how much you can spend.
 
I don’t know about the hinterland that Pauly Chase comes from but alcohol isn’t really a complement in Chinese cuisine. It’s not like French or Italian where vino is paired with the course. You get green tea to cleanse your palate from one course to the next.

Of course people still break out alcohol (and add ice awater and soda and other horrific things) during banquets and parties but that’s just to get sloshed and see how much you can spend.
Chinese food is good with pilsner lager and that's about it. In my experience.

Indian food: G&T's with the papadums and then move straight-on-up to the serious Bordeaux. Indian curries are great with claret.
 
They have a large fridge with wong lo kat (or something similar), don't have any alcohol I believe. I'm glad that they have a 200-pound, chain-smoking, bejing bikini wearing cook, that's all I need.
 
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This is a good observation, and in my experience true...
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You've not been initiated until you've drank baiju and not the stuff that tastes like saki. The real deal, the closest experience to glue sniffing you will ever have.
I've had in it Beijing - glue sniffing - on a train - is a step up.
 
You've not been initiated until you've drank baiju and not the stuff that tastes like saki. The real deal, the closest experience to glue sniffing you will ever have.
I've had in it Beijing - glue sniffing - on a train - is a step up.

A couple of decades ago, I was given a bottle of baiju by the president of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences when he visited my then-workplace.

It was awful stuff - I've never drunk petrol but I imagine that the baiju tasted like petrol would taste. However, when I showed it to some Chinese people, they were almost awestruck and told me that it was famous, and really good baiju.

All I could think was that if that was "really good" baiju, then I'd hate to drink the bad stuff...
 
I don’t know about the hinterland that Pauly Chase comes from but alcohol isn’t really a complement in Chinese cuisine. It’s not like French or Italian where vino is paired with the course. You get green tea to cleanse your palate from one course to the next.

Of course people still break out alcohol (and add ice and water and soda and other horrific things) during banquets and parties but that’s just to get sloshed and see how much you can spend.
We were in Beijing a few months prior to Olympics. It was an International Women's Artist Group. Lots of very Official things. Looooong speeches - translated etc

One night, we went to The Big Banquet. - City Ambassador or Second Secretary, Local Mayor, Arts Minsters deputy, Party dignitary, National Junior representative Dignitary etc.

Any way - its the real thing, swanky, meals served and eaten rapid fire, thousands of courses, FREE. Us canny Australians had teamed up with the Koreans (Sth) as solid drinkers, especially avoiding xtain yanks, and evangelical asians etc.

The wine was very good - but all night the waiters would only pour it into wine glasses as if it was Single Malt scotch. Just tiny amounts in huge glasses. We kept asking and pleading - but no. No understanding at all. Spoilt the whole night taking one slurp of red then asking the waiter for more. Repeat

Then after rapid-fire serving millions of courses -all the Chinese stood up immediately the last dish was scoffed and walked out.. We had to too. Most disconcerting.
 
Then after rapid-fire serving millions of courses -all the Chinese stood up immediately the last dish was scoffed and walked out.. We had to too. Most disconcerting.

What happens to manners and etiquette with a 5000 year old civilisation and 70 or 80 years of communism.
 
Well I’m told by some of my Chinese friends that it’s the norm. A cultural thing. Eat food. None of this hanging around forever afterwards chatting.

Spoils a night for me. Or even a long lunch. I don’t eat out a lot but when I do I like to take time . Linger.
 
I’m down with that. I hate waiting a long time to be fed in a restaurant and once I am done I don’t like sitting around staring at the remains. Nursing a drink and lingering at a bar is fine, but I hate when eating a meal turns into a multi-hour marathon.
 
A couple of decades ago, I was given a bottle of baiju by the president of the Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences when he visited my then-workplace.

It was awful stuff - I've never drunk petrol but I imagine that the baiju tasted like petrol would taste. However, when I showed it to some Chinese people, they were almost awestruck and told me that it was famous, and really good baiju.

All I could think was that if that was "really good" baiju, then I'd hate to drink the bad stuff...
It's the closest you'll ever get to an industrial solvent experience.
Spoils a night for me. Or even a long lunch. I don’t eat out a lot but when I do I like to take time . Linger.
Agreed I like eating out to be an event. Appreciation of the service, kitchen, and good wine over easy conversation.

I've always preferred restaurants to an evening getting pissed in a pub. Even in my Brit-on-the-piss days I wanted to get into the Chinese or Indian restaurant sooner rather than later.
 
Baijiu is just meant to get you drunk. If you've watched enough Anthony Bourdain shows you'll know every culture has food or drink that tastes horrible that's meant to be consumed as a part of a ritual, aphrodisiac, intoxicant, or traditional remedy.

I don't recall baijiu as particularly foul. I think some cheap grappa was the most foul tasting spirit I've ever had. Impossible to drink.
 
I don't recall baijiu as particularly foul. I think some cheap grappa was the most foul tasting spirit I've ever had. Impossible to drink.
Depends what you've been subjected to. I bought two coming back from Beijing a couple of years ago. The cheaper bottle was like sake, standard Japanese rice wine taste, albeit 40% alcohol. The other, more expensive one, was solvent abuse in taste. Apparently, it doesn't give you a hangover, but I certainly was going to risk drinking enough to find out.

The only other comparable experience was a Mezcal I bought from a French supermarket. Undrinkable.
 
My parents got the Pfizer dose. Massive relief for me.

Thank you Brussels.
 

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