Days Without Alcohol - 85. Am still uncertain about how long this will go on. I am going on a week's holiday from April 7th, which is round about the 100 day mark and am thinking maybe that will be the time to break this ludicrous enterprise. But then again I am nearly a quarter of a year in and if I make it to the end of April that's a third of a year. We will see.
Back in London tonight and headed down to the Sainsbury's Local to restock the fridge with yoghurts... and other items. I passed the Defector's Weld pub on the corner. This is one of the Bush's slightly cooler pubs, but only in the way that being sick into your own mouth is slightly cooler than someone else being sick into your mouth.
There is a sign outside that is used for promotional purposes and tonight it had this message - "The Defector's Weld - where Genghis Khan would drink if he was alive." There was then a cartoon picture of a face which might have been meant to represent the Mongol hordesman.
I wondered what they were trying to say here. Is Genghis Khan someone that the people of Shepherd's Bush are meant to look up to? Perhaps his violence and pillage might appeal to certain elements in the neighbourhood, but if I knew Genghis Khan was drinking in a pub, I would probably choose to go somewhere else. I mean it slightly depends on which historical interpretation of the genocidal maniac that you choose to believe, but even the most liberal and kind view of his work would be forced to accept that he was quite a nasty piece of work, or at least someone who would be looking for a fight. If you are unaware of his work (as I suspect the sign writer at the Defector's Weld might be) then you can check him out
on the ever reliable wikipedia. He makes Andrew Collings look almost harmless.
To be honest if Genghis Khan was brought back to life and found himself in Shepherd's Bush, I doubt very much whether he would go to the pub. He would either be cowering in fear at a world which would make no sense to him or running at everything that moved with his sword swinging wildly in the air in the hope he could defeat the demons in front of him. I doubt he'd want to drink Australian lager with a load of slightly cool people in their twenties and if he did I think he'd make his way up to Notting Hill to hang out with the slightly cooler people in the rather nicer bars up there.
So what is the Defector's Weld trying to say? Who is it trying to appeal to? Is there a new and significant Mongol community in the Bush that I am unaware of due to my touring commitments. They are excellent workers the Mongols, but do tend to cut off the heads of anyone they work for. Or maybe just the kids are really into Genghis Khan at the moment. Perhaps he is the subject of some TV cartoon series - Gengy and the Mongs. If not, I might write it.
It's good to be back in London with its excellent selection of Caffe Neros and no giant pictures of temptresses trying to trick me into marriage.
