26. Hint Hunt

26.  Hint Hunt

First, a promise: no spoilers!  The nice people at Hint Hunt really don't like it when you talk about Hint Hunt, so we'll keep this to the information we were given before the game started.

Hint Hunt is an 'escape the room' game - there are a few of these around but Hint Hunt has *probably* been going the longest.  The basic idea is that you are locked in a room and you have an hour to get out, before........................ they let you out - but trust us, when you're in it, getting yourself out seems like an important thing to do.

We were our usual team of three but every team is also assigned a "game master" - a benevolent individual who watches everything you do in the room and has the power to help you should they feel so inclined.  Think "Hunger Games" without having to kill each other.

Our game master told us that the success rate for Hint Hunt is about 50% and we were also surprised to learn that the record time for getting out of the room was something in the region of 54 minutes - all of a sudden this sounded like a real challenge!

After an hour of ransacking, clue solving, crazed shouting at both each other and the message screen from the game master ("WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!") we made it out with a very respectable 1:37 on the clock.

Hint Hunt list trumps!

Originality: 4/5 (OK there are a few of these around now but it's generally accepted that Hint Hunt were there first)

Cost: 5/5 (My lovely work colleagues from Mount Vernon Cancer Centre bought the ticket for my birthday - but it really is good value for money)

Fun factor: 5/5 - definitely raising the bar for the rest of the to-do list

http://hinthunt.co.uk/

2. Candlelight Club

2. Candlelight Club

First, a couple of updates: we actually have covered loads of the to-do list but got too busy doing stuff (mostly inventing and promoting the now international weekly festival that is Tequila Friday) to update the blog!  Expect a gentle trickle of half-remembered, half-made up anecdotes and reviews over the next however long it takes.  Also it's not 2014 anymore but let's face it, that's not important.  What's important is more wifey fun times and tequila.

So the Candlelight Club: it's a 1920s themed monthly event with a secret central London location, lit entirely by candlelight.  Anett and Lotti had been once before and actually the secret venue was the same both times (can't remember where) so it came recommended (not sure the Candlelight Club felt the same way about Lotti) and we chose their Halloween event so we could put in a good costume effort, with Lotti on makeup duty as usual.  

We dressed as three ex-wives who had been viciously murdered by one treacherous individual who we won't mention again.  But he was there with us and he took some good photos so thanks for that.

Upon arrival, we popped upstairs to put our coats in the cloakroom and found that there was a tarot card reader hanging out.  Lotti was keen for a reading; Anett and I were keen for a drink.  After two drinks (pricey but strong and tasty), we had worked out which barman was making the strongest cocktails.  After three we had run out of money!  The live band were dressed in theme and worked the crowd well.

Anett was still recovering from a beach ultimate-related concussion and we were all in end of the month mode so it's fair to say that we kept this night fairly tame - there also weren't many single people there which limited our potential to mingle.  We lasted until the end of the night when the lights were unceremoniously turned on and headed back to Clapham favourite the Clapham North for a little more dancing before bed.

Candlelight club list trumps!

Cost: 3/5 (good for a treat, would be better if there was one drink included with the ticket price)

Originality: 4/5 

Fun factor: 4/5 (closed at midnight which felt a bit early)

http://www.thecandlelightclub.com/

7. Harry Potter Movie Marathon

7.  Harry Potter Movie Marathon

starring...

Anett as Harry

Phil as Hermione

Lotti as Dumbledore

Carla as Hagrid/Snape

Carly as Malfoy

Tino as He Who Shall Not be Named

Spike as Dobby/Ron

On paper this one sounded pretty simple: just watch all 8 Harry Potter films over the course of a weekend.  Job done, right?  Not in our house!  What followed was a full weekend of Harry Potter themed activities, fancy dress, drinking games, too much sugar and of course 19 hours of sitting on the sofa.  Oh and we did a lot of knitting.  A lot.

As all good bank holiday weekends do, it started with an early morning shopping trip in the rain.  Thanks England.  As a further complication, it turns out that shops in Clapham don't open until at least 9:30 on a Saturday morning.  Still eventually we stocked up on all the essentials and only started the marathon an hour late.  Carla and Carly had arrived with two tiny dogs in two tiny costumes so it was time for the rest of us to get into costume too.

Doggy Dobby and Doggy Voldemort

Hermione

Harry

Of course no Harry Potter outfit is complete without a good scarf in house colours, so Anett and Carly had to teach Carla and I how to knit while Lotti quietly got on with her Dumbledore scarf (alas she did not take on my suggestion that she knit herself a beard).  I'll not dwell on the result of mine and Carla's knit-off but I will say this: size matters.

Sunday's section was much more even

Given that we started at 11am with the Hogwarts kids aged about 10 years old, it seemed appropriate to kick off with some HP-style snacks.  We had Every Flavour Beans, jelly Scabbers, homemade chocolate frogs and some rather dubious house-themed snacks (cheesy puffs for Hufflepuff, cherries for Gryffindor, eggs for Ravenclaw and jelly snakes for Slytherin).

Once we hit film number 3 though it was time to hit the Polyjuice potion, get out the sorting hat and play the world's most complicated drinking game.  It was a 4-player game with different rules for each person.

We complicated it further with another rule: every time there was polyjuice potion in the film, we all drank a shot of polyjuice potion (a concoction containing various quantities of vodka, apple juice, green food colouring and anything else we could think of to chuck in), put our rules into the sorting hat and drew out a new set.  We also added in a couple of rules, resulting in almost constant shouting of 'SEXUAL TENSION!' throughout the last 4 films.

Around 2am we finished film number 5 and decided we needed a sleep break.  We intended to restart viewing at 6am.  We actually woke up at 8am.  Saturday's rain had cleared and the outside world was looking like an increasingly attractive option.  We were starting to worry about DVT.  The only possible solution was to get through the last 3 films as quickly as we could (still about 7 hours) and so we pushed on, pausing only to make a video that has to be viewed to be understood...

Finally, video made, Voldemort defeated, scarves knitted and Harry Ron and Hermione all grown up and much better at acting than 19 hours earlier, it was all over.  We were all by this point completely desperate to get out into the sunshine and run off some of the excess sugar so that's exactly what happened.  

Harry Potter Movie Marathon list trumps!

Cost: 4/5 (Only £25 for all 8 films from Amazon, but we did get carried away buying sweets and wool and stuff)

Originality: 4/5 (OK we're definitely not the first people to do this but dogs in costume, knitting, drinking games AND a video is a pretty unique combination)

Fun Factor:  4/5 (Games were fun, video was fun, films were classic but let's face it, after 19 hours of sitting watching TV and knitting we all had cabin fever)

16. Rooftop Cinema

16.  Rooftop Cinema

One of the nicest things about London is the fantastic range of activities on offer - and there are a range of great options for cinema.  Unfortunately one of London's major drawbacks is unpredictable weather and the clever people running all of these lovely outdoor activities would never make any money if they cancelled every time it rained a little.  Or a LOT.  

Guess how rooftop cinema went down?

Yep, you guessed it.

In true British spirit, we showed up despite the weather - desperately hoping there would be some shelter, heaters, maybe even hot drinks...  We got blankets and ponchos.  The seats had been kept reasonably dry at least but up on the rooftop there was very little respite from the wind and rain - we huddled for warmth.

Fortunately, there were cocktails.  Unfortunately, they were a bit summery and all contained ice!  Anett says this is the only time in her life she has ever cried into tequila and I believe her.

The film on offer was Casablanca - a total classic that we could definitely just have watched at home.  The weather did not ease up but by the time we were walking back to the tube we were so cold and shivery we were a bit delirious so at least we had a laugh!  Like true Brits, we left with a sense of achievement from having gritted it out and will almost certainly try again another "summer".  Fuck it, let's just book for February.

Knitting on the tube home like proper grannies

Rooftop Cinema List Trumps!
Originality: 3/5
Cost: 3/5 (all weather, no refunds policy really screwed us)
Fun factor: 1/5 (but to be fair, would have scored much higher in better weather - but this is London)

40. Eating Competition

40.  Eating Competition

with guest challenger Scott and leftover clearer Lotti

The discussion about which eating challenge to do was an incredibly long and sometimes heated one.  I tried long and hard to get Anett to agree to a two foot sausage roll but she was having none of it!

Anett: Can't we just go out and buy a bucket of chicken each and time how long it takes to eat it?
Phil:  No because I don't like meat on the bone and there is no free t-shirt at stake.

In the end we settled on the Infamous Beast Burger Challenge at the Clapham North, mainly because it was near us and we didn't have to sign any waivers.  We'd not seen the burger in question but knew it would contain a chicken breast and pulled pork as well as a regular beef burger, and 'its own weight in hand cut chips'.  Oh and it had to be eaten within a time limit of 12 minutes.  How hard could that be?

We adopted fairly different preparation strategies: Anett ate a decent breakfast and an early lunch and then fasted; Scott only ate apples for most of the day; I had a pub lunch and a fair few biscuits over the course of the afternoon.  All of us were united in one thing though: by dinner time, we were all starving!

HUNGRY!

As the food came down in the lift, we all craned our necks to see whether the waitress would manage to carry all three burgers in.  She could not carry all three burgers.  Uh oh!

The Infamous Beasts

The waitress told us that only one girl had ever attempted the challenge before and she had failed miserably.  All of the serving staff seemed to remember the one guy who had completed the challenge.  If we cleared our plates in the 12 minutes (they weren't too fussed about the salad garnish) we would join that guy on the wall of fame and earn ourselves a free drink.  High stakes!  

Man vs Food

We were told that the best tactic was to get through the chips first and then attack the burger, but when the timer started none of us could resist the urge to go straight for the meat.  Scott recoiled in horror when he realised that there was not only a tomato, but also a mushroom in the burger!  There was also a bonus slice of bacon and melted cheese in there.

The Beast close up

The pulled pork was succulent, the beef cooked perfectly.  The chicken breast nearly killed me and turned out to be hiding a gherkin, aargh!

At 6 minutes gone, it was clear that Anett was never getting through her mammoth pile of chips.  Scott and I were still in it but he was starting to struggle.

At 9 minutes Scott looked tired.  I was our only hope and still going strong.

The 11th minute crept up on me much faster than expected and I was frantically shoving as much of the bun as I could in my mouth when the time was over.  Gutted.

Time over!  Our finished plates (clockwise from top left: Phil, Anett, Scott)

The waitress declared me the winner and while I didn't make the hall of fame, she did get me a free drink which helped to soothe my wounded pride.  I'd made a promise to myself to finish even if it took longer than the time so took my time on the remaining 5 chips.  Lotti swept up Anett's leftovers and still couldn't get anywhere close to the finish.  Scott continued to stare at the mushroom.

Victory drink (sort of)

GIN!

Leftovers proving too much for Lotti

The closest we came to a clear plate

Eating competition list trumps!

Cost: 4/5 (£20 for literally all you can eat is pretty good value)

Originality: 3/5 (people do this all the time but not many of them are size 8 women)

Fun factor: 3/5 (entertaining, delicious for about 5 minutes, painful for the remaining 7 and some serious food baby repercussions were suffered by all)

28. 90s dress up

28.  90s dress up

*events may have been paraphrased a little*

Saturday, approximately 12pm:

Phil: Hey Anett, do you want to come geocaching with me and Jill this afternoon?

Anett:  No I'm tired and I want to stay inside and do yoga

Phil:  OK that's fine but you're not allowed to be boring all day so when I come back we're drinking margaritas and going out to hunt Irish boys

Anett:  I hate you.  Buy limes.

And so it came to pass that at 10pm we were drinking margaritas and looking for something from the to do list to tick off.  We briefly considered getting tattoos but Jill wasn't up for it (apparently the margarita stare-down wasn't an effective persuasion tactic) and then settled on 90s fancy dress.  Perfect attire for a dance in the Swan!

Lookin' fresh!

We donned our best leggings, crop tops, denim shirts and hi-tops then accessorised with colourful sunnies, slightly too much make up and the highest ponytails we could manage.  At this point Jill decided we were definitely crazy and went to bed.  Apparently it's not cool to drink on buses these days so we walked to the Swan and upon arrival for no apparent reason some boy paid for me to get in.  Thank you, random boy!

From that point in it all gets a bit hazy.  It turned out that the random boy at the door wasn't the only one who was appreciative of our retro outfits and we were bombarded with free drinks all night.  Naturally we fended off most of the men by flashing Anett's engagement ring and telling them all we were getting married soon.  Thanks for the drinks, random men!

No idea who this guy was.  Didn't even remember taking the picture.

Anett was wearing her Fitbit and it told us that by 4am we had reached her daily steps goal of 10,000 steps.  By 5am we'd hit 12,000 steps which is equivalent to 8.56km of dancing.

At the end of the night I turned around to see Anett with a boy and so followed suit in order to avoid playing third wheel.  Crafty!  One of the boys was Irish.  One wasn't.  Still, we took the obligatory photographs.

Irish boy

Not an Irish boy

90s Dress Up List Trumps!

Cost: 5/5 (Lots of free drinks + free entry for me meant between us we spent about £30)

Originality: 4/5 (Nobody else was wearing what we were but obviously everyone did back in the day)

Fun factor: 4/5 (Outrageously entertaining night and so much dancing but we did both seriously regret the boys the next day)

48. Kiss a Spanish Boy

48. Kiss a Spanish Boy

When: 23 March

Location: Castelldefels, Spain

We put this on our list when we knew we would be in Spain for a Ultimate Frisbee tournament. Something we took for granted was that it was a women's tournament and boys would be scarce. 

Our Team of Ladies... Where are the boys?

However our trusted captain decided to hook us up.

El Capitan/ Match Maker

So straight after winning the final and doing some skinny dipping, she dragged us over to a male friend and asked him straight out if he wanted to kiss a couple of fine ladies... 

He said yes... 

We said yes... 

Here is the proof!

Kiss a Spanish Boy Trumps!

Cost: 4/5 (Free, but it did cost some of our pride needing a friend to arrange it for us)

Originality: 2.5/5 (Act of kissing a Spanish Boy not original, the situation was)

Fun: 3.5/5 (Would have been more fun if we had found our own Spanish Boy) 

9. Skinny Dipping

9. Skinny Dipping

When: 23 March

Location: Castelldefels, Spain

Our Beach

When we decided to put this on our to do list we resigned ourselves to the fact that we would be doing it alone. No one else would be silly enough to undress in public and frolic around in the sea, especially not in March.


We were wrong. In fact 7 out of the 8 people on our team went for it. And I don't mean we just half undressed at night and secretly went into the sea. We went for it in the middle of the afternoon with a beach full of people. The entire team ran from the beach towards the sea undressing, then holding hands and screaming threw ourselves into the sea. It was cold, we didn't stay very long.

Skinny Dipping Trumps!

Cost: 5/5 (Free)

Originality: 3/5 (Skinny dipping while not original, it was a team effort. It was also in broad daylight in March... brrr) 

Fun: 5/5 (No modesty, just complete hilarity)

10. St. Patrick's Day - Kiss an Irish Boy

10. St. Patrick's Day - Kiss an Irish Boy

Date: Monday, 17 March

Location: Wahaca, Maple Leaf, Porter House

Annual Guinness

I am not sure what we were thinking when we decided to add "kiss an Irish boy" to our To Do List. Maybe it was just to spice up our St. Patrick's Day, or maybe we just felt like we needed to kiss a boy, who knows? What I will say is that it was one of the more awkward moments in our lives as we stood in a corner of a crowded Irish Pub (Porter House) essentially playing hot or not, and trying to gather the courage to speak to some Irish Boys.

So let us start from the beginning. It must be said going out on a Monday after work was not what we originally intended by putting this on our To Do List. Nonetheless, we put on our green leprechaun hats and set off for what would be an interesting evening.

We're Ready!

As seems to be tradition when we need to gather up some courage, we started our evening with some Mexican food from Wahaca and a Margarita. Why we turn to tequila for liquid courage, I will never understand, but it worked for our Speed Dating so it was going to work for Irish Boy snogging.

After our delicious and lime flavoured start we decided that as it was St. Patrick's day, we must drink our annual pint of Guinness. However we didn't feel brave enough to enter into the Porter House just yet, so we turned to the trusty old Canadian pub, Maple Leaf for our pint. The bar lady was lovely enough to take our picture.

Preparation 

Then on we went across the street and into the maze of drunk Irish men at the Porter House. Now we turned our sights to tequila beer, Desperados, and 8 rounds of tequila beer. What can I say, we needed a lot of liquid courage. Now this is when it gets creepy, and we felt like creeps as well. We started to prowl the many floors of the Porter House, looking for suitable prospects and failing miserably to speak to anyone who even came close. Lurking in corners, playing the world's worst drinking game between the two of us, and feeling like teenagers again wishing someone would come and speak with us.

Eventually two Irish boys did speak with us, however it only resulted in a peck on both cheeks for Philippa and nothing for me. Despite what Philippa will tell you, a peck on the cheek DOES NOT count! Then came more lurking, more prowling and more beer.

Did we fail in our attempt? Yes and No. We did meet a boy (Daniel) and his friends (Aly and Mark).  And the guy on the left, whose friend took our picture and I think one of them might have been from Oman.  His name might have been Omar.

Our New Friends

Was he Irish, sadly we must admit no he was not. However we did put an Irish hat on him and made him pretend to be Irish. Then yes we kissed him. Actually both of us kissed him, so it is a good job we're friends, otherwise that could have been awkward. To our embarrassment, but true to form... here is the proof.

Anett's Turn

Phil's Turn

Kiss an Irish Boy Trumps!

Cost: 1/5 (Getting the liquid courage cost a lot of money, after 10 rounds of alcohol our wallets were not happy)

Originality: 2/5 (Everyone goes out for St. Patrick's day, but not many go to stalk Irish boys)

Fun Factor: 2.5/5 (It was embarrassing and creepy but we still had a lot of fun!)

49. Spy on a Tinder Date (guest edited by Lotti)

What do you do with your Sunday evenings?  If it's not spying on your friend's first date with a stranger whilst wearing large sunglasses and a hat with cat ears, you're not living.

We allowed the hopeful Love Birds an hour to acclimatise, to warm up and get past the awkward nervous tensions.  In we stalked; Anett clad in all black including large sunglasses channelling her inner Jennifer Garner circa Alias, and I, my best detective mac and conspicuous cat-eared cap.  

Exhibit A: spy attire

We sloped to a table within range, close enough to take detailed notes - taken down detective style - but far enough away not to be too obvious when taking photographs.  

Exhibit B: remaining inconspicuous

And here we begin the notes; henceforth Philippa will be referred to as 'The Subject', the unnamed man 'The Date':

• The Subject and The Date are laughing.  A good sign.  Subject clocks us, we nod and take our positions.
• The Date is wearing flip-flops and shorts (Lotti is aghast).  Would suggest he's a little too laid back to function.
• The Subject is wearing her seriously tight jeans and sheer blouse.  Seductive, but not great when consuming large quantities of liquid.  Regular Wee Trips a strong possibility.
• The Subject is leaning in across the table.  The Date may be leaning away but his outstretched feet resting inches from The Subject's betrays his lust.
• Another One Bites The Dust plays. Foretelling the future?
• The Subject displays a coquettish head tilt and splendid eyelash fluttering, our menu fell down in the breeze.
• The Date responds positively.  Leans in.
• Body language is being mirrored.  Golly, get your coats this is going well.
• Things get even sexier, Muse plays [ed. note: Lotti says Muse makes her clothes melt]
• The plot thickens.  We're interrupted by 2 slightly inebriated chaps.  We're offered beverages, politely decline but they sit down anyway.
• We tell them the plan, after some minor judgement they agree to join in.  (Hereafter they shall be referred to as Drunks 1 & 2)

  

  Exhibit C: Drunks 1 and 2

• Phase 2 begins.  Kicks up a gear.  We're heading in.
• Drunks 1 & 2 head over to the table adjacent to The Subject and The Date's
• Drunk 1 drops a menu, collects, drops it, collects it.
• Drunk 2 "Is this a date then?"  A conversation ensues.  The Subject looks nervously at us.
• PANIC! WE'RE BUSTED! ABORT MISSION!
• Drunks 1 and 2 make a swift exit.  Lotti retrieves her stolen hat.

  

  Exhibit D:  drunks undercover

• The Subject heads to the Ladies. Lotti gives chase.
• Quick chat, all is well, he is "a lovely guy" Cover not blown.  We stagger our exit so as not to arouse the suspicion of The Date.
• Full focus is returned to The Subject and The Date.
• The Date leans back and preforms a stretch. Cue involuntary stare at his crotch.  Reasonably impressive.
• [Ed. note: The Subject is a fairly active date.  Arm gestures, facial expressions.  She really gives her all]
• The Date heads to the Gent's.  The Subject heads to the bar.  Anett swoops for an interview.  (See video, exhibit E)

Exhibit E: mid-date interview with Subject

• Cue Lotti's frantic arm waving. The Date returns
• As they order another round we decide to close our books and take our leave.  After all, it is a Sunday.
• The verdict? Too soon to tell.

Spying on a Tinder Date List Trumps!

Cost: 2/5 (You have to buy your own drinks, and depending on the contents of your wardrobe, adequate disguises)

Originality: 4/5 (Most people we spoke to found it odd and borderline "creepy")

Fun factor: 3/5 (It's great analysing a friend's date.  Perhaps more fun not on a school night when more alcohol can be consumed.  Or perhaps on a more active date)

14. Pancake Day!

Tuesday, March 4th
Shrove Tuesday / Pancake Day

with resident pancake destroyer Lotti

Everyone loves pancakes.  Everyone.  And when the whole world (or at least a large proportion of the UK) is making pancakes, we join in.  We weren't doing things by halves though: between the three of us we had plans sweet and savoury, big and small, traditional and Paleo...

A selection of toppings

Rather than opt for traditional sugar and lemon, Anett and Lotti started savoury.  Anett had the first successful flip of the day and turned out this beauty:

Anett's savoury option

Lotti's flip, however, was less successful:

The unfortunate-looking (but still tasty) outcome of the Lotti Flip Massacre

 I'm normally a traditional sugar and lemon kind of girl but alas I'm on a Paleo challenge so no sugar for me and more worryingly, no flour!  Panic not though, dear readers - my friend Chrissy gave me a recipe using banana instead of flour and she even promised it wouldn't taste like banana...

Paleo pancakes in the pan

Now it has to be said that the batter looked like baby vomit.  And it reeeeeally smelled like banana.  I'm brave though so I dropped it into the pan to see what happened and lo and behold, my three dollops of baby vomit turned into three fairly respectable looking pancakes!  I stacked them up in a bowl with natural yogurt, strawberries and blueberries and with only a little Instagramming from Lotti, the result was rather pretty:

Paleo pancake berry stack

It did taste a little bit like banana though!

Pancake Day list trumps ratings!

Cost: 5/5 (cheap and delicious)

Originality: 2/5 (OK everyone was doing it, but we get a point for toppings and a point for Paleo batter)

Fun factor: 5/5 (fun and delicious)