I was lucky to get that train in the end! Good to meat you lot again.

So what about the blow-by-blow account, full of juicy gossip and scandal? I can't wait till the next OK magazine comes out to hear all about the second most exciting event of the winter calendar. Lazy twats.

I was there first, fresh from shopping for a presesnt for myself. I had intended to keep Wattsy company but he managed to get lost despite the fact that this is the 7th/8th time we've been there.

 

Edd was next and then Wattsy. Kos turned up after we had found a table at our usual spot.

 

Milko and Matt made an appearance later on and squeezed onto the table. Matt complained about the Organic Lager they had, even if the glass it was in did suit him.

 

Kos had a large sandwich and was shocked when the bar staff pointed out that it would come with salad. They didn't mention that it wouldn't be deep fried but I guess they thought he might take offense.
I also purchased some Nachos as tradition demanded but without Fozza there wasn't the usual feasting.

 

There was much celebrating of my beard, which lead Kos to name me Rasputin.

 

Milko and Matt left about the time the latecomers arrived (Paul and Helen, later joined by Martin). About this time Wattsy left although I can't be too sure as i'd had a few.
Dyl didn't turn up but EP did (in photo form).

 

The rest of the meet lies unremembered except for eating in KFC with Edd.
I then tried to get home but ended up on the Edgware branch. Once on the right line I got off at East Finchley and changed platforms and headed back into London!
Eventually got back to High Barnet and went to a mates where I tried my best to pay attention to Battlestar Galactica and then stayed the night.

 

The bonus was waking up without a hangover.
Then spent 20 minutes at home before heading to a mates and getting home at 11:30pm last night.

 

I think that covers it.

I didn't have a hangover, oddly too. I do have the photos, but I haven't uploaded them yet. I sent one to Milko on the wii, though.

Obvious highlight: the question of babies with two heads/three bodies

Sounds pretty good overall! :)

Hangover I did have, then was forced into going carol singing at the chuch I got married in. Fucking shite that n all!

 

Carols make me laugh they are soooo shite!

Many thanks to <whoever> for getting me there!

 

Although I do seem to be labouring over that pint....

 

My bad.

 

Oddly enough, I had no hangover either!

 

:D

Pictures!

Is there some gallery I can stick them on?
(about 6 of them)

Almost certainly, I'd say.

Any further clues?

I don't mean to pick on you, but it's the 2nd time I've seen it in 3 posts (check Greg's just up there) so I thought I'd point it out in case anyone reads it and remembers for next time:

It's "definitely" as in

finite
infinite
definite

I see it so often, but its frequency still surprises me, I personally don't pronounce the word as "deh-fin-ate" but more "deh-fin-it" so it's easy for me, although I admit the "i" sounds ambiguous.

Defy! I'm a brother with a furious mind!

See, I pronounce it deh-fin-at-lee so that's why my spelling of it goes wrong occasionally. (A lot of the time I do check the spelling and correct it but it's one of those words where the correct spelling looks odd )

 

Anyway, where are the pics?

If it makes you feel better, I have a nasty habit of spelling it wrongly as well. Well, at least until FF 2 plonks a red line under it and I think "Goshy :o !".

Oh dear, I'm the kind of pedantic ass-hat who would argue it should sound more like deh-fin-it, although I end up pronouncing the i very lightly as I mention. Not that it has any bearing on anything, just seems that since it's spelt like that saying it that way feels right (for me).

I don't mean to be prescriptivist*, but that kind of pedantic ass-hat would be wrong. The last vowel sound should be (and I suspect is, in both of your accents) a schwa. Which is precisely why so many people have a tough time spelling it: the schwa isn't particularly associated with any character of the alphabet.

 

*A lie, actually, I certainly do.

Excellent. Someone who knows what they're talking about, I assume? Which I freely admit is more than I can say. I just know how to spell the word.

 

As for how to pronounce it, I've never studied phonetics, so I expect that you are entirely right and that the sound is a "schwa". Could you give an example or two of other instances of words that use that sound so I could compare my pronunciation of those syllables to "definite"?

 

I suppose I was trying to say that it doesn't sound like "it" but didn't know how to correctly describe the sound, due to my lack of phonetics knowledge. It's something I'd like to know more about though.

It's the topsy turvy e sign.

Pronounce it as half a vowel - almost just 'nt', but not quite.