The public house social event or pub as we know it, of the Englishman is one I have never adapted to because there is a history to that. As a teenager, I worked in a brewery where lager was made according to German traditions. I was in the laboratory where I conducted tests of water chlorine levels with o-Toluidine which the chemists reliably informed me was carcinogenic, though no one felt they should not be having a 15-year old kid handling that substance.
Yes, I tasted a lot
of lager and the concoctions through the process, the first wort which comes
from the boiling of the barley was said to be an aphrodisiac, again, you would
wonder what I have needed that for, but you get told many things, people
completely oblivious of the inappropriateness of it.
Maybe it was when I
was to fill in my tax forms and some of my colleagues advised me to have at
least two dependants. My two children of a certain age as if I were a daddy
from the age of 10. In the end, I never took a liking for beer, lager, ale, or
cider, considering away from the scrutiny of parental control I did have a
light lager from time to time when I was much younger.
An early beer to fear
With the relaxation
of the lockdown restrictions due to the Coronavirus pandemic, the government
agreed on the opening of pubs from 6:00AM today. Why anyone would attend a pub at
that time of the day escapes me, even if we have not had that luxury for over 3
months.
On my way out to the
shops, the local pub had already opened it’s doors, the short queue forming
outside were ushered in and those patrons taking up pavement space apart from
the bouncer or doorman were smoking and chatting excitedly and possible beyond
their regulated social bubbles.
My street was busier
than usual, it was the most crowded I had seen it in months. The Mexican
restaurant which had barely opened at the beginning of the year took in two
customers who knocked on the door and it was apparently left open for possibly
other visitors.
Neither the hotel nor
the theatre at the road junction further on seemed to be ready for business
yet. The local supermarket was not that busy, I had some luxury coleslaw in
mind, the only thing on the shelves was the vegan variant. My head said no, instructed
by misgivings, fables, and stereotypes, but I dared, and it was not that bad.
A new normalcy
beckons
My first social event
outside of our neighbourly soirees on Sunday and that meeting in the park would
be attending the Sung Eucharist at Manchester Cathedral tomorrow, a ticketed event
for which I obtained an invitation on Friday. I can only wonder if my sobriety
would be afflicted by the inebriated in my path that has unfortunately not yet
found their way home.
I hope that more of
us are wise about the liberties we have newly acquired not to have us all go
into lockdown in a fortnight. I guess we have the future to look to and the
moments to cherish, some lessons learnt about who matters, what matters, with
the resetting of priorities. The Coronavirus streets in Manchester and coming
back to life again.
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