Red = Stop (Drinking / watching horror films)

This was going to be the weekend that I Gave Up Drinking. Not the best start as somehow on Friday I went out for a drink after work - was convinced that I had only had about three drinks and it *must* be about nine pm, only to find out that I was pretty shedded and it was almost midnight. (I really should remember not to drink to excess).

A leisurely Saturday morning of shopping in FOPP (it's impossible to step foot in there and not spend money). Was then meant to have my haircut but had some sort of premonition that following my run of bad luck, this may not be the time to get all my hair cut off (it's tradition that I hate it and cry for the first three days or so, then love it and apologise to everyone for making such a fuss and wish I hadn't posted dogshit through my hairdresser's letterbox). Had enough of a fit for Tony & Guy to just let me go, looking quite thankful on their part and happy that they didn't have to tape over their letter box for the next week.

Not to worry though as the FOPP shopping had set me and Patroclus up for an afternoon of British horror films, earl grey tea and cranberry & orange cake. 'Don't Look Now' followed by 'The Wicker Man'.

Although I laughed loads at Don't Look Know at the time and thought the the most terrifying scene in it was the sex scene (highly entertaining),the whole use of the colour scarlet as a repeated symbol stayed lurking in the back of my brain (I really should remember that I am useless at watching horror films - to give an idea of scale: Hammer horrors and the Gremlins have disturbed me in the past). Got in last night to find that the hairs on the back of my neck raised when was confronted by my sofa (enormous, very scarlet) and my duvet (ditto). Then I had a freaky dream about a small person in a scarlet coat that atacked me - armed with the hacksaw I used to cut my Christmas tree up (to get it out of my flat on the grounds that I couldn't carry it down three flights of stairs by myself) and ended up sleeping with my bedroom, lounge and landing lights on - and considered changing my duvet cover to get rid of the sight of scarlet . Pathetic considering the person in the film was about three foot tall (how on earth did she reach Donald Sutherland's throat??? I saw no step ladder). I did like J Christie's boots though (and she couldn't half run in them, unless that was a stunt double)- oh, and that herringbone suit in the final scene.

The Wicker Man was fabulous (was that really a body double for B Ekland?) Never noticed the curtains as I don't have Patroclus's eye for 'interior accoutrements': my hutch doesn't have contain anything bought in Habitat whereas Quinquireme Towers is very tasteful and looks more like Habitat than Habitat does.

Last night I had a surreal night out with a friend's ex. One of those nights where you end up being quizzed about the friend ('are they happy? are they seeing someone else? do they ask about me? ) and you wished you'd stayed in and watched more horror films. Then again, perhaps not.

Though Peter Weir's 'Picnic at Hanging Rock' has been highly recommended as another British classic worth watching. As long as I don't have a hangover and it doesn't have scarlet as a key theme I'll probably be okay.