Whether it's the grey drizzle of Summer, the general cost of living or just the fact I am absolutely crackered, there is no denying that today, I've been a bit cranky. The last couple of weeks have blurred into one endless drudge of a work shift and on my one day off, I lost most of the day just staring into space, trying to decide which muscle in my aging, rotund carcass ached the most.
Throughout my adult life (prior to lockdown), it always confounded me that feeling tired, sick or emotional would immediately be met with an unwelcome "Are you sure you're not pregnant?" remark... No Susan, I am just fat, thankyou. But these days, that would be preferable to the "Oh dear. Menopause?" comments... Actually Susan, I'm 44, so whilst it's not impossible that I'm menopausal, it's likely my urge to shove this paper drinking straw up your nose is entirely unrelated to my uterus!
Ironically, whilst work is almost definitely the reason why I'm so tired, it is also the very thing keeping me sane, or at least, as close to sane as I'm going to get! The events are coming thick and fast now and they have been absolutely fantastic, but we are still precariously hand-to-mouth and everything from the weather, to other local events, leads to hours of stressing as to how it could potentially impact our business. Of course, all the stressing in the world won't change anything, as with everything in life, some things are just beyond our control.
Whilst it's only Tuesday, this week I've already been bombarded by helpful people... The "have you thought about doing [blah blah blah]" brigade. Irritatingly, these people rarely want a conversation, they always look mortified when I tell them that we have indeed thought about doing [blah blah blah], but didn't think it would be financially viable because of [blah blah blah]. Or that there is a limited market for [blah blah blah], or that you can already do [blah blah blah] somewhere else. I think I just need to learn to smile and say "Hmm... School-run friendly jazz-funk workshops... Good idea, thanks." Then just file it under "Ridiculous Crap I Have to Listen To at Work" rather than assuming these helpful people really give a hamsters g spot about our business, or even, are from planet Earth.
Then the final straw that broke my already waning mood today came as I was planning on doing some work from the bar. I drove down to The Crow, but wasn't able to park due to some delightful member of the public who had decided to park their car across both of our allocated parking spaces (the ones clearly marked CCB STAFF PARKING), so that was it. The thought of waiting for the driver to return, to potentially have a row with some silly gonk, looking like they'd been sheep-dipped in tango with JUICY written across their velour clad buttocks, was just too much. So I came home to work (& sulk) from the sanctity of my front room, where it's far less peoply. Hopefully by tomorrow I will be back to my usual 'sunshine & rainbows' self, but just in case, I would advise against making any climacteric comments (or at least, standing well clear of the drinking straws if you do)!!!
But enough with the ranting!!! Despite my many moans, it has been a pretty fun couple of weeks. We had our Blockbuster Film Club screening of Ghostbusters, our Big Fat Quiz of The Crow, Classic Album Sunday with Gazza Records (The Clash), Little White Lights returned for the relaunch of our monthly Sunday Acoustic sessions, and we had live gigs from The Atomics, Sweet Revenge, the legendary John Otway and SKAvengers (who saved our bacon and stepped into play when we had a last minute cancellation... and blew us away with an awesome performance)!
Wednesdays and Fridays have been busier of late, which is great. Thursdays and Saturdays have been a little quieter... So not so great. But in general, given the apocalyptic weather and that there has been so much going on elsewhere, trade has been pretty solid. So we are feeling quite optimistic as we head into the Summer.
Now that our Wednesday and Sunday events have been up and running a while, we are planning to bring back events on Thursday nights, as they have really been missed. We are starting our Thursdays with a special collaboration with Gazza Records: Presenting 2 fantastic bands, Coda Rushing & Cerber Stax. Thursday 27th July, 8.30pm. Entry just £5.
The originals music scene is really exciting right now with load of brilliant talent coming through. We often have people say to us that they want to see more original music, and we really want to be able to continue to offer a platform for these great bands. The good old days of bands cutting their teeth on the pubs and small venue circuit was nearly destroyed by online platforms, TV talent shows and the pandemic, so it is fantastic to see it re-emerging at such force. Whilst there will always be a place at The CCB for great covers and tribute bands, it is vital that we don't let the original music scene disappear off the map! But we really do need your support. So come and join us next Thursday and Friday, you'll be supporting the original music scene, 5 hard working bands and an independent venue!!!
This week at The Crooked Crow Bar...
Then, coming soon....
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