April's Ramble 2021 Instructions

Yes, the real thing! Boots on the ground. Not a zoom screen!


We meet on THURSDAY the 29th. Destination The Cricketers in Berwick. I have booked a table there for 12.30. The menu is basically ‘pub grub’ and can be viewed on line. Coincidentally Barbara and I are dining there with friends this Tuesday so I will be able to give you some feedback.

So. The Seaford ‘community’ should take the 10.25 train which arrives at Lewes at 10.41 on Platform 4. I will join you at Platform 3 where the connection to Berwick leaves from at 10.47. We arrive at our destination at 10.58 which gives enough time for a pint at The Berwick Inn (which opens at 7AM!) I don’t think we need to book a table for a quick drink - given the hour and the rural location.

See you there!

Harry

2021

 

Hello NERDS,

2021 has arrived and we are still mired in the new year problems with Covid-19 covering all the country.  Here in France we have had snow:-

I gather that the UK has also had some snow but not so much in the Sussex area.  Today all the snow has gone and the sun is shining and the birds twittering on the bird table vacuuming up all the sunflower seeds!

Froggy has arisen from his hibernation and has begun emailing with a vengeance and appears to be back on the “sauce”.  However, he does not appear to have the universal panacea against all ills, including the present pandemic, ‘Calvados’.  Here in France we have ample supplies although the vaccination against Covid-19 will not begin soon and us oldies will only get the “jab” sometime in March!  (Macron strikes again).

We are all looking forward to the next ZOOM meeting on Wednesday 20^th January.

December Christmas Ramble Initial arrangements

Dear NERDS,

Sandyballs's IT has gone tits up again

so he has asked me to send this:

Christmas Ramble will take place on Wednesday 14th Dec.and the lunch will be at The Dorset, Lewes.

Please visit wwwthedorsetlewes.co.uk where you will find the Christmas menu and then send your choices to Sandyballs.

Hasta la vista.



Lafayette.

August's Ramble of 2016 - At Last.

NEWHAVEN RAMBLING & DRINKING SOCIETY

Ramble No 321 Friday 26th August 2016

“ The Malingering Lafayette Ramble “

Those Present: Matt, Froggy, Curly, Sandyballa

Those Not Present: The usual part-timers AND LAFAYETTE.

Prior to starting this bus-based ramble, we were informed by Laff that he was unable to attend because he had a “poorly sick knee” to go with his poorly sick knee and poorly sick foot. Could this be true? Was this former athlete visibly falling apart before our eyes? This is the NERD, lest we forget, who – to my knowledge – had only missed ONE of the previous 320 Rambles.

So was he genuinely ill or merely malingering? Did he just fancy a day off? The jury is out on that one.

So, just the four stalwarts met up at Starbucks in Churchill Square... SB got there first so took his coffee outside to enjoy the warm sunshine

and also the sight of assorted MILFS and Yummy Mummies who were parading up and down wearing very little…(In your dreams.Ed.)

After bolting our coffees we went off to catch Bus No 77 which was to take us off to Devils Dyke. We were delighted to find that this was an open-top bus so we scuttled upstairs and took our seats. Although it was very hot and sunny the views were spectacular as we left Brighton and started climbing The Downs. Wonderful – and all free with the bus pass!

Sitting in front of Matt and I (almost wrote “me and Matt”) was a chap with an interesting dog. Matt was fascinated with the mutt (an unusual thing in itself) and was told by the proud owner that the thing was a hybrid- a mixture of two breeds. Collie poodle, lab terrier or something. Ironic given that Matt is the only true pedigree (full Irish) [ Not true as BT also has an Eire passport. Ed.] whereas Curly and I are Anglo-Irish and Froggy is Welsh-French with a bit of Uzbek and Bukino Faso thrown in.

Anyway we decamped at The Devils Dyke Hotel and for a while watched the hang-gliders

doing their thing. Someone thought they spotted Paco doing some acrobatic turns but we couldn’t be sure

….Off swiftly to the aforementioned pub for a pit-stop pint.

Lots of customers and some incompetent bar staff. Two people to pour a pint- one to do the pouring and one to take the money. What? Strictly NERDS non-approved!

After wetting our whistle

it was time to start the ramble. Up and down dale

we meandered. Fantastic views. 3 out of 4 NERDS had done much of this ramble before,

many years ago. But for Curly it was terra incognita as he joined the NERDS relatively late in life.

After a mile or two we, of course, got slightly disorientated

and there was much scratching of heads. We asked various ramblers for advice and received conflicting advice. Eventually an elderly South African lady set us on the right path. SB wondered if she was the recipient of a Visit visa by himself back in Pretoria way back in 2003.

At long last (only really about 3miles)

we reached the fair hamlet of Poynings. We soon located The Royal Oak – which was familiar to some of us. Good beers

and good (although expensive) grub.

Although it has been thought that The Whip was a dead concept I did notice the existence of a mini-whip between Froggy and Curly. So some of the old traditions of the NERDS do continue to be maintained.

We are not The Dark Side 2 yet.

As ever the conversation was free-ranging. My notes indicate an animated discussion about the relative merits of different types of underpants.

Although my notes do not indicate who expressed which preference. No embark cards you see. Still, makes a change from medical ailments.

Time to move, but where to? The Ramble book indicated going on to Fulking and a pint at The Shepherd and Dog. Remember? No chips and Laf getting a Milf barmaid (Jill) to remove her clothing and him purchasing it. .Then again lechery and depravity have long been part of the NERDS DNA.

Some of us remembered Fulking for other reasons- the bloody awful climb up the escarpment back to the Devils Dyke

Not that this was much of an easy option as the way back involved a good deal of hill walking.

Inevitably perhaps there was a bit of a diaspora of the NERDS with people going off in different directions. For a while we lost Curly but happily he found us and we began the last push back to the start. Finding the bus stop

by negotiating some nasty patches of stinging nettles we again boarded the bus, climbed to the open top deck and enjoyed a blowy, sunny, scenic ride back to Churchill Square.

Nobody really fancied another drink in Brighton (the NERDS are getting old) so we simply said farewell and buggered off home on our different buses.

A good time had by the 4 of us. Pity we were so few. Never mind, quality not quantity.

Next ramble on Wednesday 14/9. Laf joining us ‘a velo’ as special guest. On reflection he probably isn’t a malingering bastard and seems genuinely crook. Sorry about the title then!!





Sandyballs

November's Sepratists Ramble 2015

NERDS' Ramble No. 312 - Wed 18th Nov. 2015.

Those Present – Lafayette, Matt, Froggy, Curly and Mysterious Guest Sandyballs.

The NERDS Separatists (Froggy's Idea for a title)

Lafayette had requested a short ramble this month. The following day he was due to ramble with The Darkside from Gatwick, and he knew how long Ed would make this ramble. (He was not wrong; The Darksiders walked for miles and miles in the pouring rain through shitty, muddy fields – this was supposed to be a pleasure not an SAS selection course!) Anyway, the NERDS' committee had kindly granted Lafayette leave to organise a ramble up to Stanmer House from Falmer – and we all know how far that is!



Sandyballs was temporarily absent; he had returned the evening before from Venice so was a bit jaded and had domestic chores to perform. Paco had the squits so it was down to Lafayette to lead the way. And so it was that presentably attired in rambling gear he boarded the train at Newhaven to meet a scathing Matt

who told him off for having filthy boots.

“You look as if you're going for a job on a building site.” scathed Matt replete in his Monty Don type scarf ever so casually slung round his neck. “ I can't help it if I'm such a popular socialite and member of so many rambling groups that I never have time to get my bearer to clean my boots.” retorted Laf, “ Besides which Safeer had to go back to Pakistan via Syria recently to take part in the 100th ramble of his own group, The Daaesh Drinkers. Don't expect I'll see him for a while.” he said with a catch in his voice.



And so the NERDS detrained at Falmer, and tearing their gaze away from the student totty disporting themselves round the station

they headed up the short and winding road to Stanmer House.

It was still there with its cosy bar, its comfy sofas, its paintings and books etc. We realised that Curly had never been here before judging by the amount of awe which radiated from him as soon as he stepped through the front door. “ Wow, it looks like Versailles!” said Curly who had just been to France with a load of questionable companions. The floating girlie personnel were still present all dressed tastefully in short black skirts, and as we were sat down at a table opposite the till at the front door we got good and speedy service from them.



However it soon became apparent that not much drink was going to be taken on this occasion. There was no whip, everyone bought there own drink.

Matt was flying solo, Curly doesn't drink much and Froggy had eschewed a lot of alchohol to try to turn into a “highly honed ninja.” (fat chance). Lafayette was left to keep getting up to get his own pints since he was the only one drinking more than one pint and Sandyballs had not yet arrived.

When the latter did arrive

with a tale of woe about filthy Venetian foreigners, sickness, chores, mothers in law etc. he stayed only for one pint and then whizzed back home to see Mrs Sandyballs who was not well. Lafayette was bereft. Hardly any drinking, no whip, no rounds – what ever had happened to the NERDS' philosophy of All for One and One for All? It was as thought the cohesive whole of days of yore had suddenly just descended into a load of pale faced, lily-livered individualists who didn't really want to be there. “I blame Club Corona for this ,” he muttered “ That's what the NERDS is rapidly becoming. We'll soon all be wearing cord trousers and drinking half pints.” Froggy put a positive spin on it by saying we could be known as the Separatists ie. Little drinking,

pale faced, lily-livered, honed ninjas, but Laf was still inconsolable at the way the NERDS were going and was not swayed.



Anyway, the food was up to its usual high standard; the Moby Dick fish course was pretty substantial

for a child's portion but unfortunately the famous waitress, Maria, was nowhere to be seen. The beer was good too and Curly was very impressed by the mini bar at the end, and the luxury of the well lit toilets.



We all got back on the train and went to The Runaway on Lewes station for a coffee ( a coffee!) and then all slid home. At least Laf's legs had been saved for the big Darkside ramble on the morrow and Curly had been given his initiation into the delights of Stanmer House. Next month is the Christmas ramble when Lafayette hopes that at least a modicum of drinking will take place. After that it will be the Winter NERDS/ Darkside Ramble probably in Lewes but certainly taking place on Wednesday January 6th (2016).



Yours in sorrow.





Lafayette.

A new begining

Created on 23.01.2014 this is a new hope!
BT