Reverse Dinner

View from the head of the table

This evening was the Reverse Dinner I'd been planning for ages at the club, although with not nearly enough lead time.  In the end we managed to sell out 40 seats, less than the full capacity, but still a decent number.  After many offers of help with the seating plan, I was still left doing it myself, and so had to finish it all in quite a rush on Friday.

The rushing continued when I didn't leave myself nearly enough time to get ready for dinner, and hence arrived with all of my hair hastily pinned up from the curls I'd been doing it in.  I suppose it looked alright in the end, and I did make it to the club on time.

Once there, I found everyone mostly milling around.  I'd though we would have port as a reception, but it seemed instead they were just letting everyone gather before dinner.  Hmmm...I probably should have discussed that with the staff.  Once I arrived however, the crowds seemed to perk up, and I introduced everyone to everybody else, and everyone finally seemed to start talking to each other.

Yet I was very glad for when we were all called into dinner, and the port was poured out.  I had everyone sit at first, before making them stand again for the Loyal Toast.  At least that one was easy!

We moved on from the port to coffee, chocolates and truffles, and then they brought out red wine and dessert, a berry compote sort of thing with sorbet.  Then came the main (a roast of some kind with vegetables), before we finally finished with a smoked salmon starter that was really too much for everyone at that point!

At dinner

I had seated myself with Doro's young man and another friend of hers, figuring that there weren't really any boys of interest for me there, so why not at least use the opportunity to catch up with them (and learn a bit more about the young man who has so captured Doro's heart?)  I have to admit, although he wasn't quite my speed, he seemed totally devoted to her, and even was having fun ripping his name card in half to put his last name over hers, joking about marriage proposals.  Given how commitment-phobic I know so many men to be, it was hilarious to see him joking around about getting married to her.  Indeed, it looks like that's where this one may be headed.

My friend Sophie also had fun with me by asking my permission (as the person in charge of the event) before going to the bathroom, then inspiring everyone else in the room to do the same any time they wanted to leave the room.  Quite a bit of hilarity, as everyone seemed to enjoy this new rule, however unnecessary it was!

Indeed, I was having quite a bit of fun being "the person in charge", as they were making me try all of the wine, which of course I couldn't taste that well with my cold.  I was just hoping nothing tasted too vinegar-y, and that it was appropriate to serve!

At the champagne reception after the meal

Finally we ended the meal by making everyone stand for grace (which I somehow read in Latin after all that wine and port), and we retired to the Drawing Room for the champagne reception.  Everyone kept commenting to me how much fun they'd had at dinner, and how much they had enjoyed the company I had seated them with.  I apparently without even knowing had seated some old school chums together, and my friend Helen who had some along had thoroughly enjoyed the company she was with, so much so that she wanted to invite them to a party at her flat in December.

I was surprised then when the one good-looking chap in the room (a man in uniform) asked for my number, although I just assumed he was doing so because of my role as the chairman.  It was only when he contacted me later that I realised his interest might have been more than just friendly, although of course I was very lame in doing anything about it.  Quite surprising too, as I barely got a chance to speak to him all evening!

In the Drawing Room

I then took two of my other guests, Emma and Jack, on a tour of the club, as it was their first time there.  We eventually ended up back in the bar with quite a few others who were staying late, and I found myself chatting with two of them until 1:30 AM.  (The bar had closed long before at midnight, but everyone was having such a good time they just stayed on).

Finally, a guy and a girl who I never would have put together if I'd thought about it seemed quite keen to stay in each other's company, so I made my excuses and headed home on the night bus.  I got home at 2:30 AM, where I found that Qatari Boy was awake, so I wrote back and forth to him for a bit, given that he'd written to me in the middle of dinner, "I miss talking to you, young lady..."  I have to admit, that one comment had distracted me from all the other male attention, all evening long!