The BMW MINI Xmas Party
I flew from Newark to Vancouver on Alaska Airlines, a budget airline which had no form of entertainment whatsoever which was fun for the 6 hr flight. I ended up making patterns in my head while looking at the Eskimo rug that was strung up between the rich and the poor classes. I liked the planes though, they were white and had a black relief picture of an Eskimo (who looked like Bob Marley) on the tail of the jet. I got to Vancouver pretty late and a bit disorientated from the 4 hr time difference from East coast to West. I realised as I was walking through the airport I had no real idea of who Sarah is or what she's like!
I'd spoken to Sarah a few times on the Stray bus in New Zealand and again on MSN a few times, and now I'd just flown across continental North America just because she said 'Hey, you should come here too.'
I fucking love this lifestyle.
Sarah and Crystal (her room mate) met me at the terminal and we both had a slightly awkward 'Wow. I'm (You're) actually here' moment... But we got over that pretty quick and went to bar. We met Darren and Sean, a couple of her work mates who were raving about 'Elf' with Will Ferral (my second favourite comic actor after Bill Murray). They were both totally mashed but so into it you couldn't help but be sucked in by their stoner's enthusiasm of seeing one of Santa's Elf's come to the conclusion he was a human man.
Sarah works for a Mini dealership in Yaletown, Vancouver. She'd said to me a while back did I want to come to her Xmas party, it was a fancy do so I'd have to dress up smart. Did I have any smart clothes with me? When I stopped laughing I said I'd love to come along but may have to buy a shirt and hire some trousers etc from somewhere. It turns out that Darren is freakily exactly the same size as I am. I borrowed a pair of trousers and some shoes which actually fit better than some I've got at home.
Sarah and I stayed in an incredibly hip hotel in Yaletown (subsidised by BMW) which was all funky bold colours, cut glass and trippy furniture. We had an interesting feature in our room of a huge window looking directly onto the bath and shower. Now we'd always got on well, in fact we'd both been important parts in a human pyramid in New Zealand, But we weren't quite on that level of familiarity yet!
We got a limo across town to the restaurant and bar where we'd spend the evening. I know I look like I'm about to start a fight with Darren here but I'm really not!
This just made me laugh, How much cheap shit food have I eaten in the last 10 months? And this is free!
I'm sitting a couple of places down from the head of BMW in North America. Can you guess which one the moustachioed German is?
Everyone seemed to be going around taking pictures of each other and apparently I'm in the BMW magazine which goes to dealerships all over the world!
After dinner, we retired to the VIP room and drank Vodka Red Bulls. Though it was actually the Thai copy of Red Bull which, myth has it has trace amphetamines in it. Though if there are, I couldn't feel it, all I felt was bloated as its not carbonated.
Eurgh. Me in a tie.
We went for a wander around downstairs in the non-VIP bit and some bird struck up a conversation with me and said "What on earth would a man like you want to carry in a man-purse like that?"
"What?"
"Vancouver has a large gay population and I just wanted to know what you carried in a man-purse, They're very fashionable at the moment!"
"It's a camera bag."
"A camera? Oh right. So why do you carry your camera in a man-purse?"
"IT'S A FUCKING CAMERA BAG!"
I've worn my camera bag across my shoulder for nearly 8 months and its suddenly become a Man Purse!
We left the normal scum downstairs and went back up to the VIP room where we found out Wesley Snipes had arrived. He'd apparently been shooting his new film in Vancouver and liked this bar. Which is understandable when you see what the barmaids wear.
A bunch of Tequilla's later and, well. I'm sure you can guess the rest.
Sean and Darren talking Elf again.
We ended up back in somebody's room at the hotel about 5am ordering pizza from the only place in town that was open that late/early. It was a quality night.
