Hooray hooray, the first of May...

...outdoor screwing begins today!


So cool to finally be in the right hemisphere to say such things.

So despite running away to Aus for a month in the middle of winter, I totally understand why the beginning of spring is such a big deal. Winter tends to send English people a bit mad.

I'm sure that's why thousands of people stagger into the high street at 4am in the freezing dark to assemble outside Magdalene (I still don't know why it's pronounces Maudlin) College - some of the college kids still sporting strapless evening gowns and the remains of black tie from all-night-end-of-academic-year balls. After about 2 hours of freezing my bits off and texting family back home about what a lunatic thing I was doing, I finally heard the college choir shuffle onto the roof of the tower about 5 floors overhead. They then sang hymns in Latin for about 15 minutes (that was worth waiting for - not) which was broadcast down to us on the tinniest PA system you ever heard. Actually, I'd have preferred to hear it through tin-cans joined by a string... No wonder people jump off the Magdalene Bridge (into about 18 inches of freezing water, a long way below). Despite a recent ban and a heavy police presence, apparently 3 people managed the feat this year...

After such an anticlimax, I hastened off to the famed Victoria Arms in Old Marston village, not far from home. I arrived at 6.15 to find the morning folk session in full swing, with about 100 revellers well into cooked-brekkie-for-a-fiver washed down by at least their first pint. All the Half Moon regulars were there - even Joe, the landlord! And we sang all the spring songs - John Barleycorn (at least 2 versions, maybe 3), Long Life and Success to the Farmer, Nothing for Poor Shepherds to Do and a long list of others. By the time chilly dawn turned into brilliant sunny morning we were far too merry to bother with suncream as we trouped outside for Morrismen (and women!) and my first maypole dance.

I should point out that some of our friends had been up all night at the previous nights session, and that most of them book May 2 off work as well, to recover. We lasted until about 3pm when, given our big weekend in Leeds and an early start, we trudged across the field home for a long hard nanna-nap.

Next year, I aspire to know the words...