Oh Lordi!

Well the day didn't exactly start well. I woke at 6.30am with a major migraine in progress. The medication didn't work and within the hour I'm puking like a good un.

This continues for the next five hours and it's not until mid-afternoon that my stomach settles enough to allow the ginger sipping of some soluble painkiller, which in turn starts to stop my head exploding.

In faith I decide not to cancel the plans for the party this afternoon, though I do have to put P,R & the kids off, who were planning to come across early.

Needless to say that by the time I've recovered suitably to have a shower and enter the world of the living it's 5pm and I'm ever so slightly behind on my plans to tidy the house, construct gazebos, prepare food, set up the cocktail counter, string the fairy lights, light the BBQ etc. Guests at 6pm...

The wonderful Dog Collars and Rabbit Corpses family come round at 5.30pm and a small army of helpers is unleashed. Niece R is a whizz with the tribute to the 70's cheese and pineapple sticks, niece K is a star with the gazebos and lighting, niece H a Godsend with the 'take all this upstairs and dump it in the boxroom'. S is a legend with gazebos and BBQs (helped in due course by some early guests, who kindly muck in) and K runs endless errands picking up the things we've forgotten.

Eventually things are almost shipshape, bubble machines blow their magic over the garden, swingball is proving a hit with the kids, fabulous food is cooking on the BBQ, guests with drinks in hand, nibbles on plates, party mix on the iPod and the house and garden full of lovely people.

And then on to the main feature of the evening: the one, the only, Eurovision Song Contest.

Ah 'tis a delight as ever. True Euro-madness. Rob has provided the sweepstake facility again, complete with little flags for the waving. Class.

I'm glad to say we're not let down...Eurovision is a true kitsch delight. Firm favourites from the Manchester jury are Lordi, a Finnish Eurovision take on Slipknot (douze point!).

You can enjoy their performance again below. And oh yes, you're not mistaken, they do indeed claim that it's an a-rockalypse and that today is the day of rockening.



A fine set of winners. And the moment when they were handed huge bouquets of flowers was quite special.

Myself, I also had a soft spot for Lithuania - barking in the way only Eurovision can be. I mean who'd have thought of combining a Fran Cosgrove looky-likey, with a Ethan Hawke looky-likey, with a Harry Hill looky-likey that dances like...err well I'm not sure I can describe it, check it out for yourself:



Sadly however their claim of "we are the winners of Eurovison" wasn't to be. It seems people did indeed follow their instruction to "vote for the winners!" (it's kind of how the whole poll thing works), perhaps they needed to be more specific: "vote for us!"

Oh a splendid, splendid night.

The wonderful S&K even stayed behind to help clear up the bulk of the mess. Friends like this...you couldn't buy them for all the money int he world. Or as K observes, "you've gone one better than T, held the party at your own house, but got others to host it".