Spitfires are back, and with Finns!

Now we all know a little about spitfires don’t we?. And some of us know a little about Finns.

In my case, as a schoolboy my history project was entitled  ‘Military Aircraft of World War 2’, So that just leaves Finns. They say they are from somewhere called Finland.  I’m not sure exactly where it is but some of them are blond and I hear it’s quite cold. 

More importantly when I was a schoolboy I was so busy comparing Hurricanes to Spitfires and setting fire to the cotton wool I had stuffed into the fuselage of my Airfix model Messerschmitt ( 'BF109e’ if you are a military pedant) before hurling it into the air to watch excitedly as it crashed to the ground leaving a smoking trail so trying single handedly in my early teenage mind to recreate Douglas Bader’s legless-pipe-smoking-smoke-me a kipper-I’ll-be back-before-breakfast victories over the Hun that I simply had no idea there was to more fun to be had with them when one is a grown up. I didn’t do Finn’s then and as far as I knew they hadn’t invented any flying machine-gun-mounted-death-machines. And their military victories aren’t recorded in many places that I can find, but that may just be because they are modest, and a little like the Swiss, quite a secretive bunch.

I’ve looked them up now and the only thing I can add is that I already knew who Mika Hakkinen is (a very balanced normal Finn who drives a funny car) is that there is more than ten thousand of them in London.  And I think that’s possibly more of them than there are in Finland.  Though they are also famous for a few things, one of which may be of interest depending on how nerdy you are, which is that the coldest temperature (probably) in the whole universe was ‘made’ by a Finn, in a laboratory.  That’s obviously, as you already knew dear reader -273C The mind boggles as to what they do for fun. Though I hope it warms them up. Frottage anyone?

Personally, being grammatically challenged I wonder why if they are from ‘Finland’ why they are called ‘Finns and not just ‘Fins’without the extra ‘n’ (any ideas, please advise?) which would make more sense to me, but I suppose that every French person would just view them as, well, ‘Finished?’ Then again that might explain the military history.. Hmm, just saying?

I digress, so back to Spitfires, and real Finns. Your man is back on the trail. I know, I know! Calm down at the back, you've been patient and it’s been too long but I need to give you a long awaited “Cocktail of the Week” one of which I enjoyed tonight in the company of she who I shall just refer to as “The Finn” We shared a chatty dinner and as she is a good friend and confidant she suggested a quick snifter before home time in a bar in Angel, Islington (that’s in London for International readers) called “The Bar With No Name” or simply ‘69 Colebrooke Row’. There they served me, without any tricky prompting the nicest and best ‘Spitfire’ cocktail that has graced my lips since the fall of Pompeii, and believe me that was a hot night which I only just survived! IT was foamy, zesty, tingly, quaffable and downright lovely.. and worth the tenner of BOE funny money that isn’t related to anything anyway. You might as well pay for drinks with leaves such is the connection between our fiscal system and value these days. I’d have happily paid a wheelbarrow full and it’s February so leaves are harder to collect than you might assume.

I’ll take their recipe from a nice review of them at

http://londonforinsiders.blogspot.com/2010/10/londons-best-cocktail-bars-69_02.html

They make it as it says here from cognac, creme de peche, white wine, lemon juice and sugar. It’s beautifully executed.

The bar is nice too. Go there,  though I think you usually have to book.

As for the Finn, well she’s nice too, also foamy, zesty, tingly, quaffable and downright lovely.

All in all a good evening.

Now back to work slackers, all is safe, I’m on the case and Ian is in the Falklands causing trouble. Back soon, if you can wait.

The Gardener

http://www.69colebrookerow.com/

http://www.hakkinen.com/

This post was written with the help of  Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine.  And their track Sheriff Fat Man. See/ hear it here http://www.nme.com/musicvideos/carter-usm-sheriff-fatman/144133

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