22 FEB 2006. WEDNESDAY. 11:47PM.

I had to go back, to the old happy place to see if the beer still tasted good, and the eye-candy still rampant. I remember the countless good times, the drinking, the eating, the hot guys, the pretty waitresses, the flirting, getting chatted up, sinking into the couches, chilling and talking with friends for hours on end. Tonight the air was warm inside, the faces were different, it smelt different. The beer tasted well ... the same, but the satisfaction was missing. The food came hot and steaming, my mussels were over-cooked and miniscule. Our pretty waitress was perky and had a bounce to her step. But there was just something different about that place now ... the vibe was gone. There are too many people there on a mid-week night. Gone are the nights where we hide under dim-lights and the space would be half-empty. Staff would come up to you and have a chat, things were more kicked back and relaxed. I no longer have a smile with my first sip and or feel my body sinking comfortably into the couch. Does this mark the end of the happy place? Has it passed its used-by date? Have i just outgrown locally-brewed beer in preference for chai lattes? Or issit because it was a stinking hot day outside and beer did nothing for me except to give me a mulling headache afterwards?