Hello Dave

I went to visit a friend in a very nice apartment block over in Burbank yesterday. My only knowledge of Burbank was from my days working for Disney. Our head quarters were there and so Burbank, to me, became synonimous with television and film empires. I'd picture Ron Disney, our CEO at the time, being fed grapes by dwarves whilst black men zippedy doo da-ed down the hall followed by singing lions and VW Beetles.

Now I'm actually here I see that the place does have its fair share of studios (put it like this, if a bomb dropped on this area you can kiss goodbye to all your favourite shows and every studio film). But it also has a nice community feel. Its comparatively less congested than Hollywood, newer and has that rare and wonderful thing in LA, a high street.

In the elevator leaving my friends apartment an old couple got in. He was about 80, tall, doddery but still several marbles up there, she was short probably about 70. We all smiled pleasantly then she asked, "are you new?" My brain froze for a moment. Not because of the question but because her voice was exactly like Papa Lazarou from League of Gentlemen. Even though our mouths were having a perfectly civil conversation about the area and the building with its "vaulted ceilings" in my mind she was saying "hello Dave. You're my wife now" I even basktracked to the moment I got in the lift. In my head, as the doors opened she'd simply said "hello. Is Dave there?"

I chuckled to myself once I was a safe distance from the minstrel sound-a-like. League of Gentlemen wss one of my favourite shows so it actually made me like Burbank more.