Returning the Costa Coffee sign, and other things I did when drunk lately

The legend of the Costa Coffee sign reached a dramatic conclusion last night when the sign was returned to the hotel from whence it came. For those of you who are unfamiliar with Chamberlain lore, let me fill you in. Once upon a time (and to be more precise that time was in our mid-2nd year) the members of Chamberlain House set forth for a night of intoxicating beverages at the Black Widow, a public house that at its time was the very hub of student drinking in the South Kensington area. A few pints of beer and some cocktails with biblical names later, the group (plus a few token Americans) set forth on the journey home. It was then that we passed the Marriott on Cromwell Road and saw the sign.

Like a shimmering beacon it called to us. As it sat proud on the pavement outside the hotel, the sign just screamed "take me". Comparisons with the legend of Excalibur would be forgiven, for at this moment we could have no idea what epic adventures lay ahead of us. The steal would be perfect; infinitely better than a traffic cone, and a mere 2 minutes from our front door. A plan was quickly hatched to take the sign; two students flanked it and guided it from the front whilst another lifted it from the rear and provided the support. Not a single hitch blighted our operation, and it was soon perched gracefully in our living room.

Many years passed, and the sign showed its use in many ways. The rotatable arrow provided the perfect mechanism for directing people to countless parties, and it was also found to function as the world's coolest doorstop. As a coat and hat stand it performed admirably, trouncing other drunken steals that came and went, such as the bus stop sign. Bus alas, its day had to come, for no Chamberlain members had either the means or the inclination to take it home. So we decided that after so many years of joy, we should return it to show our gratitude to the kind people at Marriott. We chose to do this at our last ever party, the "BBQ Roof Party". Myself and Alex (star of the recent article "Ooooh , Ladyboys!") did the deed, with Marc following to document the event, and with two other guys for moral support. Alex's sombrero hat added a tough of class to the whole affair.

Turning up at a hotel to return a beer trophy sure did confuse a lot of people. The random Americans who left the hotel at the same time were quite perplexed, but seemed to think it was cool whatever we were doing. The same cannot be said for the security guard, who scowled at us from behind the glass of the hotel. However a quick mooning by Alex soon sorted him out. The message we left on the sign, complete with Marc's beautiful pun, read "3 years of happy memories. It's bean great!! xxx"


In other news, said roof party went swimmingly. The weather held out, and a good time was had by all. All-in-all it capped off an amazing three years of Chamberlain House. Three years of fun, frolics, and the most awesome parties around. Goodbye Chamberlain, it's bean great!