A lock in you say, Prickly?
Marvellous.
I was so busy glugging the mulled wine, that I completely forgot that we were due to pop around to the neighbours for drinks and nibbles.
Several drinks and nibbles later, I'll just have small nightcap. Brandy will be fine.
Prickly, in my mind, is a small, but indomitable sort, with rolled up sleeves and a 'can do' attitude. Quietly polishing glasses behind the bar and adding just the right 'bon mot' to aid the conversation.
The Blue Stocking is warm and gently lit, with an assortment of seating, from squashy sofas to bar stools, where the world weary can slump.
On the walls is a collection of photographs dedicated to the women who have lit the path that shows us the way: Andrea Dworkin, Germaine Greer, Maya Angelou, Simone de Beauvoir, Margaret Atwood, Marge Piercy, Sheila Jeffries, Frida Kahlo, Georgia O'Keefe, for example. There are spaces for those women yet to rise and take their place amongst the Amazons.
In Virago Corner, there is a collection of works written by women about the female experience, some of whom have been named above. They are free to borrow and read. There is much discussion.
I like The Blue Stocking.