Wee Pea and an Epilogue
I've been living and working in Oxford for a while now, and before it's recent refurb and change of hands (and styles, sadly), I was a semi-regular attendee at friday nights of one of the towns most, er, salubrious estabilishments, the Zodiac.

My story takes place on one ill fated night, where, after imbibing the requisite amount of alcohol to find the place charming, I made to leave and find my way home. Now, for some reason, and here comes the dumb thing, I started my (short) journey home at a different angle than usual, 90 degrees different as it turns out.

So I proceeded to take my exact (or as close as possible) route home, just offset somewhat. So as the night goes on and the alcohol takes more of a grip and I get more and more disoriented, I am instantly transported (in my mind at least) to a road leading to my parents house.

It's along this road that I seem to find myself accompanied by some caring folk (real or imaginary, I've no idea), who are shepharding me safely along. Unfortunately, after walking for what seemed like an eternity I just wanted to sleep, and spotting a comfortable looking bush, I conferred with my new friends as to whether or not I should sleep there. They concurred with me, and I strode over, gracelessly fell back, and.....fade to black.

Next thing, I come to, walking, in a suburban street I've never seen before, everything thoroughly unfamiliar. I attempt to find something I recognise, a road name, landmark, building, anything, with no luck. Eventually after walking in circles, getting stuck at dead ends, I managed to find a main road, and chanced my arm on one of the two directions.

Turns out I guessed the right way, and got home around 2 hours later.

For anyone who knows the area, I had managed to get from the Zodiac to a street about two miles down Banbury road, which was a few miles directly, even more by the circuitous road route.

Epilogue
That was quite a number of years ago, since then I've torn the rotator cuff in my shoulder, lost a mobile & pair of glasses and gained a gash on my head, as well as the usual drunken mundanery, all on different nights out. But since meeting the mrs. and having better things to do, I've lost all of my drinking abilities, which is safer generally, but also means that I now risk nights out going wrong on much lower amounts of alcohol.
(ShiftyBastard won the World Cup on World Soccer Champs 2010!, Fri 25 Mar 2011, 15:50, 2 replies)

Ha! The Zodiac
I remember their "50p a shot of tequila" night...what a load of drunken ole fucking carnage that was.

Getting from the Z to two miles down Banbury is pretty good going. I once walked home from the house of a vague acquaintance where a party had finished and we'd taken a taxi there, which meant I had no clue how to get back, plus he lived somewhere freaking miles away like Kidlington.
( .Yeti. El amor en los tiempos del cólera, Fri 25 Mar 2011, 16:59, closed)

I've walked from kidlington to town many a time
but not when pissed off my face.

re OP - couple of miles down the banbury road is really impressive!
( nivoser tangos with the devil, Sat 26 Mar 2011, 16:50, closed)