Very Bright, crisp morning - nice dog walk in the woods, opened up some decent coffee. Considering how much coffee is consumed every day - huge swathes of the world must be set aside for plantations, and the amount of effort, transport and skill that goes into putting it in the packet - I really shouldn't complain about paying £2.75 for 250mg of decent stuff.
Did lots of 'stuff' yesterday, including a trip to the Jerwood to see the Gillian Ayres - very good indeed. Went to Waterstones - they have, to my surprise, added a few design book - but complimented with a shelf of 'street art' picture books - mostly graffiti and stencil kits. Nice. I bought this - which I'd considered buying online, but in a feeble attempt to support my local bookseller - I purchased in the shop. They have a scheme now where they stamp a card every time you spend a tenner and get a tenner off after ten books, a bit like most coffee places. The woman who served me was very nice but made me feel a bit spoken down to, as if buying anything commercial was 'such a shame'. When I was in Debenhams the woman who served me was on full Mrs Slocombe mode and shouted everything at me:
"have you tried them on dear, are you sure, dear, would you like to join our card scheme, dear, are you sure dear, would you like a bag, dear"
It's a staggeringly badly designed store - it beggars belief that a store that is LITERALLY on the seafront with the best views and light in the country is totally lit by bulbs with no use of the blacked out windows, and so badly designed that it's impossible to shop comfortably - and would be a death trap in an emergency - it really is a disgrace, if the reworked it they would sell twice as much of half the product. The same story at BHS, where the stocked is crammed around the entrance making it impossible to navigate the store - and menswear in hidden behind a barrier of ladies underwear. These people are fucking idiots. The Boots in Eastbourne has shopping on 2 floors, upstairs they have a huge, 1920's sunburst stained glass window - it's beautiful, about 10 feet across - it's also blacked out. Tossers.
I've seen a house in Central Hastings I really want but can't afford, it's uncannily similar to my old house in Brighton, right down to the colour - and in a great spot with a lovely view. I also cycled along St Mary's Terrace - fantastic houses with staggering views, but again - can't afford them - have a look on google Streetview.
Supposed to be going to the council dump shortly, getting rid of more crap and all the old dog bedding, as it's winter they have new. I cut up an old 15 tog duvet to fill the dog bed covers, it must have meen very comfortable - Little Mouse didn't want to get up.
Yesterday - as I was walking the dogs through Clive vale ( obviously on short leads ) a cat shout out from a garden and attacked Alfie - wrapping itself around his face and scratching away, cutting open his face, gums and tongue. Managed to get it off but the vicious bastard followed us down the road, spitting and hissing. Who says cat's can't defend themselves.
I made the terrible mistake of watching Threads last night - I must have been mad - it was far bleaker and depressing than I remembered, and much more explicit. Why couldn't I have stuck to Basil Rathbone
2 comments:
The War Game is bad enough. Threads just about finished me off.
When I opened the Ottakar's/Waterstone's in Worthing, the senior management decided to black out the upstairs windows. What could have been a lovely place to browse and relax in ended up feeling like a basement, all for the sake of a few extra shelves. A great pity.
It's a British thing - the Brighton Center has a superb position - but no windows facing the sea, the Woolworths in Hastings was built with it's back facing the sea, loading doors opening onto the promenade - and the best, most scenic part of the beach where you can see France is a car park, I can understand that at one time - houses were built facing perpendicular to protect them from the elements - but at least the Edwardians / Georgians and victorians understod the concept of 'view'.
I have decided that the latter part of Threads was far too bleak, I don't think the survivors would have descended into such a medieval feral state so quickly, I think people are far more opportunist and self aware - but I could be wrong.
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