Another Week

Sunday. 9.20 a.m. Yesterday I intended to go into the Central Shopping Centre. I have wanted to buy a styptic pencil. I don't think most people, particularly younger men, will know what these things are. If you shave using a more traditional, wet, system, to shave, as I do, you will know how easy it is to cut yourself, or produce little nicks, which cause bleeding. With me, it's not very often, but when it happens, it's often difficult to staunch the flow of blood. You can use bits of tissue or cotton wool, but who wants to go around for the rest of the day with bits of paper stuck to your face? I don't. A styptic pencil means you can stop these little bloody flows more or less instantly. It stings at first, but only mildly. Just a vital item to keep in your shaving kit. But it's very difficult to find such an item anywhere in a supermarket or pharmacy. I have managed to find them in branches of Boots, but nowhere else. You have to keep them dry otherwise they crumble to pieces and then keep them in their little plastic containers. The one I had has since ended up in pieces which is why I wanted to replace it. All this was an excuse to drive into the centre. I haven't been in for a while. I parked in the carpark next to The Point and paid using the RingGo app. It certainly saves having to have the right change for the machine and it's actually considerably cheaper. I went into the centre and had a look for the styptic pencil, first in Superdrug, but no sign of what I wanted. Then into Boots. A short walk further along inside the Centre, but after a good look in the men's shaving area, which has about every shaving item imaginable, every type of razor blade, no styptic pencil! Just a waste of my time. Why is it SO difficult to buy these things? They're really useful for when you have a slight cut when shaving, so you would imagine they would be vital and on sale in the razor blade aisle. But no.

I then went into T.K. Maax. Just for a browse. But the escalator was out of service which meant I couldn't get to the upper floor, so I didn't bother to find the stairs so I left. I then went into W.H. Smith with the intention of buying the latest edition of Current Archaeology which I find thoroughly interesting and worth a read, but, after a good look along the magazine racks I couldn't find it, so I left. Just a waste of a morning in the shopping centre. So I drove to Sainsbury's to buy one or two items and that was my outing over and out.

Monday. 6.05 a.m. Awake early so it was out with Alfie. There was a mist over part of Oldbrook Green and I noticed the obligatory supermarket trolley upturned near the tarmacked games area. Every urban scene must have an abandoned supermarket trolley to give the correct atmosphere. It makes me wonder why people can't return them when they take them away from whichever supermarket they come from.

I've had another great idea for my writing. I'm not going to reveal it on here, obviously, but it will take things to a new level. I'm now doing some research to see how it's going to work and fit into what I have already produced.