1360th Blog post. Still Sunny!

This will be my 1360th blog post! Why should that be so important? Well, it isn't, but it's quite an achievement to have kept this blog going for so long.

The sun is shining, the birds are singing! What more can one want? I can do without wasps, flies and other insects which invade the house. I can also do without pop music blasted at me from whatever quarter. People have their windows open, which means there is a leakage of boom-diddy-boom-diddy-boom-bom-boom. You know, or perhaps you don't, that drum beat that a lot of pop music seems to have. It's right what Noel Coward said, 'strange how potent cheap music is!' which is a line from his play 'Private Lives.' The joke is, if you know this play, that the music which is playing in the background is 'Some Day I'll Find You,' which he wrote! So it's sort of turning things on itself. But, regardless of all that, I do agree. I suppose that the sentiment in that line is that popular music has to be potent, in the sense of probably, a drug or alcohol, it has to work it's magic by being repetitive or overwhelming. Anyway, my thing is that drum beating in the distance can be just annoying and puts me off whatever I'd doing, probably attempting to plot a piece I happen to be writing. Then there's those crazed individuals who insist on having pop music blasting from the speakers in their cars as they speed by. So loud it makes the car vibrate and all you get is the booming sound, no music to speak of. Why can it never be Beethoven or Mozart of any other composer's music you care to mention? But if that's the case, why have it so loud that everyone else has to put up with it, regardless of whether they want to or not.

Later. Yesterday evening (Thursday) I went to S.C.F. for another session of The Bible Course. There are three more to go. I was undecided as to what to wear and in the end I didn't wear my new shorts and short-sleeved shirt. As I left the house, I was suddenly hit by the heat. I was around 6.45 and it was quite intense, not helped by the fact that when I got in the car I found the interior hotter still, by quite a few degrees. It made my heart rate increase. I was feeling quite unwell, not exactly helped by the other drivers who insist on tailgating me as I drove up Chaffron Way to the Oaktree Centre. I had to have a drink of water on arrival and I found the main hall cooler than the café area and by the time we started the course I was feeling better. But I think it's a warning to be more careful when the sun is so hot and I was shocked by how hot it was so late in the day.

(Friday) I was quite insistent that I get a lie-in. I was more than determined that I wouldn't get up before 6a.m. I actually took Alfie out at 7 this morning! He wasn't exactly pleased, but it was worth the extra time asleep. I hope to continue with this regime.

Too good to stay indoors today. I had to get out, even if it was just a trip into central Milton Keynes. I had to first go to get some change for the carpark. I do have the RingGo app on my iPhone, but it doesn't always work, so I had to have change for the machine. I went to the Eaglestone shop to use the A.T.M. outside but when I got there, it wasn't working. No cash in it. I know these machines have a tendency to run out of cash, but it was somewhat annoying because I then had to drive all the way to the One Stop shop in Coffee Hall. Fortunately the machine was working, but because the sun was so strong it was next to impossible to read the screen, but fortunately I was able to extract £30 from the maws of the mighty machine and then go into the shop to buy two bags of wine gums and fruit pastilles in order to get change.

I arrived at the carpark and then I found the RingGo app wouldn't work, so I was glad that I'd had the foresight to get change for the parking meter. This technology can be great when it works, but when it doesn't, it's just a waste of time. So it's as well to not always rely on it and use a different method of payment. I walked into the shopping centre and paid some money into my Metro Bank savings account. From there I went into Midsummer Place and as I was waking through I heard my name 'John!' but at first I didn't respond. Then one of the guys from Campbell ran up to me. He said he was about to catch a bus to Peterborough. It's great that they can respond to me and we have long chats when I'm there. I told him he'd better not miss his bus, so he went off, presumably outside to the bus stop. No doubt I'll hear more about his visit (which I believe is where his parents live.) when I'm at Camphill on Tuesday.

Next. Something to eat. Waterstones was near so I went in and as there was nobody queuing I decided to order a latte, toastier and a bun. Very efficient staff and I was soon sitting at a table. As I had my iPhone with me I was able to connect to the internet and look at Facebook and Twitter. Are these devices such a good idea? In some respects, yes, but when people spend a long time on them and disregard those around them, for example, in a work situation, with family and friends, they are more of a distraction and aren't really a replacement for face-to-face conversation, but can be useful for keeping in contact with family and friends and if you want to be easily contacted, ideal. But being in a bookshop it's an ideal place to have a café. Put me near books and I'm quite happy, so once I'd finished my snack I had a browse of the tables that Waterstone so craftily has set up which entices you to look at the books on display and then I went upstairs to the history section to have a further browse. I left before I purchased a book. I have to be honest that I have more than enough books in my bookshelf and could easily buy more. I have several which are waiting in a queue to be read.

From Waterstones I went into the main shopping centre and walked along the mall towards John Lewis and was interested in a store which is going to open soon, called Typo which I have discovered sells stationary. As Staples has since disappeared from Milton Keynes, which is a disappointment because where am I to buy fresh stocks of computer ink cartridges, paper and all the other paraphernalia, pens, pencils etc etc? I'm not sure when it's due to open, but I will have to visit once it's up and running. Also, I had to go into The Works, because they're stock changes rapidly and you have to buy whatever catches your eye when you're there because otherwise it's gone and by the time you return it will be gone, which is the same with T.K. Maax, another store I love browsing in as well as their partner store called Homesense. A good place to go if you're looking for kitchen items, such as saucepans, baking tins etc. 

Fine and Sunny Weather

Having said in yesterday's post that it was getting chilly, today it's fine and sunny. Typical for this time of year when it can be chilly one moment and the next sunny and warm.

 Carol was due to have an appointment with Dr Saka at the Macmillan Unit this morning, but there was a telephone call from his secretary to say, because Dr Saka was on holiday they'd have to reschedule the appointment. It made sense really, because a week on Saturday Carol has another scan it it seemed more sense having the consultant's appointment after the results of the scan were available for him to look at rather than having the appointment before the scan. So, as we didn't have to go to the hospital we decided on a visit to Milton Keynes shopping centre. We parked in the multi-storey carpark near Debenhams. It is currently undergoing renovations so we couldn't park on the lower floor and had to drive to the top to park. The whole place is gradually looking spick and span with generous amounts of paint being used and the whole surface of each floor relaid. Much better as a result. We couldn't use the escalator to go down within Debenham's and had to use a lift. We were surprised how busy the whole place was, perhaps due to the weather being warmer or no doubt because it will be the last day of the school holidays. As we walked past several shops, notably Clark's shoe shop, many were heaving with parents and children being fitted out with new shoes or school uniforms ready for the new term which begins on Monday.

We walked as far as Middleton Hall, by which time we were ready for a refreshment break and went to Cafe Nero and we queued up to order lattes and chocolate slices. I was somewhat shocked by the attitude of the girl who served me. Scowling and not interested in what she was doing. Carol noticed so it wasn't just me. I don't think this girl was a good example of good customer care and if I'd been doing a secret shop I'd have mentioned it and she would have been disciplined by her manager. Miserable girl. It was more than obvious to me that she really would have rather been anywhere else but where she was at that precise moment. If that was the case she should let someone else do her job and at least concentrate on what she was doing.

We sat near a window so we could watch as people passed by in the shopping mall. The coffee wasn't by any means the best we'd had. Far too strong and not as good as what we'd had the other day in Frost's garden centre in Woburn Sands. By comparison their cafe was far better. I stood and watched as a member of their staff made us lattes. The girl who did this job was being very accurate with the way the lattes were being made as well as even cleaning the saucers and placing the rather nice design in the froth on the top of the lattes as well as wiping the cups and placing biscuits in the saucers as well as spoons. They have very well run restaurants and cafe's which are staffed by people who seem to take a great pride in their work, unlike the girl in that branch of Cafe Nero.

When we'd finished in Cafe Nero we walked back the opposite side of the shopping centre, visiting The Works to have a browse and then walking back towards Debenham's and the multi storey carpark.

Getting Colder?

There is a definite nip in the air. Considering how warm it got during the Great 2018 Heatwave, I'm not surprised that I now notice that it's getting colder in the morning, especially when I take Alfie out for his morning run in Eaglestone Park. I went out in a short-sleeved polo shirt when we went to Whipsnade, but considering how much colder it gets up there on Dunstable Downs I'm not surprised and had to eventually put on my jacket as I began to feel cold when we were looking at the penguins. We're now in the, sad to say it folks, what I would call without too much hesitation, the run-up to Christmas. We've already seen hints of the impending Festive Season, with bits and pieces in some shops, crafting things in one of the shops, I think The Range, the other day, and possibly The Works. Well, I suppose some people make their Christmas cards and decorations and need time to make them well in advance.

Having said it was cold, a couple of hours after I'd written the above paragraph, the sun is out and it's quite warm. Just typical for this time of year.

We went to Hobbycraft because Carol is looking for more crafting materials. I'm not over-keen on this vast warehouse of stuff. Over-priced. Carol bought a stamp and then we went to Sainsbury's. Ordered my repeat prescription and collected another repeated prescription. Later we went for a walk round Furzton Lake, somewhere we haven't visited in a long time, certainly not since our other dog, Poppy, died. It's somewhere that she'd quite happily love to swim, in the lake, although, having been on the Parks Trust website and on boards around the area of the lake, dogs are not supposed to swim in the lakes or other areas of water. Well, it would have been no use trying to stop her, because she'd have been in whether she was supposed to or not. Quite a long way round the lake and the park and we spent some time sitting on a bench and just enjoying the scenery and the warm weather. There were quite a lot of people walking, or cycling, around the lakes. It was especially nice to see families together, which makes a change that they weren't arguing or spending too much time on mobile phones.

A lot of children we saw at Whipsnade have those scooter-things, which I don't think are appropriate for use in such a place. They seem to be everywhere. Use them supervised (as most of them are there, with parents and other adults they were with somewhere around) but they could be dangerous and get run over by vehicles moving along the zoo roads, or collide with other zoo visitors on foot.) 

A Miserable Wet Day

We went into the Central MK shopping Centre this morning (Wednesday). It's been a miserable wet day so there wasn't nothing much else to do. At least it's undercover, which is one good reason to go there, rather than sitting indoors watching depressing daytime television. Well, it seems Carol has come a long way since her cancer diagnosis, when we couldn't go anywhere last summer, and she's walking a long way as well as driving the car.

Arriving at the multi-storey carpark next to Debenhams far too early, because Debenham's wasn't yet open (at 9.30, we discovered) we found that they're currently refurbishing the carpark, areas under cover and weird noised emanating from this area. Scaffolding is up as you'd drive up the ramp and into the carpark. There were plenty of spaces and once we'd parked we came down into the shopping centre on the escalator. We walked through the mall and went into Waterstone's and browsed as we were looking g for a book of study notes and guide to 'The Woman In White.' We've been watching the BBC1 adaptation and wanted to learn more about the novel. You can find plenty of study notes on Amazon, but for once we wanted to buy from a bricks-and-mortar shop. A staff member went out of his way to help and even went on Amazon to find something suitable, but unfortunately we didn't find exactly what we wanted. We bought a set of CDs of Alan Bennet reading some of his stories. We can listen to them in bed as we have a digital radio with a CD player in it which is ideal for listening to not only digital radio, usually BBC Radio 4Extra, but also this type of thing.

We walked through Midsummer place and into the main shopping centre. Several of the shops have moved into different units. W.H.Smith moved from where they've been for years, no doubt from when the centre originally opened, into a new, smaller unit. On one floor. They gave up selling CDs and DVDs so didn't need the upper floor. We went in to see whether they had the study notes we wanted. This area is at the back of the store, hidden away in a corner. Probably if 'The Woman In White' was a set text for A Level they'd have it, but no sign of anything related to it. Probably go on the W.H. Smith website and have a look.

Patisserie Valerie has moved. They were up the end nearer Marks and Spencer and House of Fraser. When we saw the old unit boarded up the other week, we assumed that they had closed down completely, but this morning we saw the new unit they've moved into, further along from the old W.H. Smith's unit. Also, River Island, gone to where H.M.V. used to be. Infact, H.M.V. gone into a much smaller unit. Also, Holland and Barrett, which used to be in one of the malls that run between the main malls, a newer and bigger unit along from Boot's.

We walked as far as Middleton Hall and had lattes and croissants in Pret-A-Manger. Not busy, but as it was a Wednesday morning, not really surprising. Plenty of places to sit and eat. We eventually reached John Lewis and walked through the store until we got to the escalators and went up to the top floor, near the restaurant, as Carol wanted to look in the haberdashery department for something for one of the felt fairies she's making, some sort of crimped wool. I'm not exactly sure what it is but they didn't have any of what she was looking for. The staff in these shops must be bored stiff as there were so few customers to keep them occupied.

From John Lewis we wandered out into Middleton Hall and then on to The Works where you can always discover a bargain in books and other items. Carol had a browse in the craft section and I went to look at the history section. Quite a few I'd like, but at the moment I have plenty of books which I have to read when I've done with my current reading material. Carol came to join me and had a large item which turned out to be a jigsaw puzzle mat. A Porta-Puzzle mat. She's bought a jigsaw on Amazon and it means she can keep all the pieces together and as I write this, it's slid under the television unit and can be bought out and continued without any trouble. At £20 a good deal cheaper than elsewhere, including Amazon.

We began to walk back through the shopping centre and arrived back in Midsummer Place and got back to Debenhams and went downstairs as Carol wanted to look in the Manraray clothing range. There's currently a sale on but if we buy anything we'll come back to purchase something. Then we went back to the car and went home. By this time it was really raining hard.

As I write this at 5.30 in the evening, the weather has improved. It's sunny and bright, but I somehow doubt it will remain dry and we get rain over-night.

Reading and Watching-1

As I've mentioned in an earlier blog post, I have an interest in history. Our lounge is full of books, infact, one of the two IKEA bookshelves, which we bought from the house in Crownhill when we had to move (see earlier blog post for more information on this.) is crammed full of books and magazines, one of which is in serious need of attention as it's not fixed to the wall, and leans at a slight angle. Many of these books and magazines are on history. I'm always looking for more history books to read and such shops as The Works are always good places to find a bargain, the last one being on The Norman Conquest' and another on 'The Battle of Waterloo'. We have now managed to order a new bookshelf unit on the IKEA website. Paid for and it will be delivered next Thursday. We decided to have it delivered as it would unlikely not fit in the car, so to have it delivered means someone else will have to lift it into the house. As we have a similar unit in our bedroom it shouldn't be too difficult to assemble and it's possible to buy baskets, drawers and boxes which can be slotted into the unit to make it even more flexible.

I've been reading 'Never Had It So Good,' by Dominic Sandbrook. It's 'A History of Britain From Suez to The Beatles.' Which is about all you need to know about the subject matter. I read a later volume of his set of history books called 'Seasons In The Sun,' which takes his series up until 1979. At the time I read it, I was unaware that it was the latest in a series of books (of which 'Never Had It So Good' is the first.) So I decided I wanted to read the series from the beginning and managed to buy all the books on Amazon. As I lived through the period covered, I thought it would we worth a read, although I wasn't old enough at the time the first book covers to be aware of the incidents recorded, such things as the Suez Crisis or the Profumo Affair or the 'Night of The Long Knives.' As with any account of history, it's interesting to see how we got to where we are today, what with Harold Macmillan's attempts at negotiating a possible membership of the Common Market or 'European Economic Community,' as it was called in the late 1950's and early 1960's (now the E.U.) and how the President of France, Charles De Gaulle kept blocking our entry. Interesting when you compare it with the Brexit negotiations following the Referendum vote to leave over the last few months.The rest of the Sandbrook series are 'White Heat,' and 'State of Emergency,' which I will read in the fullness of time. Each book is very thick; the first book is some 800-900 pages long.

I'm a real fan of Alan Bennett. I enjoyed the plays he wrote for the BBC in the 1960s and 1970s, in particular the very first one called 'A Day Out,' which was made in black and white and about a group of men who go on a bicycle ride in Yorkshire and set just before the First World War. Not a great deal happens, but his attention to detail, particularly his depiction of the individual characters is very detailed. It's directed by Stephen Frears who went on to make some large-scale cinema films such as 'Dangerous Liaisons' and 'The Queen.' Alan Bennett is interested in the small things in peoples' lives, the every-day, the mundane. He has also written for the stage, most notably for the National Theatre, with plays such as 'The Madness of King George III,' and 'The History Boys.' I have read most of his diaries which get published on a  regular basis, and was given the latest collection, covering the millennium, and called 'Getting On, Getting On,' and given to me as a Christmas present by Carol last year. I am about to read it.

I've watched the first episode of the new Sky drama series, "Britannia," which is on Sky Atlantic. It's set in a Celtic Britain at the time that the Roman invasion is about to take place. It's somewhat preposterous, so if you watch it don't expect an accurate history lesson. I had serious doubts about this when I first heard it was being planned, but it turned out to be a good deal better than I expected. It has David Morrissey as the Roman general (I assume he's a general) who leads his troops across the Channel and then pillages and burns the Celtic villages and murders a few in the process. It also stars Zoe Wanamaker as a sort of tribal leader. Another actor who is in it is Iain McDiarmid, who I have a connection with as he was in the company when I was working as an A.S.M. at Liverpool Playhouse in the early 1970s. I did the book for a production of Alan Ayckbourn's play 'Relatively Speaking,' which also had Thelma Barlow in the cast, who went on to play Mavis Wilton in 'Coronation Street.' It's good to see Sky producing stuff which at least has some sort of British connection, however accurate it is. I notice that all the episodes are available to view on catch-up, obviously in an attempt to follow the same principle as such on-line television services as Netflix and Amazon, where all the episodes of their shows, such as The Crown are available to view instantly. Apart from some strong language (which, frankly, adds absolutely nothing to the thing in my opinion.) it's a good rollocking yarn and will no doubt attract a young, male audience, who no doubt enjoy such shows as 'Game of Thrones,' and a good many video games. I shall watch the rest of the series with interest.

I'm glad all the episodes of 'Britannia' are available as a box-set, because you can watch all the episodes one after the other if you so wish. I've watched the second episode. I'm really hooked on this show and can't wait to see the next episode. It's got a real 'have to watch the next episode' something about it, rather like a good novel where you can't put it down. Generally I need to get through about 15-20 minutes of a new drama series to know whether I'm going to continue watching and this certainly has that 'something.' Unlike a lot of similar shows, the dialogue is convincing. They seem to have avoided the somewhat stilted dialogue that you tend to get in a lot of dramas set in a 'certain period,' and the whole thing is rather tongue-in-cheek, it doesn't take itself too seriously. It has a sense of humour as well. And they haven't made it pretentious in any way, unlike a lot of costume dramas that are precious and rather unrealistic, not that you can make a show set in 43 A.D. as nobody knows what they spoke like. It's not exactly historically accurate, but who cares? Definitely entertaining and that, in all honesty, is what one needs at the moment. The fights are convincing, too, and you get the feeling that the Romans have more than a hand-full of soldiers in their invading army, they've spent quite a lot on extras to fill out the scenery. 

And Even More Roadworks

Carol has been off work for two days with 'flu. She has hardly been able to speak. I had to go to Boot's in the centre of Milton Keynes to get Sudafed tablets. You can only buy them 'over the counter' so it was necessary to go to a pharmacy and I knew that Boots would have them in stock. I knew if I was going to park near the main shopping centre I would need change for the machine, so I went to the Eaglestone shop, but, when I arrived at the carpark I couldn't park because it was totally full. I presumed that there must be something going on at the primary school nearby. Perhaps there was something on which meant parents were involved, some sort of performance or assembly, a prize-giving ceremony, which would account for the carpark being full. I thought to then go to the shop at Garraways in Coffee Hall, which is the next grid over from Eaglestone. It meant driving around via Saxon Street. On arriving in Coffee Hall all the roads were clogged up with more cars. Being a Friday, I was aware that the mosque on the corner of Lloyd's, the road into Coffee Hall was busy with people arriving (Friday being their holy day of prayer.) To be honest, I'd seen this building being erected, but wasn't aware that it was a mosque. Anyway, the roads in and around the area were heaving with people coming and going and you wouldn't have found a parking space if you'd wanted to. I managed to get to the One Stop shop in Garraways without too much trouble and then went in to buy some sweets so I'd have change for parking. Then I found that Saxon Street, from the Four Bridges roundabout near Eaglestone was closed off. I think because they were going to resurface the road. About time, because of the potholes, so I shouldn't really complain. It meant I would have to change my route into the city centre so drove towards Marlborough Street, only to find that other drivers had decided to change their route, as there was a considerable queue of cars approaching the roundabout.

I had intended parking where I usually park, near The Point (or what remains of this once-iconic building. It's been left in a more or less derelict state for a good many years. The Odeon cinema which was part of the complex was the first multiplex cinema complex in Britain when it was opened several decades ago. They've since built a new complex near the MK Stadium, which we have visited several times.) Due to the fact that I'd had to approach the city centre from Marlborough Street, I somehow came along Saxon Gate in the wrong lane and couldn't get into the usual carpark so I ended up parking close to the XScape. £1 for an hour, so I had to make sure I was done in the shopping centre before the hour was up. The centre was strangely busy for a Friday. It was also near enough lunchtime, so perhaps people were there during their lunch break. I could think of no other reason for it to be so crowded. I went to Boots and had to queue at the prescription counter. I wanted to get a spare G.T.N. spray and bought one here a few months ago and found it to be a good deal cheaper than elsewhere. I got one in Cox and Robinson some while back and it was one that had an unpleasant taste. If you don't know, these are sprays that you use if you get an angina attack. You spray it under your tongue and it reduces the chest pain by widening your arteries. It does work, but it can make you feel very light headed and can cause a headache. It generally goes off after a few minutes. I use one before we go swimming or if we're going to do a lot of walking or anything somewhat strenuous. I've no intention of letting an angina attack stop me doing anything, so I wanted one as a spare to put in my gym bag. I had one ordered with my repeat prescription but it wouldn't be ready until Saturday morning when we would go to Sainsbury's to pick up the prescription which I'd ordered last week. It seemed to take the lady assistant some while to find the G.T.N. spray on the computer system. But she found it and I purchased the Sudafed for Carol.

I'd been into town a few days previously (remember I'd gone out because of the annoying noise from next door.) I'd gone into The Works for a browse. I love their shops. Books going at very reasonable prices. I'd seen some colouring books (seems like a craze that's really caught on recently) and saw one using Gustav Klimt's paintings as models for colouring and thought that Carol would appreciate this. I also found several books in the 'history' section, one on Waterloo and another, written by Ruth Goodman, who does a lot of television documentaries on various aspects of history. This one entitled 'How To Be A Tudor.' Well worth having at about a third of their normal price. I've bought quite a few books in The Works, and as they now have a loyalty card, you get points which you can use against future purchases.

Time was ticking on. I walked back to the car, with about 15 minutes left on the parking ticket. I next went to Sainsbury's as I needed to get bread which we'd have for our lunch. Another detour caused by the roadworks along Saxon Street.

Saturday morning.

We didn't get up that early this morning. Carol's cold/flu is beginning to abate, thankfully. The Sedated seems to be doing it's job. It makes you sleep well and you have to be careful that, if you feel drowsy to not drive a car.

We went into Sainsbury's. Saxon Street was open to traffic. The large pothole that you had to avoid when you drove along this stretch of road is now repaired. I'm not sure what else is due for repair. They have also been mowing the grass along the side of the grid roads. I managed to mow the grass at the back of our house. Not over-eager to do it, but it only takes around 20 minutes. I did it on Monday morning.

The sky is threatening rain. Dark rain-clouds hang over the city. We actually want it to rain because we don't want the noise to continue from next door's garden. You can see the work they've been doing, laying a patio, from our bedroom window. The rest of the garden looks like a building site.

A Few More Niggles

Who's idea was it at Marks and Spencer to put stupid stickers on the soles of their slippers which are very difficult to remove? And, after some real effort, there is a really nasty sticky residue left which is even more difficult to remove. This seems to be a problem with quite a few items we've bought. You get similar stickers in books, for example, in Waterstone's when they have their 'Buy one get one half price' or 'buy one and get one free' offers. They insist on having stickers on the covers of the books which are difficult enough to remove and once removed, leave a nasty sticky residue which is even more difficult to remove. Why wants their books covered in the stickers in the first place? The same with books in The Works, the bargain book shop. Just as difficult to get the sticky goo off the cover of the books you have just purchased from them.

While I'm on the subject of labels, not particularly stickers, but those of a different type. Why does IKEA insist on having such ridiculously large labels on their products? I know they have to warn people of the dangers of the risk of fire (but, come on, who in their right mind is going to put a match to such items as curtains, carpets etc etc, or put them too close to an open flame or 'source of ignition.'? Although, thinking about it, I suppose there is always someone who would.) What I'm thinking about are the horrible long bits of material stuck to some items they sell, giving such details as materials and where the item is made, which just look ugly and out of place. We always cut them off, on some items, such as throws and soft toys we've bought for our dogs. I suppose it's to adhere to Health and Safety regulations or something. No doubt to do with the E.U. so something we won't have to contend with once Britain has left. Then, why, on hot drinks cups, for example, when you buy a coffee in Costa, Starbucks or any other outlet that sells take-away drinks, do they have to state the patently obvious on the cups, with the words 'Take care. Contents may be hot.' So, what do you expect with a hot drink? Are people do dumb they need to be reminded that the contents are hot? Doh! The same when you have a microwavable meal, they insist on telling you that the contents of the little plastic container you have which has a lasagne in it or other meal, will be very hot when it comes out of the microwave or oven? 'Open carefully because hot steam will escape.' There's a surprise. I have a real dislike of these cardboard cups anyway. How on earth are you expected to drink from them, with the lid on, out of such a tiny hole? You get such a tiny mouthful, it's hardly worth bothering. I don't know why anyone would want to buy these cups of coffee, usually from vending machines, and why do people have to walk around drinking hot coffee in the first place? A decent cup of coffee needs drinking from a proper china cup, not something made of nasty plastic or cardboard, which, incidentally, most likely not be recycled. It needs drinking fairly quickly before it gets cold and is totally unpleasant. 

Trip Into Milton Keynes Centre

As we were unable to use the car  at the moment(as described in the earlier blog post.) we decided to go into Milton Keynes Central Shopping Centre on the bus. As I have a free bus pass (now being of a 'certain age'.) it seems sensible to use it (Carol has to pay full price for a bus ticket.) and we left the house at around 9.30. It was unsettled, weather-wise, and we had to put on jackets. It wasn't raining as we left, but the sky was becoming very over-cast, with dark clouds. We got to the bus stop in Saxon Street and soon caught a bus. It took us to near the Milton Keynes Theatre where we got off and went into the Central Shopping Centre. Carol wanted to go into Pret a Manger, the coffee and food outlet in Middleton Hall, as one of her former pupils worked there and had said, if she visited, she could have free coffee. Which is what happened. She was so pleased to see the young man, who was very well-mannered and she was so happy that he is doing well. I presume he is working, like my stepson Daniel, who is at Newcastle University and has a part-time job to supplement his student loan. We had really come into the shopping centre more as a way to fill in time, and to 'window shop' as we can't currently buy much until payday this Friday. We did browse in The Works, which always seems to have an amazing selection of books at discount prices and the stock changes so rapidly you have to keep returning because of snapping up any bargains. We went into Hotter Shoes as Carol needs a pair of comfortable shoes for work. She tried a pair on and finds it difficult to get shoes in her shoe size, which is very small. Expensive shoes, but very well made. Good that they are all manufactured in this country. I think you get what you pay for. Later we went into Tiger, the new store further along from Pret A Manger. I mentioned that we visited the last time we were in the shopping centre. It would appear that their stock changes regularly because a lot of what we saw last time, and it was only a week or two ago (when we had walked into the centre along the canal.) and the stock was different then. We looked in at W.H. Smith, but compared to the stock in Tiger, such things as pens, ring binders and notebooks are a good deal cheaper in the other store compared to Smith's, which looks really boring and bland in comparison. Carol's favourite store in Paperchase and we had to visit, even if to just browse, and I was pleased to find that they had a particularly good selection of notebooks as well a range of pens which I have only just discovered called Lamy. I have purchased a mechanical pencil and ballpoint pend via Amazon as well as buying Carol a ballpoint which had free engraving. Actually quite expensive, but worth it, as they are well made and feel good in your hands when you're writing.  Next we visited Gregg's and had baguettes and sausage rolls. We then saw a display in a shop called Mr Simms' Olde Sweet shop, of sugar-free sweet in their window, so we went inside and bought a small amount of sugar-free sweets as Carol was recently diagnosed diabetic. It was quite encouraging to find such a great range of such products. We  gradually walked as far as Marks and Spencer which is at the opposite end of the shopping centre to John Lewis and purchased some bits and pieces for our dinner later in the evening.  I was most impressed by the cashier, because when we'd arrived at the checkout, Carol decided we needed some soy sauce to go with the stir-fry we were having that evening. The lady got up from her seat at the till and went to find Carol, who we could see struggling to find the soy sauce, and the lady managed to point out the location. That's what I call going beyond the call of duty and was really impressed. Not many staff in a shop would go to such lengths to help a customer. It had by now begun to rain quite heavily and we had to get to the bus stop next to The Point (which is in a really poor state of dis-repair. Sad to think such an iconic building left to deteriorate so badly. Shame on whoever owns it. Surely it could be restored to it's former glory and be put to some use or other.) and managed to return home, through the rain-soaked streets of Milton Keynes and were glad to get back and I made us tea.

Can't Start . . . won't start . . .

Drove over to Arcana Studio hairdressers in Shenley Brook End early this morning. Carol wanted to get her hair done and we went on the off-chance she could get an appointment. We arrived in the carpark at 8.30 and they weren't yet open, but once they came to open up we went in and managed to get her an appointment for 11.30, which meant we could go into the city centre as we needed to go to the bank. On returning to the car we then found it wouldn't start . . . we're back on this again, unfortunately. After several more attempts it still wouldn't play ball. Our car insurance is with Swinton and fortunately we have breakdown cover and after a bit of phoning we managed to get a call-out and the breakdown truck arrived. Carol re-arranged her hair appointment while the driver tried to get the car started. Still nothing as regards getting the car to start. He suggested it was something to do with petrol getting into the engine or something. Having spent quite a bit recently, first getting the car through it's MoT and then getting the clutch cable replaced, we imagined the car was going to be fine for a little longer. It had been fine yesterday when we went shopping in Sainbury's and then when we went to Toys R Us for the bicycle. To cut an extremely frustrating and drawn-out story short . . . the car was put on the transporter and I went with the car back home where it was dropped off while Carol remained to have her hair appointment and came back via taxi . . . we later telephoned Mark who had repaired the clutch cable and who told me on the telephone that we we attempt to come out and look at the car-not-starting situation and, hopefully, tell us whether he could resolve the said situation. So our outing to Whipsnade is on hold until the car is back up-and-running, which hopefully won't be too long or costly. The joke is, now we've got the bikes we probably don't need the car as much. We need to get locks so that we can cycle to various shopping centres and leave them and lock them without the fear of them being stolen. Also, I would like some sort of pannier-attachment on mine so I can carry shopping. It will also be easy to cycle to church on a sunday and leave them outside as there are cycle racks. No point going to all the effort of getting these bikes if we don't use them. We should also be able to get to D.W. Fitness near the stadium which will mean we get a double benefit of exercise- swimming and bicycling there and back. I have noticed that there are cycle racks outside when we've been recently. Also, when we were waiting for the bus to leave the shopping centre I saw quite a few cycle racks near the shopping centre.
No sooner had the car been unloaded from the wagon than Carol turned up in the taxi. I was surprised how quickly she had managed to order the taxi and the then get her lift home. On arrival back home we decided to get the bus into the city centre as we still needed to get to the bank as we are going to need to pay our landlord our deposit in monthly instalments and needed to get to the NatWest branch in the centre to set up a direct debit.
We got the bus from the bus stop near the Academy. We went a different route into the city and got off the bus near Midsummer Place shopping centre. We walked through the shopping centre to NatWest and managed to get the direct debit set up. Having finished in the bank we came out and went back into the centre, going through Marks and Spencer. On the way through there was a lady doing market research on a new range of Mexican food, and it was great to be asked our opinion on this. I did think, though, that some of it was very expensive. For example, a sort of 'mix-and-match' platter of food 'bites' was rather over-priced at £7. I think they are getting customer feed-back on future 'buy two meals for £10' or something. Actually very good value when you consider they usually include a bottle of wine which separately costs around £4-£5. It seems most of the major supermarkets do these 'meal deals.' We quite often buy them, especially at the weekend.
Having bought a card for Steve and Chloe's first wedding anniversary which is this weekend (can't believe it will be a year.ago. How time flies.) we decided we wanted something to eat. At first we were going to go to Pizza Hut, but there was a queue and changed our minds and opted for Giraffe where we've been before. We soon got a table and the meal was served quickly. Having been somewhat frustrated and annoyed with the car breaking down it was good to relax for a while.
We walked down the shopping centre and ended up in Waterstone's and looked at their 'buy one get one half-price' book offer but then decided we'd go to The Works where we ended up buying three books for £5. Then we walked down towards John Lewis and out towards the bus stop near the theatre and caught a bus back home.