southport

A Truly Joyous And Emotional Meet-Up ....... And A World First"

First of all we need to cut to the chase immediately and address the elephant in the room, when we say that "someone" decided to put an old SD card in our camera and as a result we sadly lost quite a few pictures from this momentous occasion! heads haven't quite rolled yet, but it's come close!  Let's just say that the mood round our laptop as the format of such pictures was found to be "unrecognised" was sombre .........  however, the really, really important ones were, thankfully, still there and those we simply can't recover, well, as Eric so succulently put it, at least no one can erase those from our minds!! 

So, here we are at last, after months of planning, all dressed up in our finest, finally sat sitting with Seaside Karen (on the left) and Pharmacy Michelle (on the right) for the very first time. I cant tell you how nervous we all were .........

.... but within seconds we were all taking ten to the dozen, like we'd known each other forever .......

..... well, I suppose we have, after many, many years of comments and via email and the post, we couldn't even remember how long, but never actually in real life, up close and personal.

To say it was emotional is putting it mildly, but we all managed to hold it together, which was something of a miracle in itself!  

A multitude of presents were exchanged, but we decided to keep ours for when we got back to The Towers, knowing that we'd all be on a proper deep downer as soon as our suitcase hit the floor in the hall......

....... so opening wonderful, mysterious, tissue wrapped packages would be a most excellent way to lift our spirits back up where they belong!

Our afternoon tea as per Darrell's rigid instructions (no egg mayo or tuna) was to die for too, a little bit of everything, although with all the nattering, it took quite a while for us to nom through. 

 And our world first?

Well, we only went and did our very first colab confectionary review together, to wit  Aero Pistachio, as found by Darrell in Manchester the other week!

Would we all agree ........

 ....... or would there be the need for robust and vigorous heated debate?

Fortunately we all agreed ......

The gentle aroma of pistachio was subtle and enticing ........

...... with the texture of the bubbly centre adding a certain je n'sais quoi .......

...... however, we all agreed that the chocolate surrounding the bubbles was just far too sweet .........

....... overpowering the pistachio flavour completely.

We concluded that if we could have just the naked, unadulterated bubbly centre as a bar in it's own right, without the chocolate, it would be perfect.

Therefore, in the end we scored Aero Pistachio pretty low, between 4.50 and 5.00 on our world famous Richter Scale of Noms (4.75 then????), which was disappointing, but what wonderful experience, as we've never shared a review before.

And then, when it seemed we'd only just got started, it was time for Seaside Karen and Pharmacy Michelle to sadly wend their way back home, making us realise there were so many questions we still needed to ask and explore (but not in Parliament) following some very interesting snippets of conversation, we're just plain nosy I suppose.  

However, in a very dramatic, but in the end quite fortuitous error when originally buying our first set of rail tickets, we mistakenly entered the wrong date in August, which can't now be exchanged or refunded, so rather than be let them go to waste, well, it would be rude for us not make a return visit and do it all over again?????  A very, very happy day, none of us will ever forget, cementing our friendship even further.  

Next meet up?  Seaside Karen, Pharmacy Michelle and Jan the Fan all meeting up with Mr D when he next returns to these shores???????? 

Southport Bound

By the time you read this (except for Mr D in Mexico, who is well ahead of us time wise), we'll be on the train heading for sunny Southport to finally meet up with our much beloved friends Seaside Karen and Pharmacy Michelle. We're sooooooooo excited, we might burst, but first we need to get in plenty of shut eye, as we've got a challenging (for us at least) four changes to make during our journey!  Needless to say, we've put Darrell in charge of sorting out all the platforms we need to be on, as he's meticulous in such things!

We think we should arrive in Southport by 2.30pm, so once we've dropped our bags off at our hotel Dukes Folly, if we've still got the strength, we're going to see if we can catch a glimpse the sea, chance a few pounds worth of 2p's in the arcade and then go in search of proper seaside fish and chips for tea, before retiring to said hotel for perhaps a cheeky cocktail or two before bed to dream of the excitement ahead.

We're all be gathering at the hotel mid morning, as it seems pretty central and if we're lucky, fingers crossed, the weather will be warm enough for us to sit outside and bathe in the glow of the glorious Southport sunshine. 

Darrell, where would we be without him, has, once our nerves have settled, organised an early afternoon tea along with a few surprise gifts as mementos of this monumental occasion and then let things play out, with friendships forged even deeper than they were before.

Soooooooooo, all we need do now is check our bags (for the umpteenth time), tickets, bookings and wallets  for what seems to be the hundredth time ...... see you on the other side!

Honing Very Important And Pertinent Southport Skills .......

Almost on the cusp of our much awaited trip to Southport to finally meet, in person, in actual real life, our beloved followers and friends Pharmacy Michelle and Seaside Karen .......

....... it has to be said that some of Eric's preparation has left even the ever fragrant Alice with a raised eyebrow and a slight shake of her head in erm ...... disbelief,  .....

..... as it seems the little fella, not wishing for his 2p dropping and pushing skills to be found wanting or for that matter called into question in Funland, the amusement arcade at the Grand Entrance to Southport pier (sadly, still closed, but set for restoration, to start sometime this year)......   

....... has taken to seriously studying the videos of "Coin Pusher" on YouTube, with full intent of honing his own pusher skills!  Heaven only help us all when he finally gets to grip with his own plastic cup full of 2p's when we get there ........ however, I doubt very much that we'll be calling for a bucket(s) to collect the deluge of coins he's imagining or bringing any gold ingots home! What is he like?

We've Got A Bargain Valley

 When Evesham gets a new shop .......

...... well, it would be rude of the little fella not to do an in-depth investigation of it's finest products!

The first thing he came across, in the first aisle was .........

...... the most magnificent wall of £1 sweet bags, a full and robust choice, he opined, that would meet the needs of even the most intense of Saturday night confectionary decisions.

Then, for Darrell, there was a whole bank of Elbow Grease products, Darrell's no questions asked, spring cleaning go to since forever.

As for the wiping section, let's just say they had a wipe for almost every sort of wiping type situation, even bums, but they, naturally, were on the more personal based shelves of the shop, although in an absolute, dire emergency, who cares what you use if it does the job, just don't tell Darrell!

Everything was all very useful, there wasn't much frippery, everything seemed very practical and non luxury orientated. There wasn't anything Eric hadn't seen before, well, except for the bra wash nets, but then, as full bodied gentlemen of a wholly male persuasion, we wouldn't have a clue about such things any way. 

So, all in all a welcome addition to the Evesham shopping experience, especially if we lose our beloved Home Bargains when they finally pull the old shopping centre down, but for now, HB continues to hold our heart!

Another Opportunity Missed - Garnier Diamond/Keratin Sleek in Manchester Picadilly Station

Unfortunately time was sadly of the essence for Darrell to get back home from Manchester .....

.... had there been more time, he would have almost certainly availed himself of joining the queue for a free consultation at a stand demonstrating Garnier Keratin Sleek in the middle of Manchester Piccadilly Station .......

..... perhaps, finally, finding a solution to his dull looking hair with its accompanying, annoying frizz would have put an extra skip in his step and sheen on his locks, especially for our upcoming Southport "meet up".  However, despite circling the set up several times (well, ten at the very least), looking as intensely interested as he could, no free samples, unfortunately, were forthcoming. Up to three days of sleek and shiny hair were not to be his, unless, he made a considered splurge himself from the Boots across the way!  It was just not meant to be he reasoned, perhaps there's another hair care range just waiting for him around the corner? What is he like? 

Manchester, Over Almost Before It's Begun?

Darrell's visit to Manchester was over almost before he'd had a chance to catch his breath .....

...... however, he really didn't want to linger for too long, no matter how tempting ......

....... because we've still got a few things to arrange for our glorious "meet up" on the horizon with our beloved Seaside Karen and Pharmacy Michelle in Southport.

So apart from the theatre and his hotel, he didn't venture far ......

...... with special thanks to Booking.Com for which questions have now been forwarded to Parliament, asking why his payment hadn't been forwarded to said hotel, resulting in him losing his coveted double bed for bunks (it's a looooooong story), which, no doubt, Eric would have loved!!!

Though Darrell normally embraces any sort of hotel experience, this time, it was sadly tarnished, especially with the thought of having to untangle the situation when he returned home, he says he's heart really wasn't in it! 

On the plus side, the Costa round the corner served a most excellent, gigantic, two handled, spiced chia to help quell his frustrations ......

...... and he found two chance Aero Pistachio bars in a nearby shop on the way .....

..... where it would have been rude not to make a considered purchase, for I'm sure a very insightful review, when we can find five minutes ............. or perhaps we could do it in Southport with SK and PM, now that really would be a first!!!