Not Such A Bargain .........

This morning Eric failed to make a considered purchase when he was mooching and perusing in "The Vale" as we call it, our charity shop of choice dans Evesham......

....... when he suddenly realised that we already had two versions of a vase that had initially caught his eye as being quite useful, except that this one was pink whereas our two we have at home are clear, bought from this years Mother's Day range in Home Bargains for just princely sum of £1.29, which Darrell had said at the time, was an absolute steal.  

Eric then thought it would be rather nice to make up a tres chic trio if/when flowers Chez Towers were in abundance, however when he caught sight of the price tag, to wit two full kings pounds, he held back.  It might not still be available in HB so potentially more collectable now, but that's quite a steep rise on its original price in just a couple of months.  

Questions, he mused might need to be asked in Parliament about the rate inflation of Home Bargains Mothers Day vases ........ but only if it's a slow matters arising sort of a day.   What is he like? 

Eric Finds .......

Eric (formally known as Nigel) found something a little strange in one of the bushes that lead down to the river  

..... nothing super unusual, just something he'd never come across before, something he decided to call a "puff ball fairy".

However, he left it exactly where it was, because, in the past, we've found small items hung the same area that, we found out later, were traditional charms/talismans(?) to welcome in the season (in that case the spring) ......

Darrell and are not so convinced, we think it's more likely that someone simply found said puff ball fairy and hung it somewhere safe to be seen/found, but you know Eric, he's never one to dare tempt fate as far as tradition, folklore, customs, and superstitions  etc. are concerned.

...... "Fate" he says, "is best not tempted or even slightly provoked", especially when we are on the very cusp of the summer solstice (tomorrow), I quote, "We don't want the earth to accidently shift even everso slightly from its axis or something of that ilk!" What on earth is he like? 

Eric Makes A Considered Purchase

It has to be said that Eric absolutely adores a cherry tomato, often eating a box as if it were a bunch of grapes, but he's sometimes remarked that some of the supermarket ones can be a touch on the tasteless side .......

So, when he and Bertie passed by a house, on the first leg of the school run, that was selling tomato plants for just £1.50 each in aid of charity, it was a no brainer ......

..... a healthy plant with potential was duly selected by young master Bertie and paid for by Eric and then carefully transported for the rest of their journey, on the way to pick up Iris. 

Said plant (christened Conrad???) has now been left in the green fingered, lovely Laura's tender care up at Snake Mountain, in the hope that she'll be able, in time, to bring forth a luscious harvest of proper, home grown tomatoes, enough for everyone to benefit, not just Eric.

 With Eric's comestible impatience, it's in the best place ......

...... although I know he'll checking up on it and asking for progress reports every time he's up there, making sure his Tupperware box is ready and waiting for the first hopeful crop to be picked.  What is he like?  

Compare The Buttons Dot Com (In Other Words A Slow News Day)!

The other day Eric (formally known as Nigel) quickly picked up a share bag of Cadbury chocolate buttons without giving it much thought, other than them being chocolate! However, when he got back to The Towers he noticed, from the packaging, that he'd actually bought "mega buttons" ...... as in extra large, he pondered? 

After that, curiosity got the better of him and the ever fragrant Alice, deeming that they really ought to compare sizes for, as they put it "future reference". Now, we didn't have a bag of "normal buttons" in the cupboard, but then Nigel remembered the mini bags of buttons he had in his school run swag bag.

Upon opening, let's just say they were impressed, even beside the perhaps smaller than average buttons from the mini bag  ........

....... the mega buttons were mahoooosively impressive, very, very impressive indeed, with Alice and Nigel both agreeing that they were a most generous, ample and satisfying mouthful .......

..... then proceeded to spend the rest of the afternoon finishing off both packets while chilling, watching The 1% Club on ITV X ......

...... reasoning that said buttons would have been at grave risk of going stale once they had been exposed to the air, had they not! What on earth are they like?

Eric's No Considered Purchase Made Continues

Hedgehogs continue to "haunt" Eric (formally known as Nigel) almost every time he enters a charity shop. He says he's now at peace with it all and it's the not stumbling across one that has him pondering these days.  

However, yesterday was no not one of those such days because what was one of the first things he saw on the bric a brac shelves of Vale Wildlife (a most pertinent cause), but this erm ...... prime (????) specimen .......

......... which did not, in any way, enamour the little fella, who said that there was something, although the hedgehog itself couldn't help it, about it's face that didn't endear himself to Eric. Perhaps, he pondered, it was possibly something to do with its open mouth or its slightly faded/dusty appearance that made it look a tad past it's ornamental display by date. 

Eric wasn't sure, so in this case it proved to be a very easy no purchase considered type occasion.

What Fresh Hell Is This?

Oh good grief, sometimes simply browsing tin'terent of a dull and lack lustre afternoon .........

....... can send you down some very bizarre and sometimes disturbing rabbit holes ........

...... and yesterday, while Darrell was attempting to replenish our somewhat dwindling first aid box, he stumbled upon something completely out of his comfort zone and realm of thought, down one such hole! 

What fresh hell, on god's green earth are these ..... conjuring up more questions in Darrell's poor, traumatised mind than probable answers, which on reflection I don't think I really want the answers to.

BUT, if I must ........in real life they are waterproof protection for the treatment of some sort of infection of a nail type nature, but for Darrell (well, all of us to be honest), they were the stuff of nightmares. Fancy having to go shopping with these on, as you wheel your trolley round Sainsbury's trying to delicately pick through the carrots or squeeze test a mango for optimum ripeness.

However, in the interests of understanding human psychology, I think Eric (formally known as Nigel) is trying to persuade Darrell to make a small, yet considered purchase ........

....... with the idea of filling one, two or even three with fresh water and then putting tiny, plastic fish in them just to see peoples faces in said supermarket (though other supermarkets are available).

Heaven help me, what are they like? And why do I sense a potential new series of weird and wonderful reviews coming on?

A New Viral Sensation?

If there's something that never fails to fill our hearts with unbridled joy, especially in this glorious, summer sunshine when we're out and about mooching, it is the sound of music, especially in the guise of a one of several buskers that frequent the town for our delectation  ....... and yesterday was no exception for Eric (formally known as Nigel).  

He said that he was already pretty buoyed up after a successful shopping mission with new socks, pants and a t-shirt duly purchased, along with some meringue nests and strawberries, at Darrell's behest, so that we could have Eton Mess for pudding later in the day, however he said the calming and evocative music was just the icing on the cake.

It was as if he was floating on air with the emotion of the music and well, it would have been rude not to show his appreciation, throwing caution to the wind, with a little gentle swaying and a few classy (????) dance steps. Who cared what anyone else thought as they went about their business? Then he popped a few spare coins in the gentleman's hat as a thank you ........ CDs, I believe were available for the princely sum of £10.

It has also given Eric a nugget of any idea for a few more such uplifting posts ....... to wit "Music from the Streets of Evesham", adding that if they caught on they could even go all vital! What on earth is he like? 

Oh, Good Grief .........

Oh good grief ........

What on earth is Eric (formally known as Nigel) like?

I'm saying/doing ABSOLUTLEY nothing to encourage his interest or curiosity on this one ...... !!!!

Encounters Of The Third Kind Over The Towers?

The other night, as Darrell was drawing the blinds before we all retired, he noticed two, large, spectral beams of light continually crossing over each other in the sky, reflecting, rather beautifully, in the river. It was, he said both romantic, but a touch unsettling at the same time!

In the end curiosity got the better of him and he went outside accompanied by Eric (formally known as Nigel) to get a closer look.

It was indeed tres, tres romantic .......

...... however as we didn't have a clue as to what they were and where they were actually coming from, it was also a little ominous, with both Darrell and Eric's minds running riot, immediately going from something of an investigative police type nature (after all, we are no strangers to the odd police helicopter going over in the middle of the night with their penetrating beams and unmistakable sound) to the more alarmist, close encounter of the third kind, envisioning aliens attempting to make contact with the inhabitants of a nearby, isolated village.  I ask you?  Too much cheese with their crackers at supper time, more like, me thinks!

In the end I had to shout them to come in, telling them that I was sure all would be revealed in the fullness of time if they just chilled.

It goes without saying that I was indeed right (as ever), with it not taking that long thanks to Facebook posts .......

....... and young Eric spotting a whole plethora of posters plastered all over Evesham when he next went on the school run!  Soooooooo, nothing unearthly or nefarious ....... just the circus coming to town.  What on earth are they like? 

A Considered Purchase

Yesterday, while out mooching, the ever fragrant Alice struck charity shop gold for Darrell, as she has grown to recognise and love all his little interior decor peccadillos so well since she joined us at The Towers.

In short, she only went and found a candle (tick) in an unusual (tick) phrenology type holder. She said her heart beat a little faster as she picked it up and examined it, as she knew Darrell would absolutely love it.

So a considered purchase was duly made.

And yes, the presentation of which was ........ emotional, Alice, bless her little cotton ribbons, had well and truly nailed it! 

A Triumphant Return Home ......

Oh my goodness, Eric and the ever fragrant Alice arrived home safe and sound from Dawlish yesterday afternoon at around four o'clock, looking sun kissed and full of sea air ...... and their timing couldn't have been more perfect .........

..... especially when they came bearing gifts of a truly wonderful, comestible kind, to wit a Gay's cream tea platter. Poor Darrell was almost beside himself of a Mary Berry type nature, on seeing the very ample pot of real life, Devonshire clotted cream.  It was the kind of quintessential English tea treat dreams are made of he sighed. Sometimes I think he's on a completely different planet to the rest of us!

There then ensued a good humoured age old scone debate, as to what goes on the baked delicacy first, the jam (strawberry as ever) or the cream.  We are all very much of the jam first, cream second brigade, with a little (real) butter on scone first .......

However, Eric in his infinite wisdom declared he could very easily be tempted and swayed towards a layered combo of butter, jam, cream and then another small dollop of jam bang smack in the middle of said top cream layer! What is he like?

It goes without saying that it was a glorious welcome home for Eric and Alice, with much contented nomming. Me thinks we ought to be sending them off to Devon a little more often, for the obvious reasons, unless of course Evesham gets it very own Gay's!

Our Mallorcan Home From Home

Last night, with our late, night time arrival, it was hard to take everything in .....

......  but in the full heat of a glorious, new Mallorcan morning .....

...... we can truly embrace our "new home" for the next little while .......

..... and I think we're so excited ........ we just cant hide it!

It's absolutely brilliant!

We've got a balcony, with full view of one of the swimming pools........

..... and Darrell is already fascinated by the early morning towel manoeuvres, with loungers "bags-ied" by at least seven o'clock, which, to be honest, we've never really understood. Why stay around a pool all day, when you can have a real life, actual beach, with sand and sea, just a few yards away, but each to his own I suppose.

If Eric was with us, no doubt he'd have already come up with some sort of zip line confection to get him into the pool to beat the lot of them, without any hinderance from stairs or lifts, bless him.

Darrell did request a sea view and we've got one of sorts .........

.... if you look beyond the trees at the top end of the pool ........

....... but we'll be sitting with the best view in front of us, on the beach, every day and when we do sit on the balcony, it'll most likely be dark anyway .......

........ so we're really quite happy with our Balearic lot, thank you very much, happy, happy, eviva Espana days me thinks!