I'm back...

Today I had my first 'interview' since being made redundant last July - Homebase! B&Q is closing down across the road so they are expecting a big increase in footfall (footfall?? I've heard that mentioned before recently but can't for the life in me remember where...).

So, "come along at 5pm on Tuesday for a group interview", she said, so I did. "I'm gonna show you a DVD about Homebase then we'll have some fun", she said. She did! Next followed the "hello, my names Steve and I'm an alcoholic" type introductions. (My name is Steve but, for the record, I'm not an alcoholic). Then followed 'the fun'...

We were then presented with a box of items which were sold in the shop and had to choose one and then give a short presentation on the particular item!

I think I drew the short straw by selecting a 12" Pawn from one of the garden chess sets...

I was tempted to say that it was a template for testing condoms but I thought better of it! Instead I presented it as a chess piece, a salt or pepper shaker, an automatic plant waterer (turned upside down in a plant pot) or, maybe, a set of wind chimes with 3 or 4 joined together! I got the obligatory round of applause as happens in these situations, no team hug though!

If that was fun then better was to come!! Meet Gnomio!!

Gnomio was the wife of Juliet and, as luck would have it, Gnomio had just won £32m on the National lottery! So, "I'll start to tell you a story about Gnomio", she said, "and then you carry on with the story for about two minutes before passing Gnomio on to the next person..."

Oh joy and did we have fun... Actually NO we didn't!!

Anyway, the outcome was that if we had all done very well then we would get invited back for more fun a one to one interview in a few weeks time!

The good news for readers of this blog is that they are looking for new staff so get your CVs in PDQ!

Look what I found...

...in a garage in Lytham St Annes!!

Originally marketed as an aid to help little people reach central heating thermostat switches in high places - can't really see any use for them these days though?? Can you??

It takes all kinds...

I'm not sure that I have the words to describe this...

All is not as it seems at Traders Outlet...

Is this Willy & Nilly I ask myself? (See previous comments..)

*** STOP PRESS ***

Traders Outlet profits set to soar on the news that the offending strip light (pictured right) has finally been taken down...

A spokesman for the Outlet was heard to say, "No Comment"!

Today I've been mainly...

... making cards and mounting photographs, sitting in a freezing cold church doing the PC input for Sunday and then making more cards & and mounting more photographs to send down to the Beach Shop man in Bigbury on Sea - South Devon... If only I could sell some in Wales, that would mean I'd gone International!!

Inbetween times visiting the Traders Outlet in Altrincham, bemoaning the fact, with Andrew (The Odd Man), that we didn't appear on national TV last night following the BBC's visit to the 'Outlet' last Friday... They don't know real talent when they see it!!

Just had an email from Flickr to say that 'Kreuzfartfan' has added me as a contact - surely that name can't be for real!!

PS Just realised I missed a word out, above, it should have read 'The Odd Glass Man' ;-)

Bejabers, Begorrah & Cor Blimey...

Burgh Island, Bigbury on Sea

Thank you John & Ingrid @ Bigbury on Sea Beach Shop! I had an £150 order for mounted photos & cards yesterday! Gonna be busy for a day or two! Plus... a request from our friend, who has a holiday apartment down there, for cards etc to be available for her customers purchase!! Not a fortune but most welcome!!

Busy, busy, busy...

To busy busy to Blog!


Things to say, no time to say it...

Funeral tomorrow, back to normal after that! Just hope no more than 50 stay for the after service eats or we may need to order more sausage rolls!

Now you see it, now you don't...

 So there I was, minding my own business, when an email came through from the 'Big Cheese' at 'place of work' (to preserve his anonymity I'm gonna call him Fred!)...

"Steve can you please let me have the balance for your March rental, you haven't sent enough"? Me says, "No problem, I'll let you have it". Of course I ignored the first request!

Two days later... "Steve, you still haven't sent me through the balance for March, can you please let me have it?" Me says, "Apologies Fred, had a family bereavement and having been trekking up the M61 to Blackpool on a regular basis (see previous posts) and just haven't had time". Fred says. "OK". Me then remembers that in December I was overcharged and 'Fred' says at the time, "No problem, I'll pick that up when I do the quarterly review" (but he didn't!!).

So me says to him, "Fred, do you remember back in December etc... well, coincidentally, my over payment for December was exactly the same as my under payment for March so we are all square"

Fred, who doesn't like to be beaten on anything says, "I will need to go through the ledger and double check, can you have your strip light removed please, I didn’t factor that in the rate we agreed and its adding to an already eye watering electricity bill thanks Fred".

So it would appear that my tiny strip light is about to cause the downfall of his business empire and all over a £7.50 difference. As you see, the light is still there but now, sadly extinguished...

Why did I fit a strip light in the first place you may ask?? Answer, because the lighting in there is so damned poor...

Nothing...

... remotely interesting happened yesterday.

I know that's the idea of this blog but there is a limit to how unexciting I can be!!

I suppose I could have told you about another trip to Blackpool (with youngest son and fiance), stopping at the Rivington Services for late breakfast/early lunch at Burger King and then driving through several minor blizzards both on en route and on way home... But I'm sure you don't need to know that? Do you?

Anyway, back there again on Wednesday to do battle with estate agents... Watch this space!

PS We did have fries with the meal...

Revisiting my spectacles...

Almost seaside again today - Litherland, near Liverpool - giving a puppet presentation at St Phillip's church for the lovely Rev Denise Hayes! Almost family there now, been so many times!

Pictured right is our lead guitarist - Eric Clapout!

Watch us on YouTube... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p7KxmR7iJKE

What's that got to do with spectacles I hear you ask?

The first time we went to Litherland we had decided to go to the seaside with a picnic after the service, so off we headed to Crosby to see Antony Gormley's Iron Men on the beach. I arrived there first with my car full of puppeteers to be joined seconds later by the second car in our convoy of two. The driver, who shall remain nameless (Paul Bennett) got out of his car and asked me if I had lost my glasses has he had seen them fly off my car roof going around the first roundabout that we came to, 5 miles and 15 minutes previously. I did suggest that he might have let me know sooner and actually, even though we were on Christian business, I wasn't quite that f'in polite!! Anyway, whenever we go back there I go and visit the spot where my spectacles met their sticky end. You weren't expecting anything any more exiting than that I trust?

Here ends the lesson for Sunday 10th March...

Didn't go to Blackpool today...

My car is suffering withdrawal symtons but things will get back to normal next week!

Called in @traders_outlet (Twitter Address for those dinosaurs that are not with it like what I am...!!). Talking to a wierd bloke there (Andrew - The Odd Glass Man) who sits and paints glass all day long and then gets some poor punter to fork out money for it - why didn't I think of doing that?? Gee whizz!

Good night though :-) Helped make Cottage Pie for nearly 60 people and then ran Quiz Night which raised £250 for my Romania charity - what nice people and there I go again being positive!
I was supposed to post a photo of the Cottage Pie but forgot to take one, sorry :-(

This is yesterdays post - a day late...

Oh, I do like to be beside the seaside...

Friday saw me up the M61/M55 to Blackpool/St Annes again... Hospital... Funeral Directors... Solicitors...Hospital again... home...

Things getting slowly sorted and all the legal stuff in the hands of our solicitor so pressure of us. My nephew is the legal man so he either gets the job done asap or I kick ass :-)

Back up there on Monday to try and make arrangements for house agents to value the house, boy is my business suffering because of this!!!

No excitement today...

But... there was some good news (but actually this blog isn't concerned with good news - it's designed to bore the pants off the audience)...

The other day I reported that my car was to be written off which surprised, no, shocked me because the damage wasn't that great!! Anyway, one second opinion later and it's heading back to the land of the living :-). Actually, that is quite exciting so I do apologise for that!

In actual fact I had quite got used to the heavily tinted back screen...

Actually more good news...

Following yesterdays 'run in' with M&S Insurance, I'm no longer unemployed but a self employed photographer running a shop selling photographs & greeting cards. Premium refund on the way - RESULT!!

Today I have been mainly ...

Driving to Blackpool (and back)!

And, in between, ringing Solicitors, undertakers and hospital...

If you think that made for a good day then things got worse when I opened the post on my return home... My recent car troubles have led to M&S updating my account details and changing my status to unemployed. For some reason that doubles the premium - WHY?? I'll be looking to kick ass tomorrow :-(

Euro £millions last night - just slightly less than one number of any variety... Plan B (unfortunately there is no Plan B as yet...) 

A Sad day...

RIP Uncle Jack, great memories of watching Bury FC & Ramsbottom CC with you as kid. Sad that I didn't get the chance to say goodbye :-( We'll all miss you!

 

 

Today I've been mainly...

Painting the lattice panels on my garden fence...

Followed by sorting food at the Altrincham Foodbank!

Next stop, Altrincham Traders Outlets, 16 The Downs, Altrincham, to see how many of my pictures and cards haven't sold today...

 

It can get worse...

Phone rings about mid-day, 'ring ring, ring ring', Mr Entwistle, unfortunately your car isn't worth repairing so we are going to write it off...

Applied for three jobs but doubt I'll get an acknowledgement, let alone an interview.

Maybe tomorrow will bring better news - Euro £millions, perhaps buy a ticket!