Holiday Fun, A Bookshop Read and a Pleasure to Shop

MY EVERYDAY LIFE:   August 6th-19th

We know we are moving into Autumn, when the air changes and the dew settles on the grass in the morning. A mixture of grey days, showers and sunny periods - but at least we can look back on a marvellous few months of an actual summer this year. 

TENT BUILDING AND BAKING GOODIES 

For various reasons, Granddaughter Nh has spent much more time with us this summer holiday.  Having fun was on the cards, involving (with some help), draping blankets and throws over the whirly, pegging them together, making sure there were gaps for an entrance and window, setting out the folding chairs and a picnic table  - and us all enjoying a snack in her tent. 

Icing Fairy Buns was a happy  and lengthy occupation, accompanied by a continuous commentary,  as Nh concocted different toppings,  as  if she were a chemist or a magician, mixing potions. 

   

A TALK, A QUIZ AND A TASTY TEA 

The Wednesday Club resumed after a summer break. I have  to admit the thought of a talk on "Earlston Community Council" was not much of an enticing prospect, but the speaker managed to make it lively and interesting with audience interaction on local issues.  

A quiz followed on music from the 1960's, to identify the singer and the song from the snippet we heard.  I was pretty hopeless - I recognized the music  but not the names. but all very nostalgic. So do you remember such performers as Guy Mitchell, David Valentine, the Carpenters, the New  Seekers, Matt Monroe, Dusty Springfield, Dans, Petula Clark, Adam Faith, The Batchelors, Connie Francis - and many, many more? 

INSPIRED INTO ACTION
The Community Council talk had me fired me  up to record my protest on three local issues:

• The proposal by Scottish Borders Council to remove school librarians frmm High schools and replace them with pupil volunteers -obviously the powers that be think librarians do nothing but stamp books out!
• Failure to put a notice in the Square bus stop that it was out of action during High Street road works.
   
• Poor design of new bus timetables at bus stops - feint, small print that is difficult to read, often placed too high to be read and confusing , in particular for visitors (as I have seen in Melrose).  The previous format was far better.  

AULD EARLSTON

A committee meeting  where we discussed out forthcoming exhibition in October"“Earlston in War and Peace: 1914-1949". Much of my time is taken up with searching old newspapers online,  printing photographs, writing fact sheets, and preparing posters and display headers.  

 A patriotic Certificate awarded to children  n the First World War for their help in  in the fund raising efforts for Soldiers’ Comforts.

ON THE BOX

Who do You Think You Are  (WDYTYA) - one of the best in this series.  Robert Rinder discovered the dreadful experiences of his grandfather from Poland, who lost all his family in the Holocaust - his parents, brother and four sisters.  His great grandfather from Latvia came to Britain, served in the First World War, but suffered shell shock and spent his last 14 years of his life in a mental hospital - very sad and moving. 

Dragons Den has returned where budding entrepreneurs pitch their case to be offered investment by five business men and women. It is a bit false as we only see a very edited snippet of the negotiations and I cannot see the point of the warehouse/jail likeb setting. But I enjoy the discussions and hearing what can help make a good new business.

 A GOOD READ 
The author Shaun Bythell owns "The Bookshop" in the book town in Wigtown in south-west Scotland. Specializing in second hand books, it is the second largest such shop in Scotland, with over a 100,000 volumes. Shaun gives us a day by day account of his life and trade over one year as he deals with the trials and tribulations of the job - his staff, notably the eccentric Nicky, his customers (most of which he seemed to dislike), travelling to collect stock, and above all his hatred of the Amazon mammoth machine in destroying independent booksellers.

I came across this book at Melrose Book Festival in the Scottish Borders and was attracted by the colourful book jacket, the title and the book’s format, with each day ending with a note of the cash through the till and the number of customers.

My opinion of it was rather mixed.  It could get repetitive “Nicky in late as usual” etc was a frequent day’s opener. I can't say I took to the author.  I  did not like his unconventional approach to customer service which bordered on being rude.  Yet there were more sympathetic moments, as when he visited relatives to clear book collections after a death, and his delight in finding a rare or signed volume.

I would like to have known more about how he listed, catagorised and shelved the books (so he could find them again) - that is the librarian in me coming out again; also,about how books were chosen for  each Random Book Club member (an interesting initiative); I also felt I did not get a true picture of the finances, and how on earth he remained solvent, particularly based in an old difficult-to-heat building which ate up money in maintenance. He seemed generous in what he was often offering to sellers, but the till sales seemed slight apart from Book Festival Week.
 
Despite these criticisms, there was something about the book that kept me turning the page, with enough anecdotes and witty observations about customers, staff, the local community and the odd titles requested.  to maintain my interest. I particularly liked the chapter headings with  quotations from George Orwell on books and booksellers,  which led the author to add his own comments, A different kind of read, but a must for anyone interested, like me,  in books and the book trade.

  
A PLEASURE TO SHOP THERE

Talking of customer service  - When I worked at the Tourist Board, (left)  I benefited from a wealth of customer service training - done the course, got the certificate and wear the badge! So I am very aware of the lack of good service and human nature being what it is, we often remember the awful situations rather than the happy encounters.  

So I decided I  would record when and where it was a pleasure to shop.  All my examples here are from a recent visit to shopping in Galashiels. So stand up:

• The man at the collection desk at Argos Cataloguing Shop. who I turned to for  help when I couldn't  read the small print in the printed catalogues. We had quite a chat about our eye problems!
• Sid at Car Warehouse who didn’t make me feel stupid at my lack if technical knowledge and was very patient with my search for a new mobile phone that suited me.
• Corner Computer Shop- it doesn't look much from the outside, but the staff have been very pleasant and helpful with my IPad problems.
• Tesco - the man stacking vegetables, who took me where I would find pod peas - I had no intention of wandering up and down all the veg. aisles to hunt them out - I love fresh peas raw in a salad.   Plus the smiley checkout assistant, with a foreign accent, who complimented me on my shopping bag!
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  Gala Water in Galashiels
  
  
  
  Monument in Galashiels  to 19th Century writer Sir Walter Scott,
  
  
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  Journal Jottings   
    Recording my everyday life for future family historians   
  This blog developed from the "Genea-Pourri" prompt yon Randy Seaver’s blog Genea-Musings.  I decided to change his title for my own version of this weekly online diary.