The View From Tate Modern
I took the lift to the top of Tate Modern to have a coffee with a friend.
This is surely one of the best free views of the City of London. Especially, if your friend buys the coffee.
The only better view is that of the peregrine falcons nesting on the chimney. They can be glimpsed by telescope and video screen from in front of the building. There’s more about them here.
A Bad Day For Living Alone
Today is probably not going to be a good day. It’s going to rain all day and the football is in Blackpool, the town with the streets paved with vomit. I suppose the heavy rain forecast for the cess-pit of the Lancashire coast, will clean it up a bit, but it’s not the weather to visit a town without any gluten-free food.
So I’ll just stay here and listen to the radio in between watching the football on Sky.
I can’t even go to bed, as I don’t have a lady to make it more comfortable.
At least with the cafe opposite, I can go there and have a coffee in between the rain showers.
I think I’ll look for a matinee at the theatre. At least, I can catch the 38 bus from round the corner direct to Shaftesbury Avenue. Singing in the Rain anybody?
I Didn’t Believe My Eyes
As I walked past the cafe on the way to supper tonight, I caught in the corner of my eyes, a very distinctive picture. A lady of about thirty or so, was standing by the counter and everything about her looked familiar from her height, the type of summer dress she was wearing, her shoulders, her well-toned arms and her dark blonde hair cut short in a modern version of the classic sixties style.
It could have been C standing there! Except that looking at a picture of her now, her hair always had the odd natural curl, that just wouldn’t stay in place. And of course, the lady in the cafe was about thirty years younger.
So I just pulled myself together and walked on.
A New Coffee Stall On Islington Green
I walked through Islington Green today and there is now a coffee stall at the opposite end to the statue of Hugh Myddleton.
Giddy Up Coffee Stall On Islington Green
The guy running it is Australian, so it would appear, what with my physio and the chiropodist, the area now seems to have an increasing number of businesses, with Aussies in charge.
Romney’s Sin
Coffee, as is alcohol and cigarettes is banned to Mormons. However this didn’t stop Mitt Romney from having a scoop of coffee flavoured ice-cream.
A Better Way To Pay By Credit Card?
There are certain things, I don’t like where money is concerned.
The first is smart-phones, as they are just status symbols, beloved of the light-fingered. So if anybody suggests that I need those to do things like buy a train ticket, a coffee or a pair of knickers, or even replace my rail ticket then I say a big no!
I don’t like too to always have to carry more than one payment card. At present, I usually carry two; my Freedom Pass for transport in London and usually my John Lewis/Waitrose credit card for purchases. I would like to be like the Queen and not carry any cash, but as I do like coffee, which is almost as good as milk for my throat, I’ve always got a few coins in my pocket. So I have a small folder with these cards, my Senior Railcard and a few of my business cards in my pocket. My wallet stays at home most of the time, when I’m in London. I did lose the folder once and within a few hours, the bus driver had phoned me saying he’d got it and I could get it from the garage.
So I was rather intrigued, when I saw in the Sunday Times, an article about Square, a payment company started by one of people who brought us Twitter. You upload your picture, a recording of your name and credit card details to a web site and then when you go into say Starbucks, their iPad app recognises you and your name recording is the password. You can get your receipt as a text message to any phone as new as a Nokia 6310i. I knew I was right about smart phones being dead end technology. Nothing will persuade me to get one. If for instance, a shop, a theatre or a train company said I must have a smart phone to purchase their product, then I will make sure that I take my business elsewhere and give them all the bad publicity they deserve.
I can’t wait to walk into Starbucks on Upper Street, say “Anonymous Widower” and get my cappuccino.
Has London Got Friendlier?
Every Sunday morning, I take the Overground to Shadwell, where I switch to the DLR and go to Royal Victoria station, from where I get the Emirates Air-Line over the Thames to the O2. From there, I go to Canary Wharf station, where I have a late breakfast in Carluccio’s. This was my intension this morning, but I left my Oystercard behind, so I took the Jubilee line from Canning Town station to get to Canary Wharf. I’ve done it now perhaps six or seven times and it allows me to get a good view on the mood of London. Today everybody was very chatty and there was a generally friendly mood.
This wasn’t the first time, that I’ve noticed this upbeat mood on a personal level in recent weeks. One particular feature, is that I’ve had more talks with black people lately, than I’ve ever had in my past sixty-odd years. Could it be, that the Olympics is helping us to live together better, as in fact we all have more common interests, than those things that divide us?
In one instance, I walked away from a bus, with a black woman about my age, chatting about our health problems, both of us remarking that twenty years before, we’d have probably not said a word.
If this is the legacy of 2012, I’m all for it! Or is it just that finally we’ve developed a modern society?
The Olympic Park From John Lewis At Eastfield
John Lewis at Eastfield have opened a viewing gallery of the Olympic Park.
These are pictures, I took today.
It certainly gives good views of the Olympic Park.
Twoses and Threeses
I was on a bus today and thought a family opposite had triplets. They were actually a pair of twins and a singleton.
I was reminded of the old Suffolk words of twoses and threeses for twins and triplets respectively.
Does anybody else use these words?
The Angel Was Like A Morgue
I went up to the Angel as I usually do and it was like a morgue. There was only myself and one other in the queue in Starbucks and I got my preferred window seat. I didn’t see anything worth photographing for the blog.
Waitrose was empty too and I think the staff were lonely, as many talked to me, whilst they were stacking shelves and looking for items.
There weren’t any chuggers or smokers outside the shopping centre!
And of course the bus was virtually empty coming home.
Perhaps, some big event has finished and everybody has left. The bus doing press-ups has gone too!
The Anonymous Widower 