4 October 2010 (Monday) - Twenty Four Years...

One of my carpets fell apart this morning. For some years the seal on the back door hasn’t been quite what it might have been, and when it rains heavily we need to pull the carpet away from the door. Because if we don’t, through the wonders of capillary action the carpet gets sodden. Last night we took the dripping wet carpet and put it on the radiator to dry out. Today the carpet was dropping bits off of itself. You can only dry a carpet so many times.Time for a new one.

I phoned the carpet shop who said they had an off-cut which sounded to be about the right size, so on the way home I picked it up. As I carried the thing back to my car I was harangued by a passing local. This chap started blaming me for all the failings of the Shepherd Neame brewery. I can’t say they are my favourite brewer. But they are a long way from being my most hated. Personally I quite like a drop of “Late Red”, and their porter is nectar. I smiled politely at this chap whose ranting was becoming more and more vitriolic. When he paused for breath I asked why he didn’t have a go at the brewery directly. The reason was that he was telling me to my face.

It was only as I drove off that I remembered I was wearing my Shepherd Neame tie. I received the tie as a birthday present in 2008. Seeing my tie, I can only imagine that this plank must have thought I was connected with the company.

Having obtained a replacement carpet, I realised that I needed to cut the thing to shape. I also realised that this new carpet will get wet too, unless I do something about the door seal. So I popped into B&Q. First of all to get a Stanley knife. I couldn’t fine one, so I asked the nice man. He muttered something about them being over the way, and he waved his hand in what I assumed was the general direction. I tried to ask him about door seals, but his attention was clearly elsewhere. I eventually found the Stanley knifes and asked three other assistants about door seals. One had never heard of a door seal, and two couldn’t care less about door seals. I found what I wanted myself, and grumbled as I made my way to the checkout. And who should I meet but a very good friend of mine who was giving the acting manager some stick about the poor quality service he’d received. So I joined in too. And having verbally crucified the poor sap we both gloated all the way home. For all the talk of credit crunch and recession, these companies don’t seem to want my money.

I really should do something about installing the new door seal and laying the new carpet. Maybe I’ll do that tomorrow…

There’s something familiar about today’s date. Didn’t something historical happen? In 1883 on this date the Boys Brigade was founded. In 1957 on this date Sputnik 1 was launched. And in 1986…?

I’m glad that Facebook reminded me that it was my wedding anniversary…