Thursday 10 February 2011

Credit where credit's due.

I've had a busy day today. In the morning I got a man in to fix a broken underground sewer pipe. It was broken when I moved into the house in 1991, but I was quoted £600 to dig up the path and replace the pipe back then. I couldn't afford that, so I rodded the pipe every few years to clear any blockages.

In the spirit of New beginnings, I decided to "get it sorted". So I got a man who knows about these things in. It cost under £100 to do the job, as the whole pipe didn't need to be replaced. That's Karl Gratton, Aldershot, Hants. 07851 894256. Here's an "after" photo after chucking a couple of buckets of water down to clear the cobwebs. I didn't take a "before" photo, but there was a hole in the bottom of the inspection chamber (now cemented) as well as the broken pipe.


After Karl left, I walked to my local Waitrose. By pavement, it's a 20 minute walk, so I took a short-cut through the woods. It was pouring with rain, the path was very muddy and full of puddles. I felt a strange sensation....


My soles had cracked. Oh, wow! What an amazingly heavy bummer!

When I got to Waitrose, I was dismayed to see that they had sold out of Burgen Soya & Linseed bread, as I had a 50p coupon that expired that day. Two assistants (Sally & Barbara) told me that I could get 50p off on a future visit if I showed them the coupon. I bought some nosh as a treat for the soggy walk home. While I was waiting at the checkout, Sally (or maybe Barbara) approached me, holding a loaf of Burgen. Now that's what I call customer service! That's Waitrose, Tresham Crescent, Yateley, Hants, GU46 6FR - 01252 861888.

EDIT: When I'm in Henley, I have lunch at Jay's Kitchen. I phone/text my order in advance and get a freshly-cooked Full English (2 bacon, 2 sausage, 2 egg, baked beans, fried onions, mushrooms & tomatoes) for £3. There's a table & 2 chairs on the pavement. That's Jay's Kitchen, Newtown Rd, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.


EDIT: Today (16th February), I got this:-


EDIT: Just around the corner, also on Newtown Rd is a car wash done by hand. A basic wash is £6 and a full inside & outside clean is £12. I was given a free bottle of water to drink.

7 comments:

chmeee said...

Good service is always notable isn't it ?

Incidentally, do I detect a latent hippy here ? ( Oh, wow! What an amazingly heavy bummer!')

Or are you a closet Young Ones fan ? Should we really call you Neil from now ? :) There were definite overtones of Neil from the Young Ones in that phrase. And yes, I still watch it occasionally, and still find it funny - it just brings out the anarchic, adolesccent male in me; if it ever went anywhere that is. Much to my wife's disapproval, needless to say.

Cheers !

Nigel Kinbrum said...

Well spotted! Foreigners will think that I've gone mad, so I shall link that phrase to Neil on YouTube.

Did you ever get into "Bottom"?

Galina L. said...

I don't know, if you are visiting the Todd Becker's blog(another engineer interested in a nutrition) "Getting Stronger", but today I found there his post where he is trying to merge together CarbSane's point of view and GT's theory. I found the post to be very interesting and I would like to know your opinion, if you don't mind.

Nigel Kinbrum said...

I haven't seen it yet, but I'll take a look tomorrow after visiting mum.

I saw some wild mushrooms growing in the woods while walking to/from Waitrose. I'll take some photos and post them.

Galina L. said...

Sorry,I forgot to include the link - http://gettingstronger.org/

Nigel Kinbrum said...

Thanks. I already Googled him!

chmeee said...

"Did you ever get into "Bottom"?

Oh yes ! But mostly the live shows. I saw One and Two on video and collapsed laughing - I was not alone ! It was not just me who found all those teenage boy jokes funny or could smile knowingly when Rick held out his palms and invited people to 'Just look at the blisters on tehre - you could slalom around them.'Classic.
Then I saw Three and Four live in Nottingham. These were not as good, though still ok, and on balance I'm glad they stopped when they did.