I bought my kids a Fiio X1 for Christmas in the hope that someone might buy one for me. And they did.
Oh my.
I couldn’t have imagined such sound through a shitty pair of Apple headphones.
I’m first trying it with Augustines, but Elbow has to be next. Then maybe some Eels. Shit, this is amazing.
Sshhh, let me listen in peace.
I’m coming to realise thar buying my second in command a zip wire ride from the top of the Baltic, across the Tyne, as a Christmas present, possibly wasn’t my best ever idea.
I may need to explain why I often refer to my other half as my second in command. My eldest grandchild once drew a picture of us together. A picture founded on her belief (as a very young child) that I was actually Patrick Stewart in Star Trek: the next generation.
This is a picture of my second in command, drawn by my eldest grandchild a few years ago.
The first drawing has long since been lost (the above is from a recently discovered archive). However, a cropped image still exists.
There’s a lot more detail in the original; it’s apparent that my second in command’s hair lacked strands in the follow-up (the first picture above).
OK, in the absence of the original, here’s the later version
Note the detail, the presence of Geordi La Forge on the left
I mean, grandchild number five. Judy Rose Lanaghan.
A return visit was made to the Piccadilly Tap last night.
The place exudes coolness, but also happens to have an impressive range of beers.
My second in command didn’t quite get this though. Well, not immediately.
… in which I cannot help but fall …
I do so love falling into the Temple Bar
Oh my, the Piccadilly Tap! How didn’t I know this was here? The have no less than three Cloudwater beers and a couple of Wild Beer options.
Fish-free heaven.
I’ve visited the Leigh Arms, in Newton le Willows, three times and almost a fourth. The fourth didn’t happen because I was at the station due to rail disruption and, although the pub was visible from the platform, I was uncertain as to how much time I had. Plenty, it turned out.
The fourth time was technically the first, so the first now becomes the second. I hope that makes sense. Anyway, the second time I visited Newton le Willows, and the first time I had a beer in the Leigh Arms, was around 13 years ago. This was also due to train issues, but there was enough time to call in the pub. It wasn’t the best of experiences, but that was because it had generally been a rubbish day.
Neither of my other visits were planned, rather spur of the moment things when in Manchester and Liverpool for work. I went to meet up with a mate and we could both get to Newton le Willows. This would have been six-ish years ago, but there are some similarities between one of my last visits and today.
With time on my hands today, I decided I’d rather have a beer than do last minute Christmas shopping. Since it’s only a short train ride from Manchester, I bought a return ticket. Only then to find that there were no trains due to engineering works. While this did bring back memories of my last but one visit, when trains were cancelled and I feared I’d be stranded, I was assured the there was a good replacement bus service.
And, so, I made my fifth visit to Newton le Willows.
Sadly, my fourth time in the Leigh Arms didn’t happen. A man told me it’s been closed for years and is being converted to flats. In a way, that turned out to be a good thing. The place had clearly fallen on hard times and probably wouldn’t have been the best of pubs in its last days.
Back to Manchester then.
I do so like the Temple Bar.
I’m quite enjoying my National Express experience today.
Not only did I find a seat with masses of leg room, there has been an interesting conversation across the aisle; two women sharing crocheting tips. I may also have laughed a little when a lady locked herself in the toilet, although I did produce a 50p coint with which the door was opened. And a man is wearing slippers; he seems to have brought them for the journey, since I’m certain he had shoes when boarding.
I made the obligatory National Express comment on Twitter and was pleasantly surprised with a response.
