Jeeves & Slippers

The Tesco Metro in Royal Avenue, Belfast, has apparently been having a major facelift: it's completely enveloped in a painted shroud to protect the general public from dust and loose masonry. This work must be costing Tesco a fortune; however, they are the people who can afford it no matter what it costs!

In its previous life, as a bank, I worked there for a while in what is now the off-licence section adjacent to the Ulster Reform Club's premises. Of course it's totally unrecognizable now, inside, since it was once a very busy cash centre beside the main banking-hall. The tens of millions billions of pounds that passed through that place would astound you. I remember it well. To its credit, Tesco has spent a great deal of money in its restoration. I look forward to seeing the old building when it is unwrapped.

Battered by the gale-force winds, I ambled into Marks & Spencer to see their slippers: not greatly excited by what I saw, I left with my wallet intact! I got the lift down to the food-hall to see what they sold in the way of free-range chicken: as you'd anticipate, mostly the battery variety. You'd have thought that M&S would have had greater demand for free-range produce. Seemingly not in Belfast.

There was no joy in the second-hand bookshop at North Street, as far as P G Wodehouse was concerned! Instead I'm watching Ebay.

Car And Computer

I drove my car to a local garage for its annual service today. Its mileage is 18,000 and I supplied them with the oil, Halford's fully synthetic.

I was phoned at lunch-time to let me know that it was ready. They said the brake pads needed replacing too. The bill came to £140: dear enough, considering I'd supplied the oil. The mechanic admired the old two-seater, telling me he deemed it a "very clean car". Just as well that it was a fine day: I walked there and back to collect the car.

Whilst at home, I wasted ages on my computer endeavouring to fix its poor performance, to no avail. I've tried almost everything. You name it. In the end, I bought the much-lauded Registry Mechanic on Ebay for $19.95, or £10.25. They send you a digital code. I'm hoping this may help matters because I can't think of anything else except, perhaps, a new router.

I've also installed AVG's free anti-spyware, on top of two other spyware programmes.

Gillette Fusion Razor Trial

I'm currently evaluating the Gillette Fusion razor, so I'll post my assessment of it, compared to the Mach Three I've been using for many years, whenever the blade is worn out.

The razor shown to the right is my Trumper razor with a Mach 3 blade.

Sunday Drive To Gibb's Island & The Dufferin Arms

I'm glad we decided to go for a drive today. The weather didn't look too promising at first; however, we set off towards a National Trust property which is just beyond Killyleagh, County Down. It's called Gibb's Island.

The island itself is at the end of a very narrow road, or lane, which is about half a mile in length. It's now really a peninsula because there's a permanent causeway linking it to the mainland. It's very small; you could run around it in less than five minutes I suppose. The grass was mown last autumn and it's still short; however, in the summer months, it is a glorious meadow with wild flowers, butterflies et al. There's a wood at the top of the island, surrounded by a stone wall. Such a picturesque place; heavenly on a warm, summer's day and ideal for picnicking.

On our way there, we passed a few old haunts: namely Lisbarnett Inn and Balloo House. Nevertheless we drove onwards to Gibb's and then re-traced our route to the village of Killyleagh, where I stretched my legs at what remained of the old harbour and is now surrounded by apartments.

We drove on up the main street towards the castle and down another main street, stopping outside the Dufferin Arms. I cannot recall ever having been in the Dufferin Arms, even though I'd heard it mentioned often enough. It was open for lunches, so we ventured in.

It's main entrance is unsuitable for disabled people because there's a set of about four or five tallish steps. We were unsure where the bar snacks were served, so we turned left and into an old-fashioned, quite austere dining-room where there were about ten diners. I enquired if this was the right room for lunch and the waitress replied in the affirmative.

As I said previously, the dining-room is quite plain and austere, perhaps fifteen feet square, with a piano at one corner; about forty-one framed pictures and old notices on the walls; a glass cabinet near the ceiling at one corner with a stuffed weasel or stoat; stuffed ducks in another corner; a log-burner at the fireplace; an old wooden floor, mostly round tables with old-fashioned dining-chairs. The décor was magnolia. Overall, it looked about fifty years old in appearance. It was perhaps reminiscent of an old vernacular farmhouse.

We ordered one prawn open sandwich at £7.50 and one small chowder at £3.95. My prawn open was one of the largest I've ever had! My plate was piled high with lettuce, mixed peppers, scallion (spring onion to non-Ulster readers!), olives, tomato, carrot, redcurrant, coleslaw and, of course, juicy prawns with sauce and unbuttered wheaten bread. I thought it was very good. If I'm being fussy I suppose some of the lettuce could have been swapped for grated cheese and a little hard-boiled egg; however, I enjoyed it.

The Dowager had the chowder. She said she didn't like it; that it was chewy & tough (presumably some of the seafood). I saw it and it looked good: there seemed to be more seafood than soup! It was a meal in itself. I'm not particularly fond of chowders so I can't make a fair judgement. Fresh, crusty bread and butter was included too.

I felt the menu and quality of the food was good. the staff were agreeable and attentive. Our total bill came to £14.65 and a tip of ten per cent.

I invariably prefer traditional establishments to the contemporary variety; however, in this instance I have to confess there was a little indifference with respect to the décor and ambiance. I refer only to this one dining-room; not the others which I don't know about. Perhaps it is an acquired taste.

Anyone else could have been mistaken for thinking that the Dufferin Arms is owned by Guinness, because the staff wore Guinness shirts, there were Guinness beer-mats; lots of Guinness framed posters; and Guinness was writ large on the front door. This establishment is not, sadly, the only bar in the Province which has succumbed to Guinness's blatant marketing, which I detest. A few beer-mats, their name on the bottles and beer taps ought to be enough. Tell companies like Guinness what to do with their advertisements and if they object or refuse to supply you, sue them or bring them before a tribunal. Didn't Weatherspoons pick a fight with them years ago over refusal to supply or whatever? I think they caved in, in the end. Obviously Money plays a part in this, whether it be stout, whisky, gin or any brand. Guinness, however, seems to predominate. They couldn't pay me to put their name on anything I own. Do publicans earn a bonus or a concession if they flaunt such merchandise? Enough: that's my rant for today.

So we're home safely after a pleasant day out.

Shifting Shores

Craig, who is the National Trust Warden of Strangford Lough, presented us with a thought-provoking pamphlet yesterday entitled Shifting Shores: Living With A Changing Coastline. This publication has been commissioned by the Trust and written by a team of experts from Ulster's two universities.

It focuses on three sites in the Province: the Giant's Causeway; Strangford Lough; and Murlough. The Report theorizes on the possible consequences of climate change on these places within the next hundred years.

It's not a long booklet: it runs to about sixteen pages with plenty of illustrations. However, it's interesting to learn about their predictions, how sea levels will rise; and how this will affect our coastline.

It concludes by suggesting that we should basically let the forces of Nature take their course, not resisting them. For example, we can plan ahead by re-locating paths or roads which are too close to eroding coastline; helping to protect threatened flora and fauna by re-locating what we can inland or to another location: working with Nature.

They reckon that the average sea-level could potentially rise by up to one metre by 2100.

The National Trust has, yet again, been proactive in leading the way for government with this kind of research. It's time for the authorities to start planning for the future now.

My picture above shows the tiny hamlet of Portbradden in County Antrim.

The View From Anne's Point

Anne's Point is located at the opposite side of the main road from the Temple of the Winds at Mount Stewart. If you walk along the footpath you'll notice a willow tunnel, which runs alongside a little river and towards the man-made lagoon.

Although the temperature was about 10c, it felt colder due to the biting wind. We walked from the mount Stewart car park to the willow tunnel and, armed with loppers, saws, gloves etc, we started tidying up the tunnel.

There were seven of us today and we enjoyed a good old natter while we worked. I was equipped with my usual flask of hot water, tea-bags, milk, Castle Howard mug, a Tex-Mex wrap and a chunky Kit-Kat bar.

We remained till about three o'clock. The view from Anne's point is quite spectacular, with Chapel Island in the distance. We could hear the familiar sounds of ducks and geese nearby.

Craig told us that the National Trust would be renovating the bothy on Salt Island within the next few months, which is great news. I haven't been to Salt Island for more than twenty years, so I look forward to getting back for a weekend.

All in all, a good day with plenty of fresh, invigorating air.

Tesco Finest Handcooked Cheddar & Onion Crisps

I do enjoy a good packet of crisps now and again; when younger, my favourite crisps were Tayto Cheese & Onion and I still consider them to rank amongst the best.

More recently I've been buying Tesco's Finest Hand-cooked crisps, the mature cheddar & caramelized onion variety and, if you like a good, strong flavour these are top-rate.

I particularly noticed that the spuds come from the British Isles and there's a picture on the packet of a castle which may, or may not, be that of Tandragee Castle. A "converted 17th century castle in the rolling hills of County Armagh" is mentioned.

I believe that these exceedingly good crisps are made for Tesco by Tayto. Never let it be said that Timothy Belmont doesn't do his bit for the Northern Ireland economy!