TOM TOM ....

Aha, I hear you think...a whole blog about how to get from A-Z without one of course!!! :-)
No, of late, these past few years I've scarcely made enough journeys to warrant the technical update for myself though I'm convinced it has been one of the best, most useful inventions in the past decade or so, besides the mobile phone, the computer of course and the hundreds of other things that Tchibo the High Street Store that nobody can pronounce stock, albeit it for only a week or so at a time. Nobody, if ever asked would think to mention that they shop in Tchibo. Why would they after all is it a coffee shop or a paraphanalea shop. One week the window will be sporting a range of free weights, thermal underwear and yoga mats and the next, a host of kitchen utensils that you have lived without until you see them, thinking that life would be totally transformed if only you had one of whatever it is that they are displaying. I'm convinced that nobody sets out from home with Tchibo on their shopping list.
Not only were we in this instance enjoying a rare but enjoyable hour of family time in our local shopping centre- Ma, Pa and El with plans to indulge in a Costafortune Coffee together -that's another story, but we were drawn en mass into the shop that sells whatever it has to sell for this particular week. We were drawn like magpies on the hunt, considering, discussing and even touching and weighing up whether or not the £3 bath pillow should be the purchase of the day! Of course we spent minutes at least wondering whether or not it would be machine washable, if we seriously needed one since we shower 90% of the time and if making such an impulse buy would create havoc with the finances! Thank goodness we weren't drawn to the towelling head turban for post shampoo effect at closer to £5. As we queued to pay we were invited to buy ourselves a coffee, either to drink in or take home..what else would you expect to happen!? Being cautious of being oversold to, we escaped, £3 bath pillow in bag and quickly made our way into the local coffee shop where we would no doubt be charged way over the odds for the joy of sitting down in a warm spot without all the temptations of Tchibo!.. Oh and just in case a little friend of mine is reading this....Hello Thomas!