Henry Roberts

I am one of those people - assuming, of course, that there are actually other folk like me - who prefers to pack at the last minute. I do know why I find packing in advance difficult; it's because I think I might need everything before I leave and, therefore, what's the point in packing it?  

However, tomorrow I am heading south with Dan and Abi, and I decided to make them both a list of things to remember to pack. This, in turn, leaked over into a list of things I needed to pack and today I decided to collect all the items that I wouldn't need before we leave. It was a bit of a first for me.

My items that could be packed today included a suit and three shirts, which I duly fetched from the room that was formerly a small bedroom but is now full of my clothes. None of the items I wanted was on this hanger in the photo but I noticed it as I was ferreting out the things I was after.

I can't imagine how old this hanger is. I assume I acquired it from my folks (who lived in Teddington for the first six months of my life) but when was the last time you were given a wooden hanger in a shop, especially with a name plate on? I Googled them, by the way, but all I learnt was that there is now an Oxfam at 56, Broad Street, in Teddington.