Rants of a Country Bumpkin

I went into Newcastle city centre for the first time in almost two years today to have lunch with my friend Ellie who is sadly moving away from the area very soon. Since Grace was born, Hubby and I have tended to stick to out of town shopping (metro centre mostly) as it is more child friendly.

In town today I felt like a proper country bumpkin. The place has modernised so much in a short time that parts of it were hardly recogniseable. And I found out there isn't a branch of Mothercare in town - how bad is that? I was looking for some new clothes for Grace, but they proved hard to find. We tried the kids' clothing in Fenwick. OH. MY. GOD. Pricey isn't the word. Extortionate more like. Example: a white or lime green or shocking pink velour/towelling (ie HIDEOUS) sleeveless t-shirt for a two to three year old was £85. I mean who dresses their kids in this stuff? It looked like something from a cheap charva market stall. I wouldn't let Grace out of the house in that gear it is so loathsome, and yet some parents obviously think it is the bees' knees and don't mind spending that money on expensive tat that their precious little ones will grow out of within weeks.

We also saw the BEST hairstyle ever on a be-tracksuited teenage lass. Oh how I wish I had the candid camera bravado of Brooksie or dearly missed Bisk. I'd have so loved to take a photo of this girl. I made Ellie run back up the mall to have a look. She burst out laughing. I can't describe it properly here, but it was a long style and involved a heavily laquered long fringe swept in the opposite direction to the way it was supposed to be in a curve over one half of the face and secured with several bobby pins. Listen to me, I sound proper snobby. Rant over.

Anyway, there may not be a Mothercare in town, but there is a branch of Yo! Yo! Sushi in Fenwicks. It took us a little while to get used to the conveyor belt thing, but we ended up having a lovely lunch there. Probably a good thing that I left Grace at home, as I can imagine the chaos if she'd been there to grab plates from the belt.


A year ago: Camouflage