Booze

In the area where I live in north London there used to be several chain off licences/wine shops.

Nicolas is a French chain that always had a good selection of wines and spirits. It closed, and was taken over by Oddbins, even though there was another Oddbins shop, a huge converted garage, just a few hundred yards away.

Actually, the large shop was really great. The selection was enormous, the staff were helpful and there was even a place to sit and sample wines. They always got my business, and it’s a sign of a good shop if, every time you go in, you find something interesting.

Well, the small shop closed. Last time I visited the larger shop, the shelves were empty. I went past recently, and they were removing what stock was left.

So now, if you want wine, you go to a small specialist shop, which is fine, or a supermarket. I think Majestic is still on the go, but is many miles away.

Return

It’s great to see a slow return to normality.

Apparently the London buses are now admitting people at the front again, and you have to swipe your pass, but there is some numerical limit on the numbers that can be carried.

The roads seem busier too.

Scams

I am deliberately not writing about the big topics of the day: Trump, Johnson, racism, police brutality, Dominic Cummings, Brexit and the virus. They are important topics, of course, but we need a break from these, and I have nothing to add that has not been said and better by others.

However, rather sadly, there are people, always, wanting to exploit any situation to relieve you of your money, and the virus gives a great opportunity. It also gives extra exposure to the conspiracy theorists and the flat earthers.