137: Day on the Toon

CAUTION: Yen's blog contains harsh language and even harsher notions of propriety. Reader discretion is advised.

Miss Magpie and myself went round the shops of Newcastle today. I was looking for Star Wars stuff (and was semi-successful).



For Miss Magpie, it was shopping and exploration, for me it was shopping and nostalgia. It's been a long time since I hung out on these streets every Saturday, but even so I'm saddened to see neglected buildings in place of the places I loved. It's one thing when JJB Sports is in the unit of the old Our Price in Eldon Square, but it's something else when this is what's become of the Odeon Cinema…



I'll write more about this in a separate blog, but I saw Return of the Jedi for the first time, here. The cinema has long since relocated, of course, and it's not like there's nowhere for film-lovers in Newcastle, but this is essentially a snapshot of the West half of Pilgrim Street. Entire blocks are abandoned and covered in builders hoardings. For the most part, it even looks like the scaffolding's given up. It's not the progress I resent (other parts of Newcastle are beautifully busy, if completely commercial), it's the dereliction of this area, while new-builds are taking place elsewhere. *shrugs*

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In other news, I learned today that the percentage of Forbidden Planet Newcastle customers with personal hygiene issues is roughly the same as Forbidden Planet London! Someone in that shop fucking stank. And it's not like there was an old tramp in there. The guy I narrowed the whiff down to looked fairly normal, he just had more bacteria. It would barely be worth mentioning, only this was the third shop in a row that we had to leave because of someone stinking. That bad. I kid you not. And it wasn't the same person each time (and no, it wasn't me. I even stopped to consider that at one point).

Other than that, a fairly successful day. We looked around the Laing Art Gallery (free entry, and free screaming child in an echoing space, making me think I was having some sort of horror flashback). I got a Star Wars figure (Bespin Guard, human) and some new shoes. I'm actually more excited about the shoes, and that's not allowed for blokes, is it..?



Off out tonight to meet friends. I'll tell you about that tomorrow. Well, I say 'tell', I'll probably post some photos and pretend I can remember what happened.





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• ^^^ That's dry, British humour, and most likely sarcasm or facetiousness.

• This is a personal blog. The views and opinions expressed here represent my own thoughts (at the time of writing) and not those of the people, institutions or organizations that I may or may not be related with unless stated explicitly.