Trolley 552

Possibly the last trolley of 2022, from the top of the Kokoro passage, from the M&S food hall. One of a number of same in the passage, but I left the others. Altogether too wet - although not as wet as it might look in the snap above. A steady drizzle rather than serious rain - but windy enough to make one think twice about deploying the umbrella.

This one returned to a spot next to the stacks by the Ashley Centre entrance where it could dry out before going back into the line. Plenty of people in M&S, for once doing both food and clothes, so maybe there was a sale on in the latter department. Maybe there were all sorts of discounted Christmas biscuits and so forth in the former department.

Cold and wet enough for me to have cracked out my red skiing jacket from Animal of references 2 and 3, the first time this year, various young men running around with shorts on notwithstanding. A jacket which is only worn occasionally but is clearly well over ten years old, so I have probably had my money's worth, despite never having strapped on a ski in my life.

PS 1: the first trolley of the year was noticed at reference 4. So between 90 and 100 in the year as a whole. So a toss up whether I reach a 1,000 trolleys or 80 years of age first, this allowing for a modest decline in the collection rate as time goes on.

PS 2: a bit rum that at the time that public sector pay is being held down well below the level of inflation, deserving junior civil servants are getting a modest top up in the form of vouchers that can be spent on things like sausage rolls from Greggs. Maybe rum, but something which Labour will need to tread a bit carefully on as it used these vouchers when it was last on watch. Maybe the answer is to give deserving nurses vouchers which they can redeem in the shops which have popped up in the public areas at the bottom of most big hospitals. Probably including Greggs. See reference 5.

References

Reference 1: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/12/trolley-551.html.

Reference 2: https://www.animal.co.uk/.

Reference 3: https://pumpkinstrokemarrow.blogspot.com/2009/01/deep-in-grip-of-winter.html.

Reference 4: https://psmv5.blogspot.com/2022/01/trolley-459.html.

Reference 5: Ministers accused of Whitehall pay ploy: Labour says £30mn reward vouchers have been used to get round civil service salary freeze - George Parker, Financial Times - 2022.

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