Pictures are still here
While thebigcheese and cohorts were galivanting around Mid Wales, Debbie and I were staying with my parents . The prime purpose of the weekend (other than just seeing them, and their posh new bathroom) was to sort out telephone extensions and network cards and routers and stuff, for the impending arrival of broadband Internet in their home.
So it was that on Saturday June 12th 2004 Dad drove us into Aberystwyth with two objectives:
- to buy some 4-core phone extension wire, an extension socket and a connector box
- to visit the NMB
We parked outside Trinity church, on Buarth Road.
We stopped in Ellis’ hardware shop, and found only a BT wire insertion tool, which Dad bought for 55p.
We stopped in Dixons on Great Darkgate St., with only the very last remnants of its closing down sale remaining. They did have some phone extension kits available, but the wall mounted socket was smaller than the master socket we were replacing, so I decided it would look messy.
We stopped in a small electrical supplies place on Pier St., whos name I forget, and which doesn’t appear to be in Yellow Pages. The proprietor was very helpful, and showed me his wide range of phone extension kits, none of which was quite right. I’m not sure he understood why I didn’t buy anything.
All that was fine. These were only stopoff points on our way to Radio Shack on Pier St., where I knew we’d find everything we needed. I was wrong.
We walked along the prom, to Terrace Road, where the NMB is. The NMB was a sorry sight, with its broken signage and its scaffolding surround - but it appears the scaffolding is there because they are actively working to spruce it up. Painters were at work. A return visit in coming months may prove rewarding.
After I’d taken a few photos, we went in and sat down. We pulled out thebigcheese’s checklist and filled it in. It being mid-morning, and since we knew Mum would have a splendid lunch for us soon, all we ordered was drinks. Debbie had a chocolate milkshake, while Dad and I had coffee. I was impressed that we were given the option of coffee made with hot milk, or coffee made with water. All too often in a Welsh coffee shop you’ll be given a cup of hot milk with half a teaspoon of Nescafe stirred in. We asked for ours made with water. The coffee was good, as was the milkshake.
Aber’s NMB has historical photos of Milk Bars dotted around the wall. Above the cutlery rack there is a photograph of some ship or other, surrounded by signatures of 101 Squadron Brize Norton, as a token of thanks for the NMB’s support.
On the way back to the car, Debbie cleverly remembered that we’d been asked to get Mum a Western Mail, for reasons I can’t quite fathom (”Llais y Sais” and all that). For this Dad was most grateful. In the newsagent, Debbie asked if they had any Vanilla Diet Coke, and not only did they not have any, but the lady had never heard of such a thing!
We made a few false starts in the Buarth / Trinity Road one-way system, but ended up heading down Llanbadarn Road toward the newfangled Parc y Llyn retail park, and it’s Focus DIY shop. Here we found all the phone extension supplies we needed, in the “Trydanol / Electrical” section, and returned home with all missions accomplished.
