Just Another Monsoon Monday.

Mondays are not working days for me, instead, my week begins on a Tuesday. It is frustrating to note how many Mondays are wet, with the following morning dawning bright and sunny. I chose to not keep a tally. It would be far too depressing!

This week was no exception. According to the app on my phone, we were in for a wet day with a high probability of the rain persisting until teatime. That effectively ruled out visiting anywhere outdoors. We didn't want to venture too far, so Touchwood won the vote, just because we couldn't think of anywhere better. This was a rather begrudging kind of victory for Solihull, or Soily Hill as it was before it got poshed up, from the pigsty on the hill, to the land of middle-class mock Tudor mini-mansions. Just one of the consequences of the wealth brought to the Midlands by the motor industry, during the previous century.

Given the weather, we opted for the cross-country route, via Dickens Heath - a strange modern dormitory village of high-density housing 3 miles from 'Soily Hill' town centre.
We often lose our way travelling through this urban village, as signs are both minimal and ambiguous.
Dickens Heath always feels slightly sinister, either as if rapture has just taken place, or if you are under the control of some unseen authority that logs your every movement. All I know is that the streets are always eerily empty. On a miserable Monday morning, it looked even worse than usual...

It was not going to be an exciting day, and we set the tone by looking at kitchen compost bins. What better place to do so than 'Soily Hill'. Our receptacle for fruit and veg waste is starting to look rather shabby - not helped by the fact that I have dropped the lid at least once.
In our previous home, I delighted in my waste disposal unit. I used to regularly inflict healthy fruit salads on my husband, just for the sheer delight of hearing peach stones being macerated.
To my regret, our current abode does not have a waste disposal unit. Instead, we have two large green composting bins hidden behind the garage, where flies and worms lurk, ready to ambush and terrify me. Much as I hate these wildlife infested caverns, I have to admit that they do produce very good compost - useful for adding to the clay in the garden. We found a suitable kitchen compost bin, but we weren't tempted enough to buy it today.
Retail draw.

For some light relief, we moved down to the toy department - always a good place to find a present for some unsuspecting relative (mentioning no Doris').
Retail success!

By now it was lunchtime. We had planned to revisit the tearooms we discovered on our last jaunt. However, the thought of going out in the rain and negotiating the High Street, did not appeal. We were just pondering where we could go instead, when we remembered that there is a mysterious tentacle of the Touchwood Shopping Centre, that by some fluke of geography, stretches down to just behind the tearoom we had intended to visit. This would reduced the outside squelch to 50 yards, rather than 400. We could cope with 50 yards of raindrop assault.

Next on the agenda was socks, but my fellow shopper wanted a particular brand, and the outdoor shops we visited didn't seem to stock them.
Retail fail.

Then I remembered that I really could do with some new trousers, so we headed off to M & S. Back in the day, before M & S abandoned our nearest town centre, I knew exactly which rail to walk up to, and which style to pick. Solihull is a bit more chaotic. I grabbed a few and headed off to the changing rooms. There was a queue, and customer service paralysis, so I was directed to the changing rooms on the ground floor - which were pleasantly almost devoid of customers.
"No-one knows we are here!" confessed the assistant, sadly.
I tried on several pairs, but none of them were quite right. I left them with the lonely assistant.
However, I did find a sports top I liked, even though I don't do sports. They make a great wardrobe choice for ringing sessions, as they stretch, are lightweight and breathe - all useful attributes.
Sort of retail success...

Upon reaching the exit of M & S we realised that the heavens had opened big time. Serious stair rod sort of rain. We popped into nearby Boots in the vain hope that the deluge would have ceased by the time we were ready to move on - foolish optimists are we. The KHT has found some perfume she liked. At around £70 for a small bottle, I wasn't rushing to buy her any, but I did purchase some hand cream.
Retail fail and success!

We visited several more shops in the Mell Square area, using the wide overhang of the buildings to shelter from the worst of the rain. We never use the multi-storey car park adjacent to Mell Square, as the signage is awful. On several occasions have ended up in a dead end facing a brick wall, when attempting to depart.

The deluge had not abated, so we made a quick dash for The works to get some black paper for a craft activity. Fortunately, I decided that the craft activity wouldn't work before I bought the paper. However, I did buy a couple of odds and ends. Sort of retail success.

Soggy Solitary Solihull

The High street offered no protection from the rain, and there were several places where mini waterfalls from gutters had to be avoided. We retreated back inside the shopping centre and spent some time wandering around Tiger where I was able to make some pleasing purchases. Definite retail victory!

It was at this point in the proceedings that I remembered that I wanted some envelopes for work. Shops which came to mind that sold envelopes at a competitive price, were too many raindrops away, so we opted to divert to Tesco on the way home. Every little helps!
Retail failure and success.