Whatever Happened To Those Nice Tea Houses?

Whatever happened to those nice tea houses? You know the ones I mean. You walked in, sat in a comfortable chair at a table dressed in white linen. A waitress dressed in a smart black and white uniform served you with freshly made sandwiches and cakes on china plates, followed by tea served in a china teapot, with china cups and saucers, china milk jug and china sugar bowl. How different it is today. Now they are called cafeterias. My wife and I visited one recently that was part of a large out of town department store. We picked up a wet plastic tray, slid it along tram lines attached to the counter and helped ourselves from a row of plastic cabinets. The sandwiches were in triangular plastic cartons, the Eccles cake was individually wrapped in a plastic film bag and the fruit pie was on a plate sheeted down with cling film. We dispensed our own tea and coffee from vending machines. At the end of the counter was a girl taking the money who obviously didn't want to be there. We then made our way over to the sundries bar where we picked up two small plastic pots of milk and a small plastic pot of cream, two sugars in small paper sachets, two lollipop sticks for stirring our drinks and three serviettes. The third serviette was merely for mopping up the milk and cream that you always spill while trying to get the tops off the little plastic pots. We found somewhere to sit and unwrapped all the various items on the tray. We then sat and had our lunch at a bare wooden table which I can only describe as looking like a land fill site. We were surrounded by enough paper and plastic to fill a recycling bin. Oh well, I guess that's the modern way of doing things. Progress, I don't think so!

Today's Thought

Everyone wants to go to heaven, but nobody wants to die.

2-For-1 At Pizza Express

For those of you who have not seen it in the press Pizza Express are doing a great 2 for 1 offer on their main course meals. Unlike most offers of this kind with this one you get the most expensive meal free. Here's how you get your free meal. Simply click on the following link www.pizzaexpressoffers.co.uk print off the voucher and take it along to your local Pizza Express restaurant. Offer ends 29th January. The offer is also valid at the weekend and can also be used for take-away orders. Happy eating!

Looking Back - The Boston Strangler

On this day in 1967 Albert DeSalvo was jailed for life after being found guilty of assault and armed robbery against four women in Connecticut. A few years earlier, between June 1962 and January 1964, the US city of Boston had been gripped with fear when 13 single women aged between 19 and 85 were sexually assaulted and strangled in their own homes. Several of the victims were found with ribbon round their neck. The killer became notorious as the 'Boston Strangler'. The case against DeSalvo was a curious one. Whilst awaiting trial for rape DeSalvo was held in a Massachusetts psychiatric hospital and during his trial his lawyer claimed he had told fellow inmates that he had murdered the women. DeSalvo's lawyer tried to prove he was the killer, at the same time claiming he was insane and and should be sent to a psychiatric hospital rather than prison. Despite claiming to be the killer DeSalvo was not charged with any murders because of lack of evidence. Casey Sherman, nephew of Mary Sullivan, the last woman murdered, claimed that DeSalvo had confessed because it would lead to a lucrative book and film deal. The nephew and DeSalvo's family also claimed he did not match the description of the suspect, police believed more than one person was involved and there was no physical evidence to link him to the crimes. However, a prosecutor who worked on the investigation claimed that during interviews DeSalvo had described, in detail, facts about the killings not known to the public. The judge said "This defendant must be incarcerated as long as he shall live or until psychiatric science can cure him". Shortly after being sentenced DeSalvo escaped from the Massachusetts hospital where he was being held, he was then sent to Walpole State Prison. It was whilst he was in prison, in 1973 that DeSalvo was stabbed to death, no one was convicted of his murder. As a final bizarre twist DeSalvo's body was exhumed in December 2001 and tests showed his DNA did not match evidence found on the body of Mary Sullivan, the 'Stranglers' last victim. So, was DeSalvo the 'Boston Strangler' or did his actions allow the real killer to walk free?

Today's Thought

Women who seek equality with men are not setting their sights very high!