Fascinating world of the Blog

This blogging thing is quite a fascinating thing. A couple of years ago I decided to start writing this blog, basically because I wanted to write a novel but didn’t have the time or the inspiration and blogging seemed to be the next best thing. It is very difficult to come up with an idea for a book when you have read so many. Every idea I had for my novel would turn out to be already taken. A while back I had an idea for a book involving zero point energy. Then found that there were references to it in books by Ian Banks and now one by Neal Asher, bugger! Never mind, I expect that they are writing books that will be far more entertaining than anything I could ever write. And, to be honest, I’m now quite happy to read the Asher and Banks novels and I’ll stick to blogging.
Even blogging can be hard. Sometimes I have no ideas and sometimes the ideas come when I have no way of recording them and then I forget them. Yesterday I had a brilliant idea for a blog, I didn’t write it down and now I have forgotten what it was. I must learn to have a notebook to hand and write these things down. Although I think that the ones that come to me while I am sitting at the laptop and just flow from the brain through the fingers to the keyboard and then to the blog site are the best ones, generally funnier and more interesting.
I set up the blog on this site for no other reason than it was the first one I looked at and it seemed easy. And it was easy. Set up the account, as I already had a Google account I was ½ way there, and Bob is your parents brother, so to speak. I write about things that bug me, that I find interesting, or just weird things.

There is a rather interesting feature of this site. You can look at the statistics for your blog. Now I am sure that some blogs will have thousands of hits every day, Walker of Worlds, one that I follow and have contributed to, is one of them and I'm sure that Mark is justifiably proud. I, on the other hand, have only a few hits. But I can look at them and sometimes I am surprised by what I find. I have just had a look and find that my blog is read by people around the world. The Canadian I would imagine might be my cousin. The English ones would be Ralph, my family, other friends and relatives.  Once it was read and commented on by one of my favourite authors, Neal Asher, that gave me a great feeling of satisfaction, someone important had read what I had written! The reader in India? South Korea? Russia? Finland? Don’t know. But it would be nice to know who they  are. If you are reading this in some far away place then add a comment at the bottom, let me know where you are, I would love to know. Even if you are not so far away, put a comment, be it Milton Keynes, Slough, whatever, I want to know. 
Cheers, where ever you are! Keep reading my blog and allowing me to have that have that warm feeling of satisfaction…
Giant68

The menswear Black hole

I have noticed something over the last year. I find it harder and harder to buy clothes in my size. And, to be honest, Clothes in any size.

As you will, no doubt, know from following this blog on a regular basis, I have lost a little bit of weight. I am now somewhere in the region of 4st lighter than I was a year ago. This has led to various shopping expeditions to buy clothes. Losing weight is costing me a fortune. Boy, do I wish I’d kept the clothes I expanded out of! I’m sure I would have looked a treat in my skin tight jeans, Frankie says… T-shirt and leg warmers!! Maybe I ought to grow the mullet back again, or maybe not…

But i have discovered that menswear departments and shops are shrinking at an alarming rate. I walked into the local BHS just recently and went in the direction of the menswear dept. I think that I must have blinked and missed it! Oh! There it is! Over in that corner, hiding behind the lingerie section. Well at least I can have a snigger on the way through.

Some days later I found that Asda are the same. menswear has been pushed into the furthest corner of the shop, on the upper floor.

Will it come to a point where the male of the species will have only a choice of size for the one style of clothing that is available. Look around the High Street where you live, in the UK as that is where i have the most experience, and you will see that the traditional Men's clothing shops are shrinking. Burtons is a pale shadow of what it used to be. Next seems to only supply clothes to those who are in touch with their feminine side, and couldn’t put a shelf up if they tried.

But if you are a woman! Wow! The choice you have. Colours, sizes, styles, whatever you want. Shops that go on forever.

Only the likes of Marks and Spencer and Debenhams are holding back the flood of womenswear. Although their menswear departments are still shrinking, but much slower than anywhere else. I expect that they will vanish completely at some point in the near future.

Imagine the conversation in 50 years time:

“Daddy?”

“Yes, son”

“Do you remember when you could buy a suit?”

“Oh yes, son. Those were the days! I remember it was just before global warming and the rise of sea level. Men could buy allsorts of clothing. Trousers, shirts, jackets, ties, a whole suit of clothes if he felt that way inclined. Good old days. I miss that more than i miss the Maldives…”