Welcome to 2009, if a little late.

To be honest I don’t have much to write about over Christmas and New Year.  Christmas day was spent at my brother’s house in York.  My parents collected my Grandma on Christmas eve, she stayed at their house for the night, we went to York about lunch time on Christmas day, and then my parents took Grandma home again that night.  I got to stay at my brother’s for the night.  That was OK in the end.  I was a little worried about how that would go — my brother and I aren’t really all that close, although we do get on well, and I’m not really all that talkative — but it turned out fine.  We played a board game which I won, and my brother’s wife got a little bit tipsy which made conversation go a little more easily. Read more…

It may be a day later than I had planned, but I’m on my way.  The penultimate train, in fact.  I appreciate that for normal people, saying that would be a little strange, but given it takes me 3 trains and two tubes to get back up to my parent’s house, it gives you an indication of just where abouts I am.  It is, actually, the most significant train of the trip both size and time wise (although if you add up all the other trains it’s less than half the total journey time).  But anyway. Read more…

I’ve finally got my Christmas shopping started.  Hurray.  I might have only managed to get something for my parents, but at least it’s started.  I also have an idea for my brother and sister-in-law.  I still have next Sunday to finish off before I go back up north, and I might do some shopping on Wednesday if I get chance.  I also managed to get my mum’s birthday present and I have plans for my dad’s. Read more…

Deloitte, the administrators called in to deal with the collapse of Woolworths, are claiming it’s not a closing down sale but to me it looked pretty terminal.  Like most people calling in to one of the chain’s 815 stores today, I was greeted by empty shelves and long queues.

While Deloitte are promising that the stores will all remain open until after Christmas, I’m not sure there will be much left to sell following the weekend.  Given that Woolworths’ problems began when they were unable to obtain credit insurance and so their suppliers were unwilling to give them credit, I don’t see how they will be able to re-stock.  Unless the Woolworths’ four distribution centres are very well stocked, or the intention is that this sale will provide a cash injection to allow the chain to get their delivery chain up and running again, I doubt they’ll find any suppliers willing to work with them.

One thing is certain – the sale has made people flood back into their stores.  I can’t help feel that if they had managed to get this many people in each shop before now they wouldn’t be in the mess they are in.