STAINES!!!! (And family visit) (Blog 415)

Yesterday, my dad said my brother and his family would be visiting us today, but he didn’t say when. Hopefully in the afternoon so I could get a present for my niece beforehand, who’s just turned one. As I mentioned not long ago, she gave me a death stare when I got her a cuddly toy, so I thought I’d get another cuddly toy just to annoy her and see her reaction. I mean what else could I get for a baby girl anyway? Pens? All she’ll be able to draw are scribbles! Imagine drawing such scribbles and feeling pretty pleased with yourself. Then you see a proper painting and in no time at all, you suffer from self-esteem problems. You could try comforting the child by saying everyone starts somewhere, but she wouldn’t even understand that, and yep… even more self-esteem issues, it’s cruel. The only solution is to hide all art and that’s mad. So no pens. I got a call from my brother this morning saying he’d be visiting us in half an hour or so. Dammit, no time to get presents. Or maybe… I could just go to Staines afterwards and give her the presents later. Yes, of course I really wanted to go into the town to get one of those delicious milkshakes and muffins. I have to be honest, I was thinking about them immediately after having a takeaway yesterday. You’d think I’d be too full for such thoughts! You think shakes aren’t an obsession, now???   

When my sibling’s family arrived, my dad claimed he liked the music of Nina Simone. Not immediately, but after everyone got settled down and started chatting about various topics. Whether that’s true or not, I don’t know. As I said a while ago, I have a theory he says he likes the most normal music possible as he is hiding a dark secret. A secret where he really enjoys listening to specialist underground avant-garde jazz music where there is no melody or harmony in the traditional sense, it’s just people farting. However, to this day I still have no evidence. More of a hunch. I’m so enthusiastic about Staines shakes I told my brother about them. I explained they’re in the Elmsleigh shopping centre. My brother said he thought he knew the diner, when I explained it was very close to HMV, he asked me if it was on the left. ARGH! Could be either, couldn’t it? Depends which way you’re facing! Stop confusing me and making me feel like I don’t know the difference between right and left, I don’t like it. I didn’t say that, however. I kept my cool and simply said ‘Yes’. A 50/50 chance of success. Well more even, as I don’t think there is a cafe on the other side of the shopping centre. Victory! Clearly I have problems with self-esteem, too. Maybe because my dad kept showing me real art after I scribbled, it honestly wouldn’t surprise me.

My brother said he’s been there too, but hadn’t tried the shakes out. In a way I feel good about improving his life with the recommendation, but at the same time I feel ever so slightly like I’ve introduced him to an overwhelming addiction that can ruin lives. My life hasn’t been ruined yet, but as I’ll explain later it has been spoiled at least a little bit. But he’s a sensible person and I think he has the strength to say ‘No’ to himself when he isn’t truly hungry or thirsty. After many people enjoyed the crisps and chocolates on offer, my brother spotted a free to enter competition on a crisp packet where you could end up winning a ton of money! Tense stuff as my brother got out his mobile phone and took part in the contest. Unsurprisingly he didn’t win, really I knew he wouldn’t, but at the same time I was intrigued. Maybe that’s because he was intriguing relatively speaking. When compared to my dad, I mean. I kept an eye on him in case he got his hands on some pens and paper and drew a sketch, then ‘for a fun thing to do’ he told the infants to do a sketch as well, he really can’t seem to stop himself.

After more chatting, my brother’s family eventually went home. A fairly standard get together, but I guess people can’t open presents EVERY time they meet, it would get annoying. Sure there’s a song that goes ‘I wish it could be Christmas everyday’ and it’s a good song, it’s just not true, is it? Therefore if it was supposed to be a deep and profound poem, sadly it would be considered rubbish. Either that or a surprisingly profound depiction of a manic episode! I guess art is subjective, which is why I like it. When I have to learn facts, everything falls apart for me. I get told directions such as ‘take a left and then a right’ and suddenly I’m in a world of pain. What else was on my mind at the time? Annoyingly I recently found out that the tube system won’t be in service on Tuesday. Not only that, it’s possible the overground stations won’t be running either. Getting a number of buses from home all the way to London bridge and back again?? No, I’m not having it, sorry. I wish the buses would strike at the same time, then I’d really have an excuse not to go. Really my only reason at the moment is I’m not logical enough, which hurts me as most children are.

I guess I’ll go to the gym instead. Speaking of the gym, I thought I’d be super raring to go there after having a good three days off, but sadly I was feeling the opposite. I still went though, because I forced myself. I guess the reason I did that is because of the long period of education inactivity I went through in my teenage mental home days, and I guess it still affects me today. It can’t happen again. I shouldn’t complain though as taking a couple of years off school because of lockdown is a whole new level, isn’t it? At least those people had an excuse not to go to school. My only excuse for not doing work was that I really really really didn’t want to do any. In my defence, it’s on a different level to not wanting to do something, really not wanting to do something and even really really not wanting to do something, but it still sounds childish and again, that’s what gets to me.

Now to write about going to Staines! First up I a went to a shop selling toys for mini people. I soon saw a simple puzzle for infants. As my niece seems to hate fluffy toys so much, I thought it best to get a dinosaur themed puzzle. Let’s just hope she doesn’t have anything against silly looking lizards. If she does, that’s one grown up baby. I doubt she’s as smart as me yet, but she could well be more mature which is a disturbing thought. If I was bored I could watch a program with comedy dinosaurs in it. I may not truly enjoy it, but it would be better than nothing. If my niece reached for the controller and turned the hypothetical program off? Well that’s it then, isn’t it? As my supposed main reason for going to the town was for an other person, I didn’t intend to get a CD. Especially as I have enough new ones that haven’t been funny appreciated yet. Well, it seems I have a compulsion. I’m addicted to the thrill of CD shopping and I can’t seem to stop. Next came the cake and milkshake obviously. The latters are so good, I’ve even stopped buying the petrol station milkshakes I once looked forward to every once and a while as they simply can’t compete. Another reason I feel bad for my brother. What have I done??? And that’s it from me, bye!