Mikes weather bits & Photo Blog: Prunes look like cherries? & Sally walks by the River

The story circulating that you only need 12 minutes of exercise a week to stay fit got a few inches of space in the news the other day. It does sound like a covert way of getting overweight people, who it was aimed at going out and pounding the pavements. Or maybe its all these "fitness clubs" that charge a fortune for "you" to run like hell and get nowhere on a machine. I pass one of these now and again with large windows looking out onto Derbyshire fields and countryside and wonder why the people dont save their cash and just run around the fields outside!

So there I was 7 hours and 20 minutes into an 8 hour shift looking forward to being out in the sunshine that I can see through the windows way off at the front of the shop. Up walks a "gentleman" carrying a basket with a few items in it and as I look up he adopts a "superior stance" and says, "do you have anything to do with putting things on these shelves?", indicating with his hand the tinned fruit display.

Thinking he's looking for something I mistakenly ask, "what are you looking for?" He then says "nothing I want to show you something pointing at the top shelf and a long frontage of green labelled cans!. "They are all Prunes aren't they?" he enquires and without waiting for my reply says "But they!" agitatedly jabbing a finger at the right hand part of the display,"are cherries!" Why cant you move them along and put something a different colour next to those green labelled cans to avoid the confusion.

OK, the cans are all green labelled but there's a picture of a group of prunes on the prune tins and an even clearer picture of a couple of cherries on the cherry tins. Coupled with that the cherry tins are bigger and the shelf edge labels are in the right position and clearly indicate what's in the tins above. I sense a "Challenging" conversation will take place and even with, now, only 35 minutes of my shift left, rise valiantly to the tussle!

I explain that "Well Sir" (it always helps to throw in a sir in these situations) "we get issued things called "Planograms" which show plainly and pictorially where things should go on each and every shelf". We cannot change these planograms because Mr Sainsbury wants all his stores to look the same. He even employs people to visit shops and check the shelf agrees with the Planogram. (heaven help the shop that is out of line!)

Looking really pissed off by now, the real reason then emerges for his rant and the picture immediately becomes clear! he says "Well my wife picked up the wrong item yesterday and i have had to come in today especially to pick up my prunes!" Do you know I really thought as I looked at him "Yes you do look like a prune man dont you"

"Well your Palnogram is stupid" he says, looking me straight in the eye he turns on his heel and strides away. "Maybe its not the Planogram thats stupid" I reply. I check my watch and thankfully note, only 30 minutes left of my shift and wonder if any further challenges are heading my way?

The weather! after all we do talk about it a lot don't we? Of late, well at least the last few days has been magnificent, long sunny days with just a few clouds and the occasional cooling wind. I'm just hoping that it doesn't descend into the soggy summer we had last year.

Sally mentioned she was going to go for a short walk yesterday and I urged her to take a few pics so here's a link to 20 pics in a Picasa web albumn if you have the time to look. If not here are a few below