🙂 Yay! This was such good news to read this morning in the ol’ Grauniad – apparently Marks & Spencer is planning to open 150 new stores overseas. Oh please please please let one of them be in Sevilla!
Here’s the article I read: Marks & Spencer
Since they closed the M&S in Sevilla back in 2001 I’ve had no decent place to buy underwear, socks, tights, cotton t-shirts, natural fibre sweaters, mince pies at Christmas time and . . . oh just all sorts of simple basic things, you know?
There is an M&S in Gibraltar, about a 2 1/2 hour drive from here, and I almost got there once My Almost Trip To Gibraltar . But since I didn’t I then had to get my friend Karl in England to send me M&S knickers by post – I was a desperate woman. And now it looks like those dark desperate days may finally be drawing to a close . . .
casa azahar 
I understand, really I do. I’m currently going through a sock crisis; the socks available at the shops just aren’t up to scratch these days. I may yet have to resort to this: http://www.sockrush.com/ Socks, by subscription.
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Ah, you made me realise that I’d left socks of my list (there now). Yes, M&S do these wonderful very fine cotton socks in 3-packs that are excellent value. There were a couple packs of those included in my emergency knicker package from Karl.
Subscription socks, eh? So it must be true that there’s a market for anything and everything. Actually, it’s quite a good idea.
az
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You can subscribe almost everything… My snailmailbox is constantly overflooded by offerings to have socks, knickers, bras, stockings etc delivered. Still I prefer to buy such items hands on.
However, if Rigby and Peller had a subscribtion service I might change my mind…
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http://www.rigbyandpeller.com/
They also give advice for men! 🙂
az
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I used to get socks and undies delivered by “subscription” a decade or so ago, because I didn’t live near enough any decent stores. I should probably do that now… I always seem to put off doing *that* kind of shopping. 😉
I do hope that they will open up a M&S in Sevilla. Fingers crossed!!
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I love how in Ivan’s ‘Sockrush’ link they say they only provide black socks. 🙂
Great idea. I only ever wear black socks as well – and only when I have to (in winter). The M&S 100% cotton ones I got are so fine that there’s no worry about stretching out my shoes as they are not much thicker than tights.
Luckily I can wear sandals here almost 8 months out of the year . . .
az
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Probabaly got the wrong page, but forgive me Im not good with the whole techology thing, mud, balls Im your fella, but buttons and wires….
Anyway just wanted to say I like the header on this page. I like the cheeky touch of azahar making herself the bigG, nice! Is that product placement, are you wearing your own designs?
Most of all I want to know what Petes been eating he’s looking very buff.
Karl
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Subscriptions like this…
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Tried to get that pic showing up…
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Well okay, but are we talking subscriptions or mail order? Difference?
How on earth would you breathe in one of those things? 😛
az
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I think I’ll stick to socks.
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Socks might be more practical, but corsets are just… sexier… and you can breathe in them
It´s all a question of fitting..
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I find it quite easy to breathe in socks, too.
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M&S is wonderful for underwear, isn’t it? Can be quite expensive for other clothes (but always great quality and ethically-sourced, so that’s OK), but the undies are very good value. A five-hour round trip to an M&S store does seem a little excessive, though! D
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I did read this about M&S, David – that part of their money problems had to do with them still using ‘ethical’ suppliers. And their profit margin suffered as a result. But it looks like they are now turning that around and using that to their advantage – good for them!
Yes, amazing underwear. Yeah, a five-hour round trip might seem excessive, but the last stuff Karl (blickybadger) sent to me wasn’t *quite* the stuff. Not his fault – I’d ordered it online and since M&S only delivers within the UK he very generously offered to receive my undies and socks and post them on to me.
I’d wanted the high-leg cotton knickers with the more sustantial elastic at the waist. Which I could always find here before they closed all the M&S stores in Europe.
And isn’t it totally stupid that I cannot find anything remotely similar at all in Sevilla? I can find all sorts of knickers here, but almost nothing made of cotton, and nothing that is as comfy and ‘easy-wear’ as the M&S stuff I’ve been wearing for almost 20 years now.
So I really hope they open another store here!
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Apparently, Princess Di used to buy her undies in M and S. This piece of trivia almost made me think slightly more kindly about the woman.
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Hummm?! They’ve just closed our high street branch.More of a Primark person really.I loved that joke Linda Smith had about M&S doing a Pre-drunk cup of tea with a brown ring at the bottom of the cup,”oh i must have drunk it…?”
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Oh goddamn but I miss Linda Smith! Probably more than I miss M&S, even though she never sent me knickers . . .
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M&S send you knickers !?
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Well, they sent them to blicky and then he sent them to me . . .
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We presently have zoomer here visiting and as he has expressed interest in going to Gibraltar we might end up going sometime next week. 🙂
Mind you, we are now working on Plan C for Gibraltar – Plans A and B didn’t work out timewise for either Nog and me or my friend Carmen, who has very generously offered us the use of her car.
Plan A (going Friday-Saturday) was good for her but it turned out that I have to be in Sevilla on Saturday. Plan B (to go Sunday-Monday) didn’t work out as Carmen needs her car on Monday. But she will be away on business Wednesday-Thursday so we can get the car then. So we shall see …
Carmen pointed out this morning that me and Gibraltar seem almost destined to never meet, but you never know. Where there’s a will there’s a way … sometimes anyhow.
It would be a good way to stock up on knickers just in case they don’t end up opening a new M&S store here, so fingers crossed!
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:blush: Just found blicky’s post 7 stuck in my spam file – sorry about that little bro. I should check that more often, especially as it’s happened once before already. Anyhow, have just ‘de-spammed’ it so it’s up now.
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And to answer blicky’s question, yes that is ‘product placement’ 😉
I’ll upload the whole pic onto Fotki later on – I’m using the laptop atm and don’t have it on file here.
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Everything was all set. Car reserved. Hotel reserved. Spent lovely morning out with Nog and zoomer and we just got home from amazing tapas at Las Golondrinas (the place with the radishes). While waiting for zoomer to come over for a late afternoon summer cocktail I started getting some stuff together for the trip.
Toiletries – check. Change of clothes – check. Wallet, money, credit card – check. Camera – check. Passport – check.
Then flipped open front of passport to cringe at hideous photo and saw . . . Gaaaaaaaaa! – it expired last week!!!
I honestly cannot believe this is happening! I truly thought my passport was good for at least another year or so. And now what to tell zoomer? Either we go with Plan E and take a trip without going to Gibraltar or we go with Plan F – basically FUCK THIS!
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Why do you need to show your passport? It´s been ages since I showed my passport at a border control within Europe. The only time I have to do it is when I board an airplane or when arriving from a country outside “Schengen”.
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Countries outside “Schengen” include the UK and Gibraltar. Yeah, that’s what I thought the first time I went to Gibraltar. I can travel anywhere else in the EU with my Spanish permanent residence card. But not there!
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Oh blimey. I suppose pressing up against the fence and looking wistfully at the border guards is out of the question…
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Well, it didn’t work last time . . .
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How about digging a tunnel?
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As previously promised, a full photo of the header can now be seen on my About page – just click on the thumbnail.
https://azahar.wordpress.com/about/
It isn’t quite finished – still need a couple of ‘angels with fur’ to be placed in the crook of my left arm there . . .
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