Winter Smiles

As I suspected when I started this blog back in the summer, the quantity of smiles one gets during one's day greatly reduces as does the light and temperature.

With the grey, wet weather we've had this winter, I can't say I'm coming across as many smiles as I was back in July and August however, that does however mean the ones I am seeing, are all the more lovely for the sparsity.

Tuesday, 21st, (January), all too quick to get a photograph or a name, I'd like to give a nice thumbs up to the female bus driver of the number 13 who stopped and waited on the Llanvanor Road stop on Finchley Road for the lady running to catch it in the morning .

The other Tuesday thumbs up goes to Richard, a waiter in Carluccio's in St. John's Wood.  Although there were some problems with our order; our wine wasn't available, we didn't order the lemon Pelegrino or the tomato pasta, Richard made us laugh and feel like important patrons.  Thank you Richard, and a thumbs up .

In light of this blog, I am also taking the 100 Happy Days Challenge - if you don't know about this, check out http://100happydays.com  and the hashtag #100HappyDays on twitter, instagram and other social media sites.  The challenge is to yourself - no one else - to try and find something that makes you happy in your day for 100 consecutive days.  It can be a puppy wagging it's tail, a good coffee, a smile at a bus stop, whatever it is, big or small, try and remember it and "log" it.  Take the challenge!

So move forward a week, the weather is even worse with miserable cold rain everywhere, (although I shouldn't complain thinking about all the flooding in Somerset and surrounding areas, those poor people www.bbc.co.uk/news/), and a friend, the lovely Lauren from St. John & St. Elizabeth Hospital, and I are on the top deck - best seat in the house at the front - of a 139 bus in the West End on our way to see The Book of Mormon.  We're stuck in traffic on Oxford Street and on the bus in front we can see two inspectors really checking an empty top deck; under and behind the seats.

Lauren and I are chatting away, looking at the Christmas decorations, (still up), when suddenly right beside us are the inspectors from the bus in front.

Now this guy, who wasn't allowed to give us his name, couldn't have been more fun or nicer on a dark, wet, Monday night in January.  Regent Street seemed to just whizz by.  So Mr. Inspector, a thumbs up from us for the banter, thanks.

Another bus thumbs up ; this time to the driver of a 460 (unnamed/unphotographed - to protect the innocent) who allowed me to travel two stops without my pass and without paying as I was accompanying my mother.  Thank you, that was a lovely gesture.  

But it isn't all thumbs up to bus personnel this post: two thumbs down: Monday, 20th January, the bus driver who was at the stop outside Holland & Barrett in Swiss Cottage and knew I was there, that I knocked on the doors and said excuse me but still decided not to reopen the doors and drove off and also to a restaurant manager that when I told him we had a reservation, didn't look at us or smile, but instead answered a phone, walked off at the same time to adjust a pastry plate, carried on talking on the 'phone and the most we got was a raised finger .  You guys know who are you.

Now, you must be getting a bit bored of my voice by now so why don't you send us your guest post, (details on how below), and use this blog as your opportunity to say thank you to someone who made you smile, or something else?

laughing in the morning, if only

Well I'm pleased that there have been some guest posts lately as I don't seem to have come across as many smiles of late.

I have a theory; I always thought that the sun was going to make a difference to this blog and unfortunately I think I was right.  The occurrences of smiles are definitely becoming less as the tones turn from yellow to grey, the nights draw in and the temperature plummets.

However, they may be less but they are still around and maybe for their rarity, even nicer?
 
Also, it gives me a chance to thank some people who if this blog had been going years ago, I would have posted about them, not least Ken.

In days of yore, (I can never use that word now without thinking of a particular episode of Friends), I had a personal trainer, and that personal trainer was Ken.  Not only did he get me super fit but, and this was the miracle for which he gets many thanks and thumbs up, he would arrive at 6:30 or 7:00am in the morning and get me laughing.

What a wonderful way to start the day and even though it was almost twenty years ago, I still miss those early morning laughs with him and that wonderful feeling of fitness when he left.  (He still sees my mother, lucky her).

And a few thumbs up but no photos - Friday, 15th November - to the workman dealing with the street lights in Lyndale Avenue, NW2 who cheered my day by saying I was the sunshine and to the lady on the bus from Finchley Road to St. John's Wood who helped me by ringing my 'phone when I thought I'd lost it, a huge thank you and .

Meanwhile, I'm sorry to say, a thumbs down to the driver of the Number 82 bus who on Wednesday, 6th November at about 9:30am, just south of Golders Green heading in to town, refused to let an elderly lady off the bus at the front, arguing with her and holding everyone else up for some time for what seemed like spite.  She believed the front step was easier for her to get off than the back step and he insisted that they were the same height.  Even if they are, was it so necessary to shout at her and embarrass her?  You know who you are so, shame on you and "thumbs down".


So, don't forget, Promote the Positive - this blog, www.everdayfolk.blogspot.com is here for you; this is a public pinboard where you can tell us about that great smile, that bit of extra service you encountered in your day which just made the difference or just something nice. Please, send us your posts, comments or just follow.  Thanks.

more London smiles (updated)

Bill's is a new chain, well at least to me, of restaurants in London. http://bills-website.co.uk/  I had been to the one in Islington a couple of times and really liked it as much for the food, which seems to have something for everyone, vegans to carnivores and all those in between, as the ambiance and the staff/service.

We tried the one in Hoxton Square this time, and both my colleague and I were just the tiniest, weeniest, bit disappointed with our first tastes of our food when it came.  It just happened that the waitress was standing nearby and must have overheard or caught our expressions, (good attentive service), and asked us if everything was okay.

It was.  The food was good but just not rave about.  They offered to change our meals but no, we insisted that everything really was fine and that if she hadn't asked at that precise moment, we certainly wouldn't have mentioned it.  When I say it was good, I'm not being British in a "don't make a fuss" way, we both cleaned our plates.

Anyway, after our clean plates were taken away the manageress came over to discuss our meal with us and to see if there was anything they could do.  This wasn't just platitudes, we both felt it was true service with a smile.  So Ellie at Bill's in Hoxton Square, (and the waitress whose name and photograph I didn't get), a big thumbs up to you, and we'll be back.  

Meanwhile, a huge thank you to someone I've been wanting to feature almost since I began with the idea for this blog, Jackie at Waitrose in Finchley Road, NW3.  

Jackie mainly works on the tills and like so many of the staff at this branch have worked there for many years and know their customers by name, (Sue I'd also like to give you a thumbs up and a thank you).

However, like the day I took this picture (apologies for the fuzziness and a bit of thumb!) the shop was mayhem busy and although there may have been tills with less of a queue, regulars would rather wait for Jackie than go through quicker somewhere else.

So Jackie, a big thumbs up and thank you for making that weekly shop so enjoyable and I so love your smile, that I'm going to stick another picture of it here!

As always, if you have come across some special person doing their job with a smile or you want to say thank you to someone, please do send us your guest post to everdayfolk@gmail.com together with your contact details and pictures if you can.  If you're taking a picture of someone, please ask for their permission first.  Thanks.

23.11.13 - This P.S follows a lovely Sunday hug-smile-fest in Waitrose on 17th November. I was at Jackie's till (of course) having a little chat when lovely Sue joined us and finally let me a get a shot of her. While this was going on the smiliest dancer/Pilates teacher ever, Joumana of @IJADdance @JouDance, joined us and we had a lovely tete-tete.  Funniest thing was the lady in the queue behind me, who was sweet and patient, must have wondered about this weird lady hugging and photographing people as she shopped.