Random shopping musings

I’ve spent several hours walking around Harrogate in the past few days, and I’ve come across some surprising things.

1) Not all that surprising: Stores are not open very long each day. Almost every store is open from 9:30 to 5:30, give or take half an hour. Even then, shops are pretty casual about closing randomly; I walked by two stores that were closed this morning for inventory, and “due to staff shortage” the O2 shop opened at 12:15 instead of 9:30. This was particularly annoying because I showed up there at about 9:45 to get my phone activated.

2) In WHSmith, there is actually a whole shelf section called “Tragic Life Stories.” It’s right next to biography. I guess at least you know what you are getting — horribly depressing memoirs.

3) The employees in Boots actually know what they are talking about. All of them, too, it seems. I had several questions about over the counter drugs in pregnancy, and all the clerks were knowledgeable enough to help.

4) And speaking of Boots, all prescriptions in the UK cost 7 pounds. And they are free during pregnancy. This is a tremendous thing.