The Bluestocking Pub: Infinite Cocktails, Questionable Logistics

[MyrtleLion]

Welcome to the nth iteration of the Bluestocking women’s pub, where gerbils are staff, the drinks are free, and alcohol has no effect except to get you to the sweet spot just before the drink you really shouldn’t have had.

Men can go to the Staunch Ally next door.

It’s OK if you don’t understand. Just assume everything is normal.

Previous thread is here:

https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/womens_rights/5523989-bluestocking-womens-pub-its-maytime

It sounds intriguing. I like the original (not B&W) film a lot.

Yesterday my 'plans' - mainly go to town, do the grocery shop - got derailed early when a friend phoned to ask about the details wrt to the death of another friend and neighbour that she'd just seen posted on rip.ie. I hadn't seen the notice, knew the person concerned had been ill over the last few years, still shocked.

So after thinking it over, rummaged in the cupboard beside the cooker and found an un-opened bottle of whiskey, washed the dust off it, grabbed the left-over half of the boiled caked I made on Tuesday, and headed to neighbour's house. A few hundred yards short met another car and pulled into let it past and it was the new-made widow in a dry robe - she's a year round wild swimmer and had decided to keep her poutine which seemed good on all levels. She told me her sons were in the house, so I proceeded, met them, visited the room where old friend was laid out, said prayers and goodbyes, settled down with a mug of tea. People were coming and going, widow came back. All the family were in that early stage where you have to keep repeating the story until they believe what has happened.

Relatively speaking, he had a good end - still going to card games and church, in the pub with lots of friends on Saturday, took a bad turn on Sunday, into local hospital on Monday, died the next day surrounded by family.

And a visitor brought news that someone else local has died - she has been in a National role in recent years, so our village church will have another huge funeral two days after friend's. I'll be going to crafts club rather than to that mass and have been planning a circuitous two sides of a triangle route home because the village will be chock-a-block at going home time.

And. The local ancient graveyard has a very long-established 'things go in threes' superstition, so people will be looking around and wondering - who's next?

Not me, I'm going into different one.

I'd better write a shopping list because my brain is scrambled after all that.

Wonderful news for Fuzzy - have lovely, light-hearted day today and enjoy being with your DH.

But awful news for Deano. I tend to think that sudden deaths are pretty good for the deceased, but are definitely the most hideous shock for family and friends. Taking cake and staying for cuppa seems the best approach.

Long slow declines are awful to watch - an elderly relative of mine has been on the downhill slope for the past 5 years or so, and very noticeably for the past two and a half. Unhappy, uncomfortable/ in pain, bored, can't do anything, focus gone so can't even read any longer, will have to go into care but hates the idea.

Morning, everyone. It's been a busy few days for me with "family stuff" (and via Teams, which is just a ridiculous way to conduct family discussions!) but needs must. Sorry that Myrtle seems to be having a setback, hope things improve soon. And, yes, Deano, sometimes things come in threes, for some strange reason. Especially in a village like mine!

Can I suggest cinnamon rolls and coffee all round, my treat! (or suitable substitutes?)

Edith, I definitely want to go quickly, no hanging around getting worse and more useless. In fact, I'm already convinced in how I will go, as it's something in the family, so I shall be very surprised if I live to be a healthy 95 year old!

I have managed to keep following Gosie around (not in a creepy way ) -loving the latest installments!

Both my parents had a rough last 5 or 6 years, which is why I'm glad my neighbour (mid 80s) was still fairly mobile and fully compos mentis until his last week, but that people could see he wasn't going to be around for ever, and had some time for those last parting conversations. His widow will have her children and grandchildren living nearby, many friends, and her swimming buddies.

Bereavement is tough whatever shape it takes, but for me, my mother's death still gave a me a horrible shock even though she'd been housebound for a couple of years - she was awake while I was getting up and dressed (could hear her breathing through the mammy monitor) dead when I got downstairs. A moment that will stay with me. My father dwindled away very gently over his last few days and it isn't a bad memory at all. To use the word of the week, he'd been in a liminal state for a while, but she had been all there, just with an un co-operative body.

I'm so sorry about that. It stays with you, doesn't it? I was so blessed that I was able to see my Dad before he died, even though I lived 3,500 miles away. I got there as quickly as I could, had a precious 15 minutes with him, then he collapsed and was unconscious within minutes. He died the next day, never having regained consciousness, so those 15 minutes were all that I had. But, what a grace that have been given those few moments.

Some people have said that he was waiting for me, I suppose that's true, but even after 15 years, I still feel guilty that I didn't travel sooner. My late husband said that my Dad just would have died sooner, and I suppose there's some truth to that.

Ooh, sorry about all that! It's just brought it all back to me 😕

Don't be sorry Angle, we share sad things as well as silly/fun/interesting things💙
All human life is here, as well as a cross-section of animal life

Very glad your DH got good news yesterday, Fuzzy, you must have been so worried, and I hope you feel a weight has been lifted off your shoulders today, and have a lovely day - the sun will probably be shining, so that will help🌞

Sorry to hear about the deaths in your community, Deano, and very sad to hear the way you lost your DM, so suddenly, in a way that made the inevitable pain of losing your DM even more difficult.

'not lingering' is indeed a blessing.

I've made very sure my advance healthcare directive is up-to-date and filed!

Thanks , Marie 💚

The sun isn't shining here...we have sea mist. Hope it buggers off soon; my washing needs drying!

Morning everyone. Good news re Mr Puffling. You've both had an anxious few weeks - or longer, for you both, it must be a real weight off your shoulders.

Sorry to hear of the deaths in your village Dean but very pleased that you have plans for avoiding your local 'grim reaper' by using a different graveyard! 😁I quite like the old way of sitting with the newly departed and their families to mull over their lives. It may not always appropriate, of course, but we did that for my grandparents and I'm sure it must help with the grieving process. It seems largely a country tradition now.

No need to apologise for the talk in the Bluestocking triggering your memories Angle. My own mother died very suddenly and unexpectedly from a heart attack and the oddest things can bring forward that memory. It was all quite horrible at the time, of course, but with hindsight I can see that it was a much better option, for her at least, than living a long time in poor health.

I think our heatwave is finally arriving. I've just been down to the Post Office without wearing a coat! I think I'll join Angle for coffee and cinnamon rolls -thank you!- before doiing my outside jobs.

I honestly don't know which is worse. We've had a mix of sudden death and long, slow deaths. Awful. Sometimes it really makes no sense.
And it is painful.
Gosh way to darken the mood - sorry

The gerbils I saw in the flesh were asleep, snuggled together in a pair. Could see they were breathing quite fast as their little chests rose and fell
Very sweet. Looking at animals does give me a warm, fuzzy (puffling!) feeling

Good morning, Damson, and thank you for your sentiments 💜Yes, sometimes the sudden can be much better than the lingering. For my Dad, it was definitely the way he preferred to go, and he did have slow, terrible decline awaiting him due to other illness. I can comfort myself with that.

I did sit and "visit" ( as my mother called it) with him after he passed. It didn't seem right to leave him alone in the hospital room while my feckless cousins took my equally -unwell mother to the hospital cafeteria! (that's another story altogether)

On a "cheerier " note- ughh, outside jobs! I'd forgotten that I said I would do those once it stopped raining... no getting out of it now!

I agree, and it's beyond my ken. I do take some comfort in the grace given me to allow me a few minutes with my Dad, and the mercy given to my Dad in taking him quickly so he could avoid worse to come in future. I suppose I can credit that experience with my rediscovering my faith.. I know it's not how everyone approaches things, but somehow it makes sense to me 🙂

Fluffy animals definitely help! I don't have my cat anymore so I rely on regular cuddles with next door's cat.

So you did actually see in-the-flesh gerbils, LazyFox - lucky you!
I've never seen one, but I have quite a little collection of pictures of them stored away for the right moment in Bluestocking conversations, and this is one such moment

Friday morning arrived in Plymouth under conditions the British public traditionally describe as: “absolutely glorious.”
The temperature had climbed high enough for tourists to begin behaving as though Devon had recently annexed the Mediterranean.
The Hoe was crowded.
Children with melting ice creams.
Dogs dragging owners toward the sea.
Buskers.
Holidaymakers.
Somewhere in the distance, inexplicably, Morris dancers.
Kevin and Steve were fighting on the roof of a seafood kiosk.
“You said there’d be calamari!”
“I said there might be calamari!”
“That is not the same sentence, Steve!”
A toddler dropped half a sausage roll.
Both gulls vanished instantly.
Gosie found herself laughing aloud.
Actually laughing.
Which startled her slightly.
Somewhere between Lundy and Plymouth, the investigation had stopped feeling frightening all the time and started becoming—
Interesting.
Because now she could finally see it.
The stars.
Not hidden.
Embedded.
In railings.
On signs.
Near ferry barriers.
Inside crowds.
Inside movement.
That was the breakthrough.
The network was not hiding from ordinary life.
It was using ordinary life as camouflage.
People moved.
Ferries moved.
Tourists moved.
And underneath all of it, invisible routes flowed through the city like currents through water.
Gosie stopped beside the marina railings, sunlight flashing across the harbour.
Then suddenly—
“Oh.”
The entire shape of the thing shifted in her mind all at once.
A transport system.
Not for objects. For people.

---

“Excuse me, madam.”
Gosie turned.
Two harbour officers stood behind her.
Professional.
Calm.
Both female.
“We need to ask you about an item currently in your possession relating to a protected conservation zone.”
For a second she simply blinked at them.
Then the younger officer said quietly, “Left coat pocket. Confirmed.”
And Gosie felt the blood drain from her face.
“The blue token,” said the older officer. “Please hand it over.”
“Oh,” said Gosie. “I just found that.”
“I’m sure you did, madam.”
Something in her tone made panic arrive all at once.
“I haven’t done anything.”
“I am arresting you on suspicion of unlawful interference with protected harbour monitoring infrastructure.”
The words hit like cold water.
“What?”
People nearby had started watching now.
Not alarmed.
Interested.
Because Britain considers low-level public embarrassment a form of entertainment.
“This must be some kind of misunderstanding—”
“We can discuss that at the station.”
The younger officer stepped gently but firmly to her side.
Everything after that happened far too quickly.
The evidence bag.
The removal of the stars from her pockets.
A radio message she couldn’t properly hear.
The sudden awareness that this had been waiting for her.
Then sunlight vanished as a vehicle door opened beside her.
Five minutes later, Gosie found herself in the back of a police car speeding through bank holiday traffic toward Plymouth custody suite while somewhere behind them Kevin screamed: “I TOLD YOU IT WAS THE CALAMARI!”

https://myrtlelion.substack.com/p/the-sound

Oh no, poor Gosie, this has taken a bad turn😱
Should we start crowdfunding to get Naomi Cunningham to defend her in court??

Oh Gosie...shall we all come down and spring you from jail?

!!!! They took Gosie's stars!

I am clearly not doing my "outside work "

Bribe Kevin and Steve to airlift Gosie out of there!

oh Gosie.

'I just found that'

Yeah, sure, that will show the cops they should just drift away and harass someone else.

It's a set-up! Police corruption!

Free the Gerbil One! 😡

I don’t think it was the real Police at all. The ones in Plymouth are quite jolly and post jokes on Facebook.

Oh no!!!

I think you may be onto something there!