Burger King or McDonald's?

I've been thinking. Uh-oh, I hear you say. Which is better, Burger King or McDonald's? Here are a few points in favour of each:

Burger King

• 20% off with NUS
• Regularly have two for one offers on burgers
• Angus burgers are far higher quality than McDonald's
• The flame-grilled flavour really comes through

McDonald's

• Free cheeseburger with meal or free fries with burger with NUS
• Cheaper than Burger King
• Fries are a hell of a lot better than Burger King
• Special sauce on the Big Mac can't be beat
• Generally open longer hours
• Always faster service

To sum things up, I think that the Burger King burgers are far superior, but McDonald's win with their special sauce and better fries. I believe that McDonald's are generally far nicer environments in which to eat, they tend to be more spacious, much lighter, less run-down. When the vouchers are running I believe that Burger King may be the better value of the two. Without the vouchers I don't think I would venture into Burger King.

Damn you, Hamilton

I awoke today of great news. Mountain Dew has become a sort of fetish for me, and I practically had a nerdgasm when I heard that it would be coming to the UK. Today the nice bloke from Sainsbury's gave dropped me a bell saying that they had the wondrous beverage in. I set about trekking over there. It was a whole two hour trip all told, what with waiting for the Hamilton bus to come round and everything, but I have no regrets. Actually I wish a little bit that I had bought more than 8 bottles of the stuff!

As you can see, it comes in a lurid fluorescent light sabre of a bottle. A bottle contains two thirds of your recommended daily sugar allowance. I am a happy man today. :)

A quest for Mountain Dew

Today my quest for the delicious Dew started remarkably well. I awoke to an email from Sainsbury's which stated that the Sainsbury's Local in Hamilton should have some in stock. Upon phoning said store I was informed by the manager that they *don't* have any in, and have no plans to. He kindly pledged to phone me back if they do though, which is nice of him. I now await news of Dew eagerly, ready to make the 41 minute journey via public transport to said location if the need arises. I've also emailed Sainsbury's again about said confusion on their part. News awaits...

North vs South Pt. 1

I used to love disparaging the North in favour of the South until I actually went down there. Let me just say, there is no better advert for the North than the South. The people are so much friendlier in the North. And it's so beautiful up here. Another one f0r me is how most pubs are really good real ale pubs. In the South they are so much rarer, and not as good when you do find them.

The set-up

Okay, after getting the two previous posts' arguments off my chest, here's the skinny. This well be my outlet for all my gripes and complaints that no one should feasibly be forced to listen to. It's also the closest I'll come to writing a diary, my problem is, I don't want to write just for myself because if no one else can read it, what's the point? (not to dismiss diarists, it's just that they don't work for me). So I intend to post at least semi-regularly, and it will be about whatever is on my mind at the moment. Peace out. :)

Pub showdown

Popping into my village pub for a swift pint with some mates on Monday night, I found the place surprisingly busy (well, four other people, two of whom promptly left when we arrived). The landlady, Sue Wass (Big Sue, but for your own sake, not to her face) is effortlessly rude. "Whaddya want?" and our ordered beers are slammed down on the abr for our consumption. Calls for other items (crisps for example) draw a drawn out sigh from Big Sue. Retreiving the crisps calls for a step to her right you see (how can customers be so difficult?). Efforts at exaggerated politeness in an attempt to provoke the most base level of courtesy on her part are in vain.

After some light hearted banter with the other patrons of the establishment (from Richmond, 6 miles away, so some people must like it) and a stroking of one of Sue's Basset Hounds in a doomed attempt to curry her favour, I attempted to break the ice with some friendly conversation with Sue. I ask whether Ian Botham (Britain's greatest sportsman of all time, now the Shredded Wheat man) who lives next door to her comes in often, as I remember a newspaper interview of his in which he claimed that he did, which I did not believe. If I tell you that it ended with Sue saying, "He's a local, you're a local. You come here once a year, he's come here once!" then I think you get an idea of how the conversation went.

Needless to say, I'll be back next year.

Asda showdown

Having only been to an Asda once before my move down to Oadby, I (retrospectively) erroneously presumed that they were all like the formentioned branch. This is like thus:

• thin aisles difficult for two people to pass through at the same time

• obnoxious customers who antagonise the already fraught situation

• retarded (actually) or otherwise rude and disinterested staff

• guilty until proven innocent on the ID front, not much nicer when proof is given

That is why me sojourn to the Darlington branch of Asda was such a pleasant surprise. The expected thin aisles were actually about double the size of it's sister, people were polite and well-mannered and did not cause you trouble when you tried to get past. A query was taken to a member of staff who could not have been more obliging or friendly. The checkout boy engaged in friendly conversation, and one did not resent showing him ID because he was so nice about it (nice meaning not being aggressive). Another customer made a friendly joke at a snippet of overheard conversation between me and my friends. Overall, it was actually a nice experience at the Darlo branch as opposed to the torrid chore of visiting the Oadby branch.

I actually think a good part of the difference is due to the public attitudes towards shopping in Asda. In The Midlands, Asda was seen as downmarket and not a desirable place to be. In The North, Asda is a homegrown business, and thrifty Northerners on the whole simply love bargains, regardless of class.