Randomness
When I was a kid I collected a weekly magazine called 'The Art of Fishing' it was one of those things that entice you in the first week with a folder and some free gifts and you collect it weekly until you have a full folder.
I remember going in to Pollocks newsagents in Bangor (incidentally one of the best independent newsagents, not sure if it is still there) to get the latest edition of the magazine. I couldn't find it on the shelf, so I asked the guy behind the counter if he stocked it. He went off on one, and gave me a lecture about how he would never stock such drivel, that I would be better to save the £1.50 a month for a year and buy myself a good book by an author who was interested in the subject rather than some bored journalist knocking out 'The Art of Fishing' one week and the 'Collecting Antique Dolls' the next.
I remember thinking he was a bit of a dick at the time, but I would now like to publicly admit he was correct.
Comments
Yeah, but if you hadn't bought the magazine you might not have found your interest in fishing. I see those things as a stimulant - a cheap introduction to a subject area. The information is never going to be as in-depth or accurate as a specialised book, but I believe they do have their uses.
As a youngster, would you really have been able to save your money for a year, and would you have still bought a fishing book at the end of the year? I'd have forgotten why I was doing it and what I was saving for and bought a kite or something equally as useless.
Posted by: Duggie | August 5, 2003 10:42 AM
I suppose that is true.
I bet Mr. Pollock was waiting for days for someone to come in and ask for one of those magazines.
They are duff though, you invariably forget to buy an issue, then your whole collection is banjaxed.
Posted by: Andy | August 5, 2003 11:15 AM
Pollocks is also good for porn. In fact that's what it's best known for, that and pipes. Apparently. So my friend says. That friend, there.
Posted by: Stephen | August 6, 2003 10:53 AM
I have the complet set on the shelf! used it quite a lot when i started fishing, there was a really good bit called "Know your spot", where experts showed you how to fish a particular strech.
Posted by: ross | January 5, 2004 09:38 PM