Walter turned up at the M&S main entrance in Commercial Street just after 6:00 p.m. He didn’t know where exactly Riesling would emerge from and asked a member of staff in the front who directed him towards the staff entrance on Corn Street. Walter walked over the few meters and leaned against the wall waiting for Riesling. He took out his notebook and began to practice her name over and over again. He didn’t think it would be wise to forget his date’s name on their first date otherwise; it may turn out to be their only date! For once, he didn’t need to worry about remembering his own name but Riesling was not the easiest of names to recall in casual conversation. He practiced saying things like “So Riesling, what type of music do you like?” in a casual and natural way without having to refer to his notebook to look at her name. He was getting more nervous by the minute.
Riesling emerged from the staff entrance at exactly 6:13 wearing a pair of jeans, and a brown duffle coat. They stood facing each other and smiled self consciously not knowing what to do next. They looked and felt like a couple of teenagers on their first date. Finally, Riesling broke the deadlock.
Riesling: so pet, what do you want to do?
Walter: eh, how about we eat something and then maybe go to the cinema?
Riesling: there is a café called “Bake on Botty” a few minutes from here that serves good food
Walter: what kind of food do they serve?
Riesling: Good food
Walter: is it foreign food?
Riesling: I don’t know, I never spoke to it pet
Walter: I always talk to my food
Riesling: no you don’t, you hum to yours!
Walter carried the tray, Riesling ordered bacon butties for both of them, picked up a cheesecake for Walter and a carrot cake for her. Walter said he would like a coffee and Riesling picked up a bottle of Guinness for herself. Walter paid and they chose a table at the far end of the café.
When they sat down, Riesling took her coat off and to Walter’s delight, he noticed she was wearing a white blouse which revealed a name tag on the collar! Walter was grateful for her consideration and now he could relax about trying to remember her name. They both ate their meal in silence except for the usual “hummmmm, smack, bite, hummmmm, smack” noise from Walter. Riesling didn’t need to ask him what he thought of the bacon butties and cheese cake, she could hear his opinion.
Riesling: what do you scribble in your notebook pet?
Walter (looking briefly at her name tag): well Riesling, I sometimes make note of names or lists of things I must remember to do but mostly, I write down ideas
Riesling: Ideas? What kind of ideas pet?
Walter: new ideas for things
Riesling: I don’t understand
Walter: I design new things to solve problems or to do new things
Riesling: are you saying you are an inventor?
Walter: I suppose so
Riesling: are you a famous inventor pet?
Walter: good God, no, no, no!
Riesling: have you ever invented anything I know?
Walter: well, yes, yes, yes and no
Riesling: which one is it, yes or no?
Walter: it is both
Riesling: what do you mean pet?
Walter: I come up with new ideas but I don’t develop them then someone else comes along later and makes something very similar to my original ideas
Riesling: how is that possible?
Walter: it just is
Riesling: tell me about one of these ideas pet
Walter: let’s see, you know the car airbag? Well, I came up with something an idea when a car is involved in an accident, a bag full of soft feathers would burst open inside the car and cushion the impact on the driver and all the passengers. Car manufacturers came along after that and used air instead of feathers. Feathers are better because you can use them again and again
Riesling: anything else pet?
Walter: oh yes, I also came up with the idea for a vacuum cleaner which had no bag. I called it the “Nobaggie” but didn’t do anything with the idea until someone came along and produced the Myson vacuum cleaner.
Riesling: That’s amazing, isn’t it? Have all your inventions been invented again by someone else pet?
Walter: many of them and only the really good ones. The bad ones which I finally stop working on are, funnily enough, not invented again. Like five years ago, I came up with an idea for moving pavements which I called “Shift n Lift”, whereby you install moving walkways all throughout a small city like Newport but I abandoned it because it was too complicated and not very useful to elderly or fat people who like stopping at pavements for a chat. My invention would not have allowed them to stand still long enough to have a breather or say howdy and talk about the weather with their other elderly friends.
Riesling: you said you worked at the place where you examine ideas and register them, how does that work?
Walter: well, when you come up with a new idea for a design or an invention, you can apply to have it registered in your name in the UK, all over Europe or the entire world. You have to pay a fee to register it and once it is registered in your name, then no one else can make what you invented without your permission and they have to pay you if they want to use your idea in making a product
Riesling: so, why don’t you register your own inventions when you first think of them?
Walter: firstly, because I need to spend lots of time testing the ideas in my head to make sure they would work. I then have to draw diagrams and think of all the words to describe the invention. But even when I do all of this, I tend to forget to register the idea and before I know it, someone comes along and bang, they submit an invention, which is very close to my original idea!
Riesling: you must be really miffed about that pet, isn’t it?
Walter: no, no, no, not really
Riesling: what do you mean “not really”?
Walter: I enjoy the process of thinking of these ideas and inventions. I am not sure I want the trouble of registering them and then turning them into reality
Riesling: why not? Don’t you want to be rich and famous?
Walter: no, no, no!
Riesling: what do you want then?
Walter: I want to be with you
Riesling (blushing): go on with ya!
Walter (blushing back): I do, I do, I do.
By now, they both finished their early dinner and were ready to leave.
Walter: what do you want to do now?
Riesling: I don’t mind, what about you?
Walter: I don’t mind. Do you want to go to the cinema?
Riesling: not really. Do you want to come back to my house for a coffee and Turkish Delight?
Walter: Coffee and Lokoum you mean
At her house, Riesling sat down with Walter for a coffee and Turkish Delight. Walter shared his Turkish Delight with Izha, Riesling’s black cat, who obviously loved the stuff but loved being stroked and fussed over even more than licking Turkish Delight! They first talked about Riesling and how she was all alone in this world after her parents died a couple of years ago; they talked about her hobby with quizzes and puzzles; they talked about her love of bacon butties; then they talked about her love of order and precision.
They talked some more about Walter and his amazing memory for certain things except for names, including his, and everyday matters like paying bills or putting the rubbish bin out on Wednesdays; they talked about his work at the Patent Office; they also talked a lot about his inventions which fascinated and annoyed Riesling because she felt he was wasting his undoubted talents.
Walter looked at his watch and was surprised to see it was 11:10 already! He said he must go otherwise he would miss the last bus out to West Newport where he lives. Riesling told him where to get the X15 bus in a few minutes on Cardiff Road. To his surprise and delight, Riesling said she would love to see him again! Having a second date with a woman is a new experience for Walter.
So, for the next couple of months, Riesling and Walter met every Saturday outside M&S staff entrance on Corn Street and would often go to the Bake on Botty Café before either going to the cinema or returning to her house for a hot drink and Turkish Delight. For the first time in their lives, Walter and Riesling were able to open up to another person and talk about their feelings, fears and thoughts. They got to know one another very well. But still, Walter found it difficult to remember Riesling’s name and that caused him a lot of embarrassment. Riesling understood and didn’t really mind, she just wore her M&S nametag on her lapel pretending to have forgotten it. One Saturday, Riesling said she had the day off next Saturday so, they arranged to spend the whole Saturday together by going to Cardiff for the day.
To read the next chapter, please click here: Chapter 6
