Chapter Six
The Read and Be Thankful
A Zimmer frame is only as good as the person who uses it.
Rodger and I took it in turns to run the shop, and two days after my verbal assault on Mavis it was my turn. I had to brave Lochgilphead and serve in the Read and be Thankful.
When Rodger first bought the shop, he had this idea of creating Lochgilphead’s answer to Waterstones in a rustic style. The shop is single-fronted and not that large, but somehow he managed to fit a corduroy couch and a Nescafé machine into it. Everything was beige and brown, with the odd yellow splashed about. Not my choice, but this is the west of Scotland where square sausages are the norm, and brown sauce is considered a condiment; brown is everywhere.
I left the cottage and walked along the Crinan Canal. I had a l
