Day 2700
Sunday June 7th 2026
Winchester
Late in due to waiting for a young bloke driving from Slough to pick up the white Squier Strat which he won on eBay for £121. I wasn’t playing it and well, it might as well go to someone who WILL. It turns out it’s his first guitar – I hope he likes it. I was a bit sad to see it go but sod it, it paid for itself several times over and I can’t become sentimentally attached to every bloody guitar I’ve got. Speaking of which, I’ve got the Faith back from Jimmy. he did some fret levelling and sorted out another bridge as I’d broken the one on it in two different places. The repair cost me £200 so it needs to start paying for that!
Doll gave me a lift into town and I intended to make my way up to The Square but on the way there was no one at the flower sellers’ spot in the alley opposite M&S so I grabbed it. Early on, the arse from The Hambledon walked by with his (long suffering) wife. Haha, you thought you’d escaped me because I wasn’t set up near your stupid shop. But you can’t get away from me, mate. You’re walking down the high street and here I am!
That Ukranian woman who I met last year stood watching then came over. I’d forgotten her name so asked her again – it’s Noila or Noyla, well that’s what it sounded like. She’s bought her daughter an Epiphone electric guitar. I asked if it was a Casino – she didn’t know so I got a photo of one up on my phone and yes, it was a Casino.
‘Well, they’re great guitars. I mean, I played one for years out here. My first busking guitar, actually. (I couldn’t see myself getting rid of THAT one, I’m quite sentimentally attached to it, having seen me through a hell of a lot of experiences).
Anyway, she loves The Beatles – ‘I like them all, singing, but I like George most of all.’ I said he was my favourite, as well – ‘I like his songs and his voice – great songs.’
‘Yes, and we have a…record?’
‘You probably have a CD?’
‘Oh yes…and the songs are old, fifty years old.’
‘Well, more like sixty now.’
‘And…yes, there’s something…we sing them, me and my daughter, they sound good now.’
‘I know. They’ve got good melodies.’
‘Ah yes! Melodies, they are so good.’
She then got her phone out – ‘I am near M&S…OK.’
A minute later her daughter turns up – she’s taller than me but wouldn’t look at me! Two minutes later Noila donated a pound then they were off…and after fifteen more minutes, Doll turned up to say there was half an hour left on the car – she would wait for me in the South Downs Social bike cafe. I did another ten minutes or so, which made it an hour and ten minutes and that was it. The coinage wasn’t up to much – only £10.52 so no point in doing any more, anyway. I almost forgot this is a landmark Day. I mean, there are only 27 of them!