A little Treasure

I was in Treasure in Mumbles today. It's one of those 'nice' shops, full of expensive glass and beautiful things as well as Belgian chocolates and other goodies. There was a sale on and lots of the shelves were empty, indeed, some of the shelves had been sold. Even so I don't think the assistant need have looked quite so far down her nose when I asked, 'Should I assume from this that the shop is closing down?'

The owners are retiring after 48 years running the shop - and did they have a branch in the old Sidney Heath building in town? - so they must only have been open for a few years when I worked in the coffee shop there as a waitress in 1974. In those days it was only one shop wide; it later expanded both ways so the frontage covers three shops now.

The coffee shop in around  1978, from the Treasure Facebook page

We had one regular customer who sticks in my memory. We called him 'the professor' - he may or may not have been an academic - and he was very particular about his plate, his cup, his tea, his scone. I'd serve him and then we'd watch to see if everything passed his inspection. He was a tall, thin, slightly sad-looking man; maybe he'd been unable to find a companion who could live up to his rigorous standards.

The soup and scones were freshly made on the premises every morning - but from a packet mix. When customers asked me to compliment the cook I'd just smile and nod.

The highlight of my short time there was when the entire Wales football squad came in and I was complimented on my legs. (That wasn't the reason they came in incidentally, just to admire my appendages.) I suppose I should have been offended and gone all feminist on it but they were different days and, besides, I've never been one to turn down a compliment. And at least they were my own real legs. Unlike the soup.