THERE'S THIS ONE PARTICULAR HARBOR…

I just opened a time capsule.
It didn’t look like one from the outside, it looked like a box that originally contained a pay as you go phone from BTcellnet. Model M3588 made in Germany.
The duct tape holding it together (doesn’t everything get held together with duct tape eventually?) kept one end closed but the box bulged and cracked on either side. Inside I found things I hadn’t looked at in ten years, but remembered almost immediately when I lay eyes on them.
I don’t think you need to read the whole list unless you’re interested , I think the reason i found this box of interest today was to remind me that I useta be more adventurous and took risks that basically came out OK. It will do me good to go over all the memories this box evokes:

A yellow gellato spoon. I boughtgellato several times while in Rome. It was blisteringly hot that week.
A tiny padlock and key, I belive it was in a christmas cracker from the london centre, They bought posh ones.
Tiny clissone pin that says “Roma” on it, depicts a bull and the initials SPQR. SPQR is an initialism from a Latin phrase, Senātus Populusque Rōmānus (“The Senate and People of Rome”,

A 125ml bottle that useta hold Pear juice. I got it on the Air France flight from Chicago to Rome (with connections in France at the Charles de Galle airport.) It is labeld “Pera” and the brand is “Yoga” Subtitled “Succo e polpa.”  It no longer smells of pear juice and inside is a ring made of foil, probably from a stick of chewing gum.  I don’t remember putting it in the bottle. I think the juice came with the pancake and Nutella breakfast we had on that flight.
A battery powered set of Christmas LED lights. They do not light up. I don’t recall where I got those or if I ever wore them. The battery is so dead even LEDs won’t light up.
A cork from a bottle of wine that Bart and I shared with Professor Yuenes at a street cafe in Rome somewhere between the Pantheon and the Coliseum.  Its marked “Poire-06-2001.” As it was the first real wine I ever drank I can’t tell you if it was a good year or not. It was 2001 when we drank it if memory serves me. That’s probably not enough info to identify it but its a real cork not a rubber one which is supposed to be a good thing and that’s all I know about wine.
A receipt from the GNER (Great North Eastern Railway) its thermal paper and faded beyond readability. I rode the GNER up to Peters-borough on one of my failed attempts at single’s dating. I had a good meal though.
British Rail pass: Standard single from Inverness to Edinburgh (March 10th, 2000) £29.90p.  This must have been on the return from Loch Ness.
A “Wilts & Dorset” Explorer pass. (March 8th , 2000) Needed to get from the train station at Salisbury to Stonehenge and back.
A receipt from “Littlejohn’s.”  (March 9th, £28.70) an excellent restaurant in Inverness where the chicken tagliatelle was so good April went to the kitchen and proposed to the chef. She was jet-lagged at the time.
Another one for Littlejohn’s for the next day. We went back for lunch.
Receipt for “The Official Loch Ness Exhibition” (Not to be confused with the “Loch Ness 2000 Experience”) in Drumnadrochit; the village next to Loch Ness. March 10th, 11:47am.
Travel ticket receipt, March 11th, 2000. £58.00 London Euston station to Edinburgh.
SuperAdvance  return ticket  London Terminals  to Edinburgh. March 9th, 2000. £61.00 .
2 gold and pink crepe paper crowns such as you get inside Christmas Crackers. I had very limited experience with them at the time but they’ve become my second favorite thing about Christmas in England. Right behind Christmas Puddings!
A Sacajawea dollar minted in 2000, a quarter from the same year, with South Carolina statehood celebrated on the back.
Three Lire bills in 1000, 5000, and 50000 denominations.  Which if the Lira was still a valid currency would be roughly worth $37.50. I remember giving beggars in Rome the largest coins I had which were 500lire and feeling bad about it. I think 500lire was equivalent to 37 cents at the time. While there I bought a “diesel” brand backpack for 65,000 lira. I don’t think I was ripped off. Much.
A box that useta have a Fisher “space pen” in it. The box is in great shape. I don’t know whatever happened to the pen. Nor do I remember ever owning one. Has a cool picture on the front of the lunar lander and the moon buggy. I might have kept it just for that. (Kids ask your parents.)
Ticket stubs for various movies:
“Galaxy Quest” Wimbledon Oden May 1st, 2000.
“”Bridget Jones” Wimbledon Odeon “April 16th, 2000.
“Billy Elliot” (Clapham Screen 1, May 5th, 2000.) Liked it a lot, thought it could have been grimmer. Didn’t know about the musical back then though.
“Enemy at the Gate” (Wimbledon Odeon, March 19th, 2001.)  I recall not liking this movie. I don’t remember what my complaint was.

British Rail ticket: Std return (March 8th, 2000.) From Wimbledon to Salisbury. £20.40p You can’t get a train to Salisbury for that price these days, not even 1 way. I first thought this was when Tymme came over to geocache at Salisbury and Cardiff but what is more likely that it was part of my daughter’s visit during which we went from London to Salisbury to London to Inverness to Loch Ness and back via Birmingham.
Tourist Pass: “Your Passport to Glastonbury” includes “Glastonbury Lake Village, Glastonbury Abbey, Somerset Rural Life Museum and the Chalice Well. As in Holy Grail. Not valid with any other offer and oddly “Not valid at the issuing attraction.”
Excess travel/ticket Croyden to Gatwick £4.80.
Random other receipts that don’t indicate where they are from.
Pizza Express: Wimbledon High Street. March 7th, 2000. £18.50
Jessop Photo Centre, Salisbury. £17.75 March 8th, 2000

A small pamphlet advertising the Mac G4 Cube in Italian. I picked this up at the only store in Rome that sold and serviced Apple products. Or so they told us. It was 2001 though and we were lucky to find one that was able to help us. It was also lucky that the shop’s assistant manager spoke Italian and German and Bart spoke German and English.  I think I saw this skit on the Andy Griffith show…

Withdrawal: Royal Bank of Scotland. £50.00 March 10th, 2000.
Dixons:  Waterloo Station Branch for Polaroid  600 double glossy.  £17,99. “thank you for your custom”
Clogs and Gaucho: Priory Square, Birmingham. £14.98
Oasis, Birmingham. March 11th, 2000: £114.98 for two pair of Doc Martens. My feet hurt so much and were so swollen that I ended up with a size too big.
Bus pass for the Midland Bluebird LTD. £42.00. Cause we missed the bus from Inverness to Drumnadrochit.
March 10th, 2000: “What Everyone Wants, LTD.” Glasgow, Scotland. Pinstripe Trousers, Ribbon Top, Frilly 3/4 sleeve blouse,  Frilly edge Skirt. I think this was Scotland’s answer to “Everything for a dollar” stores. Thank you for your custom.
Reservation Confirmation for Edinburgh to London Euston. 11:55pm Caledonia Sleeper.  March 10th.
Day single rail pass Woking to Wimbledon. 27 Feb (or FBY as it says on the ticket.)
Day return: March 8th, 2000 Wimbledon to Salisbury.
London terminals to Birmingham stations.  March 11th, 2000 £29.
March 6th, 2000: Gatwick Airport to Gipsy Hill ( I think an alternate station instead of Wimbledon…Crystal Palace is near there..)
March 9th: Scottish City link: Edinburgh to Perth. A 4 hour or more bus ride.
March 8th, Wimbledon to “London Fulham Broadway” A short trip on the Tube. Not sure where I was going… Geocaching maybe?
March 11th: Birmingham to London terminals.
Tramlink: Church St (Croyden) to Wimbledon.  Feb 13th, 2001 2 tickets.
Admission ticket to Natural History Museum, November 1st, 2000.  Cromwell road,  London
London Bus rte 200 : Runs from Mitcham to Raynes Park. Probably more Geocaching travels, area just south east of Wimbledon. I think there was a cemetery there with an ‘angel’ themed mystery cache.

Business Cards:
“Wimbledon Palace” Peking and Szechuan Cuisine. Opposite Wimbledon Theatre. Which is probably where I was going after the chinese. I saw a live performance of Rocky Horror there. A different look to it than on the movie screen but just as rowdy audience.
A business card from Star Straf:  “A Sirius Commitment” address in Lawrence KS.
Brian Roe, Exec Producer of “Babylon Park.”
Business Card: “L’Angoletto Ristorante”  Piazzo Rondanini, 51 (Pantheon)  See Wine Cork elsewhere herein.
Comfort Suites Terre Haute, In.
Richard Jervis, Other World’s Library. didn’t recognize a business card with my name on it.

Ambassador Cinemas (in Woking)  Film guide for September 22-28. Featuring Space Cowboys, Me. Myself and Irene, Snatch, Shaft, Keeping the Faith, , Scary Movie, My Dog Skip, Stuart Little, Chicken Run, The Cell, Gladiator and X-men. Had to have been one of the last three, I haven’t seen the others.
Bus schedule for Edinburgh. We missed our connection by minutes thanks to a rude dustman. I didn’t know the main contents of this box would include that trip to loch Ness, it was better described elsewhere. I will find it and post it here. Suffice to say that I heard “Oh you just missed it mate!” more than once that weekend.
A small flier for a band called “The Great Lakes” appearing at the Spitz.  Old Spitalfields Market,  London.
Custom made Father’s Day card. And a second one from April specifically.
Tiny screwdriver with two bits from a Christmas cracker.
Empty mailing sleeve postmarked from Wimbledon to Indiana Bill in Michigan City.  I’m on the wrong end of the delivery to have this. It was padded and the custom sticker is gone so who knows what I sent him and why I kept the receipt.
Tour pass to Hampton Court Palace on April 10th, 2001. I took two house guests there. Enjoyed it but I recall my foot hurt so much I skipped some of the tour and sat in the tea house till they were done.
A tiny blue plastic coffee stirrer shaped like a canoe paddle. From that Air France flight I believe. Also have one from United (it has their logo.)
Tiny cutout teddy bear as if from a paper punch.
Zipper tag from that Diesel Backpack.  They all fell off in a few weeks of use. Still loved the bag though.
Receipt for “Ryeford Bed&Breakfast” in Inverness. Where a lovely lady took us in after we missed the connecting bus to Loch Ness. Room was tiny and April couldn’t sleep because she was jet lagged and because I snore. I think she hit me with a pillow.
A large brochure on how to enjoy the “Caledonia Sleeper” via Scotrail.
A brochure from the Victoria and Albert museum’s exhibit “Brand.new” Ran Oct 19th, 2000 to Jan 14th, 2001. Its in a plastic sleeve and folds out. I remember seeing an Apple newton and several other computers.
Deposit slip for ND credit Union on June 20th, 2001. Must have been home on vacation.
Packet of “Dietor: doclificante ipolcarico”  Italian Artificial Sweetener.

Emergency contact card for the London Centre (laminated)
Map of Rome. Folded so show the Vactian on top. I’ve never been there.
Label from a Itallian bottle of “Pepsi Light” featuring soccer player Filippo Inzaghi.
ID card from  IOM Casino, Douglas, Isle of Man.  I played nickel slots. Then was barred because I was wearing trainers.
Foil wrapper for a large chocolate coin featuring Notre Dame Cathedral. I’ve never been there either. This came from my friends who visited me in London after their stop in France.
A receipt for joining the English Heritage fund. March 8th, 2000. Two adult admissions to Stonehenge. If you buy a year’s membership you get  free admission to al their sites for just 8 pounds. I should have done that. I would have save money on all the stops at Stonehenge alone.
Pass to the Tower of London, March 7th, 2000.
Foil wrapper from a “Thorntons Continental Diplomat”  re-wrapped around a two-pence coin to preserve its shape. “Sugar roasted almonds and crispy hazlenuts, cushioned in smooth praline and encased in Thorntons continental chocolate.”  There was a Thornton’s chocolate shop in the Wimbledon Mall. I sometimes treated myself on the way home from work.
Discover Stonehenge brochure. Woefully out of date now.
New Year’s eve whistle that no longer makes noise.
Ticket stub for the Bluebell Historic Railway from Kingscote to Sheffield Park.  Dated August 18th, 2000. My birthday!
accompanied 30th anniversary ticket.
Empty sweetener packet from Harrods.
Pay as you go card with chip from BT. Valid until 12/2002
Ticket from London Terminals to Petersboro on November 9th.  WAGN railway. I enjoyed the ride but it was the first long distance solo trip out of London for me. A bit unnerving but I survived.
Ticket stub for Chalice Well and Glastonbury Abbey.
Ticket to the “Wimbledon Windmill Museum.”
Pass to London Aquarium, April 1st, 2000.
Four matchbooks, unused from “Heaven on Seven” 600 N. Michigan Avenue 2nd Floor Chicago, IL 60611 Went there with a friend to sample their wall of hot sauce.
Baggage ID tag for United Airlines.  I don’t fly them anymore.
A coin the size of a quarter marked ‘no cash value’ probably from the Isle of Man casino.
A lid to something called Mercier Champagne. Possibly associated with the cork I found earlier. Which would mean it wasn’t wine after all.
Remember this list is from a single box about half the size of a normal shoebox.