Recently by Laura Davis
SUCH a lovely comment from Robert Scott on my post about memories of Outward Bound that I thought I'd republish it here for all to see. Thanks Robert...
Now at the age of 57, I remember my one month stay at the Aberdovey outward bound school. It was a part of my apprentiship programme from British Steel in Workington Cumbria.
I can say without any doubt it shaped the rest of my life.The challenges we faced and the confidence it left imprinted on my life, I just can't describe in words. Only throughout my life I have many a time reflected on my achievements gained at Aberdovey.
From the guy who couldn`t swim to be the last one out of the pool on the drownproofing test to the guy who was frightened of heights who abseiled 200 foot down a slate mine in the pitch dark.
Also the funny times when practising our canoe escape. I remember the tough guy who wouldn't be told by the instructor he was to near a sandbank in the estuary only to find when his canoe rolled over he got his head stuck in the sand.
Finally the feeling of coming home fitter than i have ever been since. May it carry on for ever.
SORRY about the extended break. You know the phrase "wnat something done, ask a busy person", well that's been the story of my life.
To make amends, here's a link to my interview with Stephen King, the photographer behind the Lewis's 5th Floor: A Department Story exhibition at the Conservation Centre. Sadly, it's even more topical than I would have liked it to be given the bad news that Lewis's is to close.
Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it...
THREE decades have passed since the newspaper was discarded on the very spot it still lies. "Make John happy," shouts the headline - a plea from Lennon's ex-girlfriend May Pang.
A thin layer of dust coats its yellowing pages and spreads across the floor once bustling with shoppers.
It's deserted now, a Marie Celeste of retail, but never quiet.

Music and messages are pumped through the tannoy system from the department store below, a disconcerting reminder of what could have been.
Yet it's the place's unchanging state that makes it special - a snapshot of the past, shut up in its entirety since the 1980s.

"It's a bit eerie really," says freelance photographer Stephen King, who has documented the space for a new exhibition and accompanying book - Lewis's Fifth Floor: A Department Story.
PREPARE yourself for a moving story behind door number 16...
OPEN today's door and find yourself inside one of Liverpool's best known buildings...
CAN you hear that? There's seems to be music coming from behind door number 14...
WHICH important Liverpool figure is behind door number 13?
SOME of you will hate what's behind today's door and others will love it. Any guesses?
WATER is a clue to what's behind today's door...
TODAY'S door provides an insight into one area of our city...
KNOWSLEY Council is looking for history enthusiasts to sign up to a free volunteer training course to become an ambassador in heritage.
Beginning in the new year, the course involves working with blue badge guides, storytellers and other heritage professionals.
Those who enrol will also benefit from all expenses paid visits to local museums as they train to act as ambassadors to promote the borough's rich heritage.



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