# Yesterday I went to WH Smith...



## katie (Apr 3, 2009)

to buy 'Sweet' magazine.  The woman at the counter pointed at some offers they had going and said "would you like any half-price chocolate today?" 

hahaha.

Sorry, I found it really funny and had to stop myself making a diabetes & chocolate joke.


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## Northerner (Apr 3, 2009)

It would have shocked you if she'd added 'It's OK, just increase your bolus insulin to cover it, and try to eat it with a meal...'!

Didn't there use to be a magazine called 'Sugar'? Think it might have been a teenage mag, presumably not about juvenile diabetes...


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## katie (Apr 3, 2009)

Northerner said:


> It would have shocked you if she'd added 'It's OK, just increase your bolus insulin to cover it, and try to eat it with a meal...'!
> 
> Didn't there use to be a magazine called 'Sugar'? Think it might have been a teenage mag, presumably not about juvenile diabetes...



haha I know that obviously she didnt even know it was a diabetes mag for a start and even if she did the likelyhood is she doent know anything about diabetes but i had to laugh to myself. OK *Hopefully* this wont offend anyone but I nearly said "sorry, my foot would fall off" but I stopped myself 

Northerner, dont pretend you aren't sure whether Sugar is a little girls magazine about boys and make-up


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## Caroline Wilson (Apr 3, 2009)

Northerner said:


> It would have shocked you if she'd added 'It's OK, just increase your bolus insulin to cover it, and try to eat it with a meal...'!
> 
> Didn't there use to be a magazine called 'Sugar'? Think it might have been a teenage mag, presumably not about juvenile diabetes...



There still is a teen magazine called Sugar.

Also in the poor sales assistants defense, and having worked in WH Smith, staff are trained to push the chocolate that is on offer, even when people are buying diet and fitness magazines, or as in this case a magazine for diabetics. I always say sweetly (no pun intended) no thank you I'm sweet enough (pun intended) already.


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## katie (Apr 3, 2009)

yeah i know they have to, they do it everytime i go in, but i havent been in for a while and found it really ironic


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## Northerner (Apr 3, 2009)

katie said:


> ...Northerner, dont pretend you aren't sure whether Sugar is a little girls magazine about boys and make-up



I wasn't sure, but I will admit to fancying The Four Marys in my sister's 'Bunty' comic - thankfully, I grew out of that in about 1970 (probably when she started buying 'Jackie')


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## aymes (Apr 8, 2009)

katie said:


> to buy 'Sweet' magazine.  The woman at the counter pointed at some offers they had going and said "would you like any half-price chocolate today?"
> 
> hahaha.
> 
> Sorry, I found it really funny and had to stop myself making a diabetes & chocolate joke.



I just bought mine and got asked the same question, I too resisted a little joke back!


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## mikep1979 (Apr 8, 2009)

went into my local smiths yesterday and they had all half price chocolate everywhere!!!! had a chuckle as my mate asked me if i wanted a boost bar as it was reduced to 35p. only went in to get a paper which are now located near the back of the store lol.


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## Northerner (Apr 8, 2009)

aymes said:


> I just bought mine and got asked the same question, I too resisted a little joke back!



I might buy one this week - any suggestions as to how I might respond? Currently, just have katie's suggestion of my foot falling off...!

Actually, I've just remembered that Sweet haven't replied (and probably won't now) about the poems I sent them - you should be boycotting them!


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## Copepod (Apr 8, 2009)

*free offers in shops*

I was shopping in Sainsbury's yesterday, so heard an announcement that children who said "Happy Easter" to a members of staff at customer service desk would be given a small Easter Egg - or piece of fruit available if prefered. Not sure if that was on religious or dietary grounds, as someone who prefered not to say "Happy Easter" is less likely to object to a chocolate egg, which has less religious connections than the name of the festival - although that comes from ancient fertility ceremony and is related to word "oestrogen". Sorry - obviously thought too much about this - and didn't manage to find a child to take with me to get chocolate...


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## Caroline (Apr 8, 2009)

And in the office we are playing swap the Easte Egg. My manager gave me mine and said don't eat it all at once...


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## katie (Apr 8, 2009)

Northerner said:


> I might buy one this week - any suggestions as to how I might respond? Currently, just have katie's suggestion of my foot falling off...!
> 
> Actually, I've just remembered that Sweet haven't replied (and probably won't now) about the poems I sent them - you should be boycotting them!



Sorry I only have other morbid ideas such as "I will go blind" 

right that's it Northerner, I'm boycotting them!


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## Northerner (Apr 8, 2009)

katie said:


> Sorry I only have other morbid ideas such as "I will go blind"
> 
> right that's it Northerner, I'm boycotting them!



Thanks katie - a bit of solidarity is what we need! Or, maybe if everyone wrote to them suggesting that it would be really good if they had a poetry section with some funny poems, maybe written with a Northern accent...


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## Caroline (Apr 8, 2009)

Northerner said:


> Thanks katie - a bit of solidarity is what we need! Or, maybe if everyone wrote to them suggesting that it would be really good if they had a poetry section with some funny poems, maybe written with a Northern accent...



Topical poetry that is funny written in a Northern accent, perhaps if there are any good illustrators here someone could do nice liitle pictures, especially if Milly Moles.


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## Northerner (Apr 8, 2009)

I just got a reply from 'Balance' about some of the poems I sent them for consideration - this is what they said:



> Many thanks for sending some samples of your poetry to Balance; we really enjoyed reading the poems - especially 'Ode to a perfect pancreas'. We think many Balance readers would also enjoy your poems, and so the editor will keep them on file for possible publication in future issues of Balance.
> 
> Thanks again for sharing your poetry with us.



Sounds a wee bit more positive than 'We've chucked them in the bin', so you never know...!


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## Caroline (Apr 8, 2009)

I look forward to reading your poems in Balance and you get paid lots of money for them...


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## katie (Apr 8, 2009)

Northerner said:


> I just got a reply from 'Balance' about some of the poems I sent them for consideration - this is what they said:
> 
> 
> 
> Sounds a wee bit more positive than 'We've chucked them in the bin', so you never know...!



Did Admin also send the letter about how well the forum is going? this would be a great way of getting them in


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## Northerner (Apr 8, 2009)

Caroline said:


> I look forward to reading your poems in Balance and you get paid lots of money for them...



Unfortunately, they don't pay, but hopefully they will use the money they've saved to find me (and everyone!) a cure


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## Northerner (Apr 8, 2009)

katie said:


> Did Admin also send the letter about how well the forum is going? this would be a great way of getting them in



I think she's still working on it - but has something else occupying her mind at the moment, so probably a little distracted!


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## katie (Apr 8, 2009)

Northerner said:


> I think she's still working on it - but has something else occupying her mind at the moment, so probably a little distracted!



yeah, now we know why she is sooo busy


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## vince13 (Apr 9, 2009)

If N's poems are going to be in it, all the more reason for giving Balance a thorough read next time it comes through the post !


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## Sugarbum (Apr 10, 2009)

I cant seem to find this "Sweet" magazine anywhere! WHSmiths didnt have it when I went in, is it rare?

Perhaps I have got Balance withdrawal. I get sooooooooo excited when I open my letterbox and see it in there. 2 months is too long for me. Anyone else just as sad?


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## katie (Apr 11, 2009)

It took me a while to find in WH Smith, It was high up and well hidden.  Have another look and spend about 10 minutes, you will probably find it


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## sofaraway (Apr 11, 2009)

I found it with the sort of cooking and home section of the magazines. I don't know when the next one is due out so might be that if it's soon some stores will have sold out. 

I've only just joined DiabetesUk again after not being a member for a while and I was excited to receive my Balance magazine. I'm sure there is enough stuff to publish it monthly!


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## Einstein (Apr 11, 2009)

I couldn't find 'sweet' either and rather than risking sounding like I was looking for a teeny-boppers mag I went online and subscribed to it - all due to reading this thread, as I'd never heard of it. I'm worried that its high on the shelves as well 

The latest issue dropped through the door a couple of days ago, I had a scan of it, for me, it didn't read as well as Balance which I pick up at the first opportunity, read cover to cover in one hit.

Perhaps its because its a commercial magazine, but I found the feel to be a little superficial, 'where can we get some material cheaply to pad out the mag...' but I reserve total judgement until the next couple of issue have landed, oh, that takes me to half way through my subscription! Still at ?15 for the year, it didn't seem too bad.

Balance on the otherhand does have some challenging articles, publishes letters from nurses who are so stuck up they can't bear watching diabetics inject in public, but still they publish a wide cross section and there is something in every issue that appeals to someone, new, informative, creative. And at suitable times, it goes back over old ground, publishes new articles on similar topics to a couple of years ago, of course new diabetics pick of their first issue of Balance everytime its published and those of us who have a couple of years under our belts, well, a refresh isn't such a bad thing is it..

But its good someone reaises there is a market, with the recipes I wonder if spending the ?15 a year on subscriptions on a couple of good diabetic recipe books each year wouldn't be better value? But then, they don't drop through the door every two months and there is more than recipes of course.


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