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Written On 18th July 2021

Hello Nudgers,

Well its really hotting up! Thank the wonderful arcade lords that we are FULLY air conditioned (with air curtains) in Bognor Regis. All Kent sites are also air conditioned, which is something not only we need but the ageing machines need too! 

I cannot believe how unpredictable the weather is, and although some do care, some may not, but the planet has been firing the warning shots for some time now. The world that we live in is screaming out at us all to do something, and many of us are listening and wishing to act, but very little is happening it seems. Something is the next 20-30 years will happen, but I fear that could be too little, too late.  We must look to Germany in recent days and see how devastating flooding can be, we know this ourselves first hand.

So the 19th of July 'freedom day' has still gone ahead, its a landmark that we should all be celebrating but we all are very pensive about. I have always had the view that once we are all double jabbed then there is very little that we can do from there. Remarkably there are still those who have not taken the vaccine, which does clearly reduce mortality rate, but also does NOT prevent being infected (as proven).

The fact that masks will not be compulsory will be a relief for many, but mostly for the businesses that have to police the mask wearing with little power to actually do so. Most of the country have been 'exempt' for months anyway, so the masks being non mandatory is a blessing for any worker. 

The cases for the pandemic are rocketing, and they will soar now that we lift further, however wrong or right we must learn to live with this, not be ruled by it. 

Behind the scenes with the arcade it has been hard going, it always is. There are a lot of things that I would love to share, but it will only cause issues so I cannot. There is much work going on, and there are new things on the horizon.

So way back in February we asked the Americans to produce our new carpet for Maidstone, and exactly a month later it was done and ready to ship. Expected arrival of our carpet was mid April, altered towards the end when we added another roll. The Maidstone arcade was emptied into Chatham, Tonbridge and Bognor Regis and our units. Sadly the carpet did not arrive and we made an announcement for the delay, something we were gutted to do. This meant re-filling Maidstone again, and this WILL be our biggest issue for certain.

We looked to be bringing Maidstone back for around July/August time but time has continued to roll by, still no sign of the carpet. This became a major worry and although we have used the Americans before we had concerns that they were one of many companies that could of gone bust. They kept in touch so the concerns no longer was with them, but where was the carpet?

Our carpet for our beloved Reel Fruits was officially 'lost at sea' and this is something that I personally have never encountered after importing numerous consignments over the years. So like a dog with a bone, and HUGE credit to all involved, we found the carpet, in Amsterdam! So after a hell of a chase around, we got hold of the next available lorry and got it back to the UK for delivery to Maidstone (see pic)

So this leaves the burning question.. what are we doing now, and when will Maidstone re-open? All important questions and I will not rule out another arcade opening BEFORE Maidstone, however that said we are aiming for October, which would be a very important anniversary date for the old place, plus it dots the i's and crosses the t's for something else. 

Yes very cryptic and it always is, this is the style that we have been entertaining you all for almost 12 years! 

So new additions to Tonbridge include Carry On Winning and Money Spinner. For Bognor Regis we have a couple of Equinox machines, Place your bets, Gold Rush stampede and some other gems INCLUDING a £25 Crazy fruits hi tech ( yes you just read that correctly £25) a super rare one that. 

We hope to have some machine shuffles in about a weeks time, then again just before party day. 

There are some super things planned. 

Anyway, its late, I am exhausted and can barely keep my eyes open, so I will say TTFN but we WILL be back each and every week, even during the mental summer season that awaits us.

Keep smiling, and never stop believing.

Dave, Amelia, Ruby and Scarlett xxxx