My Grandma makes the world’s most critically acclaimed coffee cakes. And if you care to argue the point, you’ll have to take it up with the company. The company being My Grandma’s of New England Coffee Cakes.

I recently purchased one of these wonderful cakes and I highly recommend them. But be forewarned, they’re a bit expensive. Part of the cost is in the vanilla they use - “100% pure real bourbon vanilla ($92.00 per gallon)” - as they explain in the literature provided with each cake.

They go on to state, “We’d rather explain the price than apologize for quality.” I think that is a very powerful statement and certainly goes along ways in the “it’s all about price” argument.

Staying in a central London hotel last week, I came across this rather bizarre notice pinned to the wall:

OK, so if it’s ‘relaxed’ before 9.30am, is it back to the usual chaos and confusion thereafter – guests ducking flying bread rolls, orange juice poured into diners’ laps, staff behaving in a particularly surly way? (“Coffee? Of course: you do look like you need waking up. A pastry? No, Mr. Williams, looking at your waistline, you really shouldn’t…”).

And then there was a correction in the Guardian newspaper on Friday that I’m sure will appeal to anyone who’s ever had to do any proofreading:

(Blogging does this: it makes one forever on the lookout for things that just cry out to be added to the site!)