Croxley Green

In the little space between the towns of Rickmansworth and Watford in Hertfordshire lies the village of Croxley Green. Its a lovely place with a large green with pubs galore, big houses, a smattering of shops and lovely friendly people and even a stop on the very far end of the Tube, at almost the very end of the purple Metropolitan line.

It was here in somewhere towards the end of September 1997 I found myself. At the time I wasn't working in the library, I was a deputy manager for Forbuoys, the Newsagents and I had found myself in something of a predicament. The bosses I worked for at the time had found someone else to do my job and were keen for me to leave them. Now I had two options, I could leave Forbuoys altogether (which may have been wise at the time considering) or I could accept a promotion and run a shop of my own.

I was shown two shops in the end, one in Barnet, which really wasn't in a good way, and the one on Baldwins Lane in Croxley Green. We drove up there, had a look and I immediately knew I felt at home in the place. The shop itself was small (so easy to run!) and the staff seemed friendly, and there was a lovely big 2 bedroomed flat that came with the job, just above the shop. Well that swung it for me. After a visit with my Mum and Dad, I agreed I'd take the job, and so Croxley became my home for the next 3 years.

Now the job itself wasn't great. Forbuoys I have to say are some of the worst employers I've ever encountered. They promised things they couldn't actually deliver (like days off, holiday cover, assistant managers), and there were times when I found myself running two shops across opposite ends of Rickmansworth for the same money, which was beyond belief, and yet I have very fond memories of my time there.

We did have a lot of fun in the shop. I had several very good members of staff who did their level best to help me out and make my life a whole lot easier than it could have been. There was Gladys who had worked there for 20 years or more, knew everyone in our side of the village and was a bit of an institution around the place. She was great once we'd got the measure of each other. She wouldn't suffer any nonsense from me, and similarly I wouldn't from her, but we got on very well and she was always happy to help me out if she could (she ran me to and from hospital for the check-ups at the hospital after my fits in 1998). There was Christine, who had a love-hate relationship with Gladys, but who was a gossipy loud and fun person to work with, and who eventually became my supervisor. And for 6 months I had my cousin Adam living and working with me as my assistant manager too which was good.

I also had the usual round of teenagers working for me too, Darren who did the crossword with me every Sunday morning, Gary who worked after school, Matt who was one of the few people in the world to ever hear me shout (he never forgot that!) and of course the wonderful Lewis, who worked his way up from delivering papers (he was the area's paperboy of the year 1999!), to working behind the till and by the time I left was opening up the shop for me and generally being one of the best mates I've ever made. He put up with all my complaining and kept me sane and I'm pleased that we remain friends to this day.

What made the job very special for me and why I remember my days in Croxley with great affection despite the problem with the job, was the wonderful community spirit in the place. It was lovely. I knew so many people. If you are working in a village shop for several years you do of course get to know a hell of a lot of people, and I was very much a part of the community. There were so many great people I knew then, and its a great feeling to always be a part of what's going on around you. There was a real feeling that everyone cared about each other, that's rare in these days and I won't ever forget the two big cards I got when I left that was full of good luck messages from my staff and customers and friends I had made. That was what made Croxley special.

Seeing the Millennium in was special too. All the streetlights were turned off and there was a torchlight parade through the village, as seemingly the whole population made their way up to the Green. There was a mini Big Ben erected there and a huge fireworks display that went off as the new century started. The whole thing had been paid for by the residents of Croxley and it was a wonderfully happy atmosphere that night.

I have happy memories of my flat and the good times I had there over the three years. Of course I can't share any of the outrageous things that happened there since I wish to spare the blushes of myself and my friends, but we did have some great parties there, and some very happy times... some not so good times too, but you tend to forget them as the years go on.

So it was a big surprise yesterday when I had a phone call from the Manager of Forbouys in Croxley. A big smile came over my face when I learnt that Lewis had become the new manager! I was really pleased for him and I hope that he can make a success of it. It was rather pleasing when he told me that the same customers were still coming in and that several had been asking after me. Maybe I did make an impression! Croxley remains a part of my life to this day.

By one of those curious twists of fate that never seem to really happen it turned out that my lovely boyfriend Steven Alexander, who took me back to the flat where he lived (above a shop with his cousin...) grew up in a little village between Rickmansworth and Watford called Croxley Green. What a bizarre coincidence!

6th February 2004