99

Oops! Last night's hastily-corrected post is the result of a senior moment and some premature excitement when, after a busy day, I must have thought we were already in 2009. Still, a 99th anniversary will still be cause for celebration. And what better to celebrate it with than that icon of the British summer, the 99, AKA a vanilla ice cream in a cone with a flaky chocolate bar stuck in the top. It's redolent of childhood summers by the sea and, though there are many things which frankly taste better, I love the jaunty angle of the flake bar sticking out of the top and boundless spirit of optimism that says, "if we just stick a flake bar in the top of this blob of ice cream, it'll turn it into something really special and rather sophisticated."

It's the same spirit of quiet optimism and determination to press on that you see in people taking a seaside stroll at a faded seaside resort like Skegness, in the teeth of a stiff wind and lashing rain, hoping that the weather will brighten up soon, but determined to make the best of the day, whatever the elements throw at them.

The 99 - simple, innocent, what you see is what you get. Fantastic. Appropriately enough, and not many people know this, the 99 was originally invented by the pioneering aviation boffin Barnes Wallace. Well it would be appropriate, if I hadn't just made that last bit up. Chocs away, chaps!