SPENDING MONEY

Lynne and an unnamed friend are at the beach. Lynne asks her friend whether her boyfriend is rich. She replies that he is very rich and that he gives her £250 a week to spend. Lynne says that that is ridiculous to which the friend agrees and says she will get him to increase it to £500 a week.

From the look of the beach, Lynne and her friend are in Brighton, for it seems to be a very rocky beach. Is George with her, or is Lynne making the most of the hot weather by taking a trip down to the seaside? Did she travel down with this friend, or has she gone to visit her? From the conversation, it would seem that Lynne is enjoying an impromptu trip down to Brighton to see a friend who lives there.

This friend must have offered to pay for the ice-creams, or lunch, in order for Lynne to have asked such a personal question. But asked it she has. Does Lynne think £250 is ridiculously high, or just that the act of her having an allowance is ridiculous? Is £250 a lot of money to spend in a week? I suppose in the 70s it is. The friend really shouldn't push her luck. Her boyfriend could stop her allowance all together if she asks for too much money. If she wants a bit more money, first ask for £300 and see how that goes down well. By asking for more in smaller increments it might increase her chances of getting more money.

Now, what is happening during this conversation? To the untrained eye, nothing, but closer inspection shows us that Lynne and her friend are constantly swapping sun loungers. The sea never changes its position, so unless that cafe in the background is right on the Brighton pebbles then they have swapped sun loungers twice. Yes, the cafe is on some decking but it must be high tide at the moment for a cafe to be positioned so close to the sea. Perhaps, like many of Lynne's other conversations, there are massive pauses in the dialogue while the women catch some much needed rays, during which time they swap sun loungers to maximise their tans.