It was August 1955, I was a ten year old on holiday in Dorset England. I recall we were at a beach when I was invited by my father to write a note and put inside an empty Tizer bottle. Well I did and threw the bottle out amid the retreating sea. I looked for many minutes as it appeared then disappeared among the waves, until gradually it was gone out of sight.

What I had written on the note was this:

To whom it may concern

My name is James T Bloomer and I would like to know who you are. James.

It was not until I had thrown the bottle that I realised that I had omitted giving my address, what a fool I felt, but I told no one, just hoped as I stood there looking at the bottle bobbing in the waves that it might come back, so I could add the address.

Why do I mention this? well it is for this odd reason.

Last year I was on holiday in Dorset with my wife and grandchildren, we were on the beach near Swanage. One of the children called out to me, "Grandad look, we have found an old fashioned bottle. I could not believe my eyes, it was a Tizer bottle, and it appeared to have a note inside. 

Suddenly I was acting like a kid again, the grandchildren looked at me puzzeled, as did my wife.

I opend the bottle and shook the note out and would you believe it, as I unfurled it I could see it was the very note that I had written 53 years ago. The extraordinary thing was it had been recieved by someone, and they had written on the bottom of my note,

Yes I would love to write to you and tell you about myself, but I do not have your address. Oscar.

I was most excited and told everyone, then I realised that the person called Oscar, who had written the reply, had failed to include his address.

Well I wrote my address on the note put it back in the bottle and threw it out into the waves.

Here's hoping.