Monday 10th February 2020

Road trip!

After over a month, it is time to pack my bags and safety gear and travel to far and distant lands all in the name of quality.

And it being a Monday there was the usual reluctance to get up and all that stuff, but with Jools making coffee, I get up.

Once she had got ready for work, I am all set to go, as she is to drop me off in town so I could pick the hire car.

The year grows old, because as we drove down Jubilee Way I could see the sun just showing on the horizon, and ferries trying to back into their docks, assisted by tugs due to the high winds.

Jools kicks me out opposite the Yacht Club, and I dash to snal the sun showing over the horizon, casting crepuscular rays into the blue sky.

See, I know shit.

I walk along the promenade before crossing over the main road to walk in front of East Cliff and into the port.

I sit down, but my car and paperwork is ready. I am in an out in two minutes.

A record.

I walk to the car park where my Seat Leon (the professional) was waiting. It is a sporty model too, which will be fun.

Back up Jubilee Way and then along the Deal road to home, where, I kept my promise to do another session on the cross trainer, to make up for the ones I would have missed when I was away. I also did one on Sunday, too.

I'm mad, me.

That done, I have breakfast, another coffee, have a shower and am all ready to leave just after nine when the school run and rush hour was over.

And again I had the argument with the sat nav as to which way to go, and I also knew that the Dartford crossing should be avoided as there were still high winds. So, I drove up the M20, then along the M26 to the M25. As usual.

It was a glorious morning, really bright, if windy. But traffic was bad, including a jam near to Heathrow slowing me up.

Then it was up to Oxford on the M40 and across to Birmingham on the M42 before picking up the toll road. I stopped off for lunch, but upon getting back in the car, I saw dark clouds, probably wouldn't be as bad as that looks, I said.

I was wrong, it was that bad. Heavy rain fell, turning the motorway into a river and reducing visibility to almost nothing. I slowed down some, and kept going, but it was scary. It stopped after a while, but the spray was bad for 20 miles until it dried out, and the sun came out, creating tiny rainbows in the spray of each vehicle that passed me.

Across towards Birmingham, then up te quiet toll road north before rejoninng the M6, where there was more black clouds. The car chimed that it was now below four degrees outside, and to be careful of ice. All that in a bleep.

And then the weather arrived: sleet, quickly followed by show.

Snow.

Not Canadian amounts, but snow nonetheless. And it began to settle. This coincided with being stuck in a traffic jam. So for nearly an hour we inched along as the show fell and gathered in wet clumps. Soon the surrounding landscape was turned into a winter wonderland. I passed the jar that had crashed, people in hi-vis coats were looking at its front wheels, with a queue of cars two miles long behind it.

Traffic sped up and the snow stopped, and soon the countryside was green again.

I turned off onto the motorway leading to North Wales, ahead the skies were full of weather yet to come. I just wanted to get to the hotel.

I pressed on and soon past the "welcome to Wales" sign.

Here be dragons.

The hotel was ten miles further on, just off the A55 at a place called Holywell. I turned off and into the hotel car park.

Whilst checking in I was telling of the tales of snow, only for another blizzard to have swept in causing all bar the car park to be lost to view.

By heck, its cold.

I go to my room which has views of a low stone building, possibly an old stable. I consider the costs of a conversion to a house.....

The snow fell, then stopped and melted. All gone as darkness fell.

But it looked cold.

I went down to have an early dinner of burger, fries and beer. I am a creature of habit after all.

Back home and I calls Jools who told me that several people at the factory had lost their job that day, one being escorted from the premises without emptying his desk. All rather shocking. And Jools' assistant has been let go too, but Jools is OK for now. And with that bombshell, I went to bed.