Thursday 10th November 2022

Time to go home.

Only.

I have to do a day's work on the mainland first.

Now, the original plan had been to spend the night in Southampton, and drive back on Friday, but due to the climate protests blocking the motorway for the first three days of the week, I thought it best to travel back under the cover of darkness once I had finished the audit.

But it was going to be a long day.

How long?

Well, I had to catch the six o'clock ferry from Cowes, so had to be up at half four, out on the road by five.

I set the alarm and tried to sleep.

I did sleep, and the alarm woke up, and a bit of a whirl of action I was packed and with one final check of the room, I left.

I could have gone via the chain ferry, aka the floating bridge, but it is very temperamental, and as I had to catch the ferry, I chose to take the longer trip via Newport, but being silly early, there'd be no traffic.

Indeed, I saw one other car on the way out of Cowes, past the factory and through the centre of Newport, along the only stretch of dual carriageway before turning back north to East Cowes, past Osborne House and back into Cowes, arriving at the terminal to find I was the first passenger.

I went into the termnal to find a cup of coffee, then back to the car as the ferry was pulling in.

We wait and wait, then allowed on, where there was very nearly ten cars on board. Seasoned travellers rushed upstairs to be first in the queue for coffee and/or breakfast. I thought about it, and in the end thought I should have something to eat.

Two sausage, bacon with beans, mushrooms, three hash browns and a fried slice. I had more than enough.

Thing is, the audit site has no catering, so food might be a problem. It wasn't, but best to be safe.

Anyway, once I had eaten I went onto deck to look at the scene as we neared Southampton and dawn stretched along the southern horizon.

I took shots.

So, once we had docked, we were let off, and onto the main road that runs through the centre of the city, out over the river into the New Forest and along the coast past endless oil refineries, all belching smoke and steam.

At the site of the former power station is where we have a blade paning facility. I sign in and drive down to the portacabins, park up and go to look for a coffee machine.

The auditees arrive and we get cracking.

We do stop for lunch, and much to my surprise there is: subs, bags of crisps, cream cakes, sausage rolls and cans of pop.

Coming after the meal the night before and the big breakfast, I wouldn't need to eat for 24 hours. I don't have a cream cake, that would be too greedy.....

At four we were done, so I say thanks and walk to the car to pack. I have a four hour drive, up to London then round the M25 at rush hour. It would be grim. But there was Steve and Marc on the radio to keep me company, and drown out my swearing at other drivers.

I get home at half eight, a very long day.

I unload the car and go for a shower.

Jools is now COVID free and would go to the office in the morning.

Time for bed......

Wednesday 9th July 2022

Wedensday.

And still on the Island.

Through the night, yet more rain fell, and into the morning so I woke to the sound of yeat another cloudburst. But it should be clearing soon.

So, I lepa out of bed, do 50 press-ups, have a cold shower and am ready for the rigours of the day ahead, and in this I would be helped by a pot of black coffee and the finest sausage and bacon sandwich known to man.

And a man in the kitchen makes it for me, so all I have to do is eat it.

Non nom nom.

I drink the last dregs off the coffee, and I'm away to work.

It was supposed to be a slow and easy start, but I was summond to an emergency depatment meeting, and needed to be at the factory to get internet access.

Our soon-to-be-ex-boss is now offically our ex-boss, and we have a new interim manager.

That's it.

So on with the audit.

Outside, the clouds did clear and the sun did shine, and did shine into the meeting room where even in November was so warm the air conditioning could not cope and we got very warm indeed.

We broke for lunch, and talked about the struggles we face, and how jolly nice the Island is.

Well, it is.

We were done by half three, so I drove back to the hotel, wrote a little then decided I really should go an exercise my fat little legs, so should walk into Cowes for a pint at the Ale House, where there was a fine firkin of porter on.

But, before then, as I walked along the promenade, over the other side of the Solent, the just past full moon rose over the Pompy skyline. It was pretty breathtaking, I leaned on railings to watch it rise and get brighter and its yellow colour fade to pure white.

Dozens of other people were doing the same thing too.

And it was a free show.

My favourite price.

I walk into town and up the Ale House, a group of sailing types were talking over pints of fizzy Eurolager, so I order porter just because I can.

THere was a wide range of places to eat, most with lots of free tables.

I wasn't in a seafood modd, curry perhaps, but then at a restaurant I saw they had a dish called "sambal chicken". Sambal is a spicy chili sauce from Indonesia, that I sued to eat lots of when I was on the survey boats.

I asked, do you make your own sambal?

They did.

And cocktails were two for £15.

I order the sambal chicken and a marshmellow martini.

Very fuckin sophisticated.

The sambal was hot, just about bearable, but not not leave any doubt, it came with sliced fresh chilli, as did the Thai spiced cheesy chips.

I eat most of it all, then finish up with a "rhubarb and custard cocktail, which did mix quite poorly with the sambal on the walk back to the hotel.

Back to the hotel, I settle the bill and so all ready to leave in the morning, as I have to catch the six o'clock ferry.

Tuesday 8th November 2022

I am here on the island for work after all, and so it is time to earn my corn.

I am in my usual room at the back of the hotel, next tot he kitchen, but once that closes, its quiet enough.

I had slept well enough.

The trick is to be out of the room and waiting at the restaurant by half seven, to be seated first, have breakfast first having placed the order for cooked food first.

All which I did, after a shower and a change of clothes.

Breakfast was sausage and bacon butty, eaten at the small table by the window so I could watch the ferries and ships in the Solent.

I took a shot to show its all true.

I down a pot of coffee, and am set.

I don't even have to program the sat nav, just drive inland to the main road to Newport, then along to the traffic lights at the Stag, and down the lane.

While I worked, the weather threw everything at the island, rain hammered on the roof, and buckets collected rain water that got through.

I am done at four, and rush to get back to the hotel before the next storm sweeps through. More was expected in the evening, so I would eat in the hotel again.

I go down at seven and have steak and ale pie with veg and a pint of island ale.

It was pretty good, but amazingly, I was pooped.

No cheese.

No port, just upstairs to follow the football on the radio and try to stay awake.

Monday 7th November 2022

Once upon a time, I used to travel with work all the time. One year it was 38 different trips.

It was normal, I suppose.

But it drained me, mentally and physically.

And then came COVID and my change in role, and travel became much less common. So rare now, its almost a pleasure to be away.

Almost.

We got up at ten past five. We had slept long, and various cats were indicating it was breakfast. Jools was still COVID positive, so was to work from home again, but I would be away, she could have the table and spare screen all to herself.

The rain of the weekend continued, and if anything came down even harder. So that rather than drop me in town, Jools dropped me off at the car hire office, me dodging the storm get get inside.

Everyone was nice, but I had a half hour wait for the car, so sat watching the rain hammer down outside, and rush hour traffic out on Townwall Street inch past. The car was ready, a black sporty Peugeot thing, with retro looking switches rather than buttons and dials. But I soon got it, so after signing off the agreement, I climbed in and drove back along Reach Road back home.

Already the road was partially flooded in three places, so I inched the car through the floods and reached home, where I had breakfast with Jools, then packed, booked the ferry crossing and loaded the car.

Traffic was awful out there; protesters had blocked several sections of the M25, but a tweet said it was back open, so thought I would give it a try to get to Southampton.

All was OK all the way through Kent, even if rain did fall in heavy showers, but onto the M25, and within two miles traffic was stationary. Rain fell in sheets, and we inched forward, taking an hour to get to the services and into Surrey.

Traffic did begin to move again, but the delay did mean I would not make the half one ferry, and the one at three was full, so should I try to get on, or find somewhere to while away three hours?

I reached the M3, turned off and headed south. I decided to stop at Fleet Services, and have lunch. A proper lunch, sitting down at a table to eat and everything. Amazingly, the place was full of people, I'm guessing off coaches, and most seemed to be of a certain age, and a few needing frames to walk along. I watched as they tried to order a cuppa from the Burger King app.

You're never too old.

I went to Starbucks, where it is Holiday time, so have my annual flavoured latte, eggnog this time, but with an extra shot, to go with the paninni.

I watched people as I ate, its a hobby. And free.

I realised I could not spend another two hours here, so decided to drive to the ferry port and try to get on the earlier sailing.

A half hour run through yet more heavy rain and into the city, rushing to get through before schools empty out and road clogged with cars.

Which I do.

I arrive at the terminal, drive up to the booth, and my boarding pass was issued, for the three o'clock sailing, no questions asked. No arguments needed.

IN fact, through the driving rain, I saw the ferry approach, and we all waited to board. All vehicles got on, there was even room for many more too, so not sure why no tickets had been available online......

I took a seat in the lounge, until the relentless coughinh of the couple next to me drove me to the bracing fresh air out on deck, where even in November, it wasn't that cold.

I feast on a pack of salt n vinegar crisps and supped from a bottle of Cherry Coke as we sailed across the Solent, and the change in direction as we turned for Cowes set all the car alarms off below.

As usual.

In Cowes, the floating bridge/chain ferry was working, so I waited in line to get over the river, then drive the half mile to the hotel.

Back again.

The hotel is half empty, and because of yet more rain falling, I book a table in the hotel for dinner. Up in my room I unpack the laptop and check on the world. Its still screwed, so I put on some music and edit some shots.

Hotel dining rooms are a delight in themselves. Devoid of atmosphere, the awkward silences broken by the scraping of cutlery or an apology for spilling some gravy. The two young ladies behind me had clearly failed to read the hotel rules, and guzzled wine and talked loudly about nail polish and the such.

A different life.

I had fried brie followed by a burger. I was all very adequate.

Back in my room I listened to Ipswich in the FA Cup, or some of it, via a link to BBC Berkshire, where the commentary sounded like three pub bores at the Black Duck, laughing among themselves while the barmaids winces.

I fell asleep, only to wake when it was all over.

Sunday 6th November 2022

And on the seventh day, the Lord may have rested. But the weather did not.

THe forecast had been for rain, and wind. Sometimes together.

And Mother Nature did not disappoint.

Poppy came in at first light, drenched. She did not go out again all day.

Jools is still infections, but I got an all clear from my latest test, but there was nowhere to go, nothing we wanted.

After breakfast we cleard the wardrobe in the spare bedroom, all the brand new PPE from my old employer, that my new emplyer will not let me wear as it "has the wrong branding", three bags of clothes, coats and waterproofs going to charity.

Seems a waste.

We stop for brews, cakes and then an early lunch. With wine.

Lunch was fritters, and in them I put the leftover chestnuts and remainder of the smoked bacon lardons.

Readers, I can tell you, they were magnificent.

There was footabll all afternoon into the evening.

I did not move, and after half a bottle of wine, I struggled to stay awake.

Outside it rained all day and into the evening, when the weak light failed and darkness smothered the village.

Heck, we go to bed at eight, pooped.

Saturday 5th November 2022

Bonfire Night. Where we celebrate that Parliament WASN'T blown up.

Hmmm.

Anyway, Jools was positive for COVID, as was I, but I was on the 5th day, so should be OK to go out and go shopping, I'd wear a mask any way, but I did feel fine. And in fact, so did Jools, she doesn't seem as ill with COVID as I was, so much so she doubs she has it, but the test says otherwise.

I go to Tesco on my own, fill the car up with fuel, then drive round to the store, and go round getting the stuff we needed, and again, with nothing that much out of the ordinry, was still £100. At least this time the shelves are finally full of washing up liquid, and most other stock seemed fine, or at least the stuff we wanted.

I pay and leave, getting back home for half seven.

And then we had the whole of the day to ourselves.

Rain fell on and off, Jools didn't feel like going for a walk, but I had to go to the post office.

For the second year I am taking part in a Secret Santa, and have got my shit together early this year, so posted the package off.

It is months since I walked into the village centre to be honest, and the down is always a climb that makes you huff and puff, or me anyway. I was going to be a quarter of rhubarb and custards, but the shelves were faily empty of boiled sweets, so none this time.

Back out of the post office and down the hill, and up the other side back home.

As I got back, rain began to fall, so sitting out on the patio was abandoned.

Which meant the rest of the day was given over to mostly football.

As usual.

Norwich played away at Rotherham, and ran out 2-1 winners. Again not the best, but up to 4th.

Darkness came early, with heavy rain and storms forecast for Sunday, we'd not be going far there either.

We feated on party food for supper, and a glass of tripel to wash it down with.

Funk and soul played until nine, when we went to bed.

Travels in my head: Vermont

Motto: The Green Mountain State.

I first travelled through Vermont en route from New Hampshire to Niagara Falls.

It has a lot of trees.

A lot.

Route 9 crosses the southern end of the state, and apart from trees, we stopped at a gas station for, well gas, and supplies. They sold stuff made of wood, which we didn't buy.

Its not much of a recommendation, is it?

We stopped off in Bennington just before the road leaves the state and joins I90. There was a famous battle in the Civil War where most American fought on the British side and the French fought on the American side.

I believe it was complcated.

We stopped here to have a picnic, and to visit the tower, in which was a lift so you didn't have to climb like 500 steps.

Which is nice.

I seem to remember from the top you could see a lot of trees.

Vermont is the opposite shape to New Hamphire, the two states forming a pretty squarelike area.

Useless fact.

Anyway, the other thing about Vermont is that it is where the original Ben and Jerry's ice cream factory was situated. Its still a visitor centre, and worth a visit if you like ice cream.

On the way back from Niagara, I stopped in the Adirondacks, so that the next day we could drive through northern Vermont to the factory. YOu cross from New Yark state to Vermont over a bridge at Port Henry, the last crossing place as Lake Champlain opens up to the north.

On the New York side I found a fine diner made out of an old railroad car, that Jools and I were unable to find, but on the Vermont side there is a good diner, staffed by unusually sarcastic staff, which made we Brits feel very much at home.

On our last time in New England, Jools and I travelled back the same way, back through Port Henry and over the bridge before heading south and east towards Boston. We driv along valleys and over hills, all covered in yet more trees.

Vermont, like many other US states has a whole load of space, and few people. Nice to get lost in.

And eat ice cream.