London, baby...
Yeay, I made it, and I even got some work done on the train! Mind you, that was a palaver and a half! I trundled down to the local station (fifteen minutes down the road) only to find that all the carparking was parked in. Noooo! And it's just in the country rather than in the nearest town (that it's named after), so there aren't any streets to park on. Disaster!
One, luckily, that I'd pre-worried about, so I'd checked the station sitch with landlord, and he'd given me a hot tip for a station that was twice as far away, but had cheaper tickets when you were paying for them yourself. So I cast a final despairing look at all the cars shining in the sunlight, and trundled my wee car further south until I got to Station Number Two. And it was pretty full too, but there were one or two spots still empty, so phew!
Of course then I had to buy a ticket - which Landlord had told me the little bloke would do... except there was no bloke there. Or anyone there. Nooo! Not a disaster exactly, cos there was a (hellishly complicated) machine, which you had to know the Secret Code to God to use, and you particularly had to know what kind of ticket you wanted. One from here to there, please wasn't good enough, cos it all depends on when you're coming back... So I went and played with the other machine that calls the chap who can tell you what kind of ticket you need...
And then of course I discovered that even though the card I was going to pay for everything isn't yet expired, and the one I received the other day to replace it isn't yet valid - Super Machine wouldn't accept it. It thought it was expired. Which it clearly isn't according to the words on the front, but... stoopid machine. Of course I can't use it pay for anything else now either, which is just... inconvenient. Grr. And I left the new one at home cos it wasn't valid yet! But okay...
And then it was time to play games with car parking tickets... There was a machine, but it would only do coins, and there was no guarantee that it would do three days rather than one or seven either, so I had to do the phone-carpark thing. Which is fine, and the number rather frighteningly recognised me and my car through the simple fact of my using that phone to call it (eep!), and it also thought my card had run out (without me even telling it which one I wanted to use, which is also a bit scary... We Are Watched). But it took my other one easily enough, and gawd knows how I'll provide a receipt for online expenses, but... if I can get my camera fixed then maybe I can take a photo of the message on my mobile that's the receipt...
Blimey!
Oh - and I got into Waterloo instead of Paddington, neither of which station I know, but Paddington I was prepared for. Waterloo's south of the river! *g*
But the station was pretty, and the journey was okay (as long as I haven't caught a cold from the two people nearest me, who were both spluttering and suffering...), the tube was good, and when I got to the hotel I was turned away. *g* Well, sort of. Upgraded she called it, to the hotel across the street. Where my room does actually have enough room to perform a ballet, a big couch (that's really too far from the tv to see it, but the thought's almost there), and when I opened the second wardrobe it turned out to be a mini-kitchen, so hee! I neverget upgraded, either, so bonus yeay!
It also turns out to have free internet, so I'm taking a few minutes to catch breath, and then I'm off out for a wander before it gets too dark, and something to eat, and maybe to find Foyle's, cos it's open late, and... well, it's a bookshop. *g*
And then back to finish work (which is nearly there, and can be done when it's dark and I'm not out any more), and... well, and to thank everyone who recognised a japonica for me. *g* Maybe hotel rooms will be good for writing, too.... *g*
One, luckily, that I'd pre-worried about, so I'd checked the station sitch with landlord, and he'd given me a hot tip for a station that was twice as far away, but had cheaper tickets when you were paying for them yourself. So I cast a final despairing look at all the cars shining in the sunlight, and trundled my wee car further south until I got to Station Number Two. And it was pretty full too, but there were one or two spots still empty, so phew!
Of course then I had to buy a ticket - which Landlord had told me the little bloke would do... except there was no bloke there. Or anyone there. Nooo! Not a disaster exactly, cos there was a (hellishly complicated) machine, which you had to know the Secret Code to God to use, and you particularly had to know what kind of ticket you wanted. One from here to there, please wasn't good enough, cos it all depends on when you're coming back... So I went and played with the other machine that calls the chap who can tell you what kind of ticket you need...
And then of course I discovered that even though the card I was going to pay for everything isn't yet expired, and the one I received the other day to replace it isn't yet valid - Super Machine wouldn't accept it. It thought it was expired. Which it clearly isn't according to the words on the front, but... stoopid machine. Of course I can't use it pay for anything else now either, which is just... inconvenient. Grr. And I left the new one at home cos it wasn't valid yet! But okay...
And then it was time to play games with car parking tickets... There was a machine, but it would only do coins, and there was no guarantee that it would do three days rather than one or seven either, so I had to do the phone-carpark thing. Which is fine, and the number rather frighteningly recognised me and my car through the simple fact of my using that phone to call it (eep!), and it also thought my card had run out (without me even telling it which one I wanted to use, which is also a bit scary... We Are Watched). But it took my other one easily enough, and gawd knows how I'll provide a receipt for online expenses, but... if I can get my camera fixed then maybe I can take a photo of the message on my mobile that's the receipt...
Blimey!
Oh - and I got into Waterloo instead of Paddington, neither of which station I know, but Paddington I was prepared for. Waterloo's south of the river! *g*
But the station was pretty, and the journey was okay (as long as I haven't caught a cold from the two people nearest me, who were both spluttering and suffering...), the tube was good, and when I got to the hotel I was turned away. *g* Well, sort of. Upgraded she called it, to the hotel across the street. Where my room does actually have enough room to perform a ballet, a big couch (that's really too far from the tv to see it, but the thought's almost there), and when I opened the second wardrobe it turned out to be a mini-kitchen, so hee! I neverget upgraded, either, so bonus yeay!
It also turns out to have free internet, so I'm taking a few minutes to catch breath, and then I'm off out for a wander before it gets too dark, and something to eat, and maybe to find Foyle's, cos it's open late, and... well, it's a bookshop. *g*
And then back to finish work (which is nearly there, and can be done when it's dark and I'm not out any more), and... well, and to thank everyone who recognised a japonica for me. *g* Maybe hotel rooms will be good for writing, too.... *g*