Flight to Birmingham for an end-of-year review with my manager, followed by a train to London to meet my friend Andy.
(Why do station announcers speak so strangely? ‘Kerrstomers ON platform 4 waiting for the 13:40 TEW London Euston ARE advised that due to an incident ON the track at Watford Junction services ARE subject TEW soom delay. That’s the 13:40 TEW London Euston ON platform noomber fower.’ It wasn’t even a Birmingham accent, just a strange one.)
On the train, I read a paper for a while then decided to snooze. I made the mistake of offering the paper to the girl sitting beside me. ‘Are there job vacancies today?’ she asked and proceeded to talk for half an hour barely pausing for breath about the injustices inflicted on her by her manager. I think I heard the content of every email she’d sent or received plus all her friends’ opinions of this manager.
Got to London to meet my old friend Andy (with whom I’d worked in Egypt decades ago, and who now lives in California). We walked to the refurbished St Pancras Station, and had a very pleasant meal and chat about Cairo, Guitar Craft, football coaching and many other unrelated subjects. Enjoyed a look round the impressive space of St Pancras, in particular the statues of John Betjeman and the ‘kissing couple’.
Then train to Luton to get an Easyjet flight home.