First week of real work done

So it is Sunday again and time for another update. This weekly schedule is much better for me on one level in that it isn't take up my time during the week but now I am sat back down and trying to collect my thoughts about what went on I am struggling to send my mind all the way back to the beginning of the week. For example, Sunday night, who knows?

Monday, however, is clearer in my head as I once again made my way to begin a new job. I was up on time and the drive over was really clear which gave me a chance to get a bacon and egg butty as a take away, with a brew, which I ate while sat in the car waiting for my mate who I was starting work with to arrive and let me in. I finished it before he got in which was good and then it was to work. I won't go into too much detail about the job as it'll bore you and I have loads of other things to talk about so to summarise this job is just what I thought it would be; I am having to think harder than I have for years, I'm actually working at close to capacity all the time, and I'm learning loads of new skills which is keeping me interested as well. It hasn't been easy, though, and I've made several mistakes through the week which all served to teach me new things. Here's to next week and the continuation of this job.

When I got to work on Monday it was clear that Thomas was not doing very well; his turbo noise was getting worse and worse and the clunking from the bushes on the back was also becoming louder. I rang the garage to find out when he could be booked in. When I had previously spoken to them they had said it would be done in a day however for various reasons they weren't able to guarantee this (and were correct in this, as it happens) so it was arranged that A would drive him up on the Tuesday after dropping me at work and would go to collect him again on Wednesday afternoon, with the aim of getting back to my work in time to go home together. This meant a night without the car and I was able to avoid trains by stopping at Lee's for the night which was great.

A dustbin lid full of meat, and beers

As it happened he had arranged to meet one of his old colleagues for beers that night so he included me in that, and he also invited Ryan along for the party. Our plan was to have some beers than go for food at a place recommended by Ryan called Red's True BBQ where the rumour of awesome beef ribs was enough to convince us all to say "yes" straight away. Our meeting point was at a terrible bar that I whinged about a lot but worked out well as some other ex colleagues came in on their way out so we had a good natter then we walked across town and against all the odds were able to sit straight down at a table without any waiting. The menu had changed, unfortunately, and the ribs were no where to be found much to Ryan's disappointment however what we ordered (basically a dustbin lid full of meat, with sides) was absolutely amazing and none of us could have eaten another mouthful.

Gorgeous sunset across Blackpool Beach

The night was characterised by substantial meat sweats (and I was not alone in this as Lee said he suffered really badly as well) but I slept well enough considering this. The convenient plans we had made for the collection of Thomas and my getting a lift home after work, however, had been rocked the day before when the garage rang to say they had had a problem with the exhaust manifold which had cracked and was at an engineers getting fixed. They could no longer guarantee that Thomas would be ready by the time previously agreed. After some thought I arranged that he would definitely be ready at some point on Wednesday and so A didn't have to rearrange her work schedule and she just headed over to wait for a call that it was ready. That was quite a long wait and she didn't even leave Blackpool until 5.30 however this meant she was able to get more bacon from the awesome butchers, have a coffee in a pub and get down to the front where she took loads of pictures (though this is one she sent me by phone just to make me jealous).

My journey back was pretty horrible in the train as it was a tiny two carriage rattler and filled with school kids who seemed to push all the air out of the place so I was feeling light headed for a lot of it. I did have my book so I could hide in that. I got back and grabbed some pizzas from Asda though we had originally planned on going out for food; the delays at the garage were such that by the time she got back we were both so hungry the pizzas were chosen. These were so big they lasted for days and we eventually finished them off at Friday lunch time. That night I was to bed really early, about 8.30, and slept right through to the next day and woke up feeling a lot better.

The next night was one I had been looking forward to for a while but, when it came, was totally exhausted and it took some effort to get moving. I'd bought tickets to see The Jesus and Mary Chain ages ago and finally the date had come round. We did go online before walking to the venue just to double check they hadn't split up in the three days that they had already been touring. We were in luck and after only ten minutes of strolling arrived at the university where the gig was happening. We got my favourite position, stood right in front of the sound desk, and settled down to wait for the main act, sitting through a very angry Scottish band as a warm up who were OK but a bit forgettable and never bothered to announce who they were or give any real interaction with the crowd; I really hate that! If you have the opportunity of performing in front of a sell out audience because of someone else's success, at least take the time to tell me your names!

Amazing light show and overwhelming volume

Anyway, after this we waited a bit and then the lights dimmed and out walked the band. The last time I saw these guys was about 1994 or 1995 and they only did about 20 minutes before storming off stage and then the band broke up shortly afterwards. This time they managed to finish the entire set and the volume at which they played was exactly what we were hoping for. They remain the loudest band I have ever heard and this was the loudest gig I'd ever been to, since the last time I tried to see them.

The format of the night was a short warm up set of some of their best tracks (including one of my favourites called Reverence which I managed to video the last few seconds of, above) then they went off stage for maybe three minutes before returning and performing the album Psycho Candy straight through without a break at earsplitting volume. It was epic and as we walked home both myself and John had ringing ears the like of which I've not had for many years. I even slightly struggled to sleep as the sounds kept me awake. Brilliant.

I want one of these!

In the interview for this job I was told in no uncertain terms that I would have to work from home every Friday. What a shame! Anyway, this meant that after the gig I was able to have a bit of a lie in, but still be at my desk and working by 8am. I had such a focused day of working, with a load of problems that I solved and while I didn't get to move onto the next task on my list, I did manage to ship the code I was working on by the end of the day. Where we sit (A also works from home and was tapping away all day opposite me) looks out across the road to a college and there are two gorgeous trees that are going golden and silver and orange and red at the moment. I would love to know what type of tree they are, if anyone can identify from this picture?

Saturday was a busy day. First of all we headed over to near my work to view a house (five minutes walk from the office) and both of us liked it so I think I'll be applying for it tomorrow. Then we went straight to Wigan to test drive a van so we can move, my best mate can move, and we can drive the scaffolding and other stuff to Bulgaria next year. This was a Ford Transit long wheel base with a fibreglass Luton style shed on the back and for size and functionality it seems ideal, though there was a strange whine at high revs which I want to chat to Chris about before agreeing to buy. I also need to insure it and that is looking a bit pricey right now. I shook hands on letting him know by Monday with the aim of collecting it next Saturday if we do buy it. Decision time.

Good friends

After popping home briefly and grabbing a butty we were back out to the bus and into town to meet some friends. Before that we went past the army surplus store and I bought so much that the guy at the counter joked that it looked like I was going to set up my own store. Nevermind the jokes, I now have some really hard wearing work trousers (including built in tool belt) and a job lot of combat trousers and work vests (aside - when I put one of the trousers on today I found two $1 bills in the pocket; awesome). We made our way to our meeting point and sat with a beer waiting and, a bit late due to train troubles, our friends arrived and we had a cracking night from this point. We managed to get food at Almost Famous where the Bacon Bacon Fries were just as amazing as I remembered them. Last year this legendary venue burned down (I watched it from my office window with much sadness) and it hadn't reopened properly by the time I left. Now it has reopened and they have improved one irritating aspect. Before you had to queue outside for a table but now a girl on the door has a clipboard and takes your number and then texts when your table is free. After eating we headed across town and went to a few different bars before our friends had to leave (heading for a holiday in the morning) and so we went home.

Amazing breakfast for a Sunday

So Sunday and time for an awesome fry up cooked by John, me to type this up, and then a load of reading and chilling and preparing to go back to the office tomorrow for another full on week.

Til after that, then, ciao.