Having decided on a quiet Bank Holiday Monday, I foolishly read 'The Venomous Bead.' This, as you possibly will find when reading, led to a desperate and urgent desire for lots of white bread. At least this began the day with a laugh, though while laughing at others efforts, made worse by the man in the house being helpful, is of course wrong, I still managed to enjoy reading this stuff as I always do.
My rising early, and shops don't open until 10 am on Bank Holidays, I was forced to wait until the did before dragging myself slowly out the door. Early had by now become after 10:35 and traffic was rushing too fast to be first into the supermarkets before the crowd. The crowd were already in the car park!
I walked to Tesco down the splendid Avenue, the best road in town, home of some lovely homes all built about 1881, I know this as they missed the census of that year but houses appear in 1891. The chill in the air noticeable after the warm weather of the summer. Suddenly the east wind, coming originally from the north, disturbs the warmth in the air and reminds us of a normal UK summers day. The beaches and the sewage filled sea will be packed of course. Interesting that Tory 'Environmental spokesmen' are now saying the nation ought to 'rough it a bit' instead of complaining about sewage in the drinking water! Tory Britain! Poison the water to save money for the shareholders and expect the nation to drink it and shut up!
I passed the retired solicitor filling his Jaguar with kids seats, clearly the grandchildren have forced him out for the day, elsewhere blinds were still drawn, and as we neared the store an occasional mum holding hands with a son passed by. Quite a few were out and about in fact, kids do not like lying about indoors.
Shopping only for bread I paid my £21:95 into the self-service machine, the young lass only having to aid me twice, and left with my heavier than expected bag. Who put that whisky in my basket?
Talking of London Underground, I have been enjoying 'Fun' as she wanders the Jubilee Line, though I still think of it as the Metropolitan, though it became the Bakerloo in 1939 and the Jubilee in 1979. Quite why I think this way I know not. However, she ends this line with a grand tour of the rich at the outskirts of London, well worth a read.
The 'Tube' was always a place of adventure. Some packed stations, Oxford Circus and Piccadilly for instance, some interesting designs both outside and in, and often interesting people. The word 'interesting' there can be read in many ways. The aroma of burning air as the train approached deep underground was always memorable. The aroma of some passengers similarly. A strange job driving underground all day. While most trains find some light occasionally the Circle has limited opportunities so see the sun. Boarding at Royal Oak, while HSTs departing Paddington belched diesel fumes over us all, and being crushed, if indeed we could get on, is always memorable, especially as we always had to stand and wait while the Paddington train got through to Edgeware Road before us. Joy I call it, but the young ladies I often accidentally were forced up against may have felt differently. Who can tell? Well, apart from the creaming and hitting with their shoe I mean. I miss this in many ways, the Underground I mean, not the screaming...
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