training



After a catastrophic car day I ended up using the train to get home. I made the most of the fact that I did not have to drive and had a beer with a friend after work before walking to the station and waiting twenty five minutes for the delayed train. The train station was awash with students from the local college... for some reason, all of them female. They seemed to be astonished by my presence, alone, wearing headphones, on the platform across from the one at which they were all waiting for their train... also delayed. Both trains arrived at the same time and I climbed aboard, happy to escape the increasing cold of the platform. As we approached Gatwick airport, the passenger next to me got up and walked away leaving his backpack on the seat. Of course, this caused me to start analysing the situation both from the sense of our general fear of terrorism to the behavioural aspects of being inconsiderate enough in the modern climate to do such a thing as leave your backpack unattended at Gatwick airport (even if you are only going to the toilet)... proving once again that people simply do not think.
                We survived and made it to Redhill. The train pulled into Redhill at platform 2 and I had seven minutes before the train departed for Reading, the train upon which Guildford is one of the stops along the way. The board said ‘Reading: Platform 3’ so I ran down the stairs, across the station, up some stairs, and as I arrived at Platform 3 the board read ‘Station change, Reading is now Platform 1B.’ I ran back across the station and got to Platform 1b just in time to hear them announce that Reading was now Platform 2. I ran back to where I began and the train pulled up. I got onboard and stood up as there were no seats available. 7:30pm. No seats. England. Over-population.
On this train I witnessed all manner of strange being. There was the man with brilliant white hair, in his late fifties / early sixties, with a brilliant beard flowing down to his waist and there was the raver, dancing enthusiastically to the music he was listening to on his tiny earphones. With my headphones on, listening to The Scorpios, I enjoyed the journey and made it back to Guildford in a timely manner. I walked out of the station and to the bus stop where the bus has just departed. The next one was one hour away so I decided to walk home. It took one hour to walk home but, here I am, about to go to bed so that I will be prepared to do it all again tomorrow.

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