30 October 2021 (Saturday) - Early Shift

Finding myself awake far too early (again) I made toast and watched an episode of “Inside Job”. It kept me amused for half an hour, but I got the distinct impression that (like so many American shows) if you aren’t American you miss an awful lot.

With nothing happening on Facebook so early in the morning and no emails at all having arrived overnight I got ready for work as everyone else snored.

 

Taking care to turn the new car's headlights on this time (unlike yesterday) I set off to work through a dark morning via the garage in Brookfield Road. The new car told me its back left tyre pressure was a tad low so I put some air into it. Not knowing what the pressure should be I stopped at thirty psi. It turned out that wasn't enough, but bearing in mind I'd started at seventeen I saw that as being better than it had been.

Being rather proud of myself for having figured out how to tune the radio to Radio Four I drove to work listening to the farming program on the radio. Usually I sing along to my rather strange choice of music, but at that point I'd not seen the car (properly) in daylight and didn't know where the MP3 input was.

The pundits on the radio were talking about climate change and methane emissions. Apparently  British farmers are responsible for most of the country's methane, and the Prime Minister has pledged to radically reduce the methane output of farms. The farmers being interviewed didn't actually say "tell Boris to get knotted", but that was their sentiment. They were quite clear that they didn't feel in any way bound or constrained by anything that Mr Johnson might have said.

There was also talk of fertiliser prices. Apparently the cost of the stuff has trebled in the last year, and one farmer was saying that having bought a job lot of the stuff last year he sold it this year at a far greater profit than any profit he might have made by actually using the stuff to grow crops.

 

As I drove so the rain started, and I got to turn on the windscreen wipers (having found out how to operate them yesterday). Unfortunately I'd arrived on the motorway just at the same time as a ferry-load of lorries was heading up it. As always both lanes were filled with lorries. There seems to be a new thing with lorry drivers in that they seem to be flashing their headlights (with the intensity of lighthouses) randomly and for no reason. As I drove, the lorries going off into the distance in front of me and behind me and over on the opposite carriageway were flashing like things possessed. They've been doing this for a week or so now - what's that all about?

 

I got to work just as dawn was breaking, and it was with a sense of relief that the car park barrier opened for me. I'd updated my details on the works car parking website last night and it would seem that the update had taken. And as I reversed into a parking spot I discovered that the car has reversing sensors too. Result!!

 

Work was much the same as ever. I don’t mind working at the weekends when the weather is bad, and there were torrential downpours for much of the day today. Being the weekend I popped to the hospital canteen for lunch. Sausage roll and chips followed by apple pie and custard. Not too shabby at all.

 

And then it was time to come home. Apart from the test drive this was the third time I’d had a go in my new car, and the first time in daylight. Being able to see the USB slot I plugged in my MP3 stick and the thing worked. And I can play my strange tunes in random order too – something the old car couldn’t do.

I stopped off at the garage in Brookfield Road on the way home. The tyre pressure was still what it had been this morning so I suppose that is a result. I put some more air in, but again probably not enough.

 

I arrived home to find Cliff visiting. Whilst we keep up on Facebook, I don’t think we’ve met in person since before the pandemic kicked off. It was good to catch up.

And then I went and sat in the car and read the instructions. Or some of them. Having pumped the driver’s seat up I’ve now adjusted the steering wheel so I can see the dials and things. I’ve put the time (and date) right. I’ve set it so that all the doors open when I unlock the car (not just the driver’s door). I’ve programmed some radio stations into the music thingy.

I’ve still got to sort out the tyre pressure issue, and the spare key thingy doesn’t seem to work  (even though I’ve replaced the battery) but I shall worry about those tomorrow. 

“er indoors TM” sorted out a rather good bit of dinner which we scoffed whilst watching the third “Harry Potter” film. I’ve not seen that for a while; it was rather good… As was the bottle of rioja and the bottle of amaretto we saw off too.

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