Dear Diary...
This is my diary. How things are. Or something. Please note that the diary is archived month by month, so feel free to click the links for the archives (which now will go back five years maximum):
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Wednesday 9th July – Haircut and Heatwave
It was off to the main office today after spending some time in Hoxton yesterday (which is always a good place to go primarily because of the fact there’s always a good vibe there with good people.) I suspected that it would be busier than normal, primarily due to a heatwave being on its way and the office having some lovely aircon around too – which believe me, really does relax the mind and soul prior to being able to get work done too, so that is something. It was also good that the local place for coffee and brekkie around the corner has a good enough loyalty scheme that I’d earned enough points for a free one, so a nice bacon bap and a coffee were mine to start the day. Winning.
It was a busy day all round as we were hopefully helping some of the final members of staff to be able to migrate over to the new systems that our new company owners had. One of them had postponed it for ages and despite having a replacement laptop delivered, chose to switch it on and start using it instead of going through correct process, so we had to lock the device to spur said person into action. Not ideal but we did have relevant backing to do so, and sure enough we were able to get it all sorted today and be able to get said people over the line and with good preparation for the next set too – where some of the applications in use will be moved over to the standards our new owners have in place.
For me, transition is always a difficult one – you want to ensure continuity of service, of course, but gently drop hints that you need to get moved over to the new things in use. I’ve set an example as has my manager with a message on one of our systems saying “please contact me on Y” where Y is the new system to replace it, and with a view that we then start getting people to realise, especially if we take longer to respond. Somehow you have to snap the rope somewhere, so people are less tied in with certain ways of working. It’s not always a popular decision either, I know, but you have to give some gentle encouragement at times too.
I headed off to my usual barber (James Barbers in Wimbledon Park) after work – and of course the second part of that tube journey from Earls Court onwards is on the District Line, which means lovely aircon. The tennis was on as was the women’s football, where England thrashed the Netherlands 4-0 which was excellent, and we had a good chat about the tennis and the football. Indeed he mentioned that in and around Wimbledon and the village, a number of people had encountered Carlos Alcaraz, and only had good words to say about him. I wasn’t surprised whatsoever by this, but nice to see that the reality does meet the perception too.
It was then off to Wimbledon to get the tram home and you could see some waiting for the train and tube that had left Wimbledon earlier – maybe they were on a court that had already seen all the action as I know Novak Djokovic was still on Centre at that time, but you could tell who were the first time visitors as they attempted to work out which platform to be on to get back to Central London. I must admit when The Love and I went to Wimbledon in 2013, it was a good move to stay in Croydon and get the tram, much easier, much less hassle, and cheaper hotels too at the time which was a definite bonus all round. I do now have the closing theme BBC use (Sporting Occasion by Arnold Steck) in my head, so that is tune of the day.
Sunday 6th July – Lando Time
It was good to be able to have a little lie in today and to be able to take some time to relax with some telly before The Love In My Heart had a bigger lie in, with Brian the cat purring with contentment by her side – he loves a good lie in with his Mummy, that’s for definite. We did though have some lovely breakfast, bacon, sausages, eggs, hash brown, mushrooms and toast. Just the perfect start to the day and one where we would have some quiet time in before heading out later for tea. And there was a very good reason for that – the British Grand Prix, and on proper telly as it’s the one race a year Channel 4 get to do live.
Naturally for me this was manna from heaven, and The Love is quite a fan of the F1 these days (more so since we’ve got together, and of course we did Monaco in 2012) so I was able to relax with a coffee and see some of the build up happening. What I was not missing was the fact that it was raining, and pretty heavily too, so that did mean it would be a real contrast of conditions to try and overcome. I did think that might prove to be a good leveller as the likes of Lewis Hamilton are really good in changeable conditions so even if you don’t have the fastest car (and Ferrari do not always these days) then the driver skill and judgement calls may make up well here.
The race got underway, with intermediate tyres on everyone, but the likes of George Russell and Charles Leclerc gambling to go to slicks straight off. That didn’t pay off initially but the track was drying out a little, although the final sector was still lethal and that did catch some drivers out with how wet it still was. The rain forecast came in for more heavier rain and those that had stayed on intermediates and didn’t need to pit straight off were at a good advantage, avoiding multiple stops and only taking the next set of intermediates once the rain stated to go again. Huge receipients of this were Lance Stroll and Nico Hulkenberg, who catapulted up the order – and this despite Sauber wanting Nico to come in, he said no, and was proved right.
The rain did get really heavy, with visibility being difficult, and this resulted in Isack Hadjar being punted at Copse and off, so the safety car was operational. When it came down to a restart after the safety car, the leader Oscar Piastri braked a bit too quickly causing Max Verstappen to take avoiding action, and then as they came round Stowe, Max spun. Regardless, as soon as I saw that sudden braking, I straight away said to The Love “He’s going to get a 10 second penalty for that!” and so was proved correct. Data later showed that he braking was way more severe than say George Russell in Canada (and in that case the safety car light was still on) and that did not help. Granted, Oscar was a bit narked, but, unfortunately, those are the rules.
Naturally that did mean that once the next round of pit stops would take place (or if they stayed in position) that should mean Lando Norris would be in front, as it proved to be after the pit stops with Piastri serving the time penalty. Meanwhile, Nico Hulkenberg had passed Lance Stroll and was now third in a podium spot, and held off Lewis Hamilton in a Ferrari that was skittish to say the least. Hamilton pitted, came back out and soon realised it was too soon for slicks, and Hulkenberg switched spot on, and came out well ahead of Hamilton. As much as I was pleased for Lando Norris to win his home race (yes Lando, yes!) I was also super happy for Nico Hulkenberg to get a fully deserved podium in third – he made the right calls at the right time and drove well – keeping it on the island as they say, and had good pace too. The British crowd loved it too and gave him lots of cheers, and some chanting his name as he got to parc fermé. Super pleased for him – his first podium in 239 starts, but so well deserved, and a well liked driver amongst fans generally.
But yes, Lando Norris winning was really good, and made it for me. The fact he could now realise just how much Lewis Hamilton loved it when he won here multiple times, and with the LandoStand near Stowe corner, a massive bank of fans cheering him on. I do kind of wish Channel 4 had introduced things with The Chain by Fleetwood Mac (forever the proper F1 theme for me and tune of the day because of it) but also because it would have given us a nice warm vibe to think of the late great Murray Walker and how much he would have absolutely loved commentating on this one. Imagine him now: “And Lando Norris wins the Britjsh Grand Prix! Faaaaaaaaaaantastic” – along with “Well done Nico Hulkenberg, you are on the podium! What a great drive!” – oh, I do miss Murray in moments like this.
Saturday 5th July – Solemn Moments
This day (and in fact the whole weekend) was always going to be a difficult one for me. It is usually when I try to be away on holiday and primarily to escape, so I don’t have to think too much about what it represents. However, for this year, with it being an anniversary of sorts, I felt it right that I was here and to be able to pay my respects to some people who are no longer with me that have had a considerable (and positive) effect on my life. The Love In My Heart is always really supportive on this and knows that this is something that I need to do on my own and have my own space for – she always respects this and for that (as well as many many other reasons) I love her dearly.
So after getting myself up and ready this morning, it was off on two buses and to the cemetery. The second bus as it turned out was on diversion, which I later saw the reason why – a right turn at a set of lights was blocked by roadworks, meaning traffic could only go left there, and that would affect the route even more. As it was, it did mean a little bit of a longer walk, but no bad thing. I got to the cemetery, and sat on the bench close to where I needed to be. And admittedly, I did cry. I just felt that it was a real sense of sadness but also I needed to be respectful too, and that did feel solemn as I just paused there and thought about all sorts.
But perhaps most importantly of all, it was thinking about the good times that we had shared – the many days out, the camaraderie, the kindness, and above all else the support and encouragement I had ben given over the years to make me the better person I try to be today. It is not always easy and I think that sometimes you almost need to take a step back, pause, think and then act rather than go all gung ho and realise that you have made an error which makes things worse later on. Above all else, the calm kind nature of this person was one that influenced me, and continues to do so, even to this day.
Naturally I did feel a little tearful but I thought a good breakfast and a chance to sit and pause would do me well – and so that proved. I got a nice bacon roll with an egg on too and some hash browns, along with a coffee, and that just meant I could stare out of the window and watch the world go by. It was much needed to be honest, and a good reset and to get those feelings vented before I went on holiday, so I would feel at ease and at one with myself. That isn’t always easy of course, but I did know that it was good to be able to go and do the right thing, and be alone with my thoughts before others would come along later and pay their respects too. As such today, there is no tune of the day as I didn’t think that would be right.
I did venture through Manchester city centre on the way back to The Love’s place, and it was a nice refresh to think about holiday and get a couple of things. I used my gift card for TK Maxx and got this really nice ringer t-shirt in a navy blue, along with some new trainer socks to fit (and not show) when out and about with shorts on during the hopefully warm days. And in fact, I also got some shorts too – this time in H&M, which were a nice striped pair that looked the part , and as I noted later, fitted pretty well too. Always good to see that the size quoted on the size guide is actually the right one and makes more sense.
The Love and I did head up to see her sister later on which was nice to sit in their back garden and just relax with a coffee, and later on in the afternoon we headed back into the city centre and into Seven Bro7ers Beerhouse for a quiet drink, and that was just nice to be able to rest and recuperate a little and be together too. In fact, when we got back Brian the cat must have sensed something because he let me give him a little fuss and some cuddles, which was nice. See, he does love me occasionally when he feels like it. We did relax in the evening and I had some nice salmon with potatoes and vegetables for tea, so that felt good to be able to use that up and have something nice and relatively healthy too.