A few words of encouragement

I spoke a moment ago with a nice chap at a local bus company about PCV training. Although they sold their training vehicle, he encouraged me to stick with my current plan and give him a call once I've passed my test and have my license. I'm glad I spoke to him - he was very friendly and spotted straight away that I was a bit of an enthusiast and we chatted about old vehicles. So, I'm sticking with my original plan and if all goes well then I should be training from 20th June in Peterborough.
As an aside, I notice that my plan to win the Euromillions jackpot didn't come to fruition. In fact no one appears to have won it so next week's prize fund is a whopping £107,000,000! Personally I think it would make better sense for it to be split 10 ways to give more people a chance of living their dreams. Just what on Earth is someone expected to do with that amount of money? I suppose a million of it could be justified but surely there's a point at which a person would have bough everything they want...

Another step forward

Yesterday saw me take another step forward in my plan. I visited the local Citizens Advice bureau to get help with the legal action I'm taking. I didn't actually learn anything new, other than the fact I will need to take out an enforcement order. Normally this would cost a further £200 as was my gripe, but it's possible I may be able to get the fees waived. It does though mean loads more form filling but if it gets me my money back - which I consider as stolen - then that's a good thing.
I also completed my application to the bank for a PCDL (Professional Careers Development Loan). I had to visit my training provider who are in Peterborough to get them to stamp my form. Having filled in the rest, it's now on its way in the post so I'm hopeful I'll hear back from them soon. There is of course the very real chance they will reject my request, in which case I do have a contingency plan. Full of plans me!
So now I do what I'm good at - waiting. It does though make me feel I'm a little closer to my goal...

Recollections 2

I occasionally allow my mind to drift back. It's like trolling through rolls of old film and sometimes I surprise myself at the things I remember. As my son nears school age, I think of my own childhood junior school memories and how I dreaded the prospect of having to go and how I would try to find any way possible not to.
Back then, school was a dark and imposing place, full of children I didn't know and teachers who's job it was to shout and give me nightmares. I can remember the smells of school quite clearly. The musty odour of the classrooms and the smell of sand mixed with disinfectant whenever someone threw up.
I can remember the smell of the gym with its wooden climbing frames, ropes and green rubber mats. I can smell now the canteen and the aroma of custard, fish cakes and pies that heralded lunchtime. I recall the mixed smells of must and water-based paint as I think of art class. Even today, the smell of wood being worked takes me right back to the crafts workshops, filled with huge benches with alien-looking drills and wood dust everywhere.
The secretary's office used to smell of stationery - paper, ink and files. There was always a band printer - normally Gestetner - and this would smell of ink. If I was lucky, I was sometimes allowed to turn the handle and run-off a few hundred letters. Another one I remember is the smell of biscuits being made. This was a rare treat.
Pens had their own unique smell too. We used to use coloured felt-tips, made by Berol I think. They used to smell slightly fruity and sweet - especially the orange one.
The corridor leading to the headmaster's office used to smell of cigarettes. His name was Mr Purkis and he drove a tiny blue camper van. I think he was a very heavy smoker.
Instant coffee - now there's one I remember. Staff rooms would smell of instant coffee and cigarette smoke. I used to make the coffee for one of my teachers. Each time I have a Nescafe, I get taken back.
Occasionally, I'd catch a whiff of the world outside the gates. This would often be petrol or diesel fumes and would give me some sense of hope that I would eventually be free and that there was life elsewhere.
My son has all this to come. I hope he enjoys it more than I did. It's good to look back but at the time, oh how I hated it...

Rhubarb crumble

Yesterday was a 'good day'. It was one of those days when things got done and we came out of it a little better than when we went into it. An insurance policy I had to cover my finances while I was poorly paid more than was needed into an account so that I am now in credit by a tidy sum. Being the honest guy I am and fearing the wrath of God should I just decide to take it, I called them to check that it was in order and to ask whether the money was legitimately mine. I was pleased to be told that it was and that I could do with it whatever I pleased.
Hoorah! That now means I am about half-way to funding the training I need for my CPC. I just need to raise the remaining funds through my request for a Careers Development Loan and I should be behind the wheel of a coach in no time.
The other minor, but by no means insignificant success yesterday was with the Citizens Advice Bureau who have agreed to support my case against 1st Class Trucking Ltd to get my money back - which they've already been ordered to do by a Court of Law - an order they have chosen to ignore. After a discussion yesterday afternoon, it's been agreed that we'll go back next Monday afternoon to see their legal person. Any movement in this area is fantastic as I've felt so literally powerless, despite the fact that the Courts had ruled in my favor. As I've mentioned previously, there is simply no help or support available to Joe Public and you're required to fork out money hand over fist to get anyone to do anything. Everything it seems boils down to money - even the Law - which has to be wrong.
So, all in all I'm quite chuffed with yesterday - hard work but worth it.

As I type this, my darling wife is making an apple and rhubarb crumble - one of my all time favourite deserts. I can smell the rhubarb now and look forward later on to enjoying it with a little custard. Oh blow the Diabetes!
 So, I'll end this entry on a high - the sun is shining, things are moving in the right direction and my wife's making apple and rhubarb crumble... things are good.

One wedding and a funeral

It was only yesterday that the news was full of speculation regarding the royal newlyweds' honeymoon plans. This morning we woke up to the news that Bin Laden had been found and killed by US forces. It's news overload at the moment and I'll be happy when things return to normal - the usual political bickering and more debate regarding the 'alternative vote' system.
Personally, I think this period of rejoicing and celebration will be shortlived and I'm sure we haven't seen the end to deadly campaigns of hate. Just how do I explain things like 9/11 to my 4 year old son...?

Feeling old...

It's no secret that I'm 38, but I feel old. I was at the Job Centre a couple of weeks ago and my adviser and I got onto the subject of holidays. He told me he was off soon to Great Yarmouth for a quiet couple of weeks at the caravan. I found myself beginning to envy him, but what I found worrying was the fact that he's quite a bit younger than me. He told me he was looking forward to the peace and quiet, away from the crowds and hustle and bustle of everyday life. I was nodding along to all this, agreeing with his every word and imagining the same thing. Can this be a sign that I'm getting old?
Other evidence could include the fact that I now make a noise when I get into and get out of a chair. I make a noise when I climb the stairs. I tut at people I think are dressed inappropriately, such as in supermarkets. I complain about the price of things. I have a favourite cushion. I'm drinking more tea. I get tired in the afternoon and yern for a nap. I get indigestion after a big meal or anything rich. I lament the loss of analogue TV. I often tell me son to keep the noise down. I peer into my neighbours garden to see what they're up to. I keep checking the time. I've taken to wearing slippers.
Are these signs of old age...?

Wedding afterglow

I notice people are beginning to reminisce about the wedding and the TV is desparately trying not to let go completely, some channels still re-running the highlights. There is much speculation as to where the Royal Couple have disappeared to. Frankly, I don't really care. Chances are, they are just down the road from here at Sandringham and if I made enough noise, they'd probably hear me. Hopefully they are getting some peace and quiet away from the relentless glare of the media. There is though a warmish glow lingering from Friday. It prompts the odd ridiculous conversation about the wedding and how beautiful the bride looked - as if they'd have had her looking a mess. 'I hope she doesn't turn out like Diana' and 'he's more sensible than his father' are amongst some of the phrases I've heard so far. Many seem to agree that Anne could have found something a little less 80's and that Beatrice's hat was simply silly. The gossip in various hairdressers and co-op stores up and down the land will persist for weeks and possibly months to come.

I'm amazed at the weather today, it's really quite good. A little windy maybe but bright, clear and sunny. We did a little shopping earlier in Wisbech and I played 'spot the English person', a regular source of amusement for it is common knowledge that mass imigration has now made English people of British origin a minority group in many parts of the UK. I'm just stating a fast and nothing more. I actually find it amusing.
I picked up a cheap digital TV box in Asda - my parents had requested a cheap one for their kitchen TV. I thought £19 was quite reasonable so bought that and had it installed and working in no time. In August we begin to lose our trusty analogie signal here as everything is converted to the DVB standard. I'll probably mark the event with a special entry nearer the time but I'll always have happy memories of trying to position the antenna for optimum picture and thinking I'd got it just right only to find that just one of the four channels was watchable... Oh what fun. It's hard to imagine that my son will only know digital though I expect FM and Medium Wave will be with us for a few years yet. We'll see...