My So-Called Life
the random and not-so-random musings of a twenty-something history geek
My So-Called Lifethe random and not-so-random musings of a twenty-something history geek |
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| About Lizzie: | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Lizzie is a fully qualified history teacher having finished her course at Canterbury Christ Church University. She's also a geek who was secretary of the University of Kent Computing Society during her three year BA at the University of Kent. She is very much in love with her shiny Husband, though she is sad that he doesn't glow bloo :( More about her on her website: http://carina.org.uk |
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| Sep. 4th, 2009 @ 12:08 pm Yesterday was a bad day for travelling... (for me, anyway) - long, contains angst! | |||
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I went up to London yesterday to see pot luck theatre* with ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} no1typo. We ended up seeing Hairspray, which I hope to write about at a later date. I've been all writers blocked recently, even when I've had things to write about, and so this journal has been very quiet.Anyway, to return to this entirely uninteresting tale of Woe, for which Livejournal is famous and I just want to get off my chest... I should have known what the travel situation would be from early(ish) in my journey, when I drove onto the slip for the M20 (off the A249) and stopped. And stayed stopped for over three quarters of an hour after an accident on the M20 between the junction I was coming on at and the next one, which closed the whole carriageway for most of the time I was stopped, and two lanes were still closed when I finally got past. It wasn't really the best start, and very nearly made me late for picking up no1typo. After that things went mostly to plan (bar the overcrowding/traffic jams of a bus getting around London at 5pm :)) and we got our tickets, had dinner and wandered to the theatre. It was after the show that it all started to get interesting.First, as to be expected really at Theatre kicking out time, the traffic was solid for a while and it took us ages to get a bus back to Victoria - a number 38, which advertised Victoria as its destination and then kicked us (and the rest of the passengers) out at Green Park. By this time it was nearly 11pm, we were getting tired and Victoria was a dark and scary walk away across the park (yes, I know it's not far, but it was dark and scary. So we decided that, given we couldn't really be bothered to wait for a bus that may or may not come (and may or may not pick us up when it does come) we got a cab the rest of the way to Victoria. Where we found a train back to the place we had left the car was indefinitely delayed because of problems at Clapham Junction. After half an hour or so of waiting, we decided to get on a train to East Croydon, because at least then we'd be getting closer to the car and home and we could always get a train from there to Purley. When we got there we found that, again, the closest train for Purley, had it been On Time was still ages away and it was already showing as "delayed" (by this point, I was getting heartily fed up with signs at train stations merely saying "delayed"), which could mean anything for us and our wait. At which point we completely lost our heads and Definitely a mistake. All was fine until I hit the M25 (for reference this is my normal route home from my mum's) at which point it became mostly single lane because of roadworks, and to my utter woe the sliproad to the M26 was closed, meaning that the M26 itself was closed, meaning that I ended up going to the Darenth Interchange and straight on to the M2. The M25 was single lane pretty much from the point I joined to the point I came off at Darenth. Despite the fact that the route I ended up taking is only ~10 miles further than the route I usually take, it took me significantly longer to get home, because for the entire stretch of the M25 (which, I remind you all, dear reader, was single lane) I was at 50mph or less. Luckily the rest of my drive was ok, but I ended up nearly freezing myself with the aircon to stay awake, so it took me ages to thaw when I got home. So it took me forever to get home. The show finished at 10pm and I didn't get back until around 2am. It was a brilliant evening otherwise though :D *What I call it if you go with the intention of seeing a show, but are not bothered as to which one thus purchase your tickets for far less than you otherwise would from a booth like tkts in Leicester Square. (A list of what they have on sale today.) |
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| Feb. 10th, 2008 @ 06:07 pm Charlton Vs Crystal Palace (at The Valley) - aka Lizzie's adventures in East London | |||
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I got a call recently from a family friend, John Morris. He was the only mormon who ever really kept touch with our family after daddy died and over the years he took me and Phil to lots of Charlton games (including the memorable 1998 playoff final at Wembley) because they were the team he supported and it was something he could do for us. As a result I became practically the only child in Croydon to support Charlton. Most of my schoolmates supported Crystal Palace. Oh the stick I got for it! Anyway, I hadn't been to a game in years when John called and asked if I would want to go to a game if he could arrange it. I replied in the affirmative and he got tickets for him, me and Phil to see Charlton at home against Palace on 8th February. I made arrangements accordingly - to stay with kimble and barakta at their place near Stratford so I could tube and bus it to Charlton.Found my way to where I was staying relatively easily - ben has turned his free (from a competition) Nokia N770 into a tomtom like GPS toy, so it guided me once I was away from my familar territory of the Blackwall Tunnel (I can get to that easily - from there though I get lost unless I'm going to Telehouse at East India Docks). I was made very welcome by kimble and shown all the shiny flashy lights and scrolly signs that they have set up. Some of the things would be so helpful in our hearing household as well as their are in their deaf one - a flashy light when a reminder comes up so I wouldn't miss it if I were afk would be amazing. I took down notes of which tubes and busses I needed to get to where I wanted to go and headed out.Made it to North Greenwich Tube Station ok, and boarded the bus I needed for Charlton in plenty of time - there was an hour to go until Kick Off. Unfortunately, it was rush hour and I ended up in the middle of a crowd away from any windows being squished and I missed my stop. Being unfamiliar with the area, and unable to see anything because of aforementioned squish I didn't realise until the bus thinned out a good half hour later. In the end, I had to ride the bus to the end of the route and then come back on the same one. I had ben tell me where to get off (he was following my route on a bus map because I'd called him in tears and unable to cope) but the driver failed to stop at the right stop and I ended up going one too far. *sigh* Eventually made it into the ground as the half time whistle blew. Phil and John were utterly amazing and lovely and had waited for me outside even though it meant they missed the first half too. Second half was brilliant. I'd been lucky and not missed any goals. The final score was 2-0 to Charlton and both goals were scored in the second half when I was there to see. Hurrah! I enjoyed myself very much and so John is going to see about taking Phil and I to another game in two or three months. Going back, John and Phil escorted me to to North Greenwich incase I got lost again (or attacked, which I think at least was John's overriding concern), and made it back to Stratford where barakta met me to make sure I got off at the right stop for their place. Just as well - the crush on that bendy bus was as bad as the double decker earlier and I wouldn't have had a clue if she hadn't been there and would probably have ended up in Ilford!I was taken back and fed curry and felt much more human. Then we talked and spodded until very late (I can't remember when I last went to bed that late). It was lovely and so were they :D Coming back on Saturday was much easier than going (though I almost got my windscreen cleaned at traffic lights) and stopped at Bluewater for Krispy Kreme donuts to bring home and also had lunch. Unfortuantely, I also had a Lush shaped accident (the accident looked like this, this and this), but concluded due to general business and lack of parking (there were places being used as parking spaces that I didn't know could accomodate a car) that I am never venturing to Bluewater again on a Saturday unless it is a matter of life or death. Even then, it will depend on whose life is in danger... Despite the fact that Kimble and Barakta had been lovely, what I saw of the football had been good, and I'd got some nice things in Bluewater, I was more relieved than I can express to get home again. In conclusion, some notes on London Transport. 1) Busses at rush hour are horrible. Especially if you're short. 2) My foot is not the same as a brake. You have them on your child's buggy, please use them. My foot does not appreciate the fact that you apparently failed to notice the difference. 3) Bendy busses are the spawn of satan and must be stopped. I didn't know it was possible for a bus to be so crowded. It was more like a tube train than a bus (and busses jerk around way way more :S). 4) Driving may be expensive and complicated in London but I think I would rather drive in future than be half crushed and killed on a bus. |
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| Jun. 14th, 2006 @ 05:56 pm The cause of yesterday's delays: | |||
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This is the cause of me spending 45 mins on a bus from the bus station to campus* yesterday evening. It certainly puts my massive delay in perspective. I'd feel bad about stressing about my delay if it hadn't nearly induced a full fledged hyperventalating throwing up panic attack. Anyway, like I said, puts things in perspective. Ta to benc for talking to me for 20 mins on a phone to stop me from doing such things.Clearly busses don't love me very much. Took me 40 mins to get to town from campus this morning including 10 mins completely stationary on Whitstable Road. Also had to wait an extra 15 mins today when lightly loaded unibus drove straight past me at the Westgate bus stop without stopping. Weird. Wish I could afford to park in town. Busses are clearly Teh Sucks. Got wet earlier from being outside in rain. Socks and jeans still wet. Cold now. Makes a change from too hot I guess ;) *and triggering |
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sleepy
cold