Shock news...

Keith hadn't slept again last night, so Sophie worked from home. He had another nurse appointment at 11:45 am, and we didn't think it was a good idea for him to drive.

I had a busy day at work, with a steady stream of people popping into the office to chat and use the printer. Just before I left, I opened an email from the woman who is covering Dan while he's off sick. She said the new downstairs office was almost ready and that she'd planned on me moving there, with another couple of staff, and there'd also be a desk available for anyone to use who needed a quiet space. I went down to the Duty Manager's office and asked one of the girls to show me. I had no idea where it was, and hadn't even been shown the office!

Gabi took me right past my old office, through two sets of doors, down two flights of metal steps and into a gloomy corridor. The office was just before the new gym changing rooms. When we walked in, I was horrified! It was dark and gloomy, with just two narrow slits for windows, which were still boarded up. Now I knew why it had been given its nickname of "The Dungeon"! The thought of being down here, so far from everyone else, and at times completely alone, made me shudder. I couldn't quite believe this was happening to me! I had come to work for Dan, who was now off work sick, and in a lovely, airy office close to reception, which was now going to be taken away from me!

"The Dungeon"

I left work, popped to Aldi to buy meals for tonight and tomorrow, and went home to tell Sophie what had happened. She was horrified as well, and said that I might have a case about the lack of natural light and ventilation. The office would be fine to use on a temporary basis, but not for eight-hour stretches! I felt thoroughly depressed, to be honest, just when I was starting to get to know the job and the different processes.

It made for a gloomy Monday evening (again). The nurse hadn't given Keith anything for his terrible cough, just told him he had to "ride it out, and it could last for six weeks!" Nooooooooo! Sophie made us dinner of chicken burgers with roasted vegetables, and I had a G&T. I felt so miserable because I couldn't bear to have to find another job and start all over again, this time with people who were strangers. 

We sat after dinner and did a Tarot reading, and mine was quite interesting!

Thwarted plans...

Sophie and I were up early again and ready to go to Kettering station by 8:15am. Keith dropped us off, and when we walked into the station, we heard a woman saying that our 8:53 train was delayed by at least 50 minutes. That did not bode well for our day in London!

We bought coffees and almond pastries and walked over to platform 3, where we kept a close eye on the information board. The following train, the 9:17, was also delayed, due to engineering works going over schedule.

We sat and sipped our coffees and tried to avoid eye contact with a man who was wandering about, wearing a mask and mumbling to himself. It was a gloomy, misty day, perfect for wandering around Highgate Cemetery!

As we waited, we learnt that our train had been cancelled, and the 9:17 was delayed and not expected to get to Kettering until about 10:10am. It meant we had to try to put back our lunch booking at 2:00pm and also meant we wouldn't have as much time as we thought to travel to the cemetery by bus, have a good walk around and get to Ognisko. They didn't have another table until 5:30pm, which was a dinner booking, not lunch! We didn't want to get home too late tonight!

By this time, we noticed that two transport police had arrived and were chatting to the station announcer. We went back over to the main building and asked if there was any more information, but nobody could give us a definite time. Sophie was worried as to why the police were at the station, and when we went back to the platform, they came over as well. The platform was gradually filling up with people who had been planning to take the two trains, and I said that if it was full, we should go home as I wasn't prepared to stand all the way to St Pancras after our 90-minute wait! No way!

Sophie was looking more and more anxious and kept glancing at the two policemen. Were they there to intercept somebody from a train? The arrival time kept changing, and we learnt our train was en route but still a long way off. We suddenly decided to abandon the day, even though I had suggested going to the Serpentine Gallery instead of Highgate and still having lunch at Ognisko. We called Keith, and he came over to collect us. We were both bitterly disappointed, but worried about the trains home this evening and whether they'd be delayed too.

Back home, we quickly freshened up and drove to Woburn to have a drink and then lunch at the Thai restaurant we'd enjoyed after the day at Bletchley. The car park was crammed with cars, but luckily we were offered a space by a couple who were returning to their vehicle. As they were pulling off their walking boots, another car left, so we were able to park at last!

We walked to The Nook to find it closed, but as we went to walk away, the owner opened up, saying they'd had a late Halloween party the night before and he was a bit fragile! He poured us two drinks, and we sat and chatted about the events of the morning, saying we'd made the right decision to abandon the day, even though it was disappointing.

When we finished our drinks, we walked the short distance to the Thai restaurant and took our seats at the back of the seating area. It was still chilly and gloomy outside, and I wished they'd had the heating on, as I was freezing! We ordered a set menu of mixed starters and main courses served with rice, and also ordered crispy duck as a second course and a bowl of prawn crackers. We were very hungry! We also treated ourselves to a bottle of Thai wine, which was utterly delicious!

The food was fabulous, and the service was wonderful and friendly. We both said we felt a little strange as we'd supposed to have been in London today, not Woburn! We said we felt like ghosts! We had no room for dessert and waddled back to the car after an enlightening chat about wine and where it was traditionally made in the world! I think that years ago, Thai wine was unheard of!

We took a winding country route home, avoiding the M1, and drove through Olney again. The fields, hedges and trees were various shades of brown and orange, and we couldn't wait to get home, see the cats (hopefully) and relax!

Keith had kindly made my porridge for me, and a sandwich for my lunch so we could sit and unwind. We watched Saturday Morning Kitchen with a glass of Alsace Pinot Noir, both of us wishing it was a perpetual Saturday morning. How wonderful would that be! We also watched an episode of War, and we are definitely becoming hooked!