My USA number is not working anymore so use my British number if you need to call or want to text me:
+44-7775-746861
It is largely switched off to avoid huge data charges but I do check it from time to time.
I may well get another local number at a later stage and will pass that on, if and when it occurs.
Wishing my brother John a very Happy Birthday.
Hope you have great day.
I will be raising a tequila in your direction later today.
Much love going out to Paul and Paula who are getting married today. I really wish I could join you on your big day guys, so hope you have a wonderful time. I’m thinking of you and wishing you all the happiness in the world.
Paul and I have had more surfs together than I can remember. However the trip to La Torche always sticks in my mind mostly because at the end of it after a long and arduous drive from Brittany in the height of summer I nearly killed us both on the A55. We were both wearing just shorts and flip flops enjoying the heat when I felt that I had been pinched by the seat belt so looked down pulling on the waist of my shorts to see what had happened only to imediately see a wasp crawl into my pants. Quite understandably I started freaking out at this point and was getting more and more frantic about removing it from its current location, (‘wailing like a stuck pig’ was Paul’s own later description) but eventually fished it but in the process out batting it towards Paul who was driving and had been enjoying the last few miles of the home straight of the journey. There are now two people freaking out in the car, the wasp is doing laps and Paul’s golden Ford Escort estate is swerving violently down the road doing about 80mph until Paul has the presence of mind to stamp on the brakes and we skid into the grass at the side of the road. Very funny now but a bit manic at the time!
Big shout out to my sister on her birthday:
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday to you
Happy birthday dear Sarah
Happy birthday to you!
Woke up on Dom’s sofa in Honor Oak Mansions thankfully not too hung over from last night’s drinks. Cab to the airport whilst trying not to allow the latest episode with Vodafone to give me a seizure! “Yes Mr Pearson I can assure you that there will not be any issues” – Hmmmmm!!!
Check in but not counting my chickens yet. It wouldn’t be the first time I have missed a flight despite arriving three hours before the flight took off. I can laugh now but it wasnt at all funny at the time.
Get on to plane and settle in for a feast of movies. The Bourne Legacy, Avengers Assemble and finally The Sweeney, which seemed like a lovely bit of synergy upon departing the Mansions for the last time given the Pilot episode of the original 70s series started in my flat. John Thaw’s first words were bursting through the door of my flat to collar some villain with the immortal line of “Put your trousers on. You’re Nicked!”
A great overnight stop in Gloucester staying with my sister Sarah, Kevin, Scooby and Tsar. I’m leaving my trusty Red Panzer surf mobile in their care for the next year.
Enjoyed a feast of British Fayre to see me well on my way. A massive steak dinner in the evening followed by a monster fry up in the morning. I wont be short of protein for a week or two.
More calls to Vodafone to sort out the stuff that supposedly wouldn’t be an issue after the last call/wasted hour of my life. You would think that converting from pay monthly to PAYG would be a painting by numbers operation, particularly because I stumped up £100 before the transition to make sure I would have plenty of credit after the migration, but how wrong you would be. Want to go into full rant here, but am resisting the urge to do a “Robert on the phone” (as described by my sister) preferring to stick another pin in my Vodafone voodoo doll! Todays bug bear was paying for technical assistance, for half an hour at a time repeatedly through the day waiting to speak with somebody, only to be told the systems are down and nobody has the ability to phone you back later. I must have been mistaken but thought you were a telephone supplier. (Clearly efforts at avoiding a rant have failed miserably!)
Notifying banks about a year of international card transactions is only fractionally less painful. Apparently answering “all of them” does not go well into a system when asked which country I will be visiting. Is this the 21st century or not?
Quick dash to the coach station to catch one eastwards to Heathrow to drop off my bags and catch up over a beer with Neil Stafford, who is a great friend of mine whom I owe so much to. That includes this blog website which simply wouldn’t have happened without his help. Many thanks buddy to you and those behind the scenes. More than happy to recommend his web marketing skills to anyone.
Final dash of the day over to East Dulwich in South East London where the flat I owned for the last 12 years was located. (The sale of which is funding this indulgence by the way.) Some of my lovely neighbours are also moving on and I was able to guest star at their leaving drinks because it happily coincided with my own departure plans. Great chance to have a final beer with so many old friends, almost all of which didn’t know I was coming. Lots of fun all round.
I will miss my bachelor pad in the big bad city, but the next chapter of my tale begins here. Hope you like the story.
