An Unusual Week!

This week has been very strange - not only in the doing but in the recollection of it.  For instance, in conversation this morning the name Halesworth came up, and I commented that I was there only last Tuesday, making a delivery.  I now find that it was actually Friday morning!  It's been a strange week because of a number of unexpected twists and turns, which I'll summarise briefly before moving on.

Monday found me being sent to Essex.  I was called at 8.30 to collect from a customer in Sandy and take to West Thurrock.  When I rang in to ask if there was anything else to go that way, I was told no, but there would be a collection nearby ... at 3.0pm!  Bemused, I set off, and discovered that I was to deliver to a Regional Distribution Centre  (at my age, RDC has a historic local administration meaning!)  These places usually deal with articulated lorries rather than small vans, and when I'd waited my turn, parked my van as directed and reported to the office, I learned that, as a small van, I could have unloaded myself in a more appropriate place an hour ago!  Off then for my collection - some upholstered blocks from a place I'd been to a number of times, where I arrived soon after midday ... and discovered that they were ready already!

Afterwards I was sent to Stevenage to collect for Birmingham, only to be called back half way there when the job got cancelled.  Instead, I was added to a mixed contingent of nearly a dozen small and large vans to collect in Potters Bar at 6.0 the next morning.  I was given deliveries in Uckfield, Bexhill and Totton, which I finished as requested by midday.  I thought that would be Tuesday done and dusted, but not so - upon my return I was soon off again, this time to Leighton Buzzard and Telford.  I eventually found the destination in Telford around 7.0, discovered the gate to be locked, although there were many cars on the car park and several lights on.  As I explored, I was accosted by a voice from an intercom, and eventually gained access, only to be confronted by two standard contract security officers, who won't accept anything they're not expecting, despite a genuine and recognised member of staff being named on the paperwork.  Eventually they contacted the consignee - by then snugly at home in Wales - who phoned a colleague, still at work two floors above, to come down and sign for the goods.  After a meal on the way home, I was eventually into bed about midnight!

After that, Wednesday was a comfortable one-job day, and I collected in the afternoon for an 8.0 delivery on Thursday at a factory in Leicestershire, which ensured a nice truck-stop breakfast on the way home, and only local jobs afterwards.

On Friday I was sent to Halesworth as noted above, and when I was nearly back got diverted to collect in Bedford for a firm in Letchworth.  It was then about 2.0pm, and both the van and I needed refueling!  I then collected something a colleague had picked up in Stevenage, for Swavesey near Cambridge, and thence to St Ives for some export packages to go to DHL in Hayes, Middx.  That would have rounded off the week nicely, but there was yet another twist in the tail, whereby I was diverted to Dunstable to collect three envelopes, which took me to executive dwellings in Beaconsfield, Henley on Thames (both of which I'd been to before) and lastly to a village in Oxfordshire.  Here all the houses have names rather than numbers, and try as I might - even after enquiries in the local pub - the one I sought was not to be found, so after the necessary phone calls I brought the offending envelope back whence it came, and was home for a second time in the week, at around 11.30pm.

- and for tidiness' sake, after such a long 'summary', I'll add what was to have followed in a separate post here.