Car On The Railway

When I was young, Back to the Future Part III was one of my favourite movies. In the climax of the film, Doc and Marty put the DeLorean on the railway, and a train pushes it to 88mph. That car was supposed to be on the railway.

The car I saw on the railway at Brockenhurst this morning, on the other hand, was not. It must have happened just a few minutes before I arrived, as they were still trying to back out, just as I was pulling into the station car park. I mentioned it to the man at the ticket counter, and when his phone rang, the man in the signal box was surprised he had already heard about the situation. While I wasn't given a timeframe (most likely a company policy, as he was fighting tooth and nail to say anything), he strongly hinted that it would be hours. They'd need to shut off the power, get a tow truck, etc. I decided to take my losses, like the £8.20 I had already paid for parking, and go home. I'll try again next week.

As I was leaving, the man from the ticket booth came out to see the damage. We both chuckled to each other, as he said "that's not going anywhere!"

Broken Finger

On Monday I broke my finger. I was exercising, and I accidentally smashed it between two dumbbells. After a few hours, it had swollen, and was a deep purple colour. The next day, I went to the local minor injury unit in Lymington, and after taking x-rays, they confirmed that I had broken it, and that I wasn't to life weights for four to six weeks.

This is pretty heartbreaking to me. Not just because of how therapeutic the gym has been over the last two years, but also because of how much progress I was making as well. This year I had signed up for the CrossFit Open, where thousands of athletes from all over the work compete doing the same workouts. I figured I would be able to finally do a few of the exercises I couldn't do last year. But if I won't be able to lift any weights at all for a month or more, I will probably have lost nearly all of the gains I've made. And by the time I do get back to where I was, it will be all over.

I can still do cardio, and any leg exercises. But I'm just using plastic pipes, and empty training bars for the workouts at the moment, just so I somewhat keep the muscle memory. To be honest, I've hurt my finger more taking out the rubbish than I did trying to do thrusters.

Not A Great Start

I've been told by work that I have to go to a conference in Amsterdam next month. I said I could travel there the weekend before, to visit the family. I haven't been to Middelburg since before the pandemic.

But no. I was informed that I had to go there and back in a day. I mentioned this was impossible, as there aren't enough flights to and from Southampton Airport to do this. They countered by saying I'd be flying from Gatwick, which is just as impossible, as there's no way I can get there and back, as well as flying, and going to some conference for a few hours, in a day.

So I was put in a hotel near (but not actually at) the airport. Where I'd be sharing a room with another guy. I reacted in a way that I think let them know I was not comfortable with this arrangement at all, and I was given another room.

This whole situation is a disaster. If I was given even a day to think about things and plan, I could have gone down to Middelburg, and there would be no hassles at all. But no. At least parking at the airport will be cheap, because after the mess getting back last year, as well as the constant strikes, there's no way I'm trusting the railway.

The Bright Future of 2023

We did indeed have a very different, but very enjoyable Christmas this year. Mum and I volunteered at the same nursing home where Dad stayed earlier in the year. We delivered the mince pies and sherry to all of the residents. Then when they all came down for Christmas dinner, we were the wine stewards. I was a bit naughty, as one lady kept asking for Baileys, until I realised I must have refilled her glass four times by that point! Whoops! The staff were even kind enough to cook Christmas dinner for us as well.

Afterwards, we went to Milford-on-sea, where Dad liked to go and see all of the different boats and ships in the Solent. But boy was the weather rough and unpredictable when we arrived. We stayed for about an hour or so, then went home for pudding and presents.

Now that 2022 is over, I'm looking forward to 2023 with hopes of good luck, and calming times ahead.