Red lights

A day trip to Leicester! 

The drive down to a meeting is always slightly fraught because the last thing you want is to be late and you know it doesn't take much of an incident on the motorway to delay you significantly. I like at least half an hour's contingency and that's not really enough. 

I had to be home tonight to pick Dan up from this evening's performance of 'Jesus Christ Superstar' but as I left Leicester just after four, I was actually thinking about popping home first and doing a few chores before going to collect him. 

And the journey back was OK, making good progress along the A50 until warnings came up about the M6 and I ended up on the A34. Well, that was still fine; I was going to be home in good time. I made my way up and onto the M60, and then turned off at the exit for Bolton and the M61. 

A couple of police cars, travelling up the hard shoulder, passed us and then one dropped back while the other pulled into the traffic and stopped us. I was about eight cars back: if I'd passed through a few seconds earlier, I wouldn't have been stopped. 

But I was and that was that. For two and a half hours. But do you know what? It wasn't so bad. Crucially, I didn't need the loo, plus I wasn't thirsty or hungry and I had a good book to read. Apart from getting a little uncomfy from time to time, it really was all right. 

Eventually, they turned us all 'round and *that* was interesting. Three lanes of tightly packed cars all trying to do the same manoeuvre at the same time! And then, once we got back to the fork, all making the left turn to Bolton while traffic was still hurtling off the M60. 

But after all that, in the end I arrived at The Grand to collect Dan bang on time. I had pulled up and turned off the engine just as he rang me. No problem. 

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-12.7 kgs
Reading: 'How Art Made Pop And Pop Became Art'