Lost in Plimmerton

My Dear Princes and Dear Fellows,

So today I was to go into the new office for the official "Health and Safety And Here Are The Toilets" induction.

I am sure you know the sort of thing. 

I set off with 1 hour and 45 minutes to spare. But what I had NOT reckoned on, was a "slip" between Paekakariki and Plimmerton!

I'm not sure what sort of slip. The lady on the tannoy never said. Although she DID come on to the platform to tell us this, and also to tell us that her tannoy had just broken down.

Which was not a good sign.

So I don't know what sort of slip was causing the problem. It could have been a nip slip, for all I know. 

But what it mean was that the train into Paraparaumu was 30 minutes late. And that it stopped at Paekakariki, and that there we caught a bus, which dropped us onto the FUH-REEZING platform at Plimmerton where the train was ANOTHER 15 minutes which we got on only to go ONE stop before the over-worked crew had to be replaced which meant sitting in the station for ANOTHER 10 minutes waiting. 

A bloke came over the train loudspeaker, encouraging us all to social distance and wear "smilecatchers"*. He then added. "I'm sorry we are stuck here waiting, but take in the views. There are cars on one side. Buildings on the other."

You can't say Kiwis don't know how to make light of a bad situation.

Anyway. By this time, I'd alerted my colleagues I was likely going to be late and they said, "Oh, you may as well go home again, we'll rearrange for you and everyone else held up by the trains."

You don't have to tell me twice, so I got on the next train back home. 

And now I am back on the couch after a 3 and a half hour round trip to nowhere. But at least my couch is never delayed due to a slip. 

S.

* Which I thought was cute.