Power supply

A power cut in the early hours of the morning is strangely disconcerting. You have a glimpse of post apocalypse when things have just stopped working and everything goes grey and lifeless. And you can't shower.

It came on again just in time for me to get clean and get out of the house by eight. Had to run for a train so no coffee and a knot in my stomach where breakfast should have been. Digging out my earphones, I realised I had very little music stored on my iPad; so I listened to an album called Union by Saint Saviour which I couldn't even remember buying. After a while I really started enjoying it, then had vague recollections of a spur of the moment download purchase when a bit drunk with friends who recommended it.

I wonder what percentage of Internet purchases are made when people started browsing late at night after a few drinks?

It's strange what you think about on trains, when your gaze turns inward. I started thinking about a young woman I saw in Seville five years ago; she was sitting at a nearby restaurant table and arguing with her parents in an angry low voice. After her parents left she sat there and the waiter asked her if everything was okay. I think he meant the food but she misconstrued it as an enquiry into her emotional state and launches into a diatribe about how controlling her father was and how her mother went along with him and how she wished she could get away from them but she lacked the confidence ... An enquiry about the quality of dinner suddenly became California style therapy without walls.

Five years later I'm sitting on a train and wondering what became of her and of course I will never know.

At Waterloo I try and get breakfast at a place called Benugo on the new upper level of the station concourse. Trying to buy a bacon and egg muffin without the bacon proves impossible as they are already made up. A sign on the wall says "baristas not button pushers" which is bollocks. Another sign says "it's fish finger Friday" which is just weird. I settle for a decaf soya Americano and buy croissants from the tired little cafe on Platform C at Waterloo East, which are actually very good. And to be fair so is the coffee.

Browsing the 'net on my journey. The BBC are covering Elliot Erwhitt's 85th birthday. Rather nice quote for all us blippers. "The real trick to taking pictures is to be patient and wait for them to happen". Good advice in an impatient world.

The train to Orpington is mercifully quick. I dislike the place; back in the sixties journalists coined the term "Orpington man" as an icon for all that is lower middle class, suburban and conservative. The whole place reeks of white hanging basket mentality.

Aged P made me sad today. Confused, in pain and grumpy. Things looked up when I persuaded her to have lunch in the garden. She did have the giggles talking about how she acquired a dog in wartime, rescuing it from an abusive owner but to the mortification of her mother who just saw it as another mouth to feed followed by a visit from a pain clothes policeman berating her for the lack of a dog licence.. But being honest, I increasingly look at her and selfishly wonder what fate has in store for me in old age.

Met TSM at Waterloo after a very quick journey back up to London (one of Orpington'S greatest assets is that you can get out of it quickly) and we went up to Seven Dials. The Beeb had, yet again, got the forecast completely wrong and I was sweating in jeans and a shirt so went to Superdry and bought an expensive tee shirt to help me get through the rest of the day
(the forecast rain did not in fact materialise until after 7pm),

Matilda was great. Far too good for kids. Thanks to The Girl Racer for the tickets, the seats were excellent. Afterwards we went to The Real Greek on the corner of Bow Street, and had some excellent mezze before heading home.

I confess to shedding a few tears at the theatre. Roal Dahl's perennial theme of bullying and nasty people bought back back memories of both my childhood and times in the NHS when I've been subjected to some vicious treatment by my 'superiors'. Even if you've moved on the old wounds sometimes get re- opened.

Waterloo station was an experience its own right tonight. Bought Dunkin Doughnuts for the kids; saw a very classy stag group who were dressed as cartoon characters and did an impromptu workout on the concourse; and photographed ourselves in the Dyson thermal imaging machine (quote of the day from TSM - "hey you've got a hot face and I've got hot breasts"). Then had a hilarious 15 minutes with the lovely staff of Lush where TSM now buys all her bathroom stuff. Okay I bought some stuff too. I'm one of the girls.

Heavy rain, thunder and lightning tonight. We started the day without electricity and ended up with too much of it. In between ... well I certainly felt plugged in.

Been a good and thoughtful day ...