Up against a wall

I'm not sure the gods were very keen on my Aylesbury trip. First, I set off a week early.

This morning I only just caught the bus as I'd spent half an hour beforehand scouring the house in vain for my phone charging cable. 

I'd allowed myself enough time to be a tourist in Aylesbury (in the rain, mind you) and was very pleased when I realised I could also nip into a supermarket to buy a bottle I wouldn't otherwise have had time to buy before I need it tomorrow. But going into the theatre, first I couldn't find my ticket on my rapidly discharging phone then the security check took my bottle off me under the 'no glass' rule that I suppose I should have known about.

Never mind. In the right place, at the right time. Calm down and enjoy the play. Birdsong. I read and enjoyed the book 25 or so years ago.

The annoying sweet wrappers fell silent but half an hour in, intrusive talking going on some way behind me didn't stop. After about ten minutes someone came onto the stage, ushered the actors off and told us there was a medical emergency. The circle was emptied, the ambulance crew arrived and about an hour later, they managed to manoeuvre the person and the drip they'd set up, onto a stretcher, along the seats, up the steps and out. A theatre is not a good place for a medical emergency and it put my irritations into perspective.

The play was excellent, with a clever set that quickly changed from genteel drawing room to trenches to underground tunnels. The evocation of life, death and loss in the first world war in northern France was simple and moving. Good writing, good acting.

Having reclaimed my bottle from the manager and thanked her for managing a much more serious problem this afternoon than mine, I was relieved to get myself to the bus station in time to catch what I thought was the last bus to Oxford. Except that I missed it because it set off from a different bay from that listed on the departure board. Thankfully, there was another an hour later so, 2½ hours later than I'd expected, I got home, cold, hungry and irritable. But well and not in hospital.