Rambling

When I got home last night Robbie was rambling on (and on, and on .........) about his train timetables and something or other that didn't work. It didn't seem like the end of the world to me, but judging by his fury, it mattered to him. I sometimes think when he goes to work they wind him up and watch him go, OK I know it is funny sometimes, but I really don't appreciate it when they send him home fully wound! I don't want him still rambling on about timetables at midnight!

Robbie is feeling really poorly this morning, I had to send him back to bed because he is feeling sick and he turned a lurid shade of green when he tried to get ready for work.

Does it Measure Up?

Why does the weekend always rush past so quickly, while the week seems like such a hard slog? We went to the supermarket for our usual weekend shopping trip, it was nice to have something to distract Robbie because he had been talking about HST toilets again, I don't know why he finds the subject so fascinating, but apparently servicing the toilets has implications for his timetables. He told me I am not allowed to write about HST's because I was unkind about them last week, so of course that made me squeeze out another post on the subject. Telling me I can't do something is not a good idea! I may regret the loss of the shop and I may find the colour scheme a bit on the boring side, but even I have to admit that there is one plus point - decent brands are coming back. I was sad when Virgin lost the Cross Country franchise, but if it has saved us from that pathetic apology apology for cola, I am delighted. I don't think I have ever tasted anything as disgusting in my life. So OK bring on the (boring) refitted HST all is forgiven -well almost all, I haven't forgiven them for nicking half the toilets but I will have a rant about that another day.

Anyway back to Robbie and the supermarket, you will not believe what he did. I was so embarrassed that I had to walk away and pretend that I wasn't with him. He got down on his knees and measured the tomato sauce and HP sauce bottles! It was like shopping with Mr Bean.

A Cunning Plan

I have had enough, I'm starting a campaign to get Robbie to look for another job! I have never met anyone more passionate about his work than Robbie and I'm used to him leaving early in the morning or coming home late. I can't count the number of times I've had to 'put his dinner in the dog' or make last minute changes to the evening meal. Even when he gets home, his work often comes with him. Today he was struggling to find a solution to a particularly challenging problem with his December 09 timetable. He wandered around Morrisons muttering to himself about why this or that solution wouldn't work, he got some funny looks from other shoppers, but he was too engrossed in his timetable to notice or to care. His eureka moment came in the yoghurt section when he suddenly announced to anyone who cared to listen “Yes! That could be possible, it could work”. By now I was convinced the store staff were ready to call for the men in white coats, so I hurried him through the checkout and out to the car. He continued his discussion with nobody in particular and by the time we got home he seemed to have settled on a possible solution.

Robbie was exhausted after his 18 hour endurance test on Thursday when he went to visit Network Rail in Leeds, but he still got up early and rushed off to work on Friday morning. By the time he got home in the evening he was too tired and too wound up to eat! He has a reputation to maintain so he managed a few mouthfuls, but he could hardly keep his eyes open. The early starts don't bother him, they don't even bother me very much and we cope when he is late home, I am used to it. The thing that really bothers me is seeing him work so hard and not be appreciated, in fact on Friday it was worse than that, not only did his efforts go unnoticed, but he got moaned at for something that he knew nothing about and was not his responsibility. I know they have had to cope with difficult circumstances, and Robbie has willingly put in time and effort to make things work, but this has been going on for almost a year now and he is being taken for granted, I know he thinks he is Superman, but he can't do the impossible!

It may take me a while to get Robbie to see things my way – but he usually does in the end! In the meantime I have a strategy. Robbie arrived home totally exhausted on Friday evening, he is no use to me in that state. After a good night's sleep and a haircut his strength was restored, but I have plans, he will be totally worn out by the time he goes back to work on Monday morning. Why should they have the best of him? I didn't choose a 'toy boy' just to watch him sleep all weekend!

Robbie's random information for the week was imparted in the middle of the night. Just before 1am on Saturday morning he woke briefly to inform me that 'they have sweeteners reduced at Tesco in Leeds' I'm not sure why I needed to know that, but before I could ask he was sleeping soundly again.

Mr Angry!

Robbie's trip to Leeds turned out to be a bit of an endurance test, he had to be up at 4.30am in order to be at the station in time for his train and he didn't arrive home again until nearly midnight. He was very tired but he was still talking about trains, he went on and on ...... and on about his December 08 timetable and the various problems he has to resolve. I am not that interested in the intricacies of timetable planning at the best of times, and I'm even less interested after midnight! I tried to get him to shut up, I even asked if he had mistaken me for Barry Doe, but that proved to be a big mistake. The mention of his name provoked a torrent of loud and very angry speech, I didn't understand the individual words, it sounded as if he was speaking 'Klingon' but the meaning was obvious - Barrie Doe was not in Robbie's good books! It was past midnight, but Robbie presented me with the offending article in Rail Magazine, Barry Doe was scathing about the pricing structure of Cross Country tickets. More words of 'Klingon' followed, then someone must have flicked a switch and Robbie lurched into fast forward mode and he began what promised to be a very long tirade about the inadequacies of the franchise process. I keep emergency supplies to cope with this type of crisis, there is only one proven way to make Robbie stop talking – feed him! Soon afterwards peace was restored and Robbie was tucking in to ham and mushroom tagliatelle. As for Barry Doe, I think he is quite funny when he has a rant, he is a bit like a Jack Russel terrier, he can't resist biting whichever ankle happens to be nearest. He may say that he wishes that Virgin had not lost the Cross Country franchise now, but he as been fairly nasty to them in the past.

A New Career Option 27.09.2007

After our meal yesterday we settled down to a quiet family evening, I hoped for pleasant conversation and perhaps to hear a little about Robbie's day. Instead he parked himself at the table with his laptop, his new noise reducing headphones in his ears and his head was bobbing up and down like a nodding dog. There are times when words simply will not do, but my best Paddington Bear stare seemed to get the message across eloquently. He realised that he was required to take a more active part in proceedings, and when he thought I hadn't noticed, the music went off and the headphones were no longer evident. Shortly afterwards Robbie embarked on one of his 'did you know' conversations and my heart sank. For the next hour of so he told me all about the alterations to the December 08 train timetable for the route he travels on. I'm not sure if I can cope with that level of excitement!

I hear that the National Rail Enquiry service is being slated in a survey published today, apparently a large percentage of the information they provide is inaccurate. They didn't need a survey, I could have told them that for free. Maybe Robbie should set up an independent rail enquiry service, it would be far more accurate and there would be a free offer included - a guaranteed cure for insomnia!

Burning Bradshaws

This morning we were cuddled up in bed when the subject of Robbie's large collection of railway books arose. He has shelves of them close to his side of the bed so that his bedtime reading is close at hand. Robbie mainly reads railway books, railway magazines, and other assorted magazines. His favourite non railway magazine is Stuff, full of information about every gadget imaginable. He doesn't read fiction at all - except the Guardian, but you already know my opinion on that!

He often looks at his Quail Maps in bed. I don't really see the attraction, it is interesting to see the precise details of local lines, but I really don't think I could become engrossed in a a Quail Map for hours! Anyway getting back to this morning, I made the mistake of suggesting that we could get rid of some of his out of date maps and timetables. He almost leapt out of bed to stand between me and his precious books. He yelled, "you can't do that, it would be like burning Bradshaw’s".

I knew that I was in for a long explanation. Robbie painstakingly explained that Bradshaw’s was an independently produced timetable covering all the railway companies in pre nationalisation days. Not surprisingly he took rather more than one sentence to explain that! He went on to say that his huge tomes were more modern but absolutely indispensable. They are apparently an essential work of reference and must be kept forever. I was far from convinced, but if he needs a security blanket who am I to deprive him of it!
It crossed my mind that if Hercule Poirot managed to catch a serial killer using the ABC Railway Guide, who knows what Robbie could achieve with his National Railway Timetables!
A similar principle apparently applies to Quail maps and therefore we are compelled to keep the past version as well as the present ones. Oh well, it will soon be standing room only in our bedroom, but if it makes him happy I will live with it. Come to think of it, it sounds just like his journey home on Central Trains, when they decide to actually provide the service as advertised it is always full and standing!

Discussion of Quail Maps led Robbie somehow to Exeter and a landmark called Red Cow level crossing on the approach to the station. I'm not sure of the relevance but my knowledge of agriculture was sufficient for me to tell him that it was almost certainly named after the Devon Red breed of cattle. Life with Robbie is certainly an education!