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Monday 10 June 2013

Back Home

I am now back at home for a few days to see my Mum and son and check on the house etc. I have left Helen and the Macy the cat at the Droylsden Marina until Friday.

It is a very short walk to the Metrolink stop (tram). It looks like the stop has not long been opened and it is the end of the line. It all seems fairly easy to negotiate and I would expect over the years more routes and lines will be added as need and costs allows. From the tram it looks like an awful lot of Manchester has been knocked down, along with many towns and cities, and not much has yet gone up in place. I assume that once the economic gloom rises then projects on these sites around the country could be the driver for employment and growth in the country. It is a shame there is a touch of chicken and egg about it all. Some one will have to take the plunge in the end to start the ball rolling.

Piccadilly Station has changed very much since I was last there and was busy with all the usual comings and goings. On the platform for my train were two sets of commuter trains. This was confusing many people as to where to go. This wasn't helped by the fact that the train turned up astern of them and within two minutes was off again. I could understand this on a through train but as Piccadilly is a terminus you may have thought it would have rested a while. I suppose this is great utilisation and not that the inbound train was late!

I had my head stuck in a book most of the time but did manage to look up as we came out of the Standedge Tunnel and quickly crossed the canal. I did not see any boats moving though.We are hoping to cross the Pennines using the Huddersfield Narrow Canal later in the year. At Piccadilly I watched a very large framed man shambling towards the platform. He had an elbow crutch clutched in a hand along with a big bag of grub from one of the burger chains and a very large coffee. Obviously the crutch was not being used otherwise he wouldn't have been able to carry his rations for the hour and 45 mins journey. And yes of course he sat with me! Fortunately not next to me but opposite. There was the usual tussle under the table to exercise rights over space for legs and feet. I have long legs but he had three of them, well a crutch too, but all settled down as after 10 minutes and having finished his tuck and coffee he slept. Mind you when he did wake up he took his phone out and started playing with it. He wasn't loud or excessive in his use of it, but he must have  been the only person that still has a bleep sounding every key stroke he makes! I think he must have been deleting his text in and out box as it went on for ages. Still all good things come to an end and we arrived at the lovely Paragon Station of Hull. My son was waiting for me so we were soon home and a cup of tea brewing.

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