Grimsby came and went. Now I’m in Norfolk, staying at the Broom Hall Country Hotel, which looks to be plugged in to the local community here and is certainly better than a Premier Inn. They’ve got a restaurant and a bar, and a friendly hairy dog called Paddy. I was tired but I attempted to eat some risotto before retiring to my room. It’s all bird themed here. I’m in “Nuthatch”. Another early start tomorrow followed by a long drive after work.
The foggy dark nightmare journey last night turned out to be quite pleasant in the daytime. It was through the Lincolnshire Wolds. I pottered back the other way in much less of a hurry. Rolling hills and farmland. I saw a rich variety of tractors on the roads, and smelt a cornucopia of smells. Everybody is out harvesting for spring, using their great big machines. On impulse, because it was kind of on the way, I stopped in Skegness.
Grimsby to Skegness. Some of the less appealing sounding places we have in our eccentric homeland. Skegness reminded me of The Isle of Man before online gambling. As you walk down the seafront you hear animatronic pirates voiced by locals trying to entice you into chip shops. There’s that evocative but somehow dated chanting of the bingo caller, bored to the back of their skull, always slipping into vocal patterns as they conduit numbers to the nice bored old folk. And everything else is bleeping and farting, repeating phrases or playing snatches of jaunty music – bright machines trying to tempt you into burning cash to try and win a bit of tut that you trade for in tickets with an angry looking lady in a booth. I burnt three quid and got a Toy Story vinyl. I was just looking for coffee but I got sucked in. Cheap gambling with no cash prizes. Utterly pointless, and yet somehow compelling.
Even though I got to the hotel in plenty of time, I haven’t managed an early bed. It’s gone midnight. I’d better get my head down as I’m gonna have to go three rounds tomorrow with the renewable energy workshop. Costs me less and less the more I practice it. Time was that I’d have a lump in my throat before a three session day. Now I’m just ready to go. Back in London tomorrow and I think one more day of work before I get up stop and take stock for a moment… Phew.
It’s peaceful here. Really peaceful. The guy in the room next door was playing James Blunt but he’s gone to bed now and I can hear nothing but my tinittus and the sound of my finger swiping this out on my phone. Even though it’s late, sleep is gonna be good here. Night.
AlBarclay 