Still catching up with our story here. it is now Friday 18th December at about 6.45 am and the radio alarm has just gone off...
"Snow, up to 4 inches deep, bad driving conditions..." explained the lady on the radio. But the information was very non specific. Did that mean here or just in Yorkshire? "You can't go babe" T tells me. I had a planned meeting at Brentwood that morning, about an hour and a half journey in good times. "I'll check the detail when I get up, too early to make a decision yet"
Wrong answer! T got up about 10 mins before me and by the time I surfaced I was greeted with "You can't go, it's terrible out there" And she had about twelve sites up on the computer showing how bad it was locally and around Brentwood.
"The A12 is really bad" she explains. "I'm not going anywhere near the A12" I explain. The conversation continues like this for about 20 minutes. By this time I'm getting tetchy and T is getting annoyed with me. The battle lines are drawn. T is adamant that I stay safely at home and I'm adamant that I find out more details, talk to the client and find out the details of how it is in Brentwood. Getting the picture?
In the end I explain in a far from calm way that it feels like I'm being treated like a two year old that can't make any right decisions. Yep, I'm tetchy! And I even walk out of the room in a huff. Must be all those antibiotic tablets I'm still having to take or am I just a typical man or am I right? Please don't tell me what you think, the ego isn't that strong!
After I calm down I call Terry who is going to the meeting with me. Now he's already been on the road for an hour and I have found out that the motorway is closed in both directions local to me. Terry has talked to the client who says that it is bad over in Brentwood. So I do the right thing and decide to cancel the meeting. Terry finds a safe place to turn round and the client is able to go on his xmas holidays to France a few hours early... :-) Oh hum, what a morning!
We have made friends again very soon and went for a lovely hot lunch at the local village centre. It's just great over there, hot food and great prices, served by volunteers and all in aid of the wonderful centre with it's numerous community activities and clubs. We're so lucky that it's only a two minute walk so the snow was not a problem :-)
A photoshoot had been planned for Saturday morning but this was cancelled due to the snow which by now was getting deeper and deeper. So Saturday was a day to stay at home except for a short trip to the shops to get supplies in.
Sunday arrived and the snow was still all around. and it looked beautiful. Lucky for us the local roads had been gritted so we made the decision to go out to take some photos locally. Couldn't drive far but a lovely walk nether the less. But it was cold,very very cold! Cold enough to freeze the... well you know the saying.
And the snow came again during the afternoon. Looking beautiful but not good for those "just in time" deliveries before Christmas! Four deliveries should be arriving on Monday or Tuesday. Would they arrive?
By Monday morning the snow was laying deep and crisp and not quite even. The cars were trying to go down our road and just about managing to go from one end to the other. I was working from home in case the courier men could make their deliveries. T went into work for just a few hours but came home whilst it was still light.
It was good that we were both home as the snow continued on Monday evening. As the evening went on we started to hear the local news. T's dad had taken over three hours to drive his normal 30 minute journey. The snow flakes were now the size of fifty pence pieces. T's mum couldn't get home and had to take refuge in a local pub all night.
400 people slept is Asda's over night and 100 in John Lewis's. Roads close and cars abandoned all over the place. One hour journeys were now taking 8 to 10 hours...
It is now Tuesday morning and I'm at home writing this. Nope, not going to try and venture out. certainly no arguments between T and me this morning!! :-)
Hope you are all snug and warm in your homes
Andrew xxx
