Saturday Train Adventure; part 2

Dear George,

Well what a difference an hour and a cup of tea make...

I'm boarding the train for Knighton and it's as if I were in some delightfully quaint british comedy. The surrounding countryside is heart warmingly stunning, the banter with the old man in the station teashop was first rate and I have just spent the last couple of minutes helping little old ladies carry their wheely bags up and down the stairs and allowing them to use my arm to steady themselves on to the train. I think I will explode if my heart warms anymore!

Knighton, I just read, is every bit the traditional british country town and i'm unbelievable excited about getting there. I've cursed myself already about not reading up on the place before hand since they have a bicycle hire shop and if i'd not packed so much I could have hired said bike and made my way to the holiday cottage by way of more beautiful countryside. Alas, alas …

The 'famous', or rather, one of the interesting things about Knighton is that the train station is in England, whereas the town is in Wales! Amazing!

Weather remains nippy, but the sun is out and I can't see a cloud in the sky. Stamps are 60p each

Take care buddy,

Yours,

Little Dave

Saturday Train Adventure

Dear George,

Today I am travelling the length of the country to a wee town on the boarder of England and Wales called Knighton for the 30^th birthday celebrations of my great mate James. It is journey that, if i'm honest, have been dreading. I will be travelling by train, and since the Olympic torch left our shores the public transport system has returned to its relaxed attitude towards the thronging mass that is the British public, already today I have had to ride a rail replacement bus. National rail enquires told me it would take roughly 6 hours, and at the price of £72 return (would be £168 if i'd hadn't booked my tickets in advanced!).

I find my seat and within moments I tense up. 3 Australians, each with enough luggage to make a touring diva blush, begin the process of loading up all available space around us.

Further back I notice a flock of football supporters. Is flock the right word? What is the collective noun for football supporters?

It has been brought to our collective attention that coach D, the coach i'm travelling in is the silent coach, so sadly I won't be podcasting as much as I'd have liked.

So far I have been travelling for roughly two and a half hours and have only just left London. This is the third train of the day and I have two more to go.

The Ozzies are slumbering peacefully in the seats around me, the Arsenal fans are quiet also. However a middle aged lady is cackling away behind us, necking plastic cups of white wine.

I make it to Crewe where I will change trains and head to Shrewsbury...

Travelling almost 4 hours now!

Weather is bright and sunny, and a wee bit nippy.  A first class stamp cost 60p

Write to you soon buddy

Yours

Little Dave

August Adventure

Dear George,

This is the first letter of september so i'd better make it a good one. August was another busy month for little old me. Since the start of the year I have promised you stories of great adventure but alas opportunities to wow you with heroic tales have been few and far between but thanks for sticking by me and reading these anyway.

So let me talk about August quickly.... It was a hangover from the Olympics, where team GB did us proud. I have never wanted to be 10 years younger than when I watched all the athletes compete at the games. Throughout the 2 weeks I failed to control the flow of tears each and every time one of our athletes won a medal. I think what caused the biggest lump in my throat was when these folk who had trained all day, every day for this moment felt the need to apologise for the times they didn't win medals... After receiving a bronze medal in swimming, Rebecca Adlington, in tears told the country she was sorry for not reclaiming the gold she won 4 years ago. It broke my heart. It was an action I can't ever imagine a premiership football player ever doing.

...And I can't talk about the olympics without talking about the Paralymipcs. These are people who say fuck you God, I may not have legs/arms/hands but i'm going to live my life anyway, and not just live it. I can't really do justice with words how awe inspiring these athletes are but you can be sure that when David Weir waved his 4 gold medals about in the team GB parade the other day, I was weeping like a bitch. I hope I get to do a podcast or 2 about the olympics and Paraplympics, i'm sure all you listeners would love to hear my voice break into emotional sobbing.

So what else happened? Well, the trains were running pretty well throughout August. I have in fornt of me a rather nifty statistics; 97.12% of all trains ran within 5 minutes of their scheduled time during August. The stats are even better for the weeks during the Olympics and Paralympics, which just goes to show that with a little effort the trains can work.

The weather has been pretty good too.

The real reason I have neglected my writing duties is because i've been away in Hollywood pitching movie ideas. Yes, look impressed! However, it did not go well for me out there...

All I will say is that the film industry and big movie producers are hypocrites! I'm sure you're all familiar with the film 'King Kong', a story about a giant ape that falls in love with, and forces itself onto a human blonde woman? Well, when I pitched my script idea of a man, possibly played by me, who forces himself on to a small chimpanzee, they told me I was sick and called security to throw me off the studio set. Hypocrites the lot of them!

Anyway I must dash, I have a fantastical journey to plan. It is one of my great mate's 30^th birthday and a bunch of us are traveling to a large cottage in the country to drink heavily and maybe chance a glance at the surrounding countryside.

Take care buddy

Yours

Little Dave

Ps. A first class stamp will cost you 60p