Twenty one years ago, I was a retail manager in charge of a smallish Texaco petrol station in Hampshire. I was about half way through a near ten year on/off* career with Texaco** when something unexpected happened. Every petrol station in the country ran out of petrol. Every single one of them. The Great Blockade … Continue reading A Mexican Brexit
The letter arrived in our post box yesterday. Here in the UK, 2021 is census year. Except, because of the pandemic, Scotland decided to put it off till next March. We don’t live in Scotland though. So it’s this year. And this year, it’s a digital census. One just needs to go to the census … Continue reading Census 2021
You live and learn. I certainly do, anyway. I’ve learned plenty since Mrs P and I bought our first home a few years ago. Some lessons come hard and fast. Within six weeks we learned that if you live in a ground floor flat, no matter how small you think a window might be, you … Continue reading Leasehold Extensions
Most companies of any size offer a few benefits and perks to their employees. The railway offers more than most. Who wouldn't want a final salary based pension? They're hard to come by these days. Some (most? all? I don't know...) Train Operating Companies also provide a scheme, which I participate in, to buy shares … Continue reading The Priv
This week is a week of anniversaries. Today marks two years since I started working with a train operator as a ticket office clerk. As far as I'm concerned, it's the best job in the world*. Why is this so? The pay is fantastic for the job I perform. But the pay is not why … Continue reading The Best Job In The World
This is a public service announcement by the Mexile in association with an awful lost of frustration and angst. Roughly 24 hours before Mrs P and I were due to fly to Mexico for our two week holiday, there was what I shall refer to as an ‘incident’. I won’t bore you with the details of … Continue reading Travelling On A Lost/Stolen BRP
The British calendar can be a complicated affair sometimes. Sure, some holiday dates are fixed. Christmas Day and Bonfire night, for example, are always on the 25th December and 5th November. Other dates are fixed-ish. May Day is rarely on 1st May, unlike pretty much everywhere else in the world, but as it is always on … Continue reading Summer Lottery
The Mexile 