Marvellous, forgot all my passes today - building, P&R and shuttle bus. So I've had to pay to get here (but only because I wanted to get the same bus as normal rather than wait and get a freebie off the supervisor), sign in and will no doubt have further awkwardness when I have to go out later. Fool. Mind you, I am definitely suffering big time from nerves over the new job - not sleeping at all well for starters - even though Chris wanted me for it. I'm sure it will all come out alright in the end, but for now it is doing my head in. Oh well, only got to get through today and tomorrow then five days off before the change.

Yesterday we had a training session on the new mPlan software we are supposed to be using to help plan routes and areas of need etc in the future. They have been working on-and-off on the project since 1988 or thereabouts and we still don't anticipate it being useful this side of Christmas. Plus they had the brother Richard down as the IT contact for it, and when I spoke to him last night he'd never heard of it. I will say no more! The strangest thing, though, was that we were back in St Edmund House for the day. That was very strange. We've only been here a month but the old place seemed so grotty and dirty and falling apart at the seams... A pity some of the more persistent complainers about this place couldn't have come along to see the contrast now they are used to the new. It was also very odd when I dropped my new, signed contract in to personnel - most of the building is empty at the moment before they move in the people from other buildings who are not coming over here. Very odd.

And then we had to go and walk the dog with Helen as Bhupen and Alexander were away for the night. A nice evening and we ended up getting some chips on the way home, just to be naughty! I think they might have contributed to the not sleeping very well either.

Right, time to crack on with timetable proof checking.

When I left Argos Newmarket to go to Argos Stowmarket, there really wsn't much to do in the way of handing stuff over to a successor (or potential one) as everything we were supposed to do in the stockroom was already documented and written up as procedures etc. Plus I had the place running at pretty much top efficiency and was getting good productivity out of the staff. (Despite what certain Managers of other stores may have thought and implied later on, which I am not going to get into today - I'll save that for if I ever do what I intended this blog to hold in the form of potted chunks of autobiography (which is probably really conceited for someone like me but who cares?)). And when I left Stowmarket it was under a cloud so I never had the chance to do any handing over (although again most of what I was doing was in pretty good shape). So, what I'm trying to say here is that the last couple of days have been a lot harder than I was expecting.

Having to analyse what I do and write it down for someone else to refer to is proving to be quite an insight. On the one hand I'm thinking "crikey, don't I do a lot of stuff" and on the other "there's just nothing to write down for this as it is so basic". Still, at least I can reassure myself that I haven't wasted the last six years. And I am even more apprehensive about what is to come from May the fourth but still looking forward to the challenge. The formal offer letter came yesterday so that was nice (especially the bit about the salary!) and has finally made it all real in my head. Oh well, I need a change and I will get the hang of the new stuff sooner or later. I'm sure Charles and Chris will help me out.

But I won't be learning in tandem with David from education - they told him he hadn't got the job for the reasons he suspected after the interview - not knowing enough about the things he could only have known about if he'd already been a member of the public transport group. Which does seem a bit unfair but that's life in the real world I guess. So with Danny leaving on Friday (can't say I'm sad to see him go) we have three vacancies up for grabs still.

In between the procedure writing I have managed to fit in two evacuation drills down our fab new fire escapes. Neither was intentional they tell us - both set off by dust from the builders in the new council chamber/democratic space rising in the heat of the atrium and triggering the alarms. Still, the process seemed to go smoothly even if the Wednesday version had rain thrown in to the mix. The external stairs wobbled a bit with a couple of hundred people hurtling down them but everything else was fine (personally I reckon it is all part of a secret corporate health program - along with having to walk the length of the building twice when wanting to get in or out outside of staffed reception hours). Also had yet another delegation from Essex looking at Park & Ride and being generally impressed. I shall definitely miss that aspect of the job, but hopefully we can rustle up some services in the new patch that are worth people coming to look at.

Fingers crossed.

Joan is now off until after the bank holiday (taking 2 and 3 year old lieu days she could never fit in before) so we have had a fairly lazy weekend with no rush to get loads done before heading back to work tomorrow (I am off again from Thursday so that will be a nice 5 day weekend for us). Mind you, we did do a lot in the garden yesterday so not all that lazy. But there has been time to buy and read the papers and watch the Grand Prix (well done to Jenson for his first Pole and second place, win next time?) and generally sit around not doing very much. She is now bingoing with Helen and some people from where Helen works.

Fingers crossed again!

Hopefully she will have a tidy win as she is going to Rome in June with Tracey for her Hen night. Things have obviously changed in the wedding world in the last 9 years! I'm a bit jealous to say the least but at least she will be able to take charge when we do get there together and I will be able to sit back and ask for suggestions on where to go for a change.

And that's about it. Have finished the third Dragon book (enjoyed it again but then I knew I would). Am now reading The Geographer's Art by Peter Haggett - for a number of reasons but mainly because it was the nearest unread non-fiction book on the shelves when I sat down to eat earlier. It looks interesting so I hope I can remember enough of the terminology from 12 years ago to enjoy it.