In my last job, I commuted into Dublin twice a week and to London once a month. I remember being interviewed before I got the job, and I was so excited at the thought of glamorous London! Woo Hoo!!!
In reality, that translated to up at 4.30am, showering in a cold bathroom, drying my hair in the sun-room, so not to wake anyone. Creeping out of the house at 5am and scraping ice from the car window before I drove to the airport. I was wearing the ‘suit’ when I really wanted to be wearing jeans, boots and a fleece – freezing!
I arrived in London, got on the tube and got off at Hammersmith – from inside the tube building I could take a lift straight to my building. I went from stock levels meetings, to new video games in development, to marketing meetings to sales meetings. I had lunch at the canteen, looking at my watch from 4pm onwards and making my excuses to catch the tube back to Heathrow.
So what I thought would be glamorous, turned out to be a series of commutes between car, plane, tubes and taxi. Glamorous? Well okay I did get to the odd premiere, and got free Xbox and DS games, but the commuting – Jeses I do not miss the commute.
Now I get up with the kids, get breakfast ready, drop them off to school and am home by 8.45. There is never a moment at anytime, where I miss the 4.30am starts. Now I am back home in time to drink a coffee while watching Sinead and Mark on Ireland AM – which is more the sort of glamour I appreciate now 🙂
Hi Joanie,
Just getting back into your blog after being on holiday and it’s as fab and funny as ever. And I’ve realised that I went to your London office for a meeting once when I worked at BBC Worldwide!
“that’s mad Ted” – strange how paths of strangers cross and don’t realise it until we become friends. You in Cardiff now? We are going to London for few days holidays end October – where will you be then?