THINKSPOT

As I have been doing quite regularly this summer, on my way to work I stopped again at my usual "thinkspot" the other morning to take a picture of what the sky is doing and try to order my thoughts before the working day ahead of me.

I have so many pictures now, all taken from more-or-less that same spot that it's starting to feel quite ridiculous… even though the sky keeps on surprising me with ever more exciting patterns to behold.

Once I noticed that there was a relatively safe spot to pull over at where I could see the sky and the clouds as they danced, it very quickly became something of a habit - probably a borderline compulsion - and I found myself stopping there almost every day unless my route or my schedule had to be altered for whatever reasons might have come up, or the sky was just too dull, drab, grey and featureless to make me want to drag the phone out of my pocket and record it.

Mind you, this pulling over at the side of the road on a narrow country lane is something which is becoming ever more precarious with the other cars whizzing by in the increasing gloom as the mornings get darker and darker each day and my timing schedule remains pretty much the same.

I wonder whether they'll see me parked there, or find my presence so unexpected that they won't quite know what to do, even though farm vehicles regularly pull up in the same kinds of spot to deal with whatever farm-based doings that they have to do.

On that particular day, I arrived at work just as it started to rain, I watched and listened as it bucketed down all day, and left in the rain, only for it to almost completely clear within a mile of the office, which makes me believe that the grey box next to the sewage works is situated underneath some kind of "Gloom Vortex" (which might be just down to me, of course…)

Meanwhile…

Other drivers, eh…?

What complete and utter c*cks they can be.

I mean, I know that I'm not perfect in that regard, but sometimes, when you're trying to overtake a row of parked cars, the person coming in the opposite direction really doesn't seem to understand the concept of stopping in order to allow you to complete your manoeuvre and just keeps on coming towards you, leaving you nowhere to go, and giving you the filthiest of looks for daring to be in their way…

And don't get me started about those people who believe that speeding is perfectly acceptable if you think that you're going to get away with it, and seem furious with me when they get behind me and my "I don't mind whether you want to risk your licence, but I'm buggered if you're going to cost me mine" attitude as I pootle along.

Everybody has a dodgy driving moment from time to time, but the regularity of it happening all around me does makes me begin to wonder whether it's actually me after all…

Which is another excuse for just pulling over at the side of the road for a bit of a think.