[bemused] Well, that's the first time we've ever had to don fluorescent vests, heavy duty rubber gloves, protective glasses and hard hats to visit a school!
No, not really as bad as it sounds: Bedminster Down are having a brand spanking new school built next door to the old one (which went up in 1955 and was supposed to be temporary!), and those who wanted got a quick tour, but since it's still a bit of a building site we had to wear the safety gear to comply with H&S regs.
The new school is going to be wonderful, and will be ready to move into in April next year. However...
The school itself is fine, and the teaching seems fair (a heavy focus on getting the kids into jobs at the end, which is OK in itself, as long as everything else is covered as well) but... The first thing that put us off were the hordes of sprogs running riot as we waited for the introductory talk, their parents apparently unwilling or unable to control them. Then the intro talk, which should have started at 6 pm, was delayed for five minutes while more people arrived, and eventually started at 6.15 - not too good for a school that says it insists on punctuality and order.
Their stats aren't great, either. But most significantly, Kai spent the whole time with a vaguely worried look on his face, and later said he wasn't at all sure about the place: the difference between his reaction to Broadlands and here was striking, to put it mildly. We've crossed it off our list.
Getting there was a right trek, took 45 minutes, although we managed to time the buses so we got off the X39 at Temple Meads train station and almost immediately onto the 5.06 pm No. 52, which took us to within a five minute stroll of the school - but coming back... There are supposed to be two buses an hour after 7 pm, and I timed it so we'd get to the bus stop at 7.20 pm and have about 5 mins to wait.
45 minutes later we were still waiting. And it was dark and
cold (Bedminster Down is about as high as you can get in Briz - fabulous view out over the valley to the Clifton Suspension Bridge - and a little on the draughty side). I'd taken a fleece for Kai, but only had jeans and a T-shirt for me.
Then when we finally got into town we missed the No 1, which goes every 20 mins after 7, by about 30 seconds.
[growl] Trekked to the usual stop, just off Bristol Bridge, and managed to pick up a 349 (actually more useful to us than a No 1 anyway) and eventually arrived home at just gone 9, tired and hungry (and cold, on my part, and I don't get cold that often.) What would we do without FirstDay bus tickets, eh?
All in all a bit of a disaster. Still, last long trip tomorrow. Heh, I shall be glad when this week ends.
Something I forgot to say about yesterday... I managed to leave the A-Z behind; when we got off the bus in Keynsham I wasn't quite sure how to get to Broadlands, knew the general direction but not the precise location. So I asked a woman who'd just got out of a car: she frowned in thought then turned back to the car to speak to the driver, who was her husband and promptly offered us a lift!
I'm not in the habit of accepting lifts from strangers, but on this occasion it felt OK, so we hopped in and were driven the scant half mile to Broadlands, then dropped off with the guy wishing Kai good luck on getting into the school! Lovely people. I didn't get their names, but wish them all the best.
What
is it with the bloody crane flies this year?! Damn things are everywhere - just managed to squish the one that's kept hitting me in the face for the last hour (no, not squished
on my face) and there are another two in the lounge...
Not done as much on Dreams as I intended, but these school open days are a right performance if you don't have a car. (Actually, as far as I'm concerned they'd be a performance even if I
did have a car, I hate driving in Briz.) And just remembered I have to provide a couple of lines of biographical blurb for the book: have to get that done tomorrow.
Computer still seems fine. A drive and D drive now working as they should: will try backing up on the E drive a little later.
[glower] I shall now take a few minutes to hunt and squish the second of the crane flies, which has just discovered my room and thinks bouncing off my head is a fine game...
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Joules *Dances with Haddock* Taylor
pontificated this at 12:33 am
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