How I spend my valentine’s so far

11:41  I’ve been at Gregg’s since 10:30 and it seems like I have to be here until 15:00 !! I’m waiting for my car to be checked up and to have something done at KIA dealer in Norwich. When I booked the appointment, the guy said it would take 4 hours and that was a lot already but as I dropped the car off at 10, he said it would be 15:00. I was hmmm what are you going to do to my car for 5 hours ??!! And what am I going to do in an industrial part of Norwich for 5 hours !!! He said he would try to get it done before 15:00. He’d better had because I’ve left my beloved dog at home alone. Plus I need to get my car to fix a new tyre at my local garage at the latest 15:30. I had a puncture yesterday, my tyre went absolutely flat, couldn’t get even flatter than that. Tried to pump it up with my portable tyre pump but it didn’t work. So I called my breakdown service, the AA and he  patched it up, said it was a big nail that went up my tyre. I could only drive around 100 miles to get to the garage to get it sorted properly. As my mechanic has to order my tyre and today is Friday and the garage shuts on Saturday my mechanic told me to come back today afternoon. I’m going to be rushing off my feet with my little dog to worry about. 

The only place around here I can sit and wait is Greggs - at least I’m sitting down and warm-ish with music in the background I’ve already eaten an awful pot of rice Cajun and a sausage roll - either one of them giving me an indigestion as I speak.

I’ve decided to make the most of my time here. What I’ve got in my rucksack are

-🫥my Muji pens

- 🫥my journal

- 🫥book called A hermit in the Himalayas by Paul Brunton

- my mobile phone plus an old power bank

- my old half eaten Green & Black dark chocolate 

And since I’ve eaten a rice Cajun ( I left most of it as it’s bloody awful) and a sausage roll. I then went to get. Cup of hot chocolate which was actually quite nice. I’ve already had a bottle of water. I’m going to make do with what I have got with me

12:10 so far I’ve written a bit of my journal - I took a selfie with all my belongings and chose the best looking of myself to put in this blog 😅 and I’ve just heard a song called woman in love. I still have 3 hours to go

13:03 I found that my power bank wasn’t full of charge and my mobile phone had got 38 percent of battery left. So I thought I would stop using the phone to save the battery. I would read A hermit in the Himalayas instead. 

Then I thought to myself I wondered if there was an electrical socket I could plug and charge my mobile and my power bank. I looked to the left and right then ahead of me but no sockets. Then I turned back to check the wall behind me and there it was two sockets right next to my seat !!! Can you believe that? 🤗 Thank you, thank you. 

I have read another chapter of A hermit in the Himalayas - I’m at the chapter where he (PB) got his letters delivered by a messenger who walked 20 to 25 miles a day. He said, “he is a man who might have given Charles Lamb the meat for a well-turned witty essay, had he been born in England and in the early 19th century. But destiny had reserved him for my service upon these thread-like tracks, and for sight of a world where aeroplanes buzz deafeningly in the air like giant bees and smart coaches run like lighting without a single horse to pull them!”

I don’t know why I’m so captivated by that sentence! It’s just that I’ve always wanted to see the Himalayas- especially the Holy Mt Kailash and when I read the book it’s kind of awaken my imagination. Then he talked about letters. And that’s got me thinking about how wonderful they are and to receive them. Those days, people would wait for days, weeks or months to receive letters. Now, it’s very quick and easy to send a message, yet people are so disconnected. Why? I’m going to try not to send messages or video call anyone for a week. Wouldn’t it be interesting? This is what I saw earlier during the rush hour at lunch time. I believe I’m sitting at the best table not only I have my own electrical sockets to charge my phone but I also have a giant radiator on the ceiling almost above me. I can feel the warmth from time to time but it’s not that warm in general and every one who sits here has left their jacket on.  But I’m not complaining, I’m so grateful to have somewhere to sit and be safe. 🥰

14:00  my bladder is getting full and I will soon need the loo 😥 I don’t really want to go to the loo here at Greggs, perhaps I can wait until I get back to KIA dealer. I hope they call me soon. 

I’ve finished another chapter of A hermit in the Himalayas - Paul Brunton was really peed off that he wasn’t permitted to travel to Mt Kailash. He then said he heard some information that there was a prediction that the 13th Dalai Lama would be the last Dalai Lama and sometime after his death Tibet would be thrown open to the white “barbarians” whose materialistic civilisation would henceforth penetrate the country. Now we know that there is the 14th Dalai Lama but will there be the 15th? We don’t know. And thanks to the Chinese, Tibet is still a forbidden land 🥰

Also, great news my car is ready to be collected. 

Thank you Greggs, the best place to get sausage rolls in the UK and in the world for giving me shelter today.