Monday 9 June 2008

Grumpy old woman

Do you ever have those days when everything is just really annoying? That is my evening tonight. First of all the Jubilee Line miraculously managed to develop 'minor' delays between my leaving the office (where I checked how it was running) and arriving at the underground station. Minor delays turned out to be seven minute intervals between trains and thus severe overcrowding. I allowed myself a small smirk at North Greenwich when I saw the queues for the 161/472 bus stops (being controlled by staff in luminous jackets and tensa-barriers).

I got home to find the pile of rubbish in the street was still in the street. Obviously when I phoned the Council on Friday to complain and they told me that they were 'aware of the problem' the sub-text was 'and we don't care and aren't going to do anything about it'. I tried ringing up again but all I got was on hold music. Perhaps the call centre had knocked off early.

I'm not even using main line rail services and they are annoying me. I've been waiting to pick up my nearly-mother-in-law for about 40 minutes now - but the trains have been moving at the pace of a snail (which is an odd phrase, as I've watched snails and they don't actually go that slowly). Then the train decided it was going to go fast to London Bridge and not stop any further so she had to change trains in Dartford. Currently expected in the next fifteen minutes? Then again, who knows with our railways.

The final (and ongoing) irritation is my noisy neighbours. Once the weather turns warm and the evenings get light they, or one of the other many sets that surround us (I think there are about seven or eight backing onto our garden from various angles) will continue to annoy me for the rest of the summer. I was taught by my parents to respect my neighbours. This meant no anti-social behaviour... as a child no loud games in the evenings or other times when people might want their windows open and not to listen to other people's racket. I am always particularly irritated, therefore, when other people impose their music on me. Last summer it was the drummer (although I hold out hope he has given up the drums or moved as it has been a while since I heard him) and the constant Sunday night parties from the bottom of the garden. The parties seem to have moved to Monday. The last hour of so I have been regaled by an accordion and a violin (I think) playing folk-type music from the bottom of the garden. The worst thing is, if they weren't disturbing my evening peace it is just the sort of music I would quite like... which annoys me even more!