See you next Tuesday...

Anyone who writes regularly will tell you that some days are better than others. Some days it just flows, like a torrential Victoria Falls of wise and witty words; other days it just dries up, like a river Mara of stymied sentences that trickles through the Serengeti in the dry season.

I've had quite a busy day today doing this and that in preparation for my holiday; what with packing and running around doing those chores you have to nail before jetting off - I haven't stopped. And throughout today I've been wondering what on earth I could write about for this post. In fact, I spent the best part of my midday run trying to figure that out... but to no avail. And then, like a bolt from the blue, there it was - that big grinning animal over there that looks suspiciously like a gift horse.

One of my tasks today was to take my bike to Halfords to get it serviced. I was also going to ask them to fit some new mudguards, if they had them in stock. I rang to book the service earlier this week. The earliest slot was this coming Tuesday. I explained that I would be away for a week and asked could I drop the bike off on Friday (today) and pick it up after I get back. No probelm was the answer but could I drop it off in the afternoon because they don't have much space.

I cleaned the flat this morning then went to get my hair cut about lunchtime. After this I went for the above mentioned run and then stood around whilst a gas engineer fiddled with my boiler (not a euphemism). By the time I left for Halfords, it was after 2:30pm and emptying down. It crossed my mind not to go but no, I'd made a booking and it's only fair that I should honour that. So through a penny sized raindrop downpour, I aqua-planed the 5km or so to Halfords.

Now, the more astute of you will have guessed where this is going. When I arrived at Halfords (with the grace and elegance and squelch of Godzilla rising from the depths in Tokyo harbour) the duty manager told me, because storage is at a premium, they cannot accept bikes in advance of the booking and I would have to call back next Tuesday. I explained that I would be on holiday and that I'd already cleared all this with an assistant over the phone earlier in the week. He said that the assistant in question was experienced and would never have agreed to something like that.

It really does leave you with nowhere to go, doesn't it, when they say things like that?

I almost replied with See You Next Tuesday but I didn't because, despite the satisfaction it would give me, I would have lost and also because I won't see him next Tuesday. Instead, I told him that I would take my custom elswhere and not return to Halfords. I shall instead book it in for a service when I get back with Reg Braddick, an independent bike specialist.