Travel in time...

I knew that I would have to renew my work ID shortly after getting home from holidays - we have a short grace period every six months, but once that is up, no access anywhere and a long walk round the site perimeter to the contractors' office.

So, first day back I went in good and early and got mine renewed, and also took the time for a few photos along the way. Using the tunnel used to require forward planning, because once the building of the new brewhouse started a few years back, the area immediately beyond the tunnel exit on our side became a hi-vis area. So if I thought I wanted to use it, I needed to remember to tuck a hi-vis jacket into my bag. Now that the entire site is mandatory hi-vis, that's no longer an issue - so it's easy to use the tunnel at any time. Some people think it's shorter to walk round by the road, but I quite enjoy the atmosphere underground.

I still remember the barges and ships from my childhood days. I blush to admit that I have three sewing machines - one from LIDL upstairs for sewing on my cards. A medium-good Toyota one which C bought for me about twenty years ago because the one I had before that didn't do buttonholes. I'm quite good at hand-stitched buttonholes and enjoy making them but certainly they are more bulky and not always what you want. And an old Singer which I inherited from one of my mother's good friends. Some years ago when I had someone out to the house to service the Toyota, I was amazed that he even knew the exact Singer model just from seeing the wooden case for it on the table. He said it was one of the best of the old Singer models, and told me never to give it away. It only sews straight, backwards and forwards, but it's unbeatable for heavy stuff like canvas and C's biker gear. S's husband was an electrician on the Guinness barges, and modified the machine to make what was originally hand-operated into a fully electric model complete with light.