[13th of May 2019]
Today was going to be a busy day, I knew that, but I did not expect to be home at half past nine!
The trip to Eastborn, to help set up the new office, had been rescheduled for today.
As the train ride was expected to be about two hours I got up at five in the morning, had a small breakfast and got going.
I met up with my coworker at London Bridge Station and we took a train to Craydon (I hope i remember correctly) and from there another one to Eastbourne.
The new office isn’t far from the train station, just around a five minute walk.
Once there we started unpacking all the things we were going to need: zip ties, cable management spirals, screwdrivers, power/video/Ethernet cables and a few other things.
We started in the back room by finishing setting up eight computers (which had been placed and connected to monitors by another coworker). Connecting mice and keyboards was the easy part. Power and Ethernet where a little bit of a problem as there where nowhere near enough ports or power outlets.
Extension leads and two small switches did the trick, but we had to mount them under the tables using screws and zip ties (screws, so they would be secured to the table and zip ties to keep them from being knocked off accidentally).
The larger room was a lot easier as there was only one PC to set up.
That desk also got a VoIP (Voice over IP) phone.
That room also hosted the patchpanel and main Ethernet switch, as swell as the internet connection.
Patching all the necessary ports between patchpanel and switch and connecting the router/modem to it was the last thing we did, before cleaning up and heading to another office in Eastbourne.
On our way there we had lunch at Pedro’s Fish & Chips.
In the other office all we had to do was to set up a new phone, sadly all power outlets where already in use and behind a cupboard.
So we cleared the cupboard and moved it to access the outlets.
As my coworker plugged in the extension lead, there was a flash of light and a loud bang!
The extension lead was faulty and tripped a breaker in the basement. He was fine but we were all a little shocked.
After resetting the breaker and plugging in another extension lead the rest went without any problems.
We connected the phone and put the cupboard back and placed everything back inside.
It was already getting late and as we were getting ready to go I received a message saying that our instructors from Germany where visiting and wanted to meet up at 19:00 o‘ clock at a restaurant.
That would have been a close call for me, but I would have made it.
Trouble was I misunderstood my coworker, thinking he had the tickets for both of us for the way back, so I only had a one way ticket. A new ticket would have cost me more than 35 pounds.
We asked a worker at the train station to open up the ticket validation machines and searched for my ticket (as the machine keeps the ticket if you’ve reached your destination). The worker found it after just a minute and we headed to the ticket office to change my one way ticket, so would only have to pay 10 pence for my ticket back to London.
My coworker and I parted ways at London Bridge Station and I waited for a
train to take me to Greenwich. I would still be on time…
But the train got delayed.
As the small screens finally said the train would be arriving the announcer said the same thing and I got onto the train.
Just after the doors closed i looked up at the screens inside and had to read it four or five times: „Next stop: Swanscompe“.
That was over 80 kilometres away!
I asked another passenger and he said that I must have gotten on the wrong train.
After a short while frantically searching for a way back from Swanscompe there was an announcement: „There was a mixup at the train station and due to a trespassing the train arrived at the wrong platform. To all passengers that got on by accident we are deeply sorry for your delay and this train will stop at Lewisham“.
From Lewisham it was only three stops via another train to Greenwich!
After all that I arrived at the restaurant about half an hour late and couldn’t see anybody I knew inside. Asking the groupchat if they were still there I got the relieving message, that they were all in the back of the restaurant.
Leaving the restaurant after a while talking with the others, I just wanted to get a shower and go to bed, so while the others went to a pub I did exactly that.
A bit of an adventure, but everything else would have been boring right?