Alarming Teenage moment

Sunday September 1st. 2013. 23:07

There was a plan this weekend for me to have Chloe to stay overnight an extra weekend. This was so that her Mother could go out for the evening. Always keen to spend more time with her, I agreed to cancel my plans for the evening and have her to stay. It's hardly a chore, and Chloe's mum deserves a night out.

The other week Chloe'd also mentioned that she'd like to have some curry, my Mum and Dad had suggested that we order some take-away and let Chloe try different types of curry. Chloe seemed really up for this.

I left work on Saturday, did some shopping. Aware that Chloe had already had a disagreement with her Mum because she had wanted to cycle all the way up to mine on her own. We'd reasoned that this wasn't particularly a good idea. She's never cycled that far on her own, and actually hasn't cycled from home to my flat at any point. It's also been a couple of years since the last time she cycled the route to my old flat (which is just down the road) - and we did that together.

After finishing work, I'd considered that one option was for her to take the bike to the train station, and meet up with me as normal. This seemed to get lost as a viable option. I'd also gone to Halfords and had a look at bikes. I've really missed having a bike this year, and although I don't need to cycle to work any more, I would really like to have one to make getting about easier, and just for the joy of it. I went into Halfords, having a look at what bikes they had. I thought that perhaps I could kill two birds with one stone. A solution being that I bought a bike, and met Chloe at some point and we cycled together back to my flat.

All of this consideration, and arrangement, the pleasant prospect of a nice family curry went for nought when I received a rather terse and dismissive text from her saying that she wasn't coming to mine and that she was staying at home. She'd decided that with it being the last weekend of the summer holidays she wanted to spend Saturday evening at home. Personally I think it had more to do with her being pissed that her Mother and I had organised between ourselves for her to stay over an extra night at mine, and that she couldn't come here in the method that she wanted to. The other possibility being that she wanted to 'punish' her mother some how for wanting to go out and have a nice evening out for a change.

As I'd gone shopping after work, I had caught a train straight from Havant, near where I work to Fratton, instead of coming home I'd gone straight into town to meet Chloe for the journey back to mine. Hanging around the train station in the last of the glorious summer sun, reading a book whilst the drama and tantrum played itself out.

Having been stood up by my daughter, I came back home, and went round my Mum and Dad's as arranged. When they didn't answer their front door bell, I assumed that they were perhaps in the garden or something. Having a key I decided to let myself in. This of course meant that I rapidly discovered they had gone out, actually to walk to the train station to meet up with me, and by entering the house had set off their burglar alarm. I was able to call them amongst the screeching of their alarm and find out what I needed to do to shut the bloody thing off.

We decided the abandon the curry idea until another time.

I decided not to heed my own advise to Chloe's mum, which was to not let Chloe's tantrum or 'teenage moment' prevent her from going out. I kept my evening free, in case she changed her mind.

She did not.

In the morning, having been burned by the unnecessary purchase of train tickets for both her and myself, I texted her to make sure which train she was getting. I got no response initially. Eventually I was informed that she would not be coming up to mine today either.

Chloe's fourteen, and old enough to decide if she does or does not want to come and see me. I was however a bit annoyed, to say the least for being mucked around in this way, and being dismissed so rudely.

Not a situation I am going to be able to convey to her by text or telephone. It would just provoke another argument, this time with me. I sent her a message saying I was here if she needed to speak to me. It's not what part of me wanted to say, but I managed to get my head to be the bit of me in charge of the typing.

This left me with a Sunday free. Which I then spent sitting around watching television, going on the internet, doing two lots of washing, watching the Stephen Brown videos we were meant to review and vacuuming the flat. I had food that I'd purchased to make roast dinner for Chloe and I, which otherwise was going to go to waste, so I cooked it anyway, and saved the rest for tomorrow.

Rock and roll eh ?

We've got a ticket to Rye....

Saturday. August 10th. 23:30.

I write this from the bedroom of our caravan in Rye.

Our trip here was a lot shorter in time, and a lot cheaper in money than our previous trips to Paignton, in Devon. Not sure how they compare in sure distance. (Guess that'll be something else I google in a second).

I appear to have brought with me enough technology to open a small branch of Currys. Before booking, there's three things that I checked upon. Proximity to a train station (as I don't drive, it's the only viable method of transport open to us), Swimming pool. (if there isn't at least an outdoor swimming pool, then it's a no go. Although last year we only used the pool once). Is there 3g signal.

All those things checked out.... and here we are. I have to say it's probably the smartest and newest caravan we've ever stayed in. It even has a pitched roof. (like that's so 21st Century).

The struggles with transport though were due to our journey coinciding with that of lots of Brighton and Hove football fans. Our one change was at Brighton, and our train into Brighton was delayed by the many football fans not understanding that if they moved down the train, there would be room for them all to fit, or just generally trying to get in train doors where there was a mass of crowd-sheep.

exploring starts here

I may not have mentioned before, but I don't really like football. It's not just football to be fair, it's actually all sports. I haven't got one ounce of interest. I have occasionally gotten bothered about international matches, or finals of Wimbledon (that's Tennis). Really my objection isn't the sport itself. To me it's like religion, I don't care about it, I don't believe in it, it's not my thing, but I know it goes on, and it means a lot to some other people.

there be wind power in them there fields 

I guess the similarity continues onto what is my main gripe with both, in that the fans (or followers) seem to be completely blind to the concept that there are other people on the planet that don't share their passion, fascination or care for their love.

I don't mind either, really I don't, as long as no one is going about saying I MUST love or follow something.

Anyway, was quite a squeeze. Our first train, was meant to get us to Brighton with about 14 minutes to spare before our next train left to take us to Rye. Because of all the delays with hordes of Brighton Fans pushing to get onto the train at each of the last eight or nine stops before Brighton, we only just made it in time.

Once we were finally in Rye, it became a case of figuring out if getting a Bus to the caravan park was viable, or even possible, or if we should bite the bullet and get a taxi.

£7 later, we were in our caravan. The one thing that is an adjustment is that there's no shop on site to speak of, and nothing anywhere nearby, as far as we can make out. (we've looked on google maps - god forbid we actually ask someone).

Tomorrow we plan to walk back into town, and hire some bicycles for the week. This will give us some independence and mean we can really explore the place.

It's a lovely area, from just what we've seen so far. Miles of walks. We're right next to a nature reserve. We went for a bit of a walk along part of it this evening. I practically had to force Chloe to get back off her arse and leave the caravan, but having realised the shopping choices were so limited, we needed to get to the site office (where they have a very limited selection of bare essentials - we're talking loo roll, milk, bread, tins of baked beans) before that shut.

Of course the other alternative, which we may take advantage of tomorrow, is to order some food online and have it delivered to the caravan.

I'm really looking forward to getting out and about and doing some exploring, either on foot or on wheels.

trains trains trains