Holiday

One of the nice things about being unemployed is that I can take my time waking up in the morning. It's always full daylight outside when I first wake up. Then I usually drift off again, wake up again, drift off, and so on. Each time I'm a little more conscious. One step at a time.
It's not like that when you have a job.

This morning I was lying there half-asleep and I was thinking about a holiday I went on once. Not sure why, it just came that way.

So anyway it was in Tenerife with my mum. We stayed in this huge white hotel complex. Our apartment was really high up and there was a balcony. Every morning we sat out on the plastic table and chairs and ate breakfast. It had a great view. When I looked over the edge I could see the pool and all the people around it. We could see the sea in the distance as well, just behind a couple of other hotels. Not far. There were loads of other balconies either side of us and you could see all the other people sitting around half-naked enjoying thier breakfast. What a place.

It made me feel like a change of scenery so I got up, got dressed, ate some toast and left the house, all before noon.

I decided to go a different high street in the suburb next to mine.

When you drive through unfamiliar suburbs, you can't really tell where one stops and the other begins, but that's not true when you live in them. Each one has it's own character. Even the people seem different. Take a bus ride for example, from start to finish, and you could end up in a place that feels totally foreign.

I walked up to the bus stop but then decided to walk all the way. It wouldn't take too long and they do say that the journey is the best bit. I carried on along the main road for a while and then cut across the wasteland leading up to the road that runs through the old metal train bridge.

The train bridge is the division between my suburb and the next one. It works quite well like that actually because it doesn't feel like one place or the other. When you walk through it, it gets darker, colder and the cars get louder. It even has it's own smell. Pigeon shit.

When I came out the other side the sun was shining and I felt pretty cheerful as I walked up the hill towards the high street. The houses all look pretty much the same here I must admit, and the cars outside them too. It still felt different though.

I noticed a petrol station on the other side of the road. It was red and had a big flat roof. I decided to get an ice cream.

I picked out an ice cream from a big freezer on the floor. On the wall next to it there were some maps and guide books. Once outside I unwrapped my ice-cream and looked out onto the forecourt. There weren't any cars and it seemed really empty and open. I decided to cut right across through the pumps, choosing any path I liked. It was great. Just like walking in the middle of the road. I walked slowly over to the air dispenser and circled it, still licking my ice-cream. Then I ambled across the parking spaces at the side of the forecourt and then back onto the pavement on the other side.

There were more shops now as I reached the High Street. I passed a newsagent which had all the newspapers slotted into a rack outside the door. No postcards though.

I remembered that there was a cafe just further along and felt a thirst.

When we were in Tenerife we walked into the town near the beach every night. There were bars and restaurants everywhere and the streets were full of people, and music, and tables with white tablecloths and candles in wine bottles. It was great. My mum let me chose the restaurant so we often went back to the same one where they did great hamburgers.

That's a holiday isn't it. Sitting outside in a t-shirt at night. Eating and drinking outside.

I walked into the cafe and got a tea to go, in a polystyrene cup. They didn't have any tables outside but I noticed a free bench at the bus stop a bit further along. I went and sat down.

There was quite a bit of noise from the traffic but the sun was warming the side of my face and could watch all the shoppers go by on the high street.

I looked at the advertising panel attached to the bus stop. It showed a man in a business suit who had taken his shoes and socks off and was running along a beach next to the water. It was for an airline or something.

Then I noticed a woman shaking a tablecloth over the balcony of one of the flats above the shops. I wondered what it must be like to live there. I saw a young couple wandering along the pavement by the roadside. Having a good time I bet.

I think I stayed there for almost half an hour sipping that tea. it made quite a nice little break. Nothing to do but sit and watch. Very relaxing.

I took the bus home and was back in the house by 2pm. I spent the rest of the day on the sofa watching TV. Occasionally though I thought about my little adventure. Yes, a fine one indeed.