15 days and London [A Bug's Life]

That's how long the back has been bad this time, that's bad as in cannot-always-put-on-socks bad, and cannot-sit bad. Luckily there are laptops and sofas and wifi so one can work and footle and stuff, and I'm improving to a 15-20 min walk three times a day.

Two weeks is a long time, especially if you are impatient and want to get out and do things.

Quite worried about how I will cope with upcoming trip to London - Sun 20-Fri 25 May - for a training course. I have a quote for a cab (£98 each way) and asked my boss if I can get a cab there instead of the train (£42 return) but not heard back yet. It's not the sort of thing the NHS as an employer usually funds. But there's no way I can do the bits of the train journey that involve getting my luggage off the train and to the cab rank, and darn those London black cabs throw you about a lot inside anyway. I'm going to press for a door-to-door minicab as it gives me the best chance of getting there in adequate condition to attend the course.

It does occur to me that several of my friends will be in Cambridge on Sun 20 May for a wedding - I wonder if any of you will be travelling back to/through London and could give me a lift, help me with bags on train (if I train), or are interested in sharing a cab if I get one?

Would be lovely to catch with people of an evening when I'm in London, but I'll have to see how I am - probably not up to going out to a pub/restaurant but I will be doing my best to improve between now and then.

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Additional data point: I can afford the cab myself (especially as it would save so much cost in other things such as time and pain), I don't spend much on say foreign holiday travel. But people tend to say "but but but your employers should pay it! It's wrong for you to have to! Anyway you're so disabled the government should be paying for this!" and that depresses me.

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And life is being depressing enough without the help of well-meaning friends, yes.
I have nothing to offer but sympathy (lots) and the advice to take the strongest meds you can lay hands on (lots) during the trip, as it seems to save no end of trouble later.

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And there's comparative economics. I know some friends who would think that was an enormous amount of money and it's outrageous that I should throw it away on a taxi and surely there must be some other cheaper way if only we could think of it, and others who might think it's chickenfeed and would fix the problem immediately and why am I even asking.

Cheers!

I come somewhere on the middle of that. I'd rather spend the money on other things, but if it makes it possible to do something that is important to you that you otherwise couldn't, then that's what money is for.

What about shipping your luggage separately to the hotel? I know it's something that people do in the US when flying, sometimes. 2nd day express packages are cheaper and trackable, for example.

Does your employer reimburse or simply acquire the ticket? Maybe they'll foot the train price and you can make up the difference....

That's something I hadn't thought of, thank you. (Am also doing online course on models and just done the section on the wisdom of crowds and how a diverse set of perspectives can help solve problems better as you just demonstrate.) It's a strange self-catering shared apartment I'm going to, where you stop in at the newsagent and they phone a chap and he pops round with the key - maybe they're not geared up for luggage shipping, no nice large reception and post room. I can ask. Looks like £20 each way (plus the packing it up and getting it to a post office and being thoroughly buggered if anything goes wrong).

For shipping, I was thinking of a service that will pick up at your door (on request). Doesn't have to be one box, either; packing into a couple of smaller containers would make more sense. And deliver to the newsagent?

Doesn't mean you won't have a small bag with essentials on your person (Rx, phone, etc.) either.

where do you need to go in London ?

I'm staying near Goodge Street.

Would it help if Roger escorted you on to trains /taxi and did luggage ? He has flexi and works in central London? We could put you on train on Sunday if a London fan could meet you at Kings Cross ?

If you could cope with the early morning train on Monday , Roger could escort you on the 6.45am (always seats from Cambridge) and you would know several people on the 7.15 am (should be ok for seats if there early but check with Roger).

If you come back by train on Friday, I would check the time with Roger who'll be able to tell you what trains are likely to have seats.

Edited Date: 2012-05-15 07:38 am (UTC)

That might be really handy for the return, thank you. I'm speaking to my manager this morning and will find out how the travel land lies. I will need to travel down on the Sunday, no way can I travel Monday morning then spend a day in training :-)

I will be out of the course 4/5pm on Friday, it's off Fetter Lane between Holborn and Fleet Street. My luggage will be lighter on the way home as I will have eaten most of it.

Hi, looks like work will be happy to allow a cab each way, which is a load off to worry about :-)

A Bug's Life

15 days and London

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More likely to be useful for return trip

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September