17 November 2006
The Morning Rush
Getting ready for work in the morning is one of things I noticed changed most fundamentally once Charlotte came along. Come rain or shine, hangover or broken night’s sleep, that alarm will still go off at 5.30am and the morning rush begins.
So what warrants getting up so early? To start with, going to our house on the Isle of Wight every weekend doesn’t help, and neither does getting home from work at 8pm.
Dirty clothes to be washed, dry clothes to be put away (forget ironing), dishwasher to be emptied, dishwasher to be loaded, nursery bag to be packed (the shame of being the only mum who didn’t provide clean clothes, wellies, slippers, toothbrush, drink and treats), sandwiches to be made…
…And then a quick workout in the garage. One sure fact about working and having children, you will never get to the gym before or after work. So it’s into the freezing garage where the gym is comprised of some weights (I’m trying to delay the onset of “bat wings”) and an exercise ball (post-Charlotte, I weigh the same but the weight has moved from my top half to my middle.)
Next, drag Charlotte out of bed and have a wonderful 30 minutes of chat as she gets dressed. Then at exactly 7.35am we set off for nursery. As I cycle to work, I have to push my bicycle in one hand and Charlotte in her stroller in the other and we take up the entire pavement for the mile and a half to the nursery. I’m sure anyone doing the school run on foot could break the speed-walking record.
I become Mrs. Angry when I set off, fuming at cyclists and cars that go through red lights to try to take me out on the pedestrian crossing, or traffic which stops on the crossing so I have to weave in and out of it. Then there’s the pedestrians who walk slowly and won’t let you pass or who cross before the “green man” comes on; people who do all the things I’ve taught Charlotte not to do – drop litter, smoke, swear, cross the road when a car is coming, etc… and all right before her eyes!
At the nursery you can easily tell who has to get to work – they’re always there at 8am sharp and always in a rush. I then jump on my bicycle, run the gauntlet of traffic and pedestrians doing their best to knock me off for the whole 10 mile journey, and carry my bike up six flights of stairs to get to the office. No hot shower to look forward to – just wet wipes and body spray and getting changed in the loo – so cycle-helmet hair for the day!
Then to work for a rest until the evening rush starts!