Evening all,
Yesterday's talk about food reminded me of something that happened to me last year.
I had a ticket to see my beloved Ipswich Town play Norwich at Portman Road. I had arranged to meet my mates, Steve and Dom, at the match, but knowing what a couple tardy bastards they are I had posted them their tickets and said I would meet them inside the stadium. It was a midday kickoff and because we were playing Norwich I knew that traffic would be bad. Being a natural born worrier I had set off shortly after midnight (a slight exaggeration) to beat the crowds.
Anyway, it turns out I was right about the tardy twins as I got a call from Dom shortly after I arrived in Ipswich apologising that they were running late...I'm sure I could hear someone ordering a McDonalds breakfast in the background however that's not an issue right now. It was a sunny day but I didn't want to sit on a wall for an hour casting a lonesome shadow so I decided I'd see if I could get in the ground.
The turnstiles weren't meant to open until 10.30am but I tried my luck at just after half nine. Lo and behold the old bloke on the gate just asked for my ticket and let me in. So I wandered into the ground and went in search of a pint. All the bars were shut but I found a very large exectuive lounge giving out free coffees, teas and a large array of cakes, danish pastries, cereals, and fruit, along with some very comfortable furniture.
I stacked a paper plate with a couple of pastries, a few biscuits and banana and then helped myself to a large coffee and mused at how great it was that all this was being laid on for the early-risers amongst Town's supporters. I then rang Steve and Dom to tell them what they were missing out on and suggested they got a wiggle on before the whole lot disappeared in my direction.
I had been enjoying myself and the food for about half an hour when a man in a nice suit stood up and thanked everyone in the lounge for what had been "a fabulous career at AXA and the best leaving present a guy could ask for"...it only took a second for me to realise that the present in question was the free breakfast and football match that i was also enjoying. He gave me a funny look (probably trying to remember which department I worked in....that would be the 'thieving breakfast' department) then raised his glass before toasting his colleagues...and me.
I raised my coffee to his efforts, downed it in one and left quietly out of a side door.
Ipswich beat Norwich 2-1 that afternoon. All in all, not a bad day.
Have a good weekend everybody.
David
