As someone who lives in the Midlands and has had to take the train where the track has buckled in two stations, it's no joke. First, they leave you standing out on the platform in 35 degree heat (or at least that's what my thermometer said yesterday!). They cram you on the train like sardines, then stop for 15 minutes in a tunnel outside of New Street with no ventilation...nice. Could've been worse though...they were using bus transfers going in the other direction, and 2.5 hours after they cancelled the train service a bus had yet to arrive...!

We lived in several areas of Canada where there were no public transport. When we had friends and family to came to stay my wife had anything from 2 to 4 hour car journey to pick them up.

We did have the Greyhound bus at 8am and 6.30pm.

I like the idea that there is a public transport system in the UK.
It may have its problems, but at least there is one.

My old man always used to go on about how crap the weather was over in BC. He was pissed cos we emigrated and took any chance to have a pop or a dig. He thought Vancouver was on the same latitude as Iceland. Anyway he came over in '03 and we took them to Penticton for the weekend. It was a full on, August, Okanagan arse burner of a weekend. He sat on the beach dying in the sun. Oooh we laughed. Mind you they loved the Okanagan and were then pissed when we moved back to blighty! You cant win eh.

I went into town this afternoon and the local mall had a power cut. When I got home the computers were off, so it hit here too.

Today has been sooooo hot! I kept my kids off school as they were meant to be doing their sports day in temperatures of around 35 degrees+. Get this, my daughters tutor group had to wear black tops in this heat. Like doh, lets see how many kids we can make keel over with heat stroke When I called the school this morning the office staff member said I was doing the right thing by keeping them home. They (the support staff) had tried to tell the teachers it was too hot to send the kids out running around for 1.5 hours but what do admin staff know? I am in the melting UK ...................

Yeah Rich, took me bloody ages to cross my main road today. It was ever so sticky and I took a couple of cats eyes with me. My shoes are 2 inches higher now!

Best thing about S. London in the hot weather is listening to the noise war going on between the booming basslines and the police sirens.

Police won 250 - 249 times. Close game.