Adventures in Farnham on the buses

2nd May 2013

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Some years ago, when the doctors’ surgery was located in the centre of Farnham I had an appointment to give a quick blood sample. Once there I was told by an exasperated nurse that my veins were too deep, or too thin or too evasive and her colleague was called to give her assistance. Finally thwarted by my unproductive left arm they then moved to the right where they poked and prodded the needle now enthusiastically assisted by a doctor. The threesome had become united in their determination to yield enough blood to fill at least one small phial, and I was going nowhere until that had been done. As you can imagine that quick visit extended into a very long appointment and once I was eventually released and back to my car I was confronted by a parking ticket; I had over-run my time by ten minutes. I don’t know what hurt most, my pin-cushion arms or the thought of a fine.

It’s not the paying for parking I mind so much about but the fact that you have to a) know exactly how long you intend to leave your car for b) have the right change to be able to satisfy a). What happened to the type of car parks that let you pay when you collect your car? There used to be one in Farnham which I always used – that way if I decided I wanted to visit a few more shops or spend longer in the doctors’ surgery (!) then I could do. Now it has gone I tend to put the minimum amount in the machine and speed around one supermarket before the time runs out. Wandering around the small shops and stopping off at a café is now too risky as it could mean forgetting the time and ending up with a parking fine.

One solution to the above is to catch a bus. Not perfect I know – there is something lovely about being in a car in one’s own space – but since our choice of buses has risen to one every 15 minutes I can’t complain about the wait plus I can read my book during the short journey. Also we no longer have to quarrel over who is going to drive and who gets to drink when we stop for lunch and a pint and when a pub, such as the Queen’s Head, has its front door by the bus stop – well why bother with the car?

Eleanor Thomas aka KnitNell is a resident of Farnham. For more of her musings and illustrations do pop over to her regular blog at www.knitnell.com.

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