A hour and a half for lunch

As a result of a recent desk move (into a new department) for the team I work in, my hours in the office have just been modified...instead of formally working 0930-1730hrs we have all now signed forms saying we are happy to work 0900-1730, not actually much of a change for me, as I am usually to be found slumped at my desk from 0845 onwards, but what it does mean is that we now get an hour and a half for lunch...so actually a really good deal for me as I was putting in the hours anyway, it's just a nice bit of recognition (and that can be a somewhat rare thing in this day and age)...

This would all be great, apart from two things - firstly, public transport (since the change) has completely conspired against me, Monday morning the tube was closed so I had to run to the river and wait ten minutes for a boat to turn up (which made me 10 minutes late and earned me a worried phone call from the office while I was in the lift on the way up to the 20th floor - just had to happen on the first day I guess), and today it was reduced gate entry at London Bridge (and when I eventually got down there) the platform was rammed - had to watch two trains leave before I finally squeezed, breathless, into a small, sweaty space on one...just managed to get to my desk on time by pushing my way through the crowds and hurrying through the rain before the clock chimed the start of work...don't really want to be getting on an even earlier train into town (to be on the safe side) as that would mean getting up about half an hour earlier (and we get up quite early enough as it is) just going to have to hope things get back to normal pretty quickly...the second thing (and this isn't really a moan) is that an hour and a half is a *hell* of a long time to fill...I mean, I could now watch an entire (average length) film...or two TV episodes...also it's a bit odd - if I go up and sit in the restaurant everyone else vanishes at 2pm and I'm left sat on my own, same if I pop out to the shops (as I did yesterday to browse the new Waterstones for opening bargains), the place goes from "Bluewater at Christmas" style-chaos to "Dawn of the Dead" tumbleweed-strewn desolation in the space of five minutes...

It's just going to take a bit of getting used to I guess, after an entire lifetime of hour-long lunches...*shrug*...(still, it makes the afternoon go pretty quick)! ;)