Blog A Day - Day 3: My 2024 Year In Review

Prologue

It’s just another overcast summer’s day in Stevenage.

The weather is warm, but humid.

Sat inside Tesco’s Cafe is a young, 23 year old man just starting to write his annual Year In Review. What on Earth was he doing in Stevenage and how the hell did he get here?

January - February ("Starting With Nothing")

Upon writing this, returning back to January is bittersweet - whilst it’s a beautiful testament to how far I’ve come in 12 months (6 at the time of writing) - it also reminds me of where I was mentally - I was quite frankly stuck.

Between late June and September 2023, I worked for Tesco. In September they promised they would hire festive colleagues - but only began hiring on the Isle Of Wight in November - but never got back to me.

It took 9 months for me to get the Tesco job, and I didn’t want to spend another 9 months hunting.

I had a dream/goal/ambition of being a Highway Traffic Officer (HTO) - and thought “there’s no better time to shoot for the moon than now”

The HTO position only had two requirements - to have a manual licence (passed mine in September 2023) and to live within an hour of the vacancy - and I had friends that lived within an hour of the vacancy.

Starting January, I only had one priority - the iRacing ROAR Before The 24.

I competed in both 2022 and 2023 - and on both occasions I made race-altering errors - and come 2024, all I wanted was a clean run.

At the expense of race-long battles, I had a clean run and finished 15th in a very competitive field.

With the ROAR done and dusted - it was then time for one of the most daunting weeks of my life - move-out day.

On the 15th January (Sunday of ROAR weekend), with just a suitcase and other essentials I left the Isle Of Wight in search of a better life (okay, better job prospects)

Admittedly, it was hard. No schedule, no structure, no mum and dad cooking me meals - but it’s what I needed to do.

Searching for jobs and houses simultaneously led me to a vicious cycle.

My fight or flight reflexes kicked in - and I tried every route I could - continuing to search on Indeed, getting references and recommendations through Universal Credit, emailing local companies, going into recruitment agencies…exhausting both Indeed (jobs) and OpenRent.

In addition to this, I also tried to get a rental property through "Streets2Homes" - but as I had no (family) connection to Harlow, this ended up being a dead end too.

I did try a minibus firm previously, but due to my age and being under 25, they didn't want to touch me due to "insurance premiums" for young drivers.

February ("The Trip Of A Life-Time")

In early February, I went to Germany to see my grandmother for 3 days - and it was lovely.

Sadly she would pass later this year in April, but to see her in such good spirits and such good health for the last time is more than I could ever have wished for - from here, (Feb), her health sadly declined - and I'm glad that my last memory of her was such a positive and - in a way - uplifting one.

We also managed to visit a Chinese restaurant that we had been to on every Germany trip prior without fail - to fit this in in just the 3 days, and to see that my grandmother was in good, safe hands after moving to a care home was honestly all I could have ever wished for - and to hear she slipped peacefully is an incredibly comforting thought in a difficult time.

The only thing which still bothers me to this day is the fact that my life only started to piece itself together after her passing - I wasn't able to tell her that I had found a job that I THOROUGHLY enjoted and later found a property of my own.

It meant so much to me to be there and see her - especially as I went so rarely.

But I wouldn't need to tell her, she's seeing all my achievements and successes from above - the best angle - and she's right by my side every step of the way. Honestly, it was for the best. She went out peacefully and now joins my grandfather(s) and her daughter and isn't in any pain. I just hope it's warm up there

🕊️❤️

March ("The Match That Lit The Bonfire")

After 2 months of trying, in mid-March I FINALLY got my first job interview.

I'll admit, it was a very tough pill to swallow.

Having worked at Tesco over the summer, I thought I could make it/get a job in retail, but sadly it just wasn't meant to be.

The week of the 18th - 24th March could not have gone better.

On Monday I had my first interview (ALDI)

On Wednesday applied for my dream job at the time - a Highway Traffic Officer

On Thursday, the very next day, I had made it to the phone interview stage - to which they said I had to wait 6 - 8 weeks (2 months) for a response...the waiting game officially began.

~

Monday 25th March started off as just another day - I went out with friends and life went on.

Things only started to get interesting in the evening.

After a good day out, I was bumbling around Harlow with my friend

Shortly after 7pm, I ended up behind a minibus - with great confidence I thought "Huh, I could drive that", and asked my passenger to take a picture.

To some, this may just be a shoddy picture of a minibus, but to me, this picture signifies so much more - it reminds me of where I was (circumstances) at the time and how far I've come since - and the amount I have to be thankful for - BECAUSE of this image.

I'm in such a good head-space right now because of this moment - and all it took was a coincidence to be behind my future employer.

Vectare (now Central Connect) have honestly been such a blessing since the day I joined them.

My training manager even said - he saw I was down on my luck and gave me a chance - and that's all I needed.

The following day after this picture, on the 26th March, I phoned the number on the back of the van (using this image), and they advised me to send an email, and I did so and got an incredibly swift response - asking if I'd like to come in for a chat about the company.

They were absolutely lovely - as said before - and advised I change my address on my driver's licence (still displayed an Isle Of Wight Address) and call them once this had been done.

April - May ("Thriving")

In April, I got my licence with my changed address - and swiftly got a medical test booked on the 10th April, for the following day.

With a successful medical test - I was then offered a job at Central Connect (then Vectare) on the 12th April starting Tuesday the following week.

Naturally, things started very slowly - for the first 3 weeks, I was in the training room brushing up on my (quickly) upcoming theory test.

On 1st May, I had my first day outside of the training room and began my route learning.

April 12th - Hired

April 16th - First Shift

April 16th - 30th - Learning Theory

April 22nd - 23rd - < Grandmother's Funeral >

April 26th - < Mystery OpenRent Landlord Replies >

May 1st - Learnt first Route (324) May 10th - Began renting May 16th - Passed first 3 tests (Driver Theory & Driver CPC)* (3/6)

< May 16th - 1 Month Working @ Central Connect>

May 18th - Learnt Route 9/9A May 20th - Drove a bus for the first time < May 22nd - First iRacing race in 4 months >

May 29th - Passed Reversing Test

< June 11th - Passed Practical Driving Test >

*Certificate Of Professional Competence

It took less than a month from me stepping into the driver's seat for the first time, to passing my final driving test - looking back, I'm not sure how my trainer did it - but that's pretty incredible - from both parties! (I say the secret is don't tell you students when their tests are - until a few days before!)

This was genuinely the first time I had ever sat behind the wheel of a bus

The best part about working for Central Connect was that upon applying, I thought they only ran minibuses (or I'd start on minibuses) - so you can imagine my surprise when my training manager points to a fellow student driving a full-length bus and tells me "that'll be you soon"! Admittedly, having never driven a bus before, I was a bit anxious - and was hoping to start on the minibuses - fortunately, that's exactly what happened.

When I started, I only drove a bus for an hour a day (for a week), before building confidence - realising it wasn't as hard as it looked - and come November 2024, I was completely indifferent to driving the buses and Minibuses.

Minibuses had the heating and were easier to drive, buses proved to myself that I COULD do it and I COULD drive a big vehicle!

The Big Ole Gal - This is where it all began back in May 2024

The Biggest Decision I've Ever Made...

6 weeks on from my phone-call interview with Highways England, I get an email informing me that I had been successful - and now was on to the next round of interviews - I had made it to the in-person interviews.

At the time, I was completely torn - I had just signed a 3-year contract with Vectare (Central) - and at the same time, the whole reason I moved out was sitting right in front of me - I had been after this job since 2021 - I had got my manual licence primarily for this very role - it was very much a cake and eat it situation.

After giving it some thought, I stayed with Central Connect, and thanked Highways for the opportunity.

My thinking was - if I made it to the in-person interviews now, following my contract, surely I'd be able to do it again - this time with an extra 3 years of work added to my CV.

I suppose it helped that payday was the following day.

In retrospect, I truly think I made the right decision - I get paid to drive and behind the wheel is my happy place.

I've had some gnarly weather whilst driving the bus - and I'm glad I'm inside and not out there!

Though now 6 months down the line (Nov. '24), I THINK I MIGHT stay for a LIIITTTLE bit longer than my three-year contract - If they want me, I'm enjoying myself enough to want to stay a while!

Housing

After 3 months of struggling to find a job or house/property to rent - as things often do - a job and property came within quick succession of one another.

I first saw the property I'm in back on the 26th April and after waiting for a couple of paydays to bump up my finances, by the 10th May I was renting for an incredibly affordable £650 a month + £50 parking a month. (£700 tot.)

Not bad at all for a property in Essex - and honestly, it's just the size I needed for everything I needed.

It later turned out that I had located myself 15 minutes from both Central Connect depots - so every week is a bit of a tug of war to see who has me for the week!

Other than the spotty WiFi, I haven't a single complaint about the place, and I've been loving it ever since - my neighbours are quiet (language barrier), but very friendly.

The first month of renting was sorting the property out - sorting:

A bed/mattress (10th - 13th May) (ordered on 10th, arrived on 13th)

possessions from the Isle Of Wight (11th - 12th May) my computer/monitor/rig (13th May) - MOST IMPORTANT!

A Lampshade (14th May) Curtains (14th May - Night)

First time computer boot (15th May)

My first night would be the 14th - 15th May.

I'd eventually get the computer sorted and booted up iRacing for the first time on the 22nd May.

June - ("The REAL Fun Begins")

On 4th June, I had my final driving test booked - the grand finale - The Practical Driving Test.

Admittedly, there was a little bit of pressure on me as the other two trainees I had been training with had passed just the previous day.

Unfortunately it wasn't to be - firstly flipping the isolator switch to the the "off" position and losing all power was NOT the start I needed - and from there things sort of snowballed - almost running a red-light at a roundabout, and then proceeding to give way once the light was green.

Over 16 minors and 5 driving faults later, the ordeal was over - and it was absolutely back to the drawing board.

It was highly likely that the nerves got to me - I had been hiding them and trying to downplay my anxiety for this test - but I clearly wasn't ready.

The following week, with a fresh head and a fresh set of eyes and re-newed confidence, I had another attempt - and passed on the second time of asking. With a bus-licence in hand, I could now start doing what I came for - BUS DRIVING!

Over the next few weeks, I'd drive and learn bus routes with a companion/assistant until I was comfortable.

July ("The Gloves Come Off")

Come July, myself and Central both had the confidence in me to “let me off the lead” and allowed me to do one shift alone.

We started off simple enough - the other driver staying onboard but not talking to me - then we progressed to her waiting at the bus station for me (where the route starts and finishes) - and that was it, I was all by myself - my bus-driving career had officially begun.

Of course, Sod’s Law came into play and the one and only passenger I got wanted to go to the one and only bus stop I was unsure of/hadn’t yet been to - but a quick 3-point-turn later I was back on track and back on course.

(the bus stop had been previously coned off due to roadworks)

Me returning back to the bus station after my first solo run

This went so successfully in fact that starting the following week, Central Connect allowed me to do an entire week in Stevenage on the SB6 and SB11 routes.

Coincidentally, the driver that was usually driving this route/s was on holiday - which allowed me to swoop in!

The week went absolutely flawlessly - by Friday, some passengers even if I would see them on Monday! (Way to make an impression!)

Following on from this, the Harlow manager asked me to do a week on the Hertford routes I had mastered - another driver on holiday lead to an amazing opportunity.

This was also the first time I had ever driven a full-length bus unaccompanied - but just for an hour. It went okay - and was a good way to get used to driving a bus - before doing it for an entire shift.

Week 3 of independent driving presented the best of all routes.

Monday and Tuesday on the Stevenage Routes, Wednesday Route Learning,

Thursday on the 25 (I had learnt in my own time/during training)

And wrapping up the week in Hertford (Fri).

Week 0: Fri. 28th June

Bishop's Stortford (First route unaccompanied) (spent day with another driver/they stayed at Bus Station) (Picture above)

30th July - WIFI Arrived - Didn't work though. (Feel free to skip past the "Caterham Academy" Section if not interested)

The Caterham Academy

Outside of work, on 20th I called Caterham Academy to ask them for more information about their championship. having just been employed, I wasn't looking to race immediately (nor did I have the funds to either) - but the man on the phone made an incredibly valid point - saying "Save £10,000 for 5 years" (~£208 a week - half my salary) and see where you are.

Just like almost every (young) motorsport fan, since a young boy, I've always wanted to become a race-car driver - I tried karting, but I nor had the standout skill nor funds/dad's funds to continue.

To finally be able to realistically chase a childhood dream - is a feeling I can't quite explain - the feeling of "if I stick at this, I could fulfill a life-long dream of mine.

Sure, there are cheaper ways to go racing - but the Caterham Academy ensures everything is taken care of - had I bought a £1,000 Citroen C1, I would be completely on my own, but with the Academy, they support you through every step - from the ARDS test to get your first licence right up to your first race all the way to the checkered flag at the end of the season.

Buying new also ensures a element of reliability - especially as the car is fully road legal, so it's a fun toy to have on non-race weekends too.

And the best part? Once done, they offer to upgrade your car so you can race on the next rung of the ladder. Following that season, you can sell your car - and no, you might not make a profit, but with the experience you've just had over the past two years - you can make a pretty penny - which your bank account will be thankful for.

By 28th August, I achieved my goal of saving £833 a month, just one week after I was supposed to - from going from £0.00 saved to hitting 1% of my goal - rapidly approaching 2% was honestly all the motivation I needed.

I just wished that I had this vision a lot earlier. It’s at this time I have to thank MONZO (online bank) for giving the possibility to split my money into pots - I really just wish I discovered MONZO (and putting money into saving pots) earlier.

I don’t blame parents at all - especially as they tried their hardest to teach me about saving/finances when I was younger/growing up - but I refused (to have the conversation) having lived at 112 Overdraft Street at the time - and struggled to see a way out.

 I wish someone told me when I was younger “If you put £10 a week into this pot, you can be a racing driver at age XYZ” - or even had a savings pot I had no access to.

Having driven in GT4 on iRacing - there’s always that dream - though, of course, there’s the talent aspect which I am severely lacking.

Work

Day 1: Fri. 5th July Bishop's Stortford - First day unaccompanied

Week 1: 8th - 12th July

Stevenage (SB6 & SB11)

Week 2: 15th - 19th July

Hertford (H1 - H6)

Week 3: 22nd - 26th July

“Remix” (M/T - Stevenage (First accident :| - scraped a van ) W- Route Learn

Th - Route Learn Fri - supposed to be Hertford, but switched to Available On Request in Harlow (Route 28)

Week 4: 29th July - 3rd August

New Routes (2,5, 25) - Harlow/Harlow Housing Estates

(Central Connect gained former Arriva Harlow Routes: 1-6, 8, 10 all which needed to be learnt fairly quickly)

Did my first shift on a Saturday.

Week 5: 5th - 9th August "2/5 Sandwich" (Sandwich as doing 2/5 on Mon & Fri, with 23/24 in the middle)

Mon - 2/5

Tue - 23 & 24 23 - (Bus Station. Train Station. Depot. Train Station. Bus Station. Depot.) - Train, Depot, Train, end at Bus. 24 - Church Langley Tesco (loop I used when I first learnt to drive a bus)

Weds - 23/24

Thur -23/24

Fri - 2/5

All local Harlow routes.

Was unwell on Monday, but felt better in the afternoon so leapt onboard a bus a few hours into my duty.

Week 6: 12th - 16th August: "2/5 Sandwich...(2)"

Monday started off as just another normal day - it began just as the previous had - starting off on the route 5, switching over onto the 2 at 8pm.

As I arrived at work that morning, my manager asked if I could do overtime - yes, I finished at midnight, but hey, it’s free money driving buses - and I get to help out!

The day went exactly to plan.

At midnight/11pm, I returned to the depot and moved the first bus up to the Stansted Depot.

This is where the problems began.

After driving the second bus back to the Harlow depot, I suddenly realised I had left my bag on the first bus. Ooops.

I then realised I couldn’t get my bag as my keys were missing. One of the cleaners suggested I take a ferry (company) car up there to get my bag - and so I did - he left shortly after this.

Upon arriving, I found my bag, but not my keys.

When I got back to Harlow, I was alone.

I then realised that I hadn’t picked up my car keys after my shift. Being late, the depot had already been locked up.

My problems only continued as whilst I could order a taxi, my house keys were locked inside along with my car keys.

From here, I ordered an Uber home, I had my flat-mates phone number, so despite being an ungodly hour, I hoped that a door had been left unlocked, or that I could phone him.

Had a door been left unlocked, I would have somewhere warm(ish) and dry to stay and could stay in the kitchen or bathroom worst case.

When I got home, I was INCREDIBLY lucky - the previous day had been warm and I left the window open, so - managed to break into my own property and have a good night's sleep before tackling the problems after a night’s sleep.

The following morning, I woke up, climbed out of my window, ensured to close my window, and then caught the 510 to Harlow to the depot.

Hopefully the only time I’ll have to ever ride an Arriva Bus.

By this time, the depot was open and alive with activity. I only had work later that day, but I grabbed my keys and headed back home WITH my car this time.

Week 7: 19th - 23rd August: "Mixed Sandwich"

Mon: Available On Request from 1pm - 7pm

Then Route 5 & 28 from 7:30pm - 10pm

The rest of the week was the same as Week 5

Week 8: 25th - 29th August "Bank Holiday Sandwich"

On Week 8, I did exactly the same routes I had been doing for Week 5-7, although on Monday as it was a bank holiday Monday, we ran our Sunday service.

This included a chaotic - but amazing duty which included all of Vecatre’s/Central Connects Harlow routes:

1,2,4,5,6,28,23

8 routes in 10 Hours - it was a perfect opportunity to prove that I had remembered and learnt all the routes they had trained me on.

After familiarising myself on the routes on the first run - the rest of the day went pretty smoothly with a lot learnt.

Week 9 - 15: 2nd September - 18th October "Sandwich 5 - 11"

Work as normal.

"At work, it's been pretty much the same "Sandwich" duty for the past month - completing:"2" and "5" duties (Sumners Farm/Staple Tye) on Mon & Fri (The bread)"23" and "24" (Bus Stn, Train Stn, Depot) on Tuesday - Thursday (the fillingand alternating Saturday and Sunday duties.

In the meantime, between the 11th September - 15th October, I lost internet in my house for a month and a week - postponing all iRacing activity until it came back, sadly meaning I missed the last iRacing Ford VS Holden Bathurst 1000km - an event I thoroughly enjoyed - but it will be interesting to see what "Yee VS Haww" brings with the Camaro VS the Mustang.

Anarchy August ("Settling In")

I find August always brings the wildest month of the year - and 2024 was no different - no sooner had the month started, I had probably the craziest shift since working at the company. The layout of Harlow is very important in this case.

Upon starting work, I headed up from Edinburgh way (depot is in that direction) to turn left onto the A1019 (red marks) towards the Bus Station (next to "Subru's" - bottom)

As I went past, I noticed they had coned off the traffic in the opposite direction and was sending it through a housing estate.

Driving a full-length bus, I thought my best option would be to turn right at the roundabout next to Subru's, and then turn left and left again which would bring me back onto Edinburgh way (marked in blue)

Of course, if one thing was to go wrong EVERYTHING had to go wrong. Upon coming up Edinburgh way towards the pink "X", I noticed VERY heavy traffic.

They closed my diversion.

Fortunately, I had a HGV driver as a passenger and he guided me through Roydon, and eventually we ended back up on the route - but Harlow was an absolute nightmare and was to be avoided at all costs.

On the way back, I'd normally turn right at a roundabout (out of shot) which lead to the Edinburgh Way roundabout - but that too was closed due to a gas-leak which caused all of this carnage.

So I followed all the traffic up to High Wych and entered Harlow through that way - timings for the routes being completely thrown off.

Other interesting things in August included:

Illness (Mon. 5th)

New routes driven (2, 5, 23, 24, 25, 28)

Passenger incidents (resolved now)

Weekend Woes

After settling into the company, I eventually did my first Saturday shift on 3rd August with no problem - and ideally, I wanted to do more.

The problem was, my schedule didn't agree.

W1 - Sat. 3rd Aug - Work (Hertford)

W2 - Sat. 10th Aug - Home/IOW to sort remaining belongings

W3 - Sat. 17th Aug - iRacing Le Mans 24 Hours

W4 - Sat. 24th Aug - Family gathering

W5 - Sat. 31st Aug - Cornwall with a friend

W6 - Sat. 7th Sep - Worked weekends again

Friday 30th Aug. - Monday 2nd Sept.

After seeing signs to steam train attractions down in Cornwall, I always wanted to check them out, but never got the opportunity - or need to go down to Cornwall.

Earlier this year, a friend said she wanted to go down to Cornwall to visit filming locations of her favourite TV show - so I thought "hey, why not combine a visit to the steam train/s with the filming locations in Looe" Despite being a bit late notice, we managed to book an AirBNB for late August/early September, and I only had to book one day off work (weekends were optional).

It was a bit of a brutal night for me, finishing work on Thursday at about midnight (Fri.), before waking up at 2am, leaving at 3am.

Of course, absolutely EVERYTHING on my car needed doing - fuel, oil, coolant and screenwash all needed topping up.

But after quickly nipping into BP, the car was ready to go.

I got to my friends' at about 5:30am, stopped off at Maccies for breakfast and then headed to Vicar's Close - The last remaining medieval (latest ~1500's) street in England and oldest residential street in Europe.

Despite a bit of a nightmare with the steam trains, we had an absolutely lovely time and were BLESSED with the weather - managing to get Cornwall's only sunny week of the year on our side!

Fri (30th Aug)

Drove down to Polperro/the AirBNB (static caravan) via Wells (and Wells Cathedral) and Bodmin.

Drove to Bodmin (to board a steam train), but I drove to the wrong train station (Bodmin Parkway, not Bodmin General) and then found out you had to book 24 Hours in advance. Looked at Launceston Railway and they had no trains running on Friday.

We then returned to the static caravan/AirBNB

Once there, I enquired about the pool, but it had already closed for the evening.

Sat (31st Aug) On Saturday we headed into Looe and had a walk around the town.

Upon coming back to the car, we had a bit of a nightmare with parking as:

• There was a long line

• Once I got to the front of the line, I found out contactless didn't work

• Then realised I didn't have enough money in my account

• Couldn't transfer money as there was no signal (being in a valley)

• Got enough signal that my bank displayed £20 in my account, tried to pay, card declined. Walked further down the car-park and realised that the banking app didn't update. By this point my friend had been waiting in the car (in the car park) for about an hour and I was incredibly frustrated, eventually managed to pay for parking.

Returned to the AirBNB and had a sneaky peek at the Pool - but despite it being 4pm/4:30pm, it was absolutely packed.

Sun (1st Sept)

On Sunday morning, I booked a 1-hour swim session at 12:00 (most empty time), there was about 6-10 of us there - one couple and a baby, three young adults, and a dad and his child.

but we all stayed to our own parts of the pool and it was very relaxing.

Tried steam train again, but our choice was either Bodmin (£22 per person) or Launceston on the way home (it was about 50 mins/1 hour away)

That evening, we started packing our stuff for a very early start the following day.

Mon (2nd Sept.)

After waking shortly after 2am, we hit the road at about 3am with a few sights we wanted to see on the way home.

We first tried to tick off Durdle Door, but the car-park opened at 10am (it was 6am and we were on a very tight schedule) - we did manage to see Lulworth Cove however.

Half an hour away from Lulworth Cove was the brilliantly named hamlet (smaller than a village/town) of Shitterton.

Giggles over, I dropped my friend off at about 9am, returning home myself for about 12, to start a 7-hour shift at 3pm - all went surprisingly smoothly.

September

I can't lie, September has been absolute chaos - rivaling that of August.

1st - 2nd: Cornwall

3rd - 9th: iRacing Week 13* < 5th - 12th: The Black Week >

6th: 5 Years since friend passed away

7th: First Saturday shift in a month

8th: 2 Years since Her Majesty Passed | Avicii's Birthday

11th: 23rd Anniversary Of 9/11 Attacks

11th: Broadband packs up. No internet for 10 days. 12th: 2 Years since I failed my university course

13th: Final episode of The Grand Tour (final episode of Clarkson, Hammond & May) 15th: First Sunday shift in a month (Route Collector/all the routes)

(iRacing section, feel free to skip)

Week 13

I try to limit how much "iRacing Content" I include in my year in review (as it's got its own specific Y.I.R), but Week 13 was a LITTLE bit crazy this year.

I started off with one series, and by the end of the week ended up doing an all-nighter.

I started off racing in the "Battle Of The Little Wings Series" in the Formula 4 (different open wheel cars racing one another)

On Thursday I did

• Funny Forecast (Rain At Nordschlife) - 3:00am

• 13th Week Ridicoulousness - 4:45am

• Battle Of The Little Wings - 6:30am

• iTested Event (iRacing tested splitting algorithm for more competitive races)

  
  

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October

After a rather calm month, late October threw up some surprises.

To start, on 15th October, it was my 6-month anniversary of working at Central Connect.

A probation meeting was meant to follow in the following weeks - but I had done so well, there was no need for a meeting when the time came and my day and week continued as normal/as nothing had happened or been planed.

On the 17th October, on the 3rd attempt of BT/EE coming over, I finally got broadband/internet back in my property.

First Independent Holiday: Northern Ireland (October 2024)

Earlier in the month, I discovered RyanAir did flights for just £14.99 - and, being the young adventurous explorer I am, I knew I needed to put this to use.

I always had a fascination with the Titanic (I don't know why), and conveniently, there was a museum in Ireland - I had wanted to go, I just never had an excuse to go. With tickets only being £25, I had a thought: How cheap can I holiday? So I gave myself a budget of £200. My family always used to go on yearly holidays abroad - so, with a slightly smaller budget - what's stopping me from doing the same - what's stopping me doing my own family holidays with just me, myself and I?

Cost Breakdown:

Flight: £29.98 (£14.99 both ways)

AirBnB: £69.00 (£27.00 x2) (+ cleaning + Service Fee) Tickets: £24.95 (+ £10.00 for audio guide & guide book) = £135.00 Extras: £8.95 - Charger Plug (at airport - won't forget that next time!) £5.11 - Meal-Deal for flight (for context, on the flight there was an £11 meal deal!) £9.00 - Coach To Central Belfast (this only came at 01:50am), shared taxi instead

£10.00 - Shared Taxi to Belfast Central (got to AirBNB before coach even arrived) £11.93 - Taxi to AirBNB (bit further than I thought) £3.00 - Belfast Cathedral (worth it!) £9.00 - Return coach to Belfast Airport £5.88 - Food (In Belfast) £8.47 - Breakfast (At Airport)

If we exclude my unnecessary visit to the gift-shop in the Titanic store, I absolutely stuck to my budget of £200.

The plan for the 19th/20th October was to work both Saturday/Sunday to "earn" Monday off (If you work 7 days, you get the next day off).

Because it was a last-minute, week-day flight at a graveyard hour (10:35pm) with no suitcase included, the flight was incredibly cheap and something I will certainly utilise in the future more often.

I was absolutely blessed with the weather on the day, and after getting some beauty sleep, I walked everywhere, taking in the true beauty of Belfast. I returned to England on the first flight of the day at 5am, arriving at the airport at 3am.

Wednesday 23rd On my return on Wednesday, I had my first iRacing race in 44 days (1 mo, 1 wk) - despite a bit of a spotty internet connection (what's new?) it didn't go all too badly (other than not being able to fight the cars ahead as they kept dissapearing due to my poor connection). I started 13th and Finished 10th.

Thursday 24th

The 24th marked my 12th anniversary on Facebook, on this day, I made my first ever Facebook post.

Friday 25th

Friday marked the second anniversary of the passing of my childhood cat. On this day in 2022, she crossed the rainbow bridge.

Monday 28th Monday was a bitter-sweet day. It was the 20th anniversary of the passing of my maternal aunt, but this was made up by the fact I was on a new duty - a duty I had requested - running the 21 route from Harlow to Epping train station, back to Harlow again.

The remainder of the week, I was back on my ordinary 2, 5, 23 and 24 routes.

Non-Stop November!

In November I started doing more routes including the 21 (Harlow - Epping - Harlow) at the 15 to Waltham Cross.

In November, I also had my rear shock absorbers replaced. On doing this, they found out that there was a noise coming from the engine, which later turned out to be a damaged flywheel flexplate - in order to fix this, they'd have to remove the engine - this repair costing over £1,300.

I've owned my car since 2022 and have sort of fallen in love with it, so wasn't keen on giving it away/selling it - even if I said, when I bought it "if anything costs more than the value of the car...." I've admittedly gone back on myself and now the line is - if this is just the start of Timon becoming unreliable, then I'll sell - if this is a one off, I'll keep him until he starts to get problematic. ~ Since starting at Central Connect, I always worked Monday - Friday.

Since September, I've been working alternating weekends.

Wk 1 - Sat

Wk 2 - Sun

Wk 3 - Sat

Wk 4 - Sun

and so on.

In Mid-November 2024, I was so busy that my next "available" Saturday was in March 2025!

Thus far:

Wk 1 - Sat. 15th Nov - Work

Wk 2 - Sat. 23rd Nov - Seeing a friend

Wk 3 - Sat 30th Nov. - Work

Wk 4 - Sat 7th Dec. - A Central Connect Road Trip (Oops Spoiler!)

Wk 5 - Sat 14th Dec. - Work (Final Saturday)

Wk 6 - Sat. 21st Dec. - Final Weekend (Final Sunday tomorrow)/Too close to XMAS

Wk 7. - Sat. 28th Dec. - Isle Of Wight Karting & watching Pantomime

And the rest will be revealed in the 2025 Preview coming out on 8th!

Tomorrow though: it's my final race of the season at Spa Francorchamps.

After a little bit of a setback at Zolder, I'm looking to make up a little bit of iRating to end the year on a high!

See you tomorrow!