The road to nowhere

摘要

I'm writing this in the middle of nowhere, stuck on a train that is 3 hours later than the one I was hoping to catch, because I had to stay in for a plumber who failed to turn up because I wasn't at home when they rang to check if I was at home. As I'd arranged for the plumber to call between 3 and 5 pm, I naturally thought that getting home by 2.30 pm would be enough. They'd phoned at 12.30 pm, and again at 1.30 pm, to say they were rearranging the appointment for another day. After I'd listened to the answerphone messages, I rang them to say I was at last in, as I'd said I'd be. ‘That's OK’, said the chap on the other end, ‘our plumber will be with you between 3 and 5’.