It’s my second week in the job, and everyone at work keeps asking me about how I manage the long commute. My answer is that I love it. I’ve traded a long driving commute and horrendous M25 traffic jams for the relatively serene First Class cabin of Southeastern railways. My commute takes me just over an hour-and-a-half from door to door, and I can sit back and relax all the way.

There’s normally plenty of space to spread out and work, if that’s what I want to do. I’ve got my morning routine down pat – grab a latte and a newspaper at 6:50am, jump on the train at 6:56am, read the paper and struggle with the Sudoku, and maybe do a little work if I’m feeling particularly productive. I’m at my desk by 8:30 with absolutely no stress.

How do I deal with the long commute? Easy – it’s the most relaxing part of my day!

It’s my third day in my new job, and it’s all a little overwhelming. They’re sending me on induction course after induction course, and by the end of the week I should be more highly trained than I’ve ever been. Unhelpfully, they still haven’t told me where the toilets are. I suspect the janitor will be upset when he discovers what I mistakenly did in the cleaning cupboard.

If you’re worried that I’ll be spending all of my time in the office, your fears are probably warranted. There’s no doubt about it – people work much longer hours here than they do at any of my old companies (with perhaps the exception of KPMG, where there was a similar work ethic and culture). But rest assured, while I’m working I’ll have one of the finest views in London. Above is the view from my desk.

Our offices are on the south bank of the Thames, just beside London Bridge and opposite the Tower of London. They’re part of the ‘More London’ development designed by Sir Norman Foster and the offices themselves are stunning. There’s loads of glass (a typical Foster trademark) and nearly every seat in the office has a view of the river.

And yes, they do clean all the windows every day. It’s a full-time job.

It’s been a while since I updated my blog. After leaving my old job in the middle of August, I’ve had a couple of weeks off to catch my breath before starting my new role. The time has mostly been used to catch up on my sleep and tidy bits and pieces of the house (although Aude will tell you that there’s a lot of tidying still to be done!)

I also got the chance to go driving a Formula First car at Silverstone. Aude bought me a track day for Christmas last year and I’ve finally had the time to book it and attend. These are seriously quick little cars – the circuit was 9/10ths of a mile, over which the cars achieved speeds of around 90-95mph in the straights, back down to nearly 20mph in the tightest of the corners. The acceleration and stopping are more like a motorcycle than a car.

In any case, I had a fantastic time and enjoyed some of the best weather we’d had all year – just the right temperature (low 70s) with clear, sunny skies. A great way to spend the day – highly recommended!

Sometimes pictures speak louder than words. Our local Chinese restaurant has installed a single, unisex toilet. It offers a choice of cubicles:

What a night it was, and thanks to Marc for making it even better by staying true to form.

To set the scene: Mark, Sally and I went out for dinner, to a Lebanese place just off Shepherd’s Market. On the menu were fried sheep testicles. “We’ll have some of those,” I said, “in order to make this a night to remember…”

Testicles were served with much glee by the waiter, and we all had the mandatory taste and snapped the mandatory photos. Innuendos were proffered.

Knowing Marc’s legendary appetite, we decided to offer him the leftovers when arrived. Proving that ignorance is indeed bliss, Marc happily scarfed enough balls to start a juggling act while complementing the lovely chicken. He seemed blissfully unaware of the fact that Mark, Sally and I were pissing ourselves laughing.

So Marc, thanks for making it a truly memorable evening. I hope it was as good for you as it was for us…

After a whistle-stop tour of most of northern Europe, Joan and Joey managed to make it down to our neck of the woods for a quick visit (which is impressive, as it isn’t really easy to get down to our neck of the woods). We had a great meal outside on the barbeque, then went to see one Canterbury’s main tourist attraction — Canterbury Cathedral.

A flying visit, but a much-appreciated one…