Blog by Matt Young, Digital Mentor
So, on Thursday morning last week (11th October) I went to see a client who I've been working with for the last month or so. We visit clients in their homes and this is one I particularly enjoy as they live in the middle of nowhere with the most amazing views. The roads leading up to their property are narrow, 'single-file-only' lanes with grass growing down the middle, where car tires rarely tread. Unfortunately, the weather wasn't so good this time round and the views were limited at best.
After I had completed my training, I bid my clients farewell and jumped in my car for the journey home. The rain had been falling continuously during my time there and when I pulled out of their driveway, I was immediately met with a large puddle across the entire road. Luckily there was a car in front of me and they negotiated the water with ease. I followed them through but then they took a turning off and I continued downhill towards my destination. As sometimes happens on these narrow roads, I met a vehicle coming the other way and decided it was me who should reverse as it was far too narrow to pass. When I reached a wider section of road, the lady in the land rover that was coming the other way, wound her window down and said "I wouldn't go that way if I were you". She went on to say she'd only just made it through the two foot flood at the bottom of the hill.
After some very brief directions (the rain was gushing in through the window after all), which were heading North when I needed to go South, I negotiated a U-turn and attempted to follow my nose. I think it added half an hour to my journey, but I eventually found my way to the main road without coming across any more flood water... Result. I then hit the dual-carriageway and picked up the pace, briefly. All of a sudden in front of me all I could see were rows and rows of break lights. Traffic slowed to a crawl, odd considering I'd made better progress via the single-track back roads. After what felt like an absolute age, in to view came the reason we were crawling along a 70mph speed limit road... a flood! The entire four lanes of the road was covered in fast flowing water from left to right.
I followed a large lorry through and drove in his wheel tracks, I figured that was the safest thing to do and it worked. After that, it was plain sailing back to base.
I go to work, get sucked in to what I do and my environment tends to come second place... but I do love what I do. Maybe in future, I need to pay a little more attention to the conditions going on around me. There was a chance I could have got 'rained in'...!"