My days of pretending I know what I’m doing are over. I no longer have a hope in hell of maintaining any sort of dignity. The game’s up. 
Wednesday morning, half asleep. Had slept rather too well in my shady and cool spot at Micklefield after running up from Watford and simply couldn’t wake up. 
Roll into the yard after dumping my tautliner round at our warehouse…exchange abuse with the fitters who’ve just turned in and are sitting drinking coffee…find out what trailer I can’t take and hitch up to it anyway…pull straight forward to workshop entrance.
By this time our Fleet Manager, Lol, is in. Stood in a posse are 2 fitters - one of them being Lol’s son - one of the box repair guys, and a random bloke who I didn’t recognised but assumed - not unreasonably - that he was one of Lol’s rich cronies, who float around in our yard on an alarmingly regular basis.
Exchange daft expressions with the surrounding mob through the windscreen, attempt to shout Lol out of the window, get pseudo funny response, establish Lol is in a chipper mood since he has an audience and get out of cab. For those who don’t know, our Fleet Manager is a funny bloke…and 9 times out of 10 he will get into a verbal sparring match and lose, much to everyone’s amusement. This particular morning I was half asleep and he was chipper as hell as it was his 60th this week and he got big card etc. from everyone, so I had no chance.
Usual banter-inspired altercation ensues, during which he points out the stain from the water leak I told him about 2 days before, (so I tell him it must be bird crap) and we establish that since it was our warehouse that knackered my light cluster with a forklift he’ll replace it with only the minimum of inevitable mithering.
As he potters off to get a lens (muttering about how he’s on his own and it’s not a quick job as he goes, and failing to indentify which forky it was 'cos I wasn’t grassing) I head for the shade of the warehouse door, towards the Random Bloke - who I’m even more convinced is one of Lol’s rich cronies after the full flood of the previous few minutes…
…At which point Random Bloke says “Hello Lucy!”
It was great to meet you Westie… 
Sorry I was all a bit sketchy, at least now you know why! 
Hope your three days at the hands of our infamous TM weren’t too insulting - I did warn you!!! 
So come on…What did the other drivers say behind my back…Be brutally honest… 
Ps. And yes. I always dither about when I’m turning 'round like that and then give up and drive through the pump. Even when I’m not still mentally in the land of nod.
We have passed a couple of times on our travels but that was the first time we have met face to face. I enjoyed our little chat and at least it kept you from getting too much hassle from the fitters. 
except for Morrisons. The only problem was not enough hours on Wednesday and Thursday 
although did manage to get 12 hours doing a Market Deeping on Friday. 
Most of the container work I have done in the past as been for firms that do them on a adhoc basis.