Time thieving

28 Jun 2007

At 4.47pm today, I finished marking 132 exams, and sent the results to our admin staff. Those results were due by 5.00pm....ooh yeah, 13 minutes to spare!

That got me thinking, what if I had have wasted another 13 minutes in the last 2 weeks. I wouldn't have finished my work. And, on the other hand, what could I have done to save more time over the last fortnight, so I wouldn't be sending emails at the last minute.

Well....I know the biggest time thief in my last two weeks.....

Usually, my biggest time thief is "writing blogs" and I think you'd all agree with me....but I also think that "reading blogs" is a major time thief for some of you!! I'm particularly thinking of those of you who send me emails saying....
- "Chaff, I've got an essay to write but I'm bored. Write a blog so I can waste time", or
- "Chaff, a funny thing happened to me. You weren't there, and you didn't see it, but write a blog about it anyway", or
- "Chaff, remember that time milk came out your nose. Write a blog about it"

But no, this week's time thief was....my drive back from our holiday in Port Fairy.

It's only about a 2 hour drive:
a) if you go inland
b) if you decide on a route beforehand
c) if, in the event that you wish to change your route, you carry a map (well, technically, I had a map, but it was under my wheelchair in the front seat, and I'd have to move my McCoffee to get to it...so I didn't)
d) if you do not re-change your revised route, just based on a fancy, a whim, or something you "feel in your waters".

You see, I started off at Warrnambool, heading to Colac. And I thought, "The Great Ocean Rd is only a little way to the right. I might pop on down a bit and drive along one of the Icons of Australia, checking out one of the most rugged coastline in the world as I go.
So I took the first turn right, to Timboon.

Timboon - the land of cheese, milk, and obviously, cows. Do you ever find yourself driving alone on a country road, with cows in the fields, and wind down the window and yell "moo" to them? No, me neither. Who said that?

Anyway, jaunting along the road, suddenly it became a single carriageway....and then gravel.....and then dirt. I'm not sure my Daewoo Lanos was made for this. I had to go so slowly that one of the cows to whom I'd previousy said hi walked beside my car for a bit, and we had a further chat (or was that the coffee and sugar making me delirious?).

Every time I came to a major crossroad, I just headed in the direction of water (ie. south). Eventually, way over the hills, I saw the water. Yay!!! I'm at the Great Ocean Rd. I'll just stop for a bit, and check the map, I says to myself......

One and a half hours, a quarter tank of petrol, lots of dodgy rural radio, and one McCoffee later, I was approximately 20 km from where I started. Yes, without the aid of a map, changing directions based on a fancy, and having a slightly disturbing conversation with a cow, I'd managed to travel in the shape of an isosceles triangle.
But it gets worse......

I'd found my coveted road, and travelled on it for about 1/2 hour........

until I hit roadworks and a detour that sent me all the way back to the road on which I had originally started out.

Yep, that 2 hour drive took me 5.5 hours. I was driving for so long that, that night, I slept sitting up, gripping an invisible steering wheel with one hand, whilst using imaginary hand-controls to work the accelerator, with the other hand!

So, Moo to you.
Cheers,
L