h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Got back, did a wood run in the land rover, (had already done one in the bus aftere arriving), in between us we filled the landie about 5 or 6 times before the tuesday!
Monday night was very chilled out, lots of old and new faces around a big campfire, smoking and drinking to the small hours.
Tuesday woke up again to a hot bus, but from previous experience no where near as hot and bright as tents get . While i was doing a few more chores in readiness of the coaches full of volunteers arriving, bar-b-q and gazebo building, others went to shepton mallet and IKEA!!! in bristol for essentials. The afternoon i volunteered to drive the main coordinator around the site in the landrover (well, who wouldn't). Was funny, driving across fields knowing they were going to start filling in the next 24hours. Another chill night around the fire, lots of people having arrived while i was out and about and seeing stalls pop up in the markets. Good night with more old friends and new round the campfire, but an early night as we had first shift in the morning.
CHAOS

Work started easy emough, and it was fun watching the first people in almost racing for the best camp sites. A few tasks to get the lock-up sorted was a distraction from this. Then bingo! ready for business, we had our first customer at 10.20, can't remember what it was, Items varied from yr standard rucksac/tent things to yr more bizzarre full scale dragons, half drunk bottle of cider(small), 12 slabs of stella (thought our tent would be cooler and safer than their own) bag of "legal" Psychedelic mushrooms (large), assorted wheelbarrows, assorted musical instrumewnts (we asked for a demonstration of their atristic ability before returning these!).
A lot of customers were very nice and often amusing, most were grateful as well and donated genourously to the charity we were volunteering for. A few were complete self-abusers, like the guy who came to lock up 3 times a day and could never find his ticket, and didn't even think to start looking before he was at the front of the que, the amercian who fastened his ticket to his bag before we put it away, only to discover this when he returned and we had to do a "lost ticket procedure" Painful!

After work we wnet to check out the markets before they got busy! Amazing seeing the site looking busy for the first time, each year i get amazed at this transformation of empty lanes and fields. Almost all the stalls are open for business, and this is definitely the best day to trawl around the markets looking for potential bargains, and then watching prices stabilise. "TIP" If you find what you want go back evry day and try and haggle the price down, and on monday buy it for half that price!
The bars also open on wednesday, so the annual pilgrimage to the cider bus was next on the itenary, arranging to meet up with friend from home for ritualistic downing of cider. Then when it gets chilly in the evening, hot & spicy cider , go on slip an apple brandy in it!
Thursday was very like wednesday, except the campsites were fuller and so were the bars!

Friday had to work, 8pm - midnight, but De La Soul were good to see, tho didn't compare to the first band i saw last year, - Alabama 3. first chance to deal with casualties as well, you try getting someone to do a signature when they're off their heads. This was the night we went for it, absolutly crippled and seeing dawn in at the stones then a 2 mile walk home in the sun! Best night! Also worst toilet experience!
managed to sleep thru til afternoon, with the help of earplugs. Woke to the muted strains of Jimmy Cliff Playing the last tune we'd heard walking hopme that morning. Damn! Had wanted to be down there, But on removal of earplugs could hear the main stage clearly. Staggered around the campsite and bus for while basking in the sun eating, and sleeping more.

Couldn't see how i was gonna make it thru the impending nightshift, even if i slept thru til midnight. We had planned to see some stuff on saturday but we only just made it to the lock up in time to nip next door for some eats,sit down and watch the thousands of people streaming about. A little busy to begin with, quite a few off their head types, and some depressed radiohead fans, who were almost happy having just seen their idols perform. Dawn brougth a bit of a rush of people, on there way to bed, brought memories of the state i was in the previous morning.
Then i became mr grumpy, until the end of shift at 8, Managed to shower, before going to bed, it almost made me feel human, rolled out of bed about just in time to hear the sugababes go on, had to wake g/f as she had wanted to see them. she settled for sticking her head out of the door, while i got .

We did a much better job of getting ourselves together, and hadheaded of to see some circus stuff, in plenty of time to get out of earshot of the manics on pyramid. I had a go on the dodgems (I love em Especially when they're free!) Saw a bloke wrap 40 metres of clingfilm around him then get out in under a minute, saw the Acromaniacs, 2 hand-hand circus balancers - very good
Caught a couple of acts in the theatre tent, trapezze act, and a hula-hoop thing, both of which were good. Time to get to lost vagueness, for dreadzone and ziontrain!
Lost - Well how do u go about describing the field of lost vaguness?? Absolutely awesome, people, things and more things with lots of weird things and ..... I'could go on!
Zion train were so ing good, and they took us right up to midnight, even paying tribute to eminem, then

Monday am - last shift, seeing people desserting the site in droves, getting amazing enjoyment telling the american geezer the lock up had shut at ten, and he'd have loads of hassle getting it now. shame he wasn't 10 minutes later then he would have, as we transfeered everything left behind then.
Packing up and then heading off to take a pic of the bus in fromt of the pyramid, only to discover my g/f had packed the camera and it was under everything, which was now piled higher as we'd picked up an extra passenegr! Didn't take long to get home and was really uneventfull, apart from me needing a stop for some wakeup drink after weaving about a bit. And while dropping people off i tightened up the bikes to tight and while driving to the naxt drop off they smasshed my rear window!
Tuesday, didn't get a lie in as g/f ex rang at 10 to arrrange collection of her daughter.
Bit monged out all day but did manage to get a window sorted.
Well, that's the bones of my glaters 2003

If anyone reads this and is wondering why I didn't just post it as a complete entry.....

Well....

I tried, I just couldn't post more than a single window, for some reason evry time i tried i got an error message!