I must admit that I can be a bit lax sometimes when it comes to things like post. Unless I’m expecting something specific, I tend to let letters go unopened for two or three days. I just kind of assume they are yet another bank statement which can be filed away and ignored. That’s how, this morning, Serkan told me that the letter containing my new freedom pass had arrived a couple of days ago and I hadn’t realised.

That minor error aside, today was the first day I went out with a freedom pass. Serkan inserted it into the lanyard my parents sent, which was then secured to my bumbag and put into it’s front pocket. Truth be told I still wasn’t sure whether I would need it, but I resolved to try to use it anyway, just to see if it worked and how practical it was.

I just got back from a nice long trundle up to Stratford. I took one of my usual routes, but one of my favourites. It was a good way to use a nice, sunny afternoon. Of course I took the tube back as usual, but today instead of asking the guard to open the gate, I was determined to try to do it myself using my new card.

I realise that, to most people, the simple act of getting a card out of your bumbag and tapping it on a sensor won’t sound too taxing. This afternoon, however, a queue growing behind me, I found it the most stressful, irritating thing I ever had to do: nothing, from my fingers to the bumbag zip, seemed to want to cooperate. It took ages for me to get the card out of the bag; then, manoeuvring it in my hand so the sensor could read it seemed about ten times more difficult than it should have been. Then, after about five attempts at getting the card read, once I was through the gate getting the zarking thing back into it’s pocket, including the lanyard chord, seemed all but impossible, especially when I was rushing to catch a waiting tube train.

In short, I can’t say I was impressed by the whole experience: I think I’ll stick to asking the station staff to open gates for me. But at least I have it now, so I can sort myself out on the odd occasion when there is no staff available. I just hope that doesn’t happen very often.