Well, as they say "Life moves on". It was heart wrenching to be suddenly "Grounded" from my beloved Train catering role, But moving into the catering stores was not as daunting as I first imagined.
Bill Pollock (Area Manager) spent the best part of Two weeks instructing me in the "Ins and Outs" of running the Store. In reality it was not much different for running a Restaurant Car, And I got the hang of the paper work quite Quickly.
Of course certain aspects of the Job were completely New to me, Dealing with Salesmen, Phoning Suppliers, Checking and comparing various Suppliers prices etc.
One point that certainly did surprise me was, Bill Pollock circulated the Stores Phone Number to all the relevant "Train Catering Offices" with instruction to them that all "Train Catering" Queries or Messages would now be directed to the Stores!
It was at this point that I realised why Mr. Pollock was so keen to get a person with a background in Train Catering to work in the Store. Truth be known, Mr. Pollock disliked Train Catering and all the extra work it had presented to him. Now he passed this workload squarely onto my Shoulders.
I suppose in truth I was being used as a sort of Under Manager (Overworked and underpaid) But I enjoyed it, I was working closely with Train Catering Managers and the Office staff, and gaining experience in fields that I didn't know existed.
Still life in the Stores was not a bed of Roses, While the Paperwork was simple to get to grips with, The manual side showed my inexperience.
Living in the North of Scotland, you accept the mysteries of the Weather, Sunny one moment, a horrendous Downpour the next.
It was during one to these downpours that Scottish Brewers decided to arrive with a delivery (40 cases of McEwans Export cans).
No real problem for me, after all they were delivering, so THEY wheeled them from the lorry to the store (And got soaked in the process)
With a dry "Smirk" I signed for the delivery and when they had left the store I proceeded to move the cases from the store into the cellar (Drink store).
Unfortunately the Cellar area was restricted for space, So cases had to be built up as high as possible, In this case 20 cases high.
Not a problem to a your fit Guy, However I had completely disregarded the fact that soaking wet Cardboard, Encasing 24 heavy cans to Beer, is not all that strong.
Lifting the last case up, the Cardboard gave way, and suddenly 24 cans to McEwans "Rained" down on my head.
Bruised Battered and bewildered I fell to the floor, But my troubles didn't end there. Three of the cans burst!
A pressured can of beer that bursts tend to spin very quickly and spray the contents out quite a distance, In the confines of the small cellar area, I was totally soaked stinking like a brewery, And had a head resembling the "Elephant Man"
This accident required a quick visit to the Station Medical room, and although not badly hurt, I did require 2 stitches to a cut in my forehead.
Mr. Pollock offered me the rest of the day off, But I was a Man, so I continued my shift.
It was a rather battered and bandaged Ferret that returned home that evening, my wife took one look at me, and burst into tears.
"It's not that bad" I said fingering the Stitches on my head.
What are you talking about? Said my wife. I'm crying because Hugh Mortimer has just died in Crossroads. (The Soap of the season).
So much with Loving concern :(
Well after that I did learn my lesson, Wet Cardboard crates were left until they were dry, However accidents can still happen, even bizarre ones!
The Catering store was situated just a little behind the Cafeteria back door, The small area between was used to house 3 large open topped bins for the Cafeteria waste. One bin was allocated for waste food stuff, Which was picked up every afternoon and taken away for Pig Swill (quite alright in the 70's).
Although in warm weather these Bins did smell a little, I very quickly became used to that, What i didn't like was the Squalling Seagulls that regularly fought while trying to get a free meal.
The Inverness Seagull population are fearless, I know of a chief Steward that was actually attacked by one while trying to load his stores.
Anyway, this particular day I had to leave the stores and deliver an order to the Sweet Kiosk in the centre of the Station. I pushed the loaded trolley out of the Store, Locked the door .....
The Next thing I remember was waking up in the Medical centre, Surrounded by Bill Pollock, The Railway Police and the Medical Staff.
Seemingly one of the Catering staff had gone to put some waste into the bins and found me lying outside the store in a pool of Blood!
Concerned in case I had been attacked, Mr. Pollock called the Police.
Fortunately the Stores on the Trolley had not been touched, and the Keys were found in my hand ...So What HAD Happened?
Well lying beside my "Prone" Body was a large Chicken Carcass. The Police could only surmise that a Seagull had lifted it out of the Bin and flown off with it. Either it had been attacked by another or just lost its grip, Regardless, the Chicken carcass plummeted to the ground, only to land squarely on top of my head, Knocking me unconscious and requiring another 4 stitches in my head (I still have the Scar).
I suppose my lifes claim to fame is, Being the only person attacked and beaten by a dead and partially eaten Chicken.
Maybe this Stores job is not as easy as I first thought.
