I was just putting the last batch of washing on the drying rack at about 0:13 this morning, and all of a sudden the lights went out. I thought maybe something had blown a fuse, or maybe tripped a circuit breaker for our flat, so I took a quick look outside and even the street lamps had gone out! The UPS was screeching its way through the 20 minutes it can power my server for and eventually cut out, so I decided to go to bed.

When I woke up this morning, the power had returned and, incredibly enough, both my UPS and server were intelligent enough to start up again once the power had returned, which pleased me to no end since this is the first time this has ever actually happened! I quickly checked my email and found out that the power had actually gone twice during the night, the first time at around 0:13 and once again at 04:41, and both times the server had recovered. Very nice.

Now all this time I was checking my email, I could hear one of those portable generators outside. I took a look out the window and I saw a big white lorry with “Location Television” printed on it… “What the heck?” I thought, moving to the kitchen window to get a better view. “Location Television Catering Services” was the full title, which was slightly less alarming. Parked outside our house, however, was a police riot van, and the catering lorry was obviously there to feed hungry coppers… Typical police that is!

So I get myself ready for work, and eventually manage to leave the house without my bag (no headphones = no music! noooo!!), and meet a friendly neighbour just coming in through the door. What’s the cause of all this hoo-hah? “The police say it’s ‘a small fire'” she says. Strange. So I get on my bike, and just as I get on the main road I see the whole of Cemetery Junction is cordoned off and teeming with police, fire engines, and other emergency paraphernalia. There’s no speaking to the police around, but a passer-by also mentions a fire.

Is “a small fire” the cause of such a huge operation? I have my feelings that it was something much more serious than that, especially since a murder (!) never caused such a huge police presence. Something is definitely not right.

I smell a fish, and it ain’t a fresh one!