Long Day

[andrewducker]

So, this was the view out of my office window this afternoon.

It started at 11:00, when they announced that we were 'advised' not to leave the building.  Which then sparked a race for the snack machine on the 5th floor - there were 6 people in the queue for it when I arrived, with more people right behind me.  I'm sure cannibalism was setting in by the time I headed back downstairs.

So I dutifully waited for midday, ignored the advice and went over to the main office for lunch (there not being a canteen in my normal building).  That was all fine - there were a few people about, and about 5 police officers, but not much exciting.  Sadly, by the time I got back from my (not very nice) lunch there were around 40 people milling about at my end of the street, about 20 officers, and a whole load of noise from the other end of the street.  And they weren't letting people back into the building (either of them).

So I stood to one side and watched from a safe distance while more police turned up.  Then some police vans.  Then some more police vans, until finally there were about 12 vans and two Volvo shaped vehicles all wedged in to my end of the road.  At which point we were motioned back as the police went into position.

There didn't seem to be any actual trouble though - people were generally doing what they were told and the police were actually being friendly (if firm) towards people.  However, after about 45 minutes I got bored of not being able to see much (and I'd finished my paper), so I wandered around to the bridge over the area, which gave a much better view.  Sadly, there still wasn't an awful lot to be seen, but I did manage to find someone I knew, who told me that one of the side-entrances was still open, and that there was a spare desk in their area.

I made good use of that, answering emails and phoning my team-mates to let them know I was still alive, and writing a couple of design documents (good thing I had the spare time, eh?), before things calmed down enough for them to start letting people back out of both buildings (still couldn't easily get _in_ but out was ok).  So I phoned Jen (co-programmer) and she agreed to bring me my phone, PDA and MP3 player and meet me outside the Usher Hall.  She was ten minutes later, as they were only letting them out 5 at a time, under police escort (I think), so I spent the time watching the riot police lounge about, and the rather cool police horses.  The whole area seemed to be closed to traffic, making Lothian Road as quiet as I've ever seen it during the day time.

There was a fair number of rumours during the day - including a piece in a BBC report about my building having protestors in it.  So far as I can tell the outside carpark got some protestors in it, but as that's entirely open to the air, and has no way of stopping foot traffic, that's hardly surprising.

It wasn't really a riot, more of a disturbance, and I'm glad that both the police and the protestors seemed to be keeping things on a semi-reasonable level.

Hope the rest of you had a day that was at least as restful as mine, if not more so...

Comments

[trav28.livejournal.com]

wow, some of those images recall (for me at least) the "Dawn of the Dead" remake from 2004. Betha if you look hard enough, you'll see some running zombies ;)

[andrewducker]

Much, I'm sure, to spidermonster's disgust I didn't go out with my shotgun to hunt me down some anarchist.

But yes, it reminded me of that as well.

[trav28.livejournal.com]

Thank the lord I'm not the only one - those images were so reminiscent of the Dawn remake. I might have to just go and watch this again now!

Hunting anarchists? I thought Tory hunting was more your style ;)

[andrewducker]

Anarchist, Conservative, Communist - all idealists fall before Betsy.

[azalemeth.livejournal.com]

Shaun of the dead was better :P. Spoofs rock...

[trav28.livejournal.com]

I'm not arguing with you there - I have a soft spot for *all* zombie movies :)

[azalemeth.livejournal.com]

They are a wonderfully enjoyable waste of time, aren't they? Shaun of the Dead is a good spoof, because not only does it manage to be gratuitously violent, wonderfully implausible, and hysterically funny, but you see at the end of it the media having their usual field day with any big events - newscasters at the time being interviewed about "Z-Day"....You then see chained zombies being employed at asda.


Makes me wonder how long ago Z-Day was then....

[trav28.livejournal.com]

heh - judging from the state of play in the job markets, not long ago. We still must be recovering from Z-Day hijinks ;)

If you enjoy the "media aspect" of Zombie movie-dom - have you given the original Dawn of the Dead (1978) and its remake (2004) a go?

Also, for hilarious hijinks - check out "Zombie Creeping Flesh" (aka Hell of the Living Dead [1980]) as it has a "mock" United Nations summit interspliced with National Geographic stock footage. Had me in stitches.

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

My lot spontaneously did Shaun of the Dead re enactment on eerily car-free Princes Street - sadly we couldn't persuade any more folk to join in.

[trav28.livejournal.com]

Now, that would have been something! I think there might have been some civil unrest if more people had joined in, lol! Or some seriously soiled underwear ;)

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

Actually I do think some kind of situationalist statement like getting everyone to be a zombie at 2pm, say, would have had an awful lot more impact than what did go on yesterday.

[andrewducker]

The clown army was out in force - dressed up as clowns...

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

I didn't see them, but IMHO lots of zombies look very disturbing -- clowns just look like an early Edin Festival (which was what a lot of yesterday did remind me of, sans the police of course :-)

[trav28.livejournal.com]

that seems like a splendid idea! Let's do "Zomb-Aid" for real ;)

[bibliofile.livejournal.com]

Isn't that why god made flashmobs? Would've been great.

[laserboy.livejournal.com]

Yikes. I hope that's the worst of it over with.

[andrewducker]

Well, I hear we're expecting a million people for Wednesday :->

[thereyougothen.livejournal.com]

no, remember we got 225% of what was expected on saturday!

[vereybowring.livejournal.com]

Goodness me ! You get all the excitement of the big city and all I get is old women agreeing it's terrible the Stirling Council is short staffed and why isn't a machine sweeping the piece of pavement I am currently standing near with a brush. Never mind, it will be over soon and you can get back to finding other ways to fill your day.

[azalemeth.livejournal.com]

Where exactly in Edinburgh do you work? Wouldn't the police have let you back in if you held up some nice pretty piece of paper saying "I work here"?

I don't get why people have to be violent at demonstrations. Well, I do, but....I don't get why the protesters can't say "We're going to walk along this merry avenue, make a bit of noise, say things all at once, and we won't break anything, to which the police would reply "Okay. But we're watching you". I don't get how they can just stop passage down certain roads - I need to go back and reread my lovely law books!

[andrewducker]

Where exactly in Edinburgh do you work?

Can't say. Those that know me probably know, and it doesn't really matter for other people. I'd rather not come across as being in any way speaking for my company.

Wouldn't the police have let you back in if you held up some nice pretty piece of paper saying "I work here"?

If you look at those photos you'll see I couldn't get within 50 meters of my work. The whole street was cordoned off, at least partially for my own safety.

[azalemeth.livejournal.com]

Ahh, okay. Eep, must have been a fun wait.....I guess one advantage of living in the middle of nowhere (http://maps.google.com/maps?q=IP7+6PP&spn=0.022628,0.035266) (they put the pushpin in the wrong place) is that the only time there is ever any activity it will probably be connected with the apocalypse somehow.

People are still talking about a fire engine coming to put out a minor chimney fire at a "neighbour".


That was in 1993. Nothing new has happened since, bar a few extensions, sales, and deaths.

[taromazzy.livejournal.com]

Heh heh, shame you were in work - I got into work late the other day cause 2 armed police made me stop 100 yards away, with the ever reassuring (and British) "Stop there, love".
Obviously I didn't look like a terrorist threat as they didn't even menace me. Not even a little.