Day 274. That there London (1/10/13)

I'm not a fan of early starts and I don't particularly like public transport. I certainly can't read or write whilst in motion.

So I'm blogging from the 7am train to London after a 5am start, conference bound.

I don't generally talk work (apart from that stretch when I was losing my job and then was saved at the last minute) but the next two days are so work focused that it's hard to avoid.

We're conference bound, first conference of the new era and it already feels different. There are three of us on this Lime Street to Euston train, there used to be eight. We've lost a fair few mates over the last year and we're creatures of habit, we hang out with the same five or six people every time we do this. This year there'll be less people to hang out with.

And the approach is different; tonight we're all suited and booted for a gala dinner which we haven't been for a few years. And while I'm very happy having stood and watched the Manics a a distance of three feet for nothing with free beer I do love the return of tradition, the chance to look smart, dress up a bit, sit and drink with your mates, it's a proper way to have a business night out and I've missed it a bit .

It seems indicative of a return to the way that we used to be, a reclaiming of our identity, an understanding that our new owners 'get' the brand. The reopening of our original Oxford Street store (and the installation of a replica of the original sign) show that heritage is important.

But the next two days are for the future, announcements of what will happen in the near and long term; the future may well start here and the unknown is a wonderful thing.

And that's your lot for today, cross London travel beckons, then work, then possibly some alcohol.

There is currently a demand from a significant slice of my audience that tomorrow's blog come from a hotel bar some time post midnight. A return to random drunken ramblings may well be on the cards.