Sugar Beet Factory

The campaign is well under way, and the smell of the processing once again fills the air in and around Bury St.Edmunds. Its a smell I don't actually dislike, and when the wind is in the right or wrong direction, which ever way you look at it, the smell can enter my bathroom here at home, as I only live about a mile from the site.

When I was at school, at about the age of 15 in 1985, the whole of the school year had to choose where they wanted to go on their work experience. This would ideally be 2 weeks with a company that you felt would benefit you in your chosen career path. I'm not sure if the schools still do this ? I applied to go to the electrical department at the Sugar Beet factory, which was my 1st choice, and got to go there. On my 1st day I was given my card to swipe in with, so they know who's on the plant, and was taken to the electricians workshop. I was introduced to a man called Ozzie, who I would shadow for the 1st week, you can guess his surname.

During that week I went to the top of the silo's, that create the blot on Bury's landscape, but boy what a view from up there. That is about as much as I remember of the 2 weeks there, other than getting to see the Carp lakes and now and again walking past another male worker there, known as Marigold, who always wore pink rubber gloves of the same name.
On my last day they gave me a genuine Swiss army knife as a gift for my time there, which I had kept until January of last year. Which is another story.
My brother and I were on our way to Munich for 3 days and nights, which was going to involve taking in a Bayern Munich v Bayer Leverkusen match at the Alliance Arena, and a few Steiner's of beer. At Stanstead airport I forgot I had thrown the Swiss army knife in my wash bag of toiletries. So having kept it nice for 21 years, I have it confiscated, did it piss me off.

No.5