'I have planned this right down to the last detail'

Is what the guy armed with the samurai sword kept shouting.

Right up to the point where he was decked by baton rounds & a tazer.

I have yet to see one of these in use, but Stuart, who was instrumental in them being adopted by the Met, assures me they are hugely effective.

At the point where he was incapacitated yesterday, the incident had been running for over 4 hours & I was accompanied in the control room by the Superintendent & the Chief Inspector. We were co-ordinating the services of some 50 specialist officers including dogs, armed , tsg, ambulance & fire brigade. It was at this point my phone bleeped

'Where are you ? Can we ring you ?' yes, it was the Cedar Lodge posse.

I explained what I was doing.

'Odd social ife you have' replied Michelle 'don't you know it's Saturday night ?'

Strange as it may sound, yesterday's incident is what I revel in.

The downside is I didn't get to read my paper, in fact, as soon as people see me taking a newspaper into the Control Room, I am greeted with shouts of 'No, put it away'. They know we're in for a manic shift. I should have learned by now.

On the plus side, I really enjoyed the opportunity to use the previously festering grey cells. The amount of behind-the-scenes scurrying whilst something like this unfolds is immense. In truth, all I do is co-ordinate whilst the fantastic front row staff, do their stuff. Yesterday, I was lucky to have Andy, Blah-Blah & the lovely Colin.

Only a week earlier, it could have been so different.

At the end of the shift, I watched the end of 'Deep Impact' to unwind a little prior to the drive home. The Superintendent found me in the canteen watching the Twin Towers being engulfed by a tidal wave.

'What's the matter, not enough death, doom & destruction during your shift then ?' he enquired kindly.

On the way home I thought the whole time how much I wish I was on an ARV crew.

Just as well I'm not :)

Cx