Woke up at 04.30 for my first day as Newport Panel's mascot; man, I'm dog tired. Drove to work in my LandRover in the middle of a thunderstorm. It was raining cats and dogs and the wind was howling. I had to have the radio turned up loud so that I was able to hear Jarvis Cocker Spaniel's song.

Started the shift with a cup of tea, but kindly declined the offer of a biscuit (I hate Fox's biscuits), so settled instead for some toast with grrrrrrrated cheese sprinkled over the top. The toaster was absolutely hopeless. It was a new toaster based on the George Foreman Grill, called the "Frank Bruno Toaster"; it only managed four rounds then it packed in.

I was given a tour of the panel by our LOM and was then told I could have a quick break. I spent my spare time entering competitions on the Internet where I had the chance to winalot. I also read the local paper, especially the sports page, which had a good write-up on a local boxer.

There was an article in the paper relating to a couple who were dogging and were disturbed by a policeman who stripped off and joined in. The woman said: "the first time I became aware that someone was there, was when I saw a huge police chopper hovering overhead".

Later, after a quick revision of the rules and reg's, I helped the Signallers on the panel.