Those who have noticed that I often post between midnight and 4 am will readily understand that I feel fragile, paranoid and grouchy before midday. Today was especially evil to start with because I had arranged to take the car to a garage for its, gulp, more than a month overdue MoT test (noticed only two days ago though). Would the car need rare parts? How would I get back home?
The garage made me feel much better by offering me the courtesy car, unasked. It was a navy blue Peugeot 206 with nearly 100,000 miles on it but still quite a nice little motor despite the low seat position and slightly grubby interior. It went well and ran impeccably, and I enjoyed the thought of how little petrol it was using. I had never been in a 206 before.
What's more the Cruiser passed fairly easily, with its exhaust repaired with gunge and some red cellophane over the foglight with the broken lens. So it is a bit quieter now and the windscreen washer is working. Total damage 70 quid or so with VAT, fairly painless by today's standards. The garage owner is second generation, his dad and brother running another garage in the next small town. I have a mind to recommend him for the good garage scheme, but may wait for something more complex. Everyone likes him though and he is personable.
Incidentally there is a Storrington-trained nag running in the national, trained by an ex-steeplechase jockey who never won the big one but wants to train a winner. I can't remember its name but the jockey is the oldest in the race and wears contact lenses. Got to be good for an each-way outsider punt surely? What does betting ace Crankcase think?
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MoT... pleasant rural faff... Grand Natio.. new
MoT... pleasant rural faff... Grand Nat.. new