What a Bloody Day

Today has been one bloody disaster after another. It’s taking all my might not to use the “f” word, I tell ya.

First, we were due a flat inspection this morning at 10:30 (because we live in a private “managed” property). We got up at 8:30 to give the place a bit of a tidy up and do the hoovering and then waited.. and waited.. and waited. At 1:10 we finally decide to ring the estate agent and the woman says “Oh yes, we’ve been trying to get in touch!” (Obviously not too hard…) “The lady came across the road block so she decided to turn back”

Now, we’ve had diversions in place since our road started to disintegrate but the way ’round is clearly signposted so we were pretty annoyed that the woman had given up so easily. Nonetheless, we rearranged the inspection for Tuesday and set out to do the shopping. (Turns out there was a tree down because of the weather and we think she was blocked by that.)

We get five minutes down the road and come across a “ROAD CLOSED” sign… except it was still open, so we carried on going. Two bumper-high floods later and we’re back on dry land. Fifteen minutes down the road and again, yet more floods. Still, we get through relatively unscathed, drop the washing off at Karl’s mum’s and then head to do the weekly shop.

Did the shopping, pull out onto the busy 3-lane road approaching traffic lights, slow down for the red and then all of a sudden the car jumps forward then drops at the back. We’re surrounded on all sides by traffic and the back brakes had jammed on! Karl had to drag the car about a mile up the road on a jammed wheel — rubber burning, screeching and smoke everywhere — to get out of the traffic. Luckily a nearby friend of Karl’s was in so we dropped in to use his phone and call the AA.

Four hours we’re told we’ll have to wait. Four flipping hours. I can understand they’re busy because of the floods but FOUR HOURS?! Don’t get me wrong, I’m grateful to Karl’s friends but I didn’t particularly want to spend an entire day with them. However, we wait. Four and a half hours later the AA ring us back and say “we’ll not be here for another 3”. F&!@ing useless. That leaves us potentially stranded in the middle of Shrewsbury ’til gone 9pm.

We cancel the AA and manage to get Karl’s car to his Nan’s then get a lift home, but Jesus bloody Christ. Sitting around for hours, floods and then dodgy brakes? It’s so lucky we were sat in front of traffic lights and not doing 60mph down the dual carriageway otherwise we’d have gone into a skid and I wouldn’t be sat here typing this now.