The best laid schemes o' mice an' men, gang aft agley, an' lea'e us nought but grief an' pain, for promis'd joy

Last night my car broke. I had planned to spend today visiting sites in the West Midlands but it was very clear when the temperature gauge sailed through 90 and the STOP sign insistently flashed and beeped on the dashboard that this was not going to happen. We stayed in a hotel overnight and then called the AA out. Their mechanic's diagnosis was a burnt out radiator fan and a tow back up the M62 and M1.

I thank my lucky stars that this happened on the way home from holiday, not on the way. Also that it happened in a city, not on a motorway. And finally that I have AA membership. It's easy to overlook that lone parents have one income to pay for at least two people, where young couples may well have two incomes for just themselves. It would have been easy for me to economise by not having the AA membership but right now I'd be well over £300 down in tow costs before the cost of the repair.

We managed to have half an hour visiting the Bullring for lunch whilst we waited for the tow truck.

In all the waiting today my son was amazing - he read his book quietly and was overjoyed at the chance to ride in a tow van. He's a joy to be with.














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