| C30
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Gosh you have a Jag Lesley? So did my late Father-in-Law, like to know how he managed to get it to fit in our garage though.......maybe less junk in there then?
Talking of parking...as you were.........reminds me of the end of a show we did at Knebworth, I was trying to remember where I had parked.
A colleague, helpfully?, said, "Well it will have 4 wheels mate".
"I'll be surprised if it has", I replied. "It only had 3 when I parked up".!
Back to first paragraph though, it is a struggle to get my Reliant Robin to fit into garage, yet father-in-law fitted a 3.8 Jag in there!
Reply #2001. Nov 29 10, 9:18 AM
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| lesley153
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We had a lot of different cars over the years - a Riley 1.5, a Sunbeam Tiger and a Sunbeam Alpine, a little BMW, even a Capri till MIL spilt milk in it, and others I've forgotten - but in 1990-something my husband decided that he wanted to be A Jaguar Driver. We got, or rather *he* got with *our* money and in spite of my remonstrations, a navy blue 4-litre Sovereign. Big, quiet and comfy, and someone stole the front bumper on the same night as another owner of a navy Jag got her bumper stolen. Hmmm.
A few years later, *he* decided to upgrade to a slightly newer one which used unleaded petrol. Hand over old car plus a huge chunk of money. Again I remonstrated, again I gave in for the sake of peace. His car, my kitchen, is how it worked. We now have a 4-litre automatic Jag, with leather seats and walnut all over the front. It looks like this only light silvery-blue and not quite as shiny:
 http://www.splendidauto.com/cars/1001600.jpg
Six weeks after we got it home, he had a heart attack and died.
I went back to the garage, and the forecourt manager offered to take it back for £1000 less than the trade-in chunk we'd given them, and I was furious. I said I'd rather let it rot on the drive than let those cowboys rip me off for a car plus £1000. I couldn't drive then, a state of affairs which I suspect my husband was a bit too happy about, so I didn't have many choices.
The manager made me another offer: his wife's Astra, which had a sort-of-but-not-quite-automatic system, described by someone else as rubber band transmission, and would I like a test drive and by the way his mother is dying of stomach cancer. (I think that was meant to get him the sympathy vote and to encourage me to buy this crappiest of cars.) He also grumbled a bit because the owner's son worked under him. Perhaps he thought the son had been planted on the forecourt to keep an eye on him.
He brought the car to the house and took us for a drive. The Astra was the same age as the Jag, but the upholstery was filthy, and inside the boot was rusty and stank of damp. He offered me a straight swap, didn't get a response, so he threw in £1500. I thanked him for the ride and said I'd think about it. (I lied.)
I told people I intended to report him to the owner for attempting to sell me a family car while he was working for a garage, but they talked me out of it. "He probably lied about the car being his wife's. The owner probably knows what he's doing. The owner's probably in on it." A year later, the garage closed down. The forecourt manager had been sacked for using the garage to sell his own cars.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The Jag sat on the drive (but didn't rot) till I passed my driving test, which took too damn long. I'm sure the longer you take, the harder it gets. I went through a few cowboy instructors, and eventually got an instructor who cared more about getting me through the test, than subtly allowing me to fail so I'd keep coming back for more lessons. I did get my instructor to come back and sit with me for a few hours while I got used to a bigger car, and then I was off. I remember the first time I drove by myself. Exhilarating!
It doesn't go in the garage. The garage is wide enough but there's too much junk in there, and also because someone far wiser than I decided to put the garage behind the house, and the car is wider than the drive. So I reverse into the drive, leaving my nice car outside, and leave the rubbish in the garage.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A couple of years ago, I drove to Tesco just before Christmas, and there was only one space left in the whole car park. It's a bit tight, but let's have a go. So I reversed in, and stopped with an inch or two either side of the car. I was so pleased at getting in in safely without hitting anything, I didn't immediately realise that I couldn't open the doors. Homer Simpson is not alone. |
Reply #2002. Nov 30 10, 12:27 PM
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Rowena8482 
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Remind me to tell you the Saga of the Jaguar First Aid Kit and Adrian one day Leslie ;-)
Reply #2003. Nov 30 10, 1:16 PM
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| lesley153
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| Ooh yes please. We like sagas. As soon as you like pleasethankyou. :) |
Reply #2004. Nov 30 10, 2:34 PM
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| Professer
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liked your saga Lesley on the car is amazing what some people will do guy should been sacked. I think though the car came in as a part ex and he decided to try it on.
Reply #2005. Nov 30 10, 3:20 PM
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| lesley153
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Who knows? I think what he offered me was the going rate, and we paid over the odds because that's how second-hand car dealing works. Sadly.
But you're right about what people get up to. We had a neighbour who started as a plumber, then went on to other jobs, like damp-proof courses, dry rot treatment, building extensions. A neighbour asked him to change a kitchen tap washer. He drained the whole water system, filled it up with Fernox, and made a pass at her. Another neighbour paid him £10,000 (ten years ago) to build an extension and said poor man, it's not his fault the extension leaked.
Not surprisingly, his business went bust, and he was lucky enough to get a job as "clerk of works" at the local public school. He went to work in a suit and tie, was in charge of a team of about 30 building and repair people, and he reported to the Bursar.
Reporting to someone obviously doesn't mean you're in line for their job, but he thought it did. Bursars of schools like this are traditionally ex-military, well-spoken, and a bit classy. My neighbour started wearing Barbour coats and green wellies, clothes favoured by rich country-dwellers of the hunting-shooting-fishing variety. It didn't fool anyone. The Bursar retired, and another posh ex-military man took over.
All the time, he was stealing materials from the school and using them on private jobs. He also set up a fake company with a partner, to supply the school with materials at breathtakingly inflated prices. When he was charged with theft and fraud, he said in his defence that he had to do it because the job didn't pay enough and he should have had the Bursar job but he was robbed.
His wife said he shouldn't have gone to prison: that he was convicted on a technicality. Yes, the technicality that he had stolen, and conspired to defraud his employers. I say nothing. |
Reply #2006. Nov 30 10, 5:11 PM
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| lesley153
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Afterthought: I imagine the school bosses sighing with relief that he didn't get the Bursar's job. I can imagine what would have happened if he'd been put in charge of the school's finances. He'd be in South America and the school would have ceased to operate.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Speaking of thieves taking refuge in S America - wasn't this man freed 15 months ago on compassionate grounds, because he was at death's door?
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/aug/07/ronnie-biggs-train-robber-freed |
Reply #2007. Nov 30 10, 5:18 PM
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Jazmee27
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Some people will do anything for a little more money!
Reply #2008. Nov 30 10, 6:07 PM
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| lesley153
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Won't they just! Some of them will even tell lies - or let other people lie for them. Amazing isn't it?
Here's a fun little site I've just stumbled upon. It names 50 people thought most likely to die in the coming year.
http://www.deathlist.net/?y=2010
The Lockerbie bomber (released from prison on "compassionate grounds") has made two appearances. The doctor who said he would be dead within three months has now admitted that he could live for another ten years, and may yet apologise. A lot of difference that'll make!
Ozzy Osbourne has made two appearances as well. Fidel Castro has appeared eight times, Michael Foot appeared eleven times, Clive Dunn has appeared fourteen times. As far as I can tell, four of these five people are still alive.
Ronnie Biggs has made ten appearances.
2000 40th
2002 1st
2003 10th
2004 3rd
2005 2nd
2006 3rd
2007 10th
2008 4th
2009 1st
2010 2nd
And here he is again, going to the local for a beer three weeks ago.
http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/top-stories/2010/11/08/ronnie-biggs-makes-a-dash-to-the-pub-115875-22700759/
I'd love to know what's going through his carer's mind. |
Reply #2009. Dec 01 10, 10:19 AM
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| Lochalsh
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I find myself reading obits daily. One might imagine I'm keeping up with the times, but, deep down, I think I'm just making sure I'm not there.
There are sites that predict when you'll die, but I would never offer anyone a link to any of them. Call me superstitious, or just plain polite.
______
((((((((Lesley)))))))))
Reply #2010. Dec 01 10, 10:51 AM
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| Lochalsh
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By "when you'll die," I wasn't referring to any posters here! I meant that a person can "find out" when he or she will die. (I should give up writing, I think.)
Reply #2011. Dec 01 10, 10:54 AM
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| lesley153
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Gosh I can't remember the last time I read an obit. Nobody I know has been included in them recently.
There may be sites that predict when someone will die, but this isn't one of them. Its track record is dismal, but it amused me (is amused a good word?) to see how many times how many people have got it wrong. |
Reply #2012. Dec 01 10, 11:35 AM
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| C30
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Here's MY prediction........"doomed, we are all doomed".....we will all died, each and every one of us...."doomed I tell you" !
True though "innit"? There are many unpleasant consequences should we fail to fulfill obligations, but the only thing any of us are 100% obliged to do - is die!
Reply #2013. Dec 01 10, 3:01 PM
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| Lochalsh
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A little line of poetry from Spain:
"Nuestras vidas son los ríos que van a dar en la mar que es el morir."
(More or less: Our lives are the rivers that go to the sea, which is death.)
Reply #2014. Dec 01 10, 3:27 PM
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| lesley153
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We are indeed all doomed. Don't panic. :)
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Jorge Manrique, with faithful translation, by contrast with Longfellow's gay abandon. Endlessly cheerful, innit? :D |
Reply #2015. Dec 01 10, 4:39 PM
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fontenilles
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Hello Lesley - Just thought I'd drop by and say hello
Have a good Christmas and A happy New Year
Robin
Love the HTML
Reply #2016. Dec 01 10, 5:14 PM
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| lesley153
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Thank you, Robin, and I wish you the same. Have you decided yet where you will be spending them?
What HTML where? :-|
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Reply #2017. Dec 01 10, 5:21 PM
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| Lochalsh
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Jorge Manrique, with faithful translation, by contrast with Longfellow's gay abandon. Endlessly cheerful, innit? :D
_______________
Well, translation is never faithful, unless you're working with legal documents, and then it's just boring! :)
As for JM: Wish I'd been creative enough to write a long series of couplets as an elegy for my own father. :|
Reply #2018. Dec 01 10, 5:28 PM
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| Lochalsh
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And as for greetings of the season: best to you, Lesley, on this first night of חֲנֻכָּה!
Do you have your little dreidel at the ready?
Reply #2019. Dec 01 10, 5:34 PM
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| lesley153
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| Oh my goodness, it's not חֲנֻכָּה already, is it? I had no idea! Oh well... here goes. Happy חֲנֻכָּה everyone! Lead me to the doughnuts! :) |
Reply #2020. Dec 01 10, 6:24 PM
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