Took the kids to school in the car this morning. Had been planning to walk through the snow, since the side roads here are so treacherous - Warwickshire - but couldn't find boots for one idiot son, who, as soon as we started off down the road, managed to trip over and get his trousers soaked. So back in we went, and by the time we reemerged, the car was the only option.
On the way home, a journey which usually takes about three to four minutes but which took a majestic twenty-five minutes this morning, I took a right turn and found myself - and the car - sliding swan-like across a sheet of black ice. Luckily no one was in front of me, because I had no control whatsoever.
I ended up, thanks to the dodgy camber of the road, on a downhill slope, thudding to an abrupt stop against a high grassy kerb - where my first thought was, how the hell am I going to get out of this?
I eased it into reverse, and thanks to the foresight of the car driver behind, who had left me plenty of room for my spectacular skid, managed to back up the slope out of the black ice, and onto the infinitely safer slush at the centre of the road. From there, I limped home at 5 mph, a little shaken but happy to discover only a scratch on the front bumper at the end of it.
I'll be walking the kids home this afternoon though. Wet trousers or not.
10 comments:
Very glad you're OK!!!!
Yeah, just a bit annoyed, really. Nothing like my Big Crash of 2000, where I could easily have died. The front of the coach I hit looked pretty bad too. This was small fry in comparison. ;)
Oh, so lucky, Jane. Glad to hear that other motorists are being sensible with stopping distances too. Here, kids go back tomorrow - out thaw has already started in the East... and don't talk to me about kids that can't find their stuff - grrr!
Kids and lost stuff. Grr, indeed! I blame schools. When we were home educating, things were far less stressful, even with the little blighters at home all day. At least then we didn't get snappy comments or letters home from teachers, demanding to know where X, Y or Z is. And they seem entirely unaware what Special Needs means, or that it might possibly entail them working out that several of my children need help remembering to put their coats on or take their lunch boxes out when they leave school. Because we wait for ages every afternoon while Special Needs 1 or 2 goes back into school to look for some forgotten item. And the school won't allow parents to go inside, so we all have to stand about stupidly in the cold, waiting, waiting, while Gubbins tries to remember exactly what he was sent back in to fetch. Grrrrrr!
Glad you're OK Jane.
Dear Jane
Did I read you right - that a couple of your children are Special Needs? If so, then you are even more remarkable than I already thought.
Best wishes from Simon
Autism, Asperger's, and ADHD, it seems - though every consultant we see has a slightly different theory about both of them.
One of the boys has now developed what appears to be Tourettes. That's probably been the most difficult to deal with in the short term, as it involves noisy, repetitive verbal tics with little or no relief. Try going to the theatre or cinema with a Tourettes sufferer - or even just watching your favourite television programme - and you'll soon realise what a problematic condition it is.
But you deal with these curveballs, and get on with life as best you can. Because what else can you do?
Dear Jane
And I thought my life was difficult when my major dilemmas revolve around whether to drink beer or wine and deciding which poetry editors are most deserving of my bottomless scorn and contempt. I promise never to complain again! If you ever need a recuperative holiday in Wales, just let us know.
Love from Simon & Rusty
P.S. Thanks for not posting my stupider comments!
That's all right, Simon. I'm here to help!
Glad you and the boys are alright, Jane.
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