Slight Panic.

I took myself off for another walk this morning to blow the cobwebs out of my head. It was greyer and cooler than yesterday so when I got to the top of the drive I turned towards Bowden Corner and then walked up to Indecott. It was very hazy so the views were limited and I couldn't see the sea but instead I enjoyed the flowers in the roadside verges.

Even the ferns look lovely at this stage. Unfortunately they do take over the garden if left so I have to ruthlessly dig them out as soon as I see them. 

At my turnaround point I could look down across our valley. Although our house is hidden in the trees our neighbour's house stands out clearly.

After my walk it wasn't time before I had to set off for work. I gave myself extra time as the micra was booked in at the garage. And then DISASTER struck. The car wouldn't move. I tried letting it run backwards and then I did get it too move forwards but something was very odd. I got out and looked to if I could spot anything stuck or falling off or ...... whatever but there was nothing to be seen. I tried again and this time I got up out of our garden and up to the ponies' fields but it was definitely WRONG. When I looked again I could see that the rear wheel hadn't turned but simply been dragged along. Panic set in for a moment but I prioritised, getting to work was the most important thing. I walked back to the house, phoned the garage to say I wouldn't be bringing in the micra and grabbed a smaller bag with the folders I needed for the afternoon. Then I simply left the micra on the road, keys in the ignition and a note saying 'Bust'. It was only blocking access to our place so that didn't matter. Then I hot footed it up the road (only 6 miles to school) hoping that I could hitch a lift as I wasn't going to make it in an hour and a half. The first car was a Discovery and the woman driving it simply went past my outstretched arm. I mean, as a 56 year old woman in a pink jacket, did I look like a car-jacker? The next driver stopped but the young girl said she didn't give lifts to people she didn't know. Luckily I saw that she had been riding so I quickly said that I lived next door to Paul and Sarah and was the owner of the red car stopped by the ponies' field. That convincered her that I was safe and she drove me all the way down to Pilton though she said she wouldn't tell her dad who obviously had warned her never to give lifts to strangers. I sent Peter a text so that he could pick me up from school saving me the bother of walking/hitching home. I also dropped into the garage which is handily next door to school and the mechanic said it sounded like my hand-brake cable had jammed. He suggested a couple of ways of freeing the wheel including walloping it with a hammer but as he also said, when we got home it had freed itself. I reversed back and parked without putting the hand-brake on and Alec will have a look at it tomorrow. Much relief on my part especially as, with my limited mechanical knowledge, I had thought there might be a problem with the bearings or even the axle both of which could be expensive or terminal for a little old car like mine.