Mud and leaves and emotional distress.

So, I got into a car crash on Tuesday. Nothing major or deadly, but the damage to the car I was driving was rather significant and the damage to the other guy's car was more than $5 for sure.
Really, though, that man was one of the nicest people I've ever met. And so are The Owen's Brother's. And the guy in the blue BMW--he was really great. I didn't get his name or anything.

I'm driving along this one-track road, come around a corner, and *BAM!* I stomped on my brakes and he hit his, but we slid right into each other and my car went semi-vertical on the left side 'cause it climbed the hedgerow. No one's fault--neither of us were speeding. Mud and leaves on the road are way worse than any ice I've driven on as the tires here aren't made to deal with them.

So, anyway, as last week Pinky got written off due to a failed MOT and Mike's scooter was a mess to sort out, I was a little stressed out, and let's just say I lost it. Those poor guys. I was crying and couldn't talk or see and they sorted it all out for me. They got The Owen's Brothers on the phone and let them know what happened. They got my office on the phone and had me tell Steph at work who came to escort me home. They got me to phone Mike and let him know what was happening. They got the car off the hedgerow and actually swept the glass out of the car so I could drive. And they reassured me it was just a car, not the end of the world, no one was hurt, and it would be OK. They made arrangements with insurance and repairs and gave directions and phone numbers for me to call if I got lost or needed help. Those people were the best. And when I arrived at The Owen's Brothers, I was again upset and very, very apologetic, and an Owen just said, 'These things happen. Here's another vehicle. We will sort it out on Friday. We're just glad you weren't hurt.' And, actually, that kind of made the whole thing all better. Put it in perspective a little. So, for October, the car costs are up around 800gbp and that sucks a lot, but I wasn't hurt and that's really all that matters, right?

So, Wednesday was just mostly embarrassing because I went into work, having important things to do and no time to take off at the moment. And, of course, because it's me and this seems to be a theme, mostly people asked if I was ok, asked if I needed anything, and then, 'cause they can't help it, gave a little giggle. And honestly I did a fair amount of that myself--the absurdity of it all.

And then last night, on my way to a visit on an A road (read: Highway 21 or equivalent) in the middle of nowhere, my freaking scooter died. The Motorcycle Centre apparently sent someone out to find me to help, but they wouldn't listen to the directions I was trying to give them, and they didn't give him a mobile or my number, so clearly the guy got lost. I waited for an hour and a half. Mike showed up and took me home, but as of right now my scooter is in Peter Hooper's yard on the A417. So, I'm pretty annoyed with them, really. They need to go and get it today and figure it out--I think I might have a but of a temper tantrum there on Saturday as it was just in for repairs 3 weeks ago. When I called the office to get some numbers to let my visits know I had to reschedule, again the little giggles. I guess that's all I can do as well, in the face of such ridiculousness.

And, really, I'm not even feeling upset or angry or anything. Mostly I'm just overwhelmed, I think. I asked Mike to e-mail the library and see if he can return to work before his leave of absence is over, so that information is coming. It just seems like there's karma or something at work here that has me stopping what I'm doing over and over again. I know there's a reason and message in all this, I just haven't quite figured out what it is. So, I'm in information gathering mode right now. Shannon's here this weekend for a bit, and we've decided that Berlin is off for Christmas. Mostly, no money, but also we need to find some stability and routine for a few weeks and see if that makes things a little better.

We had a fantastic time in Scotland, and Mike has all the pics of family and stuff, so he'll post this weekend. Hope everyone is well and that y'all had great Thanksgiving celebrations. It wasn't the same being here and missing that. We did our own little round the table thankfulness inventory, and it was good. I've gotta' get off and consider getting ready for work now. I was up super early today and I'm starting to feel relatively motivated now.
((hugs)) and love to everyone.

What I'm Thankful for...

So, as usual I've been putting off blogging because things are so busy around here. I swear, Meredith and I must have been Hitler and Eva Braun in a past life. That's the only way I can understand our lousy karma. However, today's episode concerns happy things. Namely; the last leg of our Rome/Barcelona Trip.

Here are a couple of extra pictures of St. Peter's Basilica. I also managed to snap some pics on the bus to the airport. Ciampino is a really boring airport. As usual we were 3 hours early (my bad) and were stuck in an area with nothing to do. Once we boarded, things got interesting. Now, I should preface this next part by saying that for those of you who don't know, I am terrified of flying...a real white-knuckler. Anyway, we were waiting to take off and there was the usual 'put on your seatbelt, turn off your cell phones and ipods' spiel. Then, as the plane started to accelerate, this woman sitting in front of me had a cell phone that rang. I bit my lip because I figure she just forgot. No worries. Then, as the plane was LEAVING THE GROUND, it rang again!!! That just made me see red. I leaned forward and screamed at her, "TURN YOUR GODDAMN CELL PHONE OFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I kind of freaked Meredith out because she'd never really seen me lose it before. Yeah, bad cell phone etiquette and flying. A bad combination if you're flying with me...just so you know.

We made it to Barcelona with no problems. The only problem was that Girona Airport is 1.5 hours from Barcelona by bus.




We made our way onto the subway once we got to town and found our hostel. It was really new and hi tech. Unfortunately, the power had gone out. We did manage to get a lowered rate because the power on our floor didn't actually come back until the next afternoon. At this point however, we were all tired, hungry, and grubby. So, we just dropped off our bags and went to get some food.





We found a cafe near the hostel and chowed down.
Meredith had some trouble finding vegetarian food, but we managed. Barcelona was kind of funny because at first we thought everything was cheap. However we forgot to factor in the GST (Gringo Sales Tax). We got so ripped off with food. I guess that's what we get for not learning Spanish before going.

The next day we set out to see what Barcelona had to offer. Our first stop was the Sagrada Familia. This is a famous church that has been under construction for over 100 years, and still needs another 90 until it's finished. Yes, it is THAT elaborate. I took a ton of pics of it, as I think it might be the most impressive piece of architecture I've ever seen. Just check this:



















































After spending some time there, we wandered around to do some shopping. We kind of missed the cool spots and were just spinning our wheels. By this point, Daniel was about done so we took him back to the hostel to chill, and Meredith and I went for a gondola ride. That's right, I said gondola.



It goes up the mountain to a castle which overlooks the docks as well as the city.


































































Very beautiful, especially because it contains 2 of my favorite things:



Cats










and giant guns.









Here's one of our signature pics of us standing around with our mouths open. So classy.
That night we went out for dinner and walked around town. Barcelona is just so laid back.




It was nice to be in that kind of place.











This guy behind the counter looks just like Newman from Seinfeld. Awesome.







And so, the following morning it was back to the bus and onto a plane. We flew into Stansted Airport which was out in the middle of nowhere. On the other hand, it wasn't Luton. After yet another long bus ride we arrived in Greenwich back where we started our trek. We just hung out at St. Christopher's and had some dinner. I had a couple of beers, and Meredith and Daniel had cider. Daniel learned an important lesson about the importance of sipping cider, much to his peril. We had an early night as we had to be off early the next day.
The next morning we went to Heathrow to send Daniel off. On the way, we remembered what an absolute labyrinth that place is, so we got someone from the airline to escort him to his gate. We said our goodbyes and were off. I suffered my only injury on the trip while we were heading for the bus to Reading. We were on the elevator when some people got on. I pulled the suitcase towards myself and caught it on my big toenail. It ripped upwards away from my skin. As the elevator was full of people who likely weren't fond of hearing the seven words you'll never hear on television (although George Carlin had obviously never heard of HBO), I elected to silently shriek and look at Meredith with an expression of abject horror and pain. I got a band aid from a dude at the coffee shop.

The bus and train trips were uneventful, for once, and we made our way safely home. Once we arrived, I heard from Alan (our totally awesome landlord) that Wyevale was closing down. It turns out it was in the local paper. I found out from my boss that they're closing it to relocate to Slough, near London. So, it looks like I'm out of work in mid February. However, I will be receiving a pretty decent severance package (around 1300 gbp). I feel bad for the other people there, as they will have to start over...I mean, who can just pick up and move to London? So, I'm pretty lucky and (after all it is Thanksgiving) thankful for the fact that we CAN just take off at any time. Most people don't have that option. I know I sound really bitter about this experience, and I likely will look back on this with fondness. That's what Meredith has been saying to me...that was until her car accident this afternoon (don't worry, she wasn't hurt at all). I'll let her fill y'all in about it, since it is after all the latest chapter in her "Me vs. Cars" opus.

Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving. It's funny that I never used to put much stock in this holiday. With all the crazy, stressful, and downright awful things that have happened to us and to our loved ones this year, I am just so thankful to have all of you in my life. Well, that's all for now. Missing you lots. Love to all.

Death to Pinky

Well, folks, Pinky the Wondercar is no longer wonderful. It's given up the ghost in the form of a failed MOT with no foreseeable fix on the horizon.
Tomorrow, it will be replaced with a 6-month rental from Owen's Brothers car rental. For 340gbp per month, I get insurance, MOT, taxes and not-my-fault repairs and flaws fixed.
Seeing as Pinky has cost 1500gbp so far, including purchase, it feels a heck of a lot cheaper than to continue down this road of repairing what clearly is determined to remain broken.
Both figures take my breath away when I convert them to CAD, but what's done is done, right?
I'll post a pic of the new wheels when I get them, and I will continue badgering Mike to update with stories of our Spanish Adventure.
*guh*
4 wheels are overrated, but 2 wheels are going to get chilly sooner rather than later.
((hugs)) to y'all, and comments to this post should include your own car horror stories, please.
XOXO