Wednesday Night / Thursday Morning Trauma

Post by **Mike** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 7:58 am

I just thought I would let you know about the really weird night after AD&D. It resulted in having about 4.5 hours sleep all told and not in a good way.

After another excellent session of AD&D we took Fez and mr_e home. Then in Stockport another car pulled alongside us at the lights and it stank of something buring. We pulled away and our car struggled up the hill towards the Town Hall. By the time we had driven all the way to the end of our road to park we had diserned that the horrid smell was indeed coming from OUR car and were slightly worried.

The offside front stank of burning carbon/sulpher and there was a great heat eminating from above the wheel arch. Lizzie became rather upset because she had to be in Birmingham early in the morning. I said she should not under any circumstances drive the car in this condition and we called the VW assistance (11:00pm). They would be there in an hour. In a teenager like strop Lizzie flings herself down on the sofa and promptly breaks the suspension under the cushions

. To be fair to Lizzie the sofa is very old (30 years?) and it was only a matter of time but the timing of its failure was supurb. Lizzie then goes to bed because it would be unsafe for her to drive to Brum very tired! :D

At about 12:30 they arrived. Took one look at the car and said that is a brake failure and they can not touch it at roadside. Fair enought. They then said, you should get another person to come out and collect tomorrow and see what they can do. Not fair, our operator told us that in the 'unlikely event' of the problem not being fixed they would take it away and arrange an emergency courtesy car. After some discussion the recovery man tries to sort through the paperwork.

At about 1:00am we depart with recovery man complete with the car on the recovery vehicle and set off to Manchester Airport. We had not decided to leave the country in disgust but rather VW had arranged for us to recieve a courtesy car from EuropCar and we had to collect from the Airport.

At 2:00am we were finally home and back in bed, now I face the lovely propsect of going to work with a major deadline today and only having 4.5hours sleep. Yay.

PS I also now need to phone the garage to let them know to expect a rather poorly VW Polo!

Kirstypie · Post by **Kirstypie** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 9:56 am

Deary me. Still, going to work with a major deadline and 4.5 hours sleep should be easy peasy if you draw on your studenty experience.

hazel · Post by **hazel** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 1:19 pm

poor you you dont seem to have much luck with cars do you? lucky your brakes didnt fail while lizzy was driving to brum that could have been disasterous

Post by **Mike** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 1:20 pm

Kirstypie wrote:Deary me. Still, going to work with a major deadline and 4.5 hours sleep should be easy peasy if you draw on your studenty experience.

I don't think that saying 'Sod it' and going to the pub till 4am Friday morning before going to a meeting with the tutor (client / boss etc) really hung over with no work is really a good idea at this point. However, I think it is an admirable solution

I am sure that it will all be fine, at the moment the Major deadline is not seeming so bad, I think that it is hiding till I least expect it.

Andy · Post by **Andy** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 3:06 pm

Look at it from the other side of the coin though Mike.

Think about, this happened after about 1 hours worth of driving in the night? (Dropping people of from 'd and d' to your house).

How would you have felt if Lizzie had done that amount of driving on her way to Birmingham, doesn't realise and the ''brake failure'' gets even worse. So much worse that she can't use them or stop on a motorway - not a pretty image is in my head. I'm know that is something that I wouldn't want to happen to her and I'm damn sure that you don't!

Besides, you should be fine, I regularly only get about 5-6 hours sleep during the week - deadlines, sleepless nights, etc.

Fez · Post by **Fez** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 5:07 pm

i probably average five hours sleep during week nights - the trick is to recoup your loses at the weekend and stay tucked up until the late afternoon, or just never leave bed at all!

mr_e · Post by **mr_e** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 6:49 pm

You guys are scary. I seriously cannot cope if I get less than about seven hours sleep for more than a day or two. I honestly believe that a lot of people who say they're fine with it are just so used to feeling permanently tired they don't know the difference.

Like others have already said, it's just as well the problem turned up on a short journey rather than on the way to Birmingham.

ProgRob · Post by **ProgRob** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 8:16 pm

Darned cars!

I have to get my 7-8 hours otherwise I feel tired in the afternoon- and me and tiredness don't get on!

Post by **johnriley1uk** » Thu Mar 23, 2006 11:15 pm

What a dreadful ordeal. I just hate all the wasted time when things like this happen.

Hopefully your car will be sorted and returned very soon.

Lucky it didn't happen to Lizzie on her way to Birmingham.

Post by **Mike** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 7:37 am

You are all not wrong about it being good happening on a short journey. It would have been upsetting if it had damaged Lizzie.

It is one of those typical waste of time annoyances though. I could have thought of several better ways to spend four hours.

I agree with mr_e and ProgRob about the sleep thing. I really prefere to get about 8 hours sleep. If I don't I tend to really work poorly the next day and that irritates me. Yesterday was the exception actually. I managed to do loads and did not really feel tired until I got on the train home. Phew.

Andy · Post by **Andy** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 11:14 am

Mike wrote:I agree with mr_e and ProgRob about the sleep thing. I really prefere to get about 8 hours sleep. If I don't I tend to really work poorly the next day and that irritates me. Yesterday was the exception actually. I managed to do loads and did not really feel tired until I got on the train home. Phew.

I usually get tired the moment I step into my house (apart from Fridays!) - I think it is the one moment when I can relax, drop ''the act'' and truely be myself.

It is the same whatever day it is. On a Tuesday, my easiest day by far, I am fresh as a daisy when I walk out yet 5 minutes later I am asleep! On a friday, I work every lesson, including break as I have a duty, do football training at dinner, play football for 1.5 hours after work and walk in completely refreshed! :D It must be the mentality we feel at the end of the day.

Post by **Mike** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 1:59 pm

Excercise released a natural high. I am not surprised that you feel refreshed after playing sport. I think alot of people would feel better and more awake if they exercised more. Myself included in that.

hazel · Post by **hazel** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 2:00 pm

I started a gym two months ago I never felt more energised ande I put weight on gutted and not feeling enclined to carry it on either

Post by **Mike** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 2:11 pm

That is a shame it will do you a world of good if you excercise!

Post by **Mike** » Fri Mar 24, 2006 2:15 pm

Typically the garage have just been on the phone and we have a 'Phantom' Brake problem. Obviously both myself, Lizzie and the car mechanic who actually felt the heat and smelled the smell are mistaken. It just gets on my wick that they say this. The phrase 'It must get worse before we can fix it' annoys me.

If I am back in a week and they have to repair the car that was supposedly 'checked' today I will fume and spit unholy wrath down upon them.