#redpee

Yesterday I was waiting outside Kwik Fit at 8:20am. I've been up earlier every day this half term than normal! Today I managed nearly 12 hours of catch-up sleep, but was still awake by 9:30am! My car broke down two nights ago, at the bottom of Delhi Street. I was on my way to get the youngest from her friend's house, at 9:45pm, so she (the friend... My child can stay up a little later in the holidays) could get to bed at 10pm. It conked out halfway across the buslane of the Ormeau Road (just as a bus was hurtling towards me! Oh, hazard lights, save me! I'm not illegally parking with you this time! I don't want to die!). I tried a few times to start it, then got out to push it back off the main road. I realised that the car who'd been trying to get out behind me had pulled in. I was suddenly surrounded by Very Belfast Boys. What we would (snobbily?) call spides. All in tracksuits, very short hair, very strong Belfast accents. I'm scared of them. I know I shouldn't be. They were delightful. Also, I had broken down beside a filling station AND a Kwik Fit. Sure, that's lucky, isn't it? (I don't trust Kwik Fit, though. Neither do the BBC...) The lads, who all seemed very young, were being driven by a friendly woman (was she a mum? A friend?) who occasionally helped, too. They lent me a canister to get more diesel. They tried bump starting; shaking the car (to get the diesel to the injectors, yknow, love?) with me in it, with them in it. There was a cutting up of bottles to make funnels (I was annoyed- my knife was in my other coat, but they had one) and we were pushing it up and down the end of Delhi Street. It was all quite surreal and giggly. A fella passed by and chatted to them in the midst of all this. Awright mucker how's it goin like aye just tryna start this car like aye aye oh cheers mate here nat in front of the woman like... There was an exchange of monies. I like to imagine that a minor drug deal was taking place. I politely pretended not to notice. They tried, in the rain, and the dark, for over 40 minutes, to get the car going. When they were in my car one gave me his phone to mind (in case I drop ‘at, love, he said, but I felt that he sensed my prejudicial fear- I couldn't stop thinking they were going to get it started and rake off in it, doing doughnuts!) Bless them all. In the end, when I was too embarrassed to let their kindness continue, they wanted to give me a lift, as well. Another friend had passed by when it first happened, too, and had also offered me a lift! It was all rather hectic. I went to get the youngest, all late, and got driven home (and the middle child picked up, too) by them. People are very kind. So yesterday I was at Kwik Fit and left them my key, and went home and loaded up myself and my bicycle with Children's Festival brochures and cycled them around Belfast, and went home and loaded up again, (700 at once!) and got them out, so this bath I'm in is helping me deal with the fact that I still need to deliver 5 more boxes... my bike pannier broke under the strain, yesterday, too! I sewed it up before bed. Fed myself all the remaining veg last night before the new veg arrived today. Must remember I ate loads of beetroot....