Month: March 2018

One thing or another has conspired to a bit of a mess. The main issue has been my continued faith in the goodness of others. I am proud to feel that way yet, it bites me so many times when I am wrong. This last few months have been that. Companies who have not paid me or Dennis as they perhaps should have creating a huge debt for us on top of that which we already had. In my case, it lead to me making a terrible decision designed to reduce our outgoings which actually resulted in even more debt. Because the remuneration for travel time has not been forthcoming from my work to cover the costs I decided replacing my Chrysler Voyager, which I love, with a smaller, more economical car would make more sense and, to that end, I did all the research and decided upon a mini like this one:

It seemed like a good idea at the time. Alarm bells should have sounded with the price tag but I trusted the seller. He was forthcoming with the issues the car had. In his opinion there was a head gasket issue. He had spoken to the BMW dealers and they had quoted him £350 for the repair. Me, being trusting as always, took him for his word and we agreed the sale. I paid £650 and eventually got the car to the dealership for diagnostics. Long story short, they assure me that at their prices it would initially come in at least £950 assuming they found nothing else but possible way over £1000 and advised it would be an uneconomical repair. If it were just the head gasket then I think perhaps this could be done for £600 raising the total outlay at £1250. That’s still not a bad price for the car but, if it needs more I am just adding more good money to a bad situation and I personally cannot afford to take this risk.

The car was bought down in Luton and there it remains right now until I can find a way of getting it back to Northampton. I doubt it would make the journey as it barely goes a mile without over heating. But, back here it must come. My plan is to put it on eBay, warts and all, and see what happens. I can scrap it for £125 so, perhaps if I put that as a starting price I can get more, who knows, it’s what I feel is my best shot unless I know someone prepared to undertake the work for parts cost only and, I don’t think that’s a fair ask.

To fund this mistake I need to sell the other car ASAP. So, I have had to borrow some money to buy a third car I can use for work whilst I sell the other two. Hopefully, unless the planets are conspiring against me, I can make enough money back to cover the mess, if not then we’re screwed really. 

I am going to buy the most reliable car I can find for the price. It’s impossible to know what the future of a car will be but, hopefully it will work out this time.

This one will come from a garage. Have a fresh MOT and I know it’s history in every respect. Yes, I did a lot more research this time!

It’s not the sexist, most racy car on the planet but, it doesn’t need to be. I also went for a manuel this time around even though I’d prefer an automatic. I am going to upgrade the in car multimedia and navigation too as I need something for the amount of hours I spend at the wheel every day.

With each mess like this our travelling around Europe and getting back to the Philippines for Christmas seems less likely. I want that to happen so much. Worse yet, whilst I’ve been sorting out this mess I have been spending less and less time with Dennis and that makes me really miserable as well.

Today I was on my second call when a migraine hit and it totally floored me. I had to cut short my day and because I’d made myself Mr Unreliable, the company quite rightly covered all my shifts for tomorrow so I have lost even more money in lost work.

Am in need of a U-Turn on our fortunes I think, life isn’t being very OK about this.

For some reason the country is hooked into the notion that we are negotiating a good deal for the benefit of the country by leaving the European Union. That nice Mr Davies chappie heading back and forth to Brussels to tell those nasty foreigners what’s what and all that and Mrs May doing her bit preaching to the self same nasty Europeans to tell them we’re not budging whilst holding the hand of Donald Trump as a ploy to get his agreement on a good trade deal and … in a couple of years it’ll all be over and the United Kingdom will be shot of all those Europeans coming here taking our jobs, our houses, our benefits and all of those wonderful things the leave campaign sold to the people.

Some countries, Scotland and Northern Ireland, objected very heavily to the notion of leaving, you cannot tell an Irishman or a Scot a bad deal and expect them to go for it.

But, a bunch of old English and Welsh people, and it was mainly the old, wanted to go back to the ‘good old days’ when things were so much better. Where we all went to Church on Sunday instead of shopping, where everyone only ever spoke English with a BBC accent, even the cockneys. Oh yes for those heady days of church bells and cream teas.

Now …. let’s wind this back a lot because, where we are right now is buying into the very notion of what Brexit is but, it isn’t.

So, why did we have a referendum?

For years the Conservative party have suffered from disagreement over Europe. It consistently cost them votes and damaged their credibility. That nice David Cameron chappie decided that enough was enough, his party needed to unite else they’d have a minority government if they weren’t careful so, he plotted a cunning plan, one which would finally get his Eurosceptic colleagues to belt up for good. He was going to go to Europe, negotiate the very best deal for Britain that he could (think Thatcher without the handbag). Then he’d return and ask the people, do you want to accept this improved deal for the nation or take the damn stupid option and leave altogether? Not once did the notion that his balmy colleagues on the right of his party (yes, it’s possibly to be on the right of a right wing party) would put forward a campaign that enough people would believe to actually sway the country out of Europe. That was never the plan, it was meant to be business as usual and you chaps at the back who kept creating a Euro argument can now desist, the people have spoken.

Oh dear … £365m extra for the NHS, get rid of Jonny Foreigner … they were too good to resist to the elderly who never wanted things to change since the 1950’s. In their droves they bought into this argument that we’d get our country back, all those damn stupid rules we have to follow from Brussels would be scrapped. No more gays in the military, no more silly paternity for men and all that nancy stuff. They were going to get England back for real men, English men!

So, a plan simply conceived to unite the Conservative party has horribly backfired. We are on a path leading us to the cliff edge of Europe, destined to get ‘no deal’ leaving us desperate for ‘any’ deal from some other countries.

Ironically, all the promises sold to the leavers have been admitted to for being totally false. There is no extra money for the NHS, even if there were, this government would spend it on something else because they’re hell bent on dismantling the NHS. No worker or their family for elsewhere in Europe is going to be expected to leave, on the contrary, they’ll still be able to come here and settle up to two years after we’re no longer part of the EU. Margaret Thatcher would be turning in her grave! We’re to keep all the negative of being part of Europe without any positives and, worse still, no seat at the negotiating table.

The whole thing is a farce, the only hope we have is another referendum based on the outcome of the negotiations as to whether we’re still stupid enough to want to leave or not and let’s hope the next time people are given the facts