A dramatic start to Sunday

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Chantal
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This weekend was Malvern Autumn Show, something we go to every year, this year being no exception.

We take our van, loaded with everything we need to get there early, park up in the gold car park, cook and eat breakfast before the doors open and have a lovely day. This year, with the forecast being so bad, we took the small table and chairs so we could actually set up and cook inside the van rather than sitting out the back with the doors open (big van).

So, there we were, Sunday morning at 6.30am, van loaded, in the dark, torrential rain, and the stupid van wouldn't start. Not a flat battery as all the electrics were fine and we had lights, just no ignition. After a few minutes of cursing, we decided to put the sausages back in the fridge, remove the 9 packs of 6 cans of catfood out of my little car (Hyundai i10, how small can you get?!) and take the car. BUT, dopey here had brought with her the allotment keys and not the house key, so couldn't open the front door.

However, all was not lost. I've done this before so we have a spare back door key hidden in the back garden, but as our side gate is bolted and padlocked, I had to go down my neighbours garden, through the garden gate and up our garden to retrieve the key. We have one of those digital locks for the gate so we can unlock it with no key, but it's not yet been fitted...

Our neighbour is a hoarder. Our neighbour does not cut back his garden. Ever. It was bad 2 months ago when I was last in there, but with all this rain, it would give a jungle a run for it's money. Then you have to negotiate the 100+ empty coal bags, pots, tubs, wheelie bins, you name it. Did I mention it was still dark? And raining?

I had to go up my next door neighbour but one's drive and over the low wall into next door's front garden by the gate. My neighbour has two cars parked on the drive with a mere 6" gap around them, making you squeeze sideways alongside a hedge to get to the gate. Couldn't face it, so over the wall instead.

I opened the gate and stumbled over accumulated crap along the side of the house round to the back, which is where it really began to get difficult. However, I made it 50 feet down the garden path, being assaulted by branches and who knows what, all of it wet. I turned left to cross the garden to our gate, and fell into his pond. :shock:

I use the word pond quite loosely, as it is more of a swamp. With bullrushes. I crawled out of this and went head first into a very large plastic trug thing that is full of water, more mud and some water lilies; they are there as there is no proper water in the pond to support lily life.

Miraculously I didn't hurt myself, mud and water does at least make a soft landing. I went into our garden, got the key, opened our patio doors and let Sean in through the front. I looked like Swamp Thing. :lol:

He looked at me. Sopping wet. Covered in mud and you know what he said? Not, "are you ok darling", no concern for my welfare, he just said "Unbloodybelievable". That was it!

Anyway, I got changed, washed and tidied up and off we went. We had a lovely day at Malvern (only half an our of rain), got home in time to watch Leicester batter Newcastle 5:0 and guess what, our van started first time we tried it! :roll:

Oh, and I nearly forgot. When I was rummaging around in my little used rucksack at Malvern, I found my spare front door key! :oops: :lol:
Chantal

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Primrose
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I think that was quite enough excitement for one day! But at least the van started eventually and you found your house keys.
Time for one of those key safes located on your house front wall somewhere maybe ??
You were perhaps lucky your hoarder neighbour didn,t think he had an intruder and called the police. That would really have made your day but perhaps his jungle is so bad you couldn'tt be spotted amid the chaos?
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Chantal is your KG message box full?
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oldherbaceous
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Oh Chantal, how I have missed your tales of woe..... :) but glad you both had a wonderful day.
Kind Regards, Old Herbaceous.

There's no fool like an old fool.
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Chantal
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Sorry Peter, I've PMd you.

Missed you too OH. I'm sure more disaster will befall before too long to keep you entertained :wink:

Malvern was lovely, once we got there. Surprisingly good weather too, most unexpected! Stocked up with the usual sack of planting garlic from The Garlic Farm, bought more gardening gloves, saffron crocuses not to mention a bag of the ubiquitous tulip bulbs. Every year I buy some for me and some for the squirrels to dig up and eat :roll: I'm treating them to Red Parrot and Blue Parrot this year.

We had our bags searched when we went in this year, that was a new departure. Not sure what they were hoping to find. Sean was hoping for a full body search, I think :lol:
Chantal

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Stephen
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I'm glad things got resolved.

Well, I have locked my keys in the house and in the garage too.
A variety of methods for recovery have been required. My spare keys are in the allotment shed which has a combination lock.
Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.
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Primrose
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[quote="Stephen" My spare keys are in the allotment shed which has a combination lock.[/quote]

I hope they're wrapped in newspaper in a tin boldly marked RAT POISON !!
Stephen
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:lol:

But no one would know which house the keys belonged to (even if they found them)
P.S. the undergardener keeps a spare set of keys to her house there too.
Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool.
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