21st February 26. Deepest Cumbria.

Being alone at home at the moment, means Saturday working is actually good for me. It's something to do. It saves me sitting at home looking for things to clean or cook. Saves me from the mental strain of not being productive.

And I guess I actually little early Saturday start as the roads are quieter. I do try and avoid the trains at the weekend. But this job has a car coming back too.

It's a delivery from my Aylesbury customer to their retail customer with the customer's part exchange coming back. So it's also a good pay day.

I had collected the VW T-ROC last night to enable an early start.

2022 VW T-Roc

It was going to be a long day. Approx four and a half hours drive to Ulverston Cumbria.

I left home around 5am so given time for a stop or two I arrived at the customer around 9.30am travelling at this time of the morning with clear skies. I got to see the sun rising just as I passed Birmingham. This time staying on the M6 through Birmingham, rather than spend another £10.60 for the M6 Toll.

Passing signs of a place called Cartmel, as you approach Ulverston . I was reminded of Christmas 1990. We, had decided, for some reason, to have Christmas in a rental cottage there. A few weeks before I had taken delivery of a brand new Miami Blue (apparently a limited edition) Peugeot 205 GTI 1.9. swapping a white 1.6 I had had for 18 months. After a call from the local Peugeot dealership in Ash Vale Near where we lived in Farnham Surrey. Telling me this was a one off opportunity to get this limited edition Miami blue 205. It had grey carpet instead of the red which I hadn't liked in the 1.6.

So off to Cartmel for Christmas. My daughter had been born in the May and was obviously only seven months old. So my daughter, my then wife (😈👹) devil bitch. And all the things needed for Christmas and a seven month old were packed into the small 205 and the roof box needed to carry the stuff. It looked like we were going to take a few months and climb Everest. The amount of stuff was ridiculous. But that was what Devil bitch wanted. I had one thing in mind for this trip.

Christmas morning. The 205 and a drive plotted around lake Windermere in the early hours at daylight.

Roof box and bars removed obviously.

This remains in my top five drives of all time. The Peugeot was a bit heavier up front and didn't actually handle as quickly as the 1.6 but the torque of the bigger engine and extra 20 or so horsepower made it very memorable. The scenery, when I could stop and look was as incredible as the drive between stops. I still remember the details of the cars behaviour and pulling power. I have had much quicker and better handling cars. But this is a cherished memory.

Obviously once I returned back to the cottage. That high was quickly shattered by devil bitch, who, couldn't get her head round why I would want to leave a Christmas morning with my daughter. Who would sleep from 10pm to 10pm and was actually asleep when I returned. To "play like a child " with a new car .

Of course I had an amazing Christmas day with my daughter after this and she doesn't remember today at nearly 36 years old. Being "abandoned" ( devil bitches words) on Christmas morning.

Life doesn't allow you to think how valuable that 205 would be in 35 years. Nor does it, unless you are lucky or entitled. Allow you to keep collecting them as you go through life. Otherwise I would have over 100 cars in my collection. More about those later.

Delivery done

VW T-Roc delivered I appraised both cars and had a VW Polo to go home in.

With my mind wandering to the past I didn't notice how the two VWs behaved but it was difficult to understand how the T-Roc. With more power than the Pug. Just didn't do anything for me.

Actually the Polo was a more enjoyable drive home.

A very long day today and suddenly that sore throat and aching body really hit me when I was walking home from the dealership after dropping off the Polo.

Polo to go back