The Upside

A view from the bottom of the steps on the way into town. I was off shopping, yep on my tod, too. What bliss. And even a stop off for a coffee and read of the new NS. That’s the sort of guy I am. Or would like to be. And if I can’t be that, I can look the part. And if I can’t really look the part, then I can write it up as if I was.
And I bumped into JS with a mate. Turns out the mate's grandad and my grandad owned the garages at either end of Gatehouse. The hated Campbells! The Crosbie's garage was at the top end and we were the Morris dealers. Top dogs.
Later there was a shop to the supermarket of choice, and a relaxing evening of big TV - usual rules - one ‘worthy’ program, and something for pure entertainment. And then at a few minutes to midnight, a colossal bang outside. I was oot in a flash. A car travelling west at speed had collided with the last of the parked cars (poor C’s wagon) and spun round colliding with an oncoming car. A passenger fell out the door and started having a fit. The driver, a young woman, stepped out unscathed and just shouted at her other passenger for him to say he done it. A taxi driver shouted at me as I started dialling 999 that he’d been overtaken way back down the road - she was doing 70mph. A scene of some chaos and the 999 operator was asking me to repeat my mobile number (high tech call centre there). Four cars written off (C's ended on the pavement smashed into the car in front owned by his neighbour). Teams of police, buses stuck, ambulances, neighbours all out blethering and spectating. Sadly it's not as uncommon an event as it ought to be. Once the back path gets finished, I know where I'll be parking.