Missed Opportunities

I've missed some excellent blipping opportunities again today.

My oldest son went out on a bike ride just before noon. He had intended to cycle to a remote railway station (Saltmarshe) about 10 miles away, catch a train back to town and then cycle from town to home.

However, less than an hour after setting off he rang home. He'd got a puncture. He had made it to the station, just in time to miss the train. The next train wasn't for another four hours so could I go and pick him up. Of course I could; he's my son. It's what mums do.

Within a mile of home, the skies opened. Raindrops big enough to make your head bleed, as Captain Rum would have said. The difficulty here is that my car isn't big enough to take a bike so I was driving his. Could I work out how to work the windscreen wipers? No, I couldn't. I spent the next mile flicking the stalk every second or two for the single sweep of the wipers to clear the screen (I don't even know what the function is called). Sadly, I found this funny and very soon was giggling away to myself and at myself. I had to pull over to sort this out - I still had 8 miles to go and was rapidly becoming a danger to other road users.

I eventually arrived safely in Saltmarshe only to find that Saltmarshe station is, in fact, in the village of Laxton, 2 miles away. After a few three point turns and much cursing I got to the station and finally rescued the boy and his bike.

So, half an hour in the rain, in the countryside. Bedraggled farm animals, sodden landscapes, trees laden with water, an interesting railway station, a couple of flashes of lightning. And no camera.

So, to celebrate my 200th blip, here's a panoramic shot of my back garden.