Oops!

The car, it is poorly-sick. As it turns out it has been ailing for a while but, bad car parents that we are, we thought it was the tyres...

We got some new tyres a few months back. They weren't our usual brand and almost since they were put on the OH has been driving me bananas with his constant moaning about how noisy  they were. Now, not being a driver I tend not to listen to noises made by the car. Recently though even I started to notice the noise, and the fact that it was getting louder. And more sinisterly, that it was less loud on left hand bends.  The OH Googled the symptoms and decided we had a wheel bearing that was 'going' That's 'going' in the bad sense of ceasing to function rather than 'going' as in doing its job and keeping the wheels on the road.(What on earth did we do before Google by the way? I can't remember)

 

Of course, the universe decrees that when you need the man in the local garage he will be away on holiday, which is fine, he is as entitled to holidays as much as anyone else, it was just bad luck that he has chosen to be away now. So it was a phone call and a trip into Kirkwall to get the diagnosis confirmed. Amazingly, and it just goes to show the universe hasn't turned its back on us totally, the local factors actually had the part in stock - how likely is that? - so the car is booked in to be made all better on Monday morning early.

 

Mechanic's parting shot yesterday was 'I wouldn't drive too far in that until the new bearing is in' which is sort of funny because those tyres took us all the way to York and back in the summer and have done so many return trips to Glasgow since being fitted that I have lost count. And now of course we're terrified to use the car, so it's just as well we don't really need it between now and Monday. Ignorance is bliss! but apparently in this case could also have been dangerous.  Sighs of relief that we didn't end up upside down in a ditch somewhere between here and the Central Belt.