Engine Burn-out or Pedalling?

I felt too ashamed to tell you about my very blue Monday of last week, but it's confession time.
All my fault by the way!

It started off with a very very early what was meant to be a quick five-kilometre ride, to drop off one of our student guests for his practical test.

Only two kilometres from home, I saw a red light on my dashboard display, and the temperature needle at maximum! It was a major road, on a bend, and cars speed that time of the morning as the roads are empty. Thankfully I could turn into a side road just ahead, and hastily turned off that engine!

A quick call to my neighbour who brought magical water, but first took the student to the test centre, giving my poor car time to cool off. The guest is a trainee motor mechanic, and checked the water tank while waiting for my knight in shining armour.

It was empty! He asked when last I checked the water, and I won't tell you how many times I've checked it since that awful day in July, but he looked at me accusingly! He knew my hubby was very particular about his car.

I knew what he would check next, the oil of course. Fortunately, the dipstick came out clear, not milky, so the car was okay, and I was spared forking out a good couple of thousand rands for a new engine!

I had stopped on a verge with a lush lawn and sat in the car watching that little street waking up. We have a very alert neighbourhood crime watch group, and I expected my WhatsApp messaging to beep any minute with a message:

There's a suspicious car with a woman outside my home, please can security check it out.

What usually happens is that every security/armed response vehicle comes rushing out to any reported 'suspicious activity', all vying to get to the 'crime scene' first. It's a good marketing strategy after all!

Thankfully nothing like that happened, my water tank took a whole lot of water, neighbour was tugging at pipes etc to make sure the water ran through the system. The tank was on maximum when I left to drive the two kilometres back home. I duly checked the water tank, and it had gone down to the minimum mark. It must have been very empty!
I topped it up, and it now is back to its old self.

The day wasn't so bad after all until I saw the screw - yes a little screw, lodged into my tyre!

That nasty little screw must have been in that lush lawn, just waiting for me to take it for a ride!

Fortunately, the tyre did not deflate, so it was off to the local tyre dealer who said he would patch it with a mushroom plug.

Mushroom thought I, well, he must know what he's talking about;)

I see your car has anti-theft lock nuts, where are they?

Oh dear, thought I, hubby sometimes took them out of the car at night when the garage was temporarily used for storage. What if I cannot find them? Fortunately, they were in the nether depths of the boot/trunk.

All in all, a really blue Monday, which made me think, what about getting away from motorcars, and getting a bicycle?

Crazy idea! An old gal pedalling a bicycle on the potholed roads of a crime-ridden country, would not be a good idea, but a girl can dream, right?

I did see some really nice bicycles in a shop in the Netherlands, but need some advice; which one would suit a #silverblogger?

An E-bike would be way more comfy for an old gal, requiring less effort in pedalling. I really liked the one displayed in the front, but a price tag of 1899 Euro is way beyond my budget.

These look kind of cute, I would use them for my shopping as there are no kids, grandkids or furry kids like we saw in every town and city we visited.

These bicycle trailers sure will be handy to cart stuff around, but it would just be a handicap for me, so that idea is out the window!

I quickly learnt that Dutch people, from young to old, know how to ride a bicycle with one hand while looking at their cell phones with the other. I even saw a couple of young guys letting go of their handles, and putting their arms out, totally crazy, but they know all about balance, unlike poor old me!

A family bike so the kids can ride at the back, and I did not check that price tag, but I'm sure it would be pricey indeed!

In the end, it was a lesson well learned. While my man used to take care of those chores, losing him and having to get estate matters off the ground, had me neglecting mundane yet vital tasks.

It's a stark reminder to keep on moving forward no matter how overwhelming life has been!

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