The other fateful event

The other thing that happened, last weekend (that is, the last weekend of August, not technically last weekend) is that I bought a new car.

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I was going to take a picture so that you could see it before anything happens to it. But then I thought, if I did that, it might suggest that after taking the photo it would be alright should anything go wrong. Let me categroically state, it would not be alright if something should go wrong with the car, I've had enough vehicular mishaps this year, I don't need any more! And just to make sure, I'm not going to take a photo, that's my extra insurance.

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For those who are curious it's a 1994 red Vauxhall Cavalier and it cost £150. If it gets me safely to Dublin in two weeks time it will have done it's job. Anything more is a bonus.

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On a complete change of subject now: thinking about Muttley, and his progression to the great flock in the sky. It's not all that surprising that although I was always very fond of him I'm not exactly cut-up about his departure. A little sad yes but not in emotional turmoil.

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The reasons for this seem too obvious to even think about really but it occured to me that Muttley, being essentially canine, was (probably) not aware that he was English and, as such, didn't have any of the British reserve that one might otherwise expect. Our main method of communication with him was via touch, he loved to have his tummy rubbed or just to made a fuss of.

Needless to say, the human members of my family don't do this so much, except for the children, or at least, the children receive this sort of treatment - whether they like it or not. At a certain age we become 'too big' for that sort of thing and contact is reduced to the absolute minimum, in some families. To be fair, in my family, affection is rarely communicated even verbally, we're just meant to know that it's there. And if it were communicated, by certain members, I wouldn't know what to do - I'd be in shock and probably unable to speak. (This is not hyperbole)

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Anyway, what I think I'm trying to say is that there was never any build up of frustration with Muttley and, possibly as a result of that, we were always at peace. By contrast, human relationships can be full of unresolved issues and, if I were to lose a human member of my family without resolving some of these things, I think I'd be distraught. So, it seems obvious what I should do but it's incredibly difficult when you've known someone all your life in a certain way to initiate a change of dynamics in the relationship. Certain members of my family, including myself, are virtually disabled in this respect.

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On the other hand, I think the old fashioned British reserve is a great asset and I'm proud to have it to some degree. There is a recognition (I think/hope) of the depth of feeling when such expressions finally do come out. I'm not sure it's worth the angst though and it's probably not healthy.