Latest moan from you and me - 2016

That reminds me of an incident some years when I was on my annual fishing holiday with my lifelong pal. He was driving and we got to a an old stone one car width bridge crossing the River Nene in the village of Wansford. We'd driven over three quarters of the bridge when a lady, no gender bias intended, driver drove straight onto the bridge from the other side when she could see us crossing. So we had to stop to avoid a collision and to my amusement the woman got out of her car and started to harangue us.
My pal got out of the car and politely pointed out that we were already 3/4 across the bridge and only had around 15 feet to cross and that he would be grateful if she would reverse to let us pass. That produced more haranguing and one or two swear words from the Lady and she refused to reverse. By this time I was out of the car so my pal looked at me, grinned, locked the car with the fob and we started to walk off in the opposite direction. That produced a change of manner and she ran after us saying she didn't know how to reverse off the bridge. So we persuaded her she was capable of reversing and that we would guide her off the bridge, which we did. We drove the 15' off the bridge and she then drove across the bridge with a very "stiff" face. Luckily there was no other traffic around at the time. Every time we come to the bridge now on the annual holiday we have a chuckle about it. But, as my pal said, even if we'd been only halfway across the bridge we would have reversed out of politeness, but to be 3/4 of the way across over a 60' long bridge and be faced with a driver who totally ignored that fact was something not to back down on, opposite gender or no.

 

I had a car situation where there was no anger, only distress and embarrassment for a driver. I felt sorry for him. It was in the Lake District on a very narrow road but not quite single track. It was the only road through the valley and two careful drivers could pass each other except in a few places and there were occasional very small passing places. There are high dry stone walls on either side.

I saw him driving towards me but there was enough space for us to pass (I'd retracted my wing mirrors) but he stopped in the road with at least 15" between him and the wall. That didn't leave sufficient space for me to pass. So I stopped a bit of a distance from him so he could pull closer to the wall. When he didn't move I got out of the car to have a chat with him. His face was white and he looked like a rabbit in the headlights!

I said that there's plenty of room to pass and that I had pulled up to the wall (about half an inch from it). He just sat there shaking! By then we had cars behind both of us but the car behind him had stopped about 50ft from him to give him room to reverse to a very narrow pull in (very considerate).

In the end, I had to help him out of his car and then drive it back into the pull in. I could have driven it past my car but he would have had the same trouble with all the cars along the road. After a chat with the driver behind him I then pulled my over in front of his and the other driver came in behind him. We took over guiding the traffic from both ways past our three cars. When it was clear the other driver walked a quarter of a mile along the road to where it widened and stopped the traffic whist I drove the car up to the wider bit. We then stood with the shaking driver until he had calmed down and was able to continue driving. I suggested that if he saw any road that showed a 'narrow road' sign he should find an alternative route or don't go there!

Re the 5p charge on plastic bags:- they reckon that the charge will have stopped somewhere around five billion of them going into landfill each year. I'm not sure that's correct because other people, not only us, will have been using them as bin liners after they were no longer useful as shopping bags. This would have reduced the use of bin liners to a certain extent - but not a great deal.

Back in my younger days we didn't have plastic bags and everyone had shopping bags. The other choice is to shop at local shops where they don't have to charge you for the bags.

 

Good morning I always reverse,less hassle no stress,and I am never in a hurry

ps.Rush around in this life and you get to the next one quicker

 

Our local co-op charges but Budgens don't.

Sainsburys always have a cage of boxes that you can take. We bring them home for Open Day so that people can take their plants home in them.

I'm quite happy to use 'bags for life'. I got a couple of dozen when all the supermarkets were giving them out free in order to encourage you to use them. It has been a few years but I've only needed to change two of them. I wouldn't mind paying a one off charge of 10p for a bag for life. fortunately I haven't had to do so.

 

There's a next life????? I don't think I could do it all again for a second time

 

Good morning @Palustris It should be replaced with the monthly photo Comp winner

 

@Palustris at least it wasn't less or fewer!