November 24th, 2008
I needed to pop into the City today to catch up on all those little jobs I’ve not managed to do having been working in London pretty much everyday now for some weeks. The old faithful car started up immediately and so I set off. I noticed as I approached the first roundabout it felt a little funny, but I just thought it was because it had been stood without use for some weeks and was in need of warming through. As I approached the City centre I then noticed a strange smell; a sort of shoe-polish smell. I pulled over when I noticed smoke coming from under the bonnet. I did a quick roadside check (once I’d found how to open the bonnet) and could see the engine looking a little moist. I decided to head immediately to my local garage.
I never quite made it. The engine with a shudder gave up the ghost and suddenly stopped. It was (of course) by this point pouring down with rain. I phoned the nice people at AA. Within twenty minutes (excellent service) a man in a big yellow coat had come behind me. Within minutes of opening my bonnet, he asked if I lived near a field. I answered; we are surrounded by them. He said I had been attacked by mice. I don’t remember the little creatures hitting me at any point before he then went onto say they had been nesting inside my engine compartment and eaten their way through lots of my rubber piping. He pointed to a big black tube with diesel pouring out onto the engine. He sucked his lips and said this is going to be expensive.
Apparently, he said, having mice eat their way through your car is not that common but occasionally happens to the unlucky few and I immediately thought the old Pryordurkin effect was clearly having a laugh today. Of course I am now going to have serious words with our two cats who have clearly been slacking of late.
Posted in Personal