Five years time

Five years ago, in my mid thirties, I finally decided to do something that I should have done years and years ago. I learned to drive. Actually I started learning six years ago but it took the best part of a year to learn. (For those who just tuned in looking for advice on smoking...Don't try to quit when learning to drive). Good news is that I passed my test first time. Bad news is that I passed my test first time. The roads have always been full of idiots but now I got to be one of them.

Let's go back a bit. I did not need to drive. I had managed to keep some pretty good jobs without ever learning to drive. I had public transport sussed. I could walk for miles. I could drink at every occasion because I never had a car sitting and I was never driving tomorrow. Frankly driving looked pretty difficult to me. Also it seemed like you had to know at least something about cars and I didn't. It needed co-ordination and I hadn't. In my mid thirties I had never even filled a car with petrol. What's more, if I did start driving, I'd never be able to afford anything beyond a banger and I kept hearing friends talk about unexpected repairs that all seemed to cost £200+. Nope cars were not for me. When I did pass I actually thought to myself that 'someday soon this will be the very thing that kills me'.

Five years on and how things have changed. I travel between 13-16000 miles per year. That's half way around the equator every year. I love my car. My drivers seat ranks amongst the most comfortable places on the planet. You may not love my car but, to me, it's like having a jet propelled living room that takes me wherever I want to go with controls to hand for every comfort.

EXCEPT.....This week. Those who have followed my heroic efforts to give up smoking will know that, two or three weeks ago, there was an issue with my breaks. After 36000 miles the back ones needed replaced. But the garage couldn't settle for that. Nope. They told me that my discs also needed replaced. (Did I mention that I have no mechanical knowledge whatsoever?) Imagine how good I felt as i told them confidently to just replace the pads and let me worry about the discs. Imagine also, if you will, how stupid I felt last weekend driving my poor car home having turned some three week old breaks to dust and needing yet another repair. Yep. For once it would appear that the garage weren't lying although, in my defence, it was a caliper (only a vague idea how this all works) that had seized that killed my lovely new breaks. For four days I had no car and relied on colleagues for transport.

How the hell did I get to 36 without ever learning to drive? Thing is it's only now that I look back that I realise how much effort I put in to not learning. It's just like smoking. I coped so well as a smoker and put so much effort in to defending smoking that I never considered what it would be like to just, not smoke. So now this blog is going to have to go further than just a 'Not Smoking' blog. As a 'not smoking' or 'Champix' blog I've had readers from all over the world. I'm hoping that if I broaden the horizons of this blog then I can appeal to even more readers. I'm also hoping that those who have followed the non smoking might continue to follow. It's always nice to feel that there are friends around the world. You know what they say...A problem shared is...... keeping lots of people awake at night.

Stay Hooked...

T