Well.......What?

I hope you are enjoying our little Indian summer we are currently experiencing. On a lesson last week, my pupil and I were doing just that. He had his drivers window down halfway, pootling along nicely when he suddenly yelled out "Ouch!"

"What is it?" I asked.

He said, "Did you see that? A bloomin' stone just came through the window and hit my face."

I replied, "Yes, that's when a small stone chip comes loose from being embedded in someones' tyre tread, and flies up."

He asked in reply, "Is it?"

I added, "Yes, but it could have been a lot worse you know?"

"How?" He wondered.

"It could have hit me!" I said.

............Sound of Tumbleweed.

Give us Instructors a break!!

Please tell me if it's the objective of the general public to make us instructors' lives as difficult as possible. I think I already know the answer sadly.
Take today for instance, I was waiting to pick up a pupil at the station today. I arrived at the alloted time and waited...and waited...and waited. 20 minutes later I decide to call the pupil on his mobile. I remembered that he had broken the little screen and it no longer works. I ring his house forlornly, he cannot possibly be there but I might find a relative there.

My pupil answers...Surprise!!!

"Oh you're there!" I exclaim,

"Yeah!" he says,

"What are you doing there?" I ask,

"I forgot my progress card" he says,

"Why didn't you ring me, I've been waiting here for 20 minutes." I ask,

"Aint got a mobile 'av I?" he says,

He adds, "Well I 'av now but I aint got no credit."

"But you're at home, surely you don't need a mobile do you? You have a landline. I'm calling you on it now." I say,

"Yeah, but I can't ring mobiles 'coz of me Sister ringing 'em all the time. Cost me Dad a fortune she did." he says,

"So you had no way of contacting me at all then?" I ask,

"Yeah!" He agrees,

"Why didn't you wait for me at the station and I could have driven you back to get your progress card?" I ask, applying logic to the situation, silly me,

"Dunno!" he reposts.

It's going to be a long course of lessons methinks.

Big Red L (International)

Amanda our much appreciated, but alas ex office manager has now arrived in Belgium for a year of ??. That's official apparently. I hope ?? means culture and self improvement. At least she won't have any problem walking around the museums, chocolate shops and beer emporiums as the Big Red L sent her off with £75 to buy some new shoes as a token of our appreciation. We are thoughtful like that as other driving schools would have bought her some new driving gloves I'm sure.

On a completely different tack, our Folkestone instructors Robbie and Peter, along with our slightly eccentric, but wonderful Renata from Poland are off to the Emerald Isle for an Instructing master class with John Farlam to ensure that our standards remain as high as ever. Good luck with that Guys. More work less Craic though please.

No Splashy! No Way!

A young lady driving test candidate failed her test last week for soaking a pedestrian at a bus stop on a very wet day, as we seem to get more often than not these days.
It's been a wet few weeks but the examiner still didn't believe Michelle Kelly when she said she had splashed the pedestrian by accident.
Remarkably, the 31-year-old said the examiner was adamant the incident was technically a crash, and that she should have stopped and exchanged details with the man who was waiting at a bus stop in Blackley, Manchester.
The Highway Code does not forbid the splashing of pedestrians but Rule 144 states that you must not 'drive without reasonable consideration for other road users'.
Rule 147 says that drivers must 'be careful of and considerate towards all types of road users'.
Miss Kelly carried on driving when she splashed the man halfway through her third attempt at passing.
She said: "It wasn't as though I'd deluged this pedestrian. And if I'd swerved to avoid the puddle I might have caused an accident." Source ITN website.

Opinions and reactions on a postcard please. I'll not accept "Oh, for God's sake." or "Aaaagh" or even "I'm just off to boil my head."

Detention!!!!

I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles
I must not leave my Fleet Training Badge in trainees vehicles