The Pushover

A perfectly inclined slate rockface to sunbathe on. Shame there wasn't any sun.

It was late on Sunday night. I was driving home along “my” A road and as I approached the final bend a stationary car on the other side flashed its lights at me. I slowed, and saw more vehicles up ahead, and a few people stood by them. Something was not right. I slowed to a halt and it was only then that I realised that one of the cars was on its side.

I called out of the window if they needed any help but was told that no one was hurt and was ushered past by one of them. It was just 100m to my track entrance so I drove down and then walked back with my head-torch to see what was going on. My neighbours Huw and Reese* were there and a few people I didn't know. The sideways car was still on the left-hand side of the road, with its underside facing the other side. It wasn't clear at first who owned it, but eventually I worked out that it was a woman who had a young girl with her. She explained that she'd hit the side of the road and lost control. How they both managed to escape injury as it somehow span onto its side, and then how they actually got out, I have no idea.

This is the first achocha fruit in my polytunnel. It's supposed to taste like sweet pepper when fried

Huw had taken charge and convinced everyone that we should push it back onto its wheels and get it going again. So four of us got our hands on the roof and began to rock it, once, twice, three times, and on the fourth shove it went over with a thump. It was then apparent it wasn't going anywhere - the front wheels were both twisted. But now it was halfway across the road, blocking traffic in both directions, so someone else got in and managed to drive it a few feet to the side of the road.

At this point a policewoman showed up. Huw offered for the car to be parked temporarily at his, to get it off the road. I caught up with Huw and Reese, I hadn't seen Huw for some weeks. We were all in a kind of giddy mood due to the unreality of the situation. It seemed the perfect traffic accident to be involved in - no one injured, it was right next to home, and we had pushed a car over. On the main trunk road to the Midlands. In the dark. 

And the first ripe blueberry I've ever had on my plot!

*Names changed