Playing Dodgems.... and failing!

It had been a good week so far, I had run two successful training courses and had one more to go. Excellent delegates on both days despite one person starting the day with a face like a bulldog chewing a wasp! Some people come on our courses thinking they have nothing new to learn and that they are know all there is to know about childrens physical development! Non of us will ever be in that position as we all learn something new everyday. I soon won her over however and made sure that I reconised her experience within the group. She, like children blossomed with a bit of praise and positive feedback in reply to her sometimes ascerbic comments! By the end of the course she was smiling and enjoying her self and even gave me a hug and thanked me for the great course. I love it when they all go away in a positive mood!

Sadly on the way home my day took a serious turn for the worse. I crashed my lovely new car!!! The M5 motoway where it joins the M6 is truly a nightmare at the best of times. This day is was raining heavily and there was a traffic jam from hell. I was almost at the point where the traffic has to sort itself into appropiate lanes for M6 North or South, I was already in the correct lane, suddenly the traffic started to move faster as the traffic moved to go towards the slip road South. Great I thought, lets get home! Suddenly the traffic stopped! It did not slow down it came to a sudden halt as some twit up front had realised he was in the wrong lane and at the last minute changed lanes. Sadly although all the trafic halted I did not! I smashed hard into the car in front. I have been driving since I was 21 yers old (30 years ago) and have never ever had so much as a tiny bump! So this was a big shock to me. I was mortified, luckily the guy I hit was great about it, probably as he was driving a company hire car.
My car is quite badly damaged and the front end will have to be virtually re-built, new bonnet, new front grill, new bumper, new A/C unit not sure about one wing yet, that may also need replacing.
Poor Barry was talking to me at the time of the collision (hands free of course) and had an awful shock as I shouted a swear word and then heard me crash.

The main thing is I am fine apart from a very sore back caused by my desparately trying to brake and knowing I could not stop in time.

I was still feeling quite shaky the next day but had to go to work as I had another course to run, the most energetic one of the week as it deals with our 5 to 7 year old classes. So although I started the day with a bad back it soon disapeared as I demonstrated the more physical parts of the programme! Proving if you have a bad back (muscular pain) excersise is the cure!

Oh yes! I learnt a new way to handle children forward rolling around a bar from one of the quietest delegates on this course! Proving we all learn something on them even the tutor!