Journey to the wrong places

[cathidaw]

Has anyone here ever accidentally travelled to the wrong place.

For instance -We put my Dad aged 84 on a train at Coventry Station bound for Folkestone . he changed at the wrong place -I dont know where and ended up in Penrith .He wasn't worried -went for a pint--or 2 or 3- and got the trains back, to Folkestone.
I went to a 'sort of' friend's of wedding once -to the wrong church and did not realise it, as I arrived very late.
It was crowded so when I was offered a lift to the reception in someones car I said yes.. It was only when I saw the bride a bit later that I realised . By then it was too late for the other wedding -so I stayed til evening and had a great time. Even took photos.
Well -what would you have done?

My worst-or best -however one looks at it- was one Sunday morning at 5 am, I was going to Newcastle.
When I got to the junction 3 M6- a lorry had shed its load of wood, so I figured that if I went went towards Birmingham I could bear right somewhere along the route 'up' England. The road I had planned to take later was blocked -a bridge was being repaired , and I was diverted miles and miles into the unknown countryside, around industrial estates with almost no way out and no-one to ask-it was Sunday. Ikept driving-at least Iwas going north.
Eventually I saw a sign---Albert Dock. I was in Liverpool

It was then 8 am and I had no map, (clever clogs -I'd been before) and the only people I could ask for directions to the motorway were newsagents or garage assistants who were Asian and either could not speak English or didn't know.
One chappie I asked proudly got his wife - but all she could say to me was "special offer now". She was charming -but "no spik English."
Eventually I followed one of their customers in a sports car-who lost me- but I was on the right track.
I belted across the Pennines to Leeds and arrived in Newcastle at 11.45 and got stuck in the Metro cenre -round and round I went , all those yellow buildings looked the same,and then deliberately swerved in front of a taxidriver who swore at me. I asked the way out and he scowled and shouted at me- I was the wrong side of the XXXX river.
I had an appointment at noon, and arrived ar 12 35.
No-one turned up 'til 1.00--they were all late.

The motorway drive across the Pennines was breathtakingly beautiful , Even Bradford looked attractive in the early morning sunshine and I vowed to do it again at a more leisurely pace and stop off occasionally, but never have -yet.

[Will]

When I was driving around the West coast of the south island in NZ, my friends map reading skills got the better of us and we ended up driving down this road which was down a beautiful valley. The bad part was that the further we went the more fjords we had to drive through, byt the fifth one and the fact that the road became nothing more then a mud track, I decided we must be going the wrong way.

It was an absolutely amazing drive all the same though. :)

[Gladys]

Cathidaw- what a fabulous set of stories. I know people who've done these things though as yet I am not one. What I have done though is send my children to school ignoring thier protestations that they didn't have to go; yes, on teacher training days. I've also turned up for work when I didn't have to be there. Only did that once I might add. Your adventures are far better fun. :clapping:

[cathidaw]

MANY YEARS AGO, as I say- in my other life, Iwas a nurse . Iworked at Warnford hospital. I met my future husband and moved to Coventry.
Waiting until another nursing job came up, I got a job in a shop but was n't very keen as I'd never done it before and the boss was intimidating. I kept on forgetting things like how the till worked.
The first week went ok 'til Thursday. When Igot to work it was shut. They closed all day Thursdays, so I went for a walk around town and was chatting to someone in the market cafe and laughing at how stupid I'd been. She offered me a job in her shop just down in the arcade a few doors away from the other one.
I took it and went back with her, starting straight away. Inever did go back for my money from the first job-Iwas too scared of the man and avoided him. Iworked for this lady for 3 months 'til a nursery job turned up. It turned out that she and this man had had a feud going for donkeys years. She got one over on him with me.

[Shizara]

Crikey cathidaw.. That's an impressive collection of stories. Have you anymore up your sleeve? They really are entertaining - grins - I can't come up with anything along those lines so hoping you have more.

[cathidaw]

Thanks shizara- you made my day, but everyone has things happening to them ,and often they are quite funny.
My brother lives in Devon and he writes, and is very amusing.
He also does .'things'.
His wife is a corden bleu cook, and she ran out of flour for some special occasion cakes she had to make for a client..
He went to the shop in the next village and forgot what he'd gone for---too busy listening to the footie-he knew it was something to do with flowers -and that it was double barrelled, so-after a discussion between him and the shopkeeper-they decided it was a bunch of sweet-williams (flowers).
When he got back she laughed so much. She wanted self- raising flour
Now that is funny.

[Shizara]

You are right cathidaw, everyone has things that happen to them. In fact, when you think about it, a journey to a wrong place can encompass a rather large spectrum of events.

My father was a very keen fisherman and as a child I remember he had a dinghy with a Seagull outboard motor. When I was about 12 he decided to buy a boat with a small cabin. He took pride in his wheeling and dealing abilities and would frequently instruct my mother, sister and myself to "Shut up when I deal with this rooster so I can knock his price down." So, we would have to be the "audience". Sure enough, he knocked the price down, paid the money, hitched up the trailer complete with the prize, a cabin boat and outboard motor. All the way home it was brag, brag, brag about the great job done in knocking the price down. We dutifully praised as was expected, keeping all doubts to ourselves.

The day came to launch the boat. We lived near an estuary and we got into the car to take his pride and joy for a test run. Working as a team we got the boat to the water's edge and slid it off the trailer. We stood on the water's edge and watched as he prepared to start the outboard motor. The motor roared into life - so that was in top form, but in the very next moment the motor and the back of the boat disappeared into the water. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, well, believe me, the expression on my father's face was worth much more than that. My father got out into the shallow water and waded back to shore to watch his pride and joy sink to the bottom.

Later in the day we returned when the tide had gone out and recovered the boat and the back with the outboard motor. It would seem that the boat timber was rotten, though from the outside, with its lovely coat of new paint you would never have known.

As for the "rooster" I think he had the last crow and the tale became a party piece for years to come.

[Gladys]

Cathidaw, your tale of 'flour' and 'flowers' for baking has reminded me of a situation that occurred a long way back. I had met and become serious with the man that was to become my Husband. Keen to welcome him to my family, he was invited home to meet my Mum. She had always taken great pride in the success of her Pavlovas and duely set about making one for his introductory visit. Everything seemed to be going well until she wheeled the magnificent strawberry and cream layered creation out, cut into it and made his the first piece to be given out. As a professional chef and keen to show appreciation, he took his first mouthful but suddenly stopped mid chew with a strange tortured look on his face, frozen in some kind of 'shall I swallow or shall I what' type of expression. We all looked on somewhat anxiously and confused-most of all my Mum, who was used to much praise at this point in the eating of her speciality.At last as I leant forward in an enquiring concerned way, he managed to mouth the word 'salt'. Again some what confused as to why he would want salt on this desert or more so why perhaps the lack of it had caused him such an abrupt pause. It twigged very quickly moments after as he seemed to be struggling to swallow this first (and last ) mouthful, that salt was the problem. Inadvertantly, my Mum had reached for the salt instead of the sugar to generously lavish upon her cake without realising. Cringing with the disaster of it all, she went and spent a while washing up whilst we all laughed at it. The irony of it is, that the marriage lasted 11 years and he turned out to be . 'not so good' as a Husband or Father and all these years later I can't help wondering if sub-consciously she was delivering him a message. It may have even been conscious. Mother's really do know best! :clapping: :D

[cathidaw]

We went to buy a car for my son. It was a gleaming monstrosity with big shiny silver wheels- a teenagers dream. we negotiated a price and went back to the house to sign up and pay.
My husband and son were talking 'man stuff 'with the vendor--piston s etc.
I was idly reading the details when suddenly I said "Hey wait a minute, WHATS THIS--Iread out ''this car does not include the wheels" ?
"Don't be daft" said 'my' two men and they laughed. But the man said I was right -the car did include wheels but not the ones on it-they were extra, just put on to sell it.The ones in the price were the original car wheels-very tatty and worn. We could have the posh wheels at a cost nearly as much as the car.
He got nasty and told us to clear off and stop wasting his time.
On the way home we reported him to the police-who knew him of old.
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Talking of cars-- my father-in-law bought an old Rover-sold to him as a 'poor man's Rolls-Royce'He was a learner driver so we went with him to fetch it.
Igot in the back -and when I shut the door I got a collar and hair full of rust from the roof. Halfway home it stopped and wouldn't start so I said I'd tow it-in my little old Ford. My rope was too long and on the canal bridge in Black Horse lane, I was one side , they were on the other when the rope sheared.
I shot off down the hill into the hedge like a catapult,and couldn't get out for bushes, and they went backwards down the other side
They pushed it into the side of the road, got my car out of the hedge and went home.
He paid a mate to to tow it 3 days later and left it in his orchard and never did use it. My children played in it for years until it rotted away

[cathidaw]

We went to buy a car for my son. It was a gleaming monstrosity with big shiny silver wheels- a teenagers dream. we negotiated a price and went back to the house to sign up and pay.
My husband and son were talking 'man stuff 'with the vendor--piston s etc.
I was idly reading the details when suddenly I said "Hey wait a minute, WHATS THIS--Iread out ''this car does not include the wheels" ?
"Don't be daft" said 'my' two men and they laughed. But the man said I was right -the car did include wheels but not the ones on it-they were extra, just put on to sell it.The ones in the price were the original car wheels-very tatty and worn. We could have the posh wheels at a cost nearly as much as the car.
He got nasty and told us to clear off and stop wasting his time.
On the way home we reported him to the police-who knew him of old.
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,
Talking of cars-- my father-in-law bought an old Rover-sold to him as a 'poor man's Rolls-Royce'He was a learner driver so we went with him to fetch it.
Igot in the back -and when I shut the door I got a neck full of rust from the roof. Halfway home it stopped and wouldn't start so I said I'd tow it-in my little old Ford. My rope was too long and on the canal bridge in Black Horse lane, I was one side , they were on the other when the rope resting on the top of the bridge, sheared.
I shot off down the hill into the hedge like a catapult,and couldn't get out for bushes, and they went backwards down the other side
They pushed it into the side of the road, got my car out of the hedge and went home.
He paid a mate to to tow it 3 days later and left it in his orchard and never did use it. My children played in it for years until it rotted away

[Madhatter]

You can say that again