Friday, April 17, 2015

In which Husband and I argue over another woman

I'd be the first to admit that my navigation skills leave something to be desired; on the other hand you can be sure with me navigating that we'll always take the 'scenic' route. It's not that I can't follow a map - I can as long as it's the same way up as the road - but rather that I am easily distracted. 'Ooh, look at those little lambs! No wait, you should have turned left back there.'

As long as we're not in a hurry to get somewhere my navigation is adequate for most occasions but now that Mini II has come with built-in sat nav we feel obliged to use it. I used it when I went to Barry the other day. Well, I say I used it; most of the time I was just following the rest of the traffic on the principle that they were probably going the same way as me.

But today, as we were planing a trip to the Lliw reservoirs Husband decided we should fill in the details and let the sat nav guide us.
'I know the way,' I said.
'Where is it?'
'Felindre.'

So Husband carefully instructed the sat nav to take us to Felindre and it would have done except it was the wrong Felindre.
'Turn left at the junction,' she said.
'No,' I said, 'that's not right. We want to go straight ahead.'
'How do you know?'
'Because I know where we're going.'
'Are you sure?'
'Yes!'

After some arguing he took my advice and went straight ahead causing Ms Sat Nav to get her knickers in a twist. 'Turn left at the next junction! Do a u-turn as soon as possible!'

We'd worked out now that she was trying to take us to Felindre west Wales as opposed to Felindre Swansea valley, but try as I might I couldn't get her to recognise our destination.
'Do you know the GPS points?' Husband asked.
I looked at him. 'Seriously? You actually think I might know that?'
'Well, do something. She's just going to keep telling us to turn around. Turn it off.'
'I'M TRYING TO!'

Some time later
'There, I've done it.'
'How did you do it?'
'I don't know.'
'You just turned it off; you must know.'
'I just kept pressing buttons until it happened.'
'Which buttons?'
'I DON'T KNOW!'

Even later
'Are you sure you know the way?' Husband asked.
'Yes.'
'Do we go right at this junction coming up?'
'No, straight ahead.'
'Are you sure?'
Just as we're about to pass the turning I spot the sign to the reservoirs. 'NO! I mean turn right here.'

Don't know what all the fuss was about. We got there. Thanks to me not Ms Sat Nav.

Anyway there are two reservoirs that were built in the nineteenth century to serve Swansea. We took the slightly longer 5 mile option of walking as far as the upper reservoir. As we got higher the sides of the valley were clothed in beautiful coconut-scented gorse.


Upper Lliw reservoir

Obligatory selfie
On our return to the car park we treated ourselves to cake and tea/coffee. My scone was a bit hard and crumbly as was my clotted cream. At first I thought it had been frozen and hadn't properly thawed. By the time I'd eaten half a scone I'd decided the cream was just about turning. Very disappointing so I had to have an ice cream as well. (Yes, okay, I'd already planned to have an ice cream as well anyway.) My Sidoli's raspberry swirl made up for the cake.

Instead of driving home straight away I asked Husband to make a small detour into the village of Felindre itself. Many years ago, before children, I worked at DVLC - and met Husband there - and on Fridays it was traditional for a group of us to go to The Shepherd's Pub and play darts. 

In those days the pub was a tiny village inn, dark and smoky with a little old lady behind the bar. I'm tempted to say she poured beer out of a jug but I think that might be a fiction of creative memory. One of the darts regular was a blind man. When I tell you that he could beat me you'll get an idea of my arrow-throwing ability. Given the chance his dog would probably have beaten me too.

The pub has been greatly extended and not in an attractive way. I was tempted to go in and visit the dart-board for old times' sake but, as I said to Husband as we drove away, 'You shouldn't go back.'
The original pub was just the bit at the back. The front porch and large side extension didn't exist in my day.


5 comments:

Katney said...

My GPS (SatNav) lost the signal. I knew my next turn was to the left. Soon the signal returned and it prompted me to immediately turn a sharp right, led me down a narrow lane, and back up to the road I had been on going the opposite direction, where my now right turn was just ahead.

Sue said...

I've never really explored that part of Swansea. We always head to the Gower or right up into the mountains instead. Looks a nice part of the world.

Jay, Sparking Synapse said...

Hahahaah! I love it when Ms Sat Nav (in our case she's called Susan) gets her knickers in a twist. We just laugh at her.

Liz Hinds said...

She sounds helpful, Katney. Or maybe confused.

It was very peaceful and a gentle stroll, Susie.

Ours keeps sending me into car parks, Jay. I don't know if that's a comment on my driving.

Furtheron said...

My wife does the rotating the map around thing. That is the default setting on the map on the GPS - I prefer north to be up... so I changed that on the GPS - my wife can't follow it now.

When we got out first car with GPS in it I used to programme in the destination and then drive off. "Turn left"... I turn right. It starts saying "Make a U turn"... I start arguing with it that I don't want to go on the M2 for that bit but drop over the hill to the M20... My wife said "Why do you have this thing on?" "Stops me arguing with you as you move the map about..." ;-)