Bad things come in twos

It was a shock to hear when I went to college on Monday that one of my fellow students had died over the weekend. Coupled with Ally's death, it's a bit disquieting. People younger than me aren't meant to die.

Other than that, I'm enjoying my course. I'm getting the hang of double entry, and the health & safety stuff I'm learning is a piece of cake after running the H&S circle at MaccyD's all those years ago. And with accounting, not only do I get the good job with the £££s at the end, but I see the £££s all the way through!

Something I really, really didn't want to know.

I watched the first part of Commando: on the Front Line yesterday (it may be 00:39 on Saturday according to the clock on my laptop, but as I've not gone to bed and got up again yet, it's still Friday night to me. So there). My brother-in-law's a Royal Marine (not to be confused with the United States Flower Arranging Marine Corps), and at the time he was an instructor, albeit recovering from a broken leg he got while on one of those 400-mile-yomps-whilst-carrying-a-rucksack-containing-a-Volkswagen-Beetle things that they do.

Here's a transcript of the textual conversation I had with my sister, shortly after the scene in which one of the instructors was seen giving a demonstration of how to shower.

Me: I'm glad that wasn't [brother-in-law] on the telly just now.

Sis: Why?

Me: I don't think I could cope with my brother in law giving how to shower lessons on national telly.

Sis: You'd b quite impressed his hung alot bigger that that!

Me: [After several minutes just staring at a black N73] That's nice dear.

Death of a friend.

I never got the chance to meet Ally, but I read her posts on the TR7 forum and her TR7 blog. She was only my kid sister's age, and will be sorely missed.

Bargain!

The one problem I've found with my Astra is nowhere to put my mobile. There's nowhere to put a stick on holder within reach of the driver, and the ones that clip on the vent rattle too much. That's why I was pleased to find a Brodit Proclip for 99p + postage on Fleabay (They're normally £20!). These are vehicle specific brackets that fix solidly to the dashboard with no screws, using sticky pads and/or jamming into the gaps between dash panels. Brodit also sell phone specific holders that fit to the proclip, but as Mrs MnG has a different phone to me, I'll fix a universal holder to it. It's in exactly the right position for the satnav on my n73. Lovely.

Oh, and I've also enrolled on my AAT Accounting course at Burton College. I start Monday. I'm a student again!