If in Doubt - Read the Question

I had a complete DUH moment on Thursday.

I was due to go to a client to do some work for their web site; I was harrassed, I had other stuff to do before I got there. So, feeling slightly distraught, I jumped into our van and set off - when the low fuel warning light came on!

£$%*&^$V**** .... or other slightly offensive words!

In fact, it wasn't a biggie - I just drove into the petrol station and drew up at one of the fuel pumps; joy of joys, I couldn't get the fuel cap off - it's one of those lockable ones and I always have a battle with it. Then the kindly gentleman in the car on the other side of the pump said

"You ok, hen - you need a hand?"

I looked up, thankful for a friendly voice, only to realise that he was talking to his wife who was filling up their car with fuel.

Hmmm -

At that point, the fuel cap disengaged itself from the van and I reached for a pump to fill up the tank, paid for the fuel and set off on the 40 mile trip. The van started to run a little rough, but I made the trip satisfactorily and sat down to do the business.

After a couple of hours, it was time to go. I jumped into the van and tried to start - and it wasn't going to fire up at all. Then someone said to me - you did put diesel in the tank?? ....

Smart alec!

Of course, when I checked the fuel receipt, I had put petrol into the diesel tank. AAAAAAAAAAArgh.

I called the rescue services who towed me to a local garage where they drained the fuel tank. They asked if I was waiting while the work was done so I said "Yes", asked where I could get something for lunch - and wandered off.

The moral of the story - I should have checked to make sure that I had hold of the diesel pump instead of the petrol one. I assumed it was correct - and it was a costly mistake. That is one of the mistakes made by the young apprentices on the Apprentice program. Quite often they tackle the task they think they have been asked. Speed and inattention aren't very good bedfellows - and can be expensive in all kinds of situations.

So, my old aunt was right when she said to me at exam time -

"Read the question.
Do your best to answer the question.
After you've completed the exam, go back through it.
And when all else fails, Read the Question once again to make sure you answered the question posed not the question you guessed was being asked!"

Love you, Auntie Marjory!

This all distracted me from one of the challenges I set for myself - to get 1,000 members in my Squidoo Group - the numbers are increasing gradually but I'm not up to the quarter mark yet. I will get there, though.

My latest lens, http://www.squidoo.com/hebridean has been more successful than I had anticipated. I've had more traffic to it than to any of my other lenses. Long live the romance of the Hebrides.

G'night for now.

Margaret