Sunday, December 12, 2010

So what was the scariest moment of 2010

Do you know what people are generally most afraid of?  I once saw the results of a survey and there was clear winner.  Way above, flying, spiders, getting mugged and all the rest was public speaking!  I reckon it all boils down to fear of failure of of embarrassment.  And so it was with my scariest moment of 2010.  Not the sudden adrenaline shock of Herbie's engine threatening to blow up, but the slow inexorable approach of a moment when disaster might be revealed.  A bit like those people who can't watch their football team in an important match.

So my choice of  the Herbie Scariest Moment of 2010 has to be the removal of the masking tape at the end of the paintfest.  Months of planning, weeks of work and stacks of money, all resting on the pull of a piece of tape.  It was truly scary.  Now you know why the masking tape was a contender for best DiY product!

But there is an upside this type of fear.  If the event passes without the dreaded worst happening, then the result is often complete euphoria.  And in this case it was.

Coming soon

2010s worst bit of canal
The Best boater's accessory,
and a mystery Special Award

3 comments:

Rainman said...

I didn't realise you were under such pressure when I was ripping off masking tape and rocking the boat while you were signwritng! I suppose the expletives should have been a clue. But the red hot engine engulfed in smoke was scary. I was convinced it was something that I'd done or neglected to do.

Neil Corbett said...

Ah well, now you know. As I recall it that first bit of sign writing was very stressful, especially since I didn't breath for minutes at a time.

Neil Corbett said...

or breathE