I was travelling back from Crewe today on the bus when something must have happened to my chair, because when I got off the bus something was very wrong. The left front wheel shook violently when I got up to speed. Very violently.

Being a dumbass, I just thought it had come out of alignment and simply needed a nudge. WRONG: I got charlotte to look at it, and she noticed what I hadn’t. the nut was missing from the axel. It continued to shake, so, in desperation, I asked Steve carn, a mature student, to look at it. (older males = knowledge of wheels). Steve was aghast, saying it was dangerous, but he knew what to do.

He lead me over to a part of uni hitherto unknown to me – the metal workshop – and asked the supervisor to look at it. Instantly, he went to fetch a box of nuts, from which he selected a size ten, fitted it, and sent us on our way. The nasty shake had gone.

Steve has no idea how much trouble he has saved me. The chair would have had to go for repairs; dad would need to be told; no more mobility for days. As it stands, the defiant seems to be functioning within normal parameters, but I’ll keep my eye on it. I think it’s due for a service soon anyway.

I remembered I had a bottle of leffe in my room. I hope Steve enjoys it.