Glen:
When our precious ordered lives get upset even by minor things, the reaction for self-preservation and over protection of self kicks in. I am not saying being slapped with a speeding fine plus ban should not be considered seriously, but it is minor in the grand scheme of things. I am sure you were naturally disappointed and slightly shocked by the final outcome which did seem a bit harsh. But the Law is the law and it can also be an ass.
Look at this incident as a minor blip in your life. As time passes, and it will very rapidly, this will no longer take precedence. Worse things happen at sea!
You are a well educated and lucky man with a good and well paid job, a home attached to an amazing garage full of boys' toys, you have your health and a loving woman, can afford to keep the offensive weapon for future but gentler use and even shamelessly indulge in excessively excessive alloy wheel retail therapy thereby satisfying your innocent fetish. Now is that not a bit of a silver lining?
All the best.
Asker
Kind words Asker..
...also true words.
The kneejerk reaction is to give up, flog it, stamp my feet, jump up and down and shout "it's not fair".
The reality is, public transport is awful north of Aberdeen, so in 12-14 months I will still need a car.
I will want a new, shiny car with lots of toys.
I will lose £12-15k on the sale of my GTI.
I will lose at least the same again in the 3 years following the purchase of the aforementioned shiny, new, but ultimately less interesting car....
Having spoken to Alan, and knowing what to expect, it makes sense to garage it, polish it, look at it...and wait for the feeling I got when I picjed it up 17 months ago.