Toilet humour …

Fear manifests itself in so many ways.

It could be that spike of anxiety when we spot the speed camera flash as we hurry past.

It might be filling the car up with fuel only to find there’s a problem with your debit card.

For those brave enough to have tried it, it might be the horror of a trip on Oblivion, that bowel-loosening ride at Alton Towers.

But for some, unimaginable terror can occur in the most mundane circumstances as Craig Brown recounts in his book “A Voyage Around the Queen”.

Due to meet Her Majesty, writer Kingsley Amis was so struck with fear that he called on his doctor for medical help.

So frightened was Amis of losing control of his bowels in front of the late monarch that he had his doctor lay down a firewall of Imodium, and there was some doubt, afterwards, whether he would ever again go to the toilet.

But on a serious note, fear, real or imagined, can prevent us from embarking on all sorts of new ventures.

On the plus side, fear can be a good thing because it readies us and helps us to be prepared.

But when it leads to paralysis it’s a diminishing experience.

Waiting for all our ducks to line up in a perfect row so very rarely happens and as the country returns to work after a well-earned summer break it’s time to seize the day.

As the saying goes, fortune favours the brave.

Have a great week.

Alec