Automotive Incinerate

I've been shortlisted for another blog award.  Honestly, it's just getting boring now.

Not really.  I am, of course, deeply thrilled and excited to be shortlisted for the National UK Blog Awards 2014.  I'm thrilled whenever anyone says something nice about the blog.  Hell, I'm chuffed that anyone even bothers reading it.  I do embarrass easily though - I was out for a meal the other night with someone I hadn't seen since August and he said so many complimentary things about the blog I wanted to crawl under the table and cling to the leg.  I don't take compliments well; at least you believe someone when they insult you.

The gist is: thank you, National Blog Awards, and thank you to anyone who voted for it.  I am not breaking out my diamond tiara and floor length Stella McCartney, though, for a number of reasons.  These are as follows:

1. I'm one of eight nominations in the "Automotive" category - alongside seven blogs about cars.  It's my own fault - the nomination form seemed to say that this was a kind of "transport" section, so I figured it was the best place for me to chuck my hat in the ring.  Now it turns out I'm a train shaped wallflower at the party, hiding behind the stage curtain and eating all the vol-au-vents because no-one will want to dance with me.  
2. The judge for the "Automotive" category is The Stig.  I wonder what his transportation preferences are?
3. There are only eight nominees in my category, but there are ten in all the others, which implies that they just nominated everyone who qualified.  A bit like when Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron was up for the Best Animated Feature Oscar.
4. The prize is to be presented at a glitzy awards evening in That London in April.  The tickets are rather expensive, and that's not even counting the fact that I have to get down to the capital and find somewhere to stay and pay for the copious amounts of booze I would need to get me through the ceremony.  I'm not a hobnobber, and so the idea of hiring a tuxedo so someone can tell me I'm not as good as someone else doesn't appeal.  (I have not ruled out a video link, if only so I can say "Bienvenue Londres!" before congratulating everyone on their fantastic show and making everything overrun).
5. Again: I really don't think I have a hope in hell.  I was First Loser at the Blog North Awards, and there were only five nominees then, and they were all from the north of England.  This includes the south of England too, PLUS Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.  And the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man and, oh who knows, probably the Falklands and the Pitcairn Islands as well.  Point is, I'm a much smaller fish in a much bigger pond.
6. Did I mention I'm in the "Automotive" category?

Still, as Glenn Close has bitterly hissed through her teeth year after year, it's an honour just to be nominated.  Ian has also been nominated, for his superlative 150 Great Things About The Underground blog (but in the Travel category; he's not daft).  Perhaps we should pal up and bitch about the winners as they come out over the awards' Twitter feed.  Perhaps not.  My competitive side may come out in an extremely ugly fashion if Ian won and I didn't, and then who'd clean up the blood?

(But once again, thank you.)