There goes the neighbourhood

When I found a family of mice feasting on my breakfast cereal in the kitchen cupboard, I thought that was probably the worst thing that could ever happen to my house. I felt my sacred ground had been invaded by uninvited, disgusting little squatters. Even now, months after they've departed, I can still hear the sound of the munching at night and have to rock myself to sleep.

When I see what some other less fortunate people have to put up with, I put things in perspective and complain less. Some people are invaded by drink-drivers and their cars. Like the Australian couple whose bathroom wall was destroyed by a car which lost control and ploughed into their house.

That was already bad enough, but the misfortunes of the Melbourne homeowners didn't end there. The car broke a gas pipe which caught fire – the blaze was put out very quickly, but not quickly enough to save the house from being nicely baked all over. Whatever wasn't destroyed by the fire and smoke got soaked by the firemen's powerful hoses.

The poor couple are now between a rock and a hard place - do they sit where its burnt or where it's wet? And it's not like they can have a nice bath to relax, what with having no hot water or bathroom wall.