But like Nicola Sturgeon’s resignation and then the arrest and subsequent charging of her husband and ex-SNP chief executive Peter Murrell in relation to embezzlement allegations, they can take you completely by surprise.
Humza Yousaf’s resignation was a bit of both. Everyone knew his race was run, but going into the weekend few expected it to be over first thing on Monday.
The only option is to get on with what’s planned or nothing would get done. So amid the growing speculation about soon-to-be-ex-First Minister Humza Yousaf’s future, I felt very strange bringing my Hungarian Vizsla Alfie into the Scottish Parliament for the annual Dog of the Year competition. No high politics for me!
These events look trivial, but they do have a function in breaking down barriers between rivals and helping make Holyrood that little bit less tribal than might otherwise be the case. Nevertheless, there was an inevitable sense of unreality parading our pets while across town Humza Yousaf was confirming he’d made an utter dog’s breakfast of running the government.