Happy New Year.

 

I want to wish my family, friends and my blog followers 

A Very Happy New Year. 

2020 has been tough for us all and for some very tough. It is certainly a year I am looking to see the back of for many reasons. Yes 2020 has also bought me joy, which I hope will continue for many years, but I think I can safely say the minuses out way the pluses this time.

 May 2021 be kinder to us all, and allow us to get back to some sort of normal once we have the vaccinations. I for one am looking forward to going cruising and I so want to see my family and hug our grandsons.

Keep safe and well, lovely people and I hope to see you in 2021.

Pop back soon xxx

From our home to yours.

Dear family, friends and followers.

Keith and I wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and hopefully a better New Year xxxx. 

I know so many of you have had your plans for the festive season disrupted and the same has happen to our families. Of course we all want to see our loved ones at this time of the year, but the best present we can give anyone this year is their and our own good health. No one wants to take the virus to a loved one and especially those who are at high risk.

We have been ready for Christmas for a few weeks. I knew with everything going on, I would need to be ahead of the game, in order to beat the queues. Cards and presents were done and posted early, and over the past few weeks I have been buying Christmas nibbles and food and putting it in the freezer, so that there would not be a last minute panic, because I had no intention of standing in a supermarket queue, when we are all supposed to be socially distancing. My preparations have born fruit having seen some of the news items and messages from friends, when they have gone shopping. One such story came from our local radio station. One of the radio presenters went into a well known supermarket beginning with S to buy pigs in blankets. When he got to the isle, he noticed there were only two packs of pigs in blankets left, which made he speed up a little to his prize. He got to the shelf and was about to pick up one of the two packs, when a little elderly lady dived under his arm to grab the other pack. He was so surprized, his only response was "Well whatever happened to social distancing"?. He got no reply. This is why I am glad to have had my food shopping delivered, whilst we remain in lockdown. We are not having a traditional Christmas lunch, we are having Peking Duck and pancakes, followed by Chinese nibbles, Sausage Rolls and Mince Pies, with other nibbles thrown in. I know it is not conventional, but hey who cares this year. Neither of us is feeling exactly festive and I am quite sure many of you feel the same way. But we will make the most of it and will make a toast to those who we lost this year. I sincerely hope 2021 will be a much kinder year to all of us.

Now I am not a person who lies in of a morning. If I am awake, I like to get up and make a cuppa, which I will take back to bed in order to watch the news. If I wake early, I tend to fidget and get restless, so getting up is the best thing for me to do. This morning however, I did not awake until 8.45am. I know, that is so late for me, but I am guessing I must have needed it. The problem I have with sleeping in is the day is wasted, and I end up being behind with everything and not one for rushing around to play catch up. The first thing that I was behind on was administering Keith's medication. Everything was put forward by at least one hour. I find I get discombobulated, when a normal morning routine is all over the place. I am by no means OCD about anything, I just like the mornings to get off to a good start. I know I could always put an alarm on, but one is never usually required. 

It has been dreadful weather today. Wall to wall rain, which made me take the decision to not bother with my morning walk. I will catch up with that tomorrow. Having caught up on the boat chores finally by lunch time, it was then time to eat and have a much needed coffee. With little else to do, I got on with more family tree things. Today's research has been into Tom Henry Cosser. Tom is my 1st Cousin 3x removed. He was born in 1854 and the first ship he sailed on was Aurora at the age of 10 years old. The last ship he sailed on was Vernon in 1892. 

On the 21st April 1874, he  sailed for a year on the Duke of Wellington. He actually sailed on her three times in his Naval career. In all he sailed on thirteen ships. What I have not found out yet is when he died and whether it was at sea or on land. I also do not know if he ever married. I really am enjoying finding out the history of my family down the years. 

I hope that wherever you are in the world, you will keep yourself safe and well and I will post again after Christmas.

Pop back soon xxx

Winter Solstice Blessings.

Dear family, friends and followers.

With everything going on around the world and in this beautiful country of ours, we must look to a new beginning.

I send to you all blessings and joy on the shortest day and longest night, as we celebrate the return of the light. One way or another it has been a very dodgy and upsetting year and this is not how we all imagined the festive season would be, but we will carry on regardless and celebrate anyway and remember those who will not be with us this year. The wheel of the year turns and we look forward to spring.

It is at times like these I can totally understand the urge to hibernate. If you or someone you know is struggling with the long dark nights and lack of human contact please reach out. I cannot promise to be there in person, but I am a good listener and never judge.

The Solstice of the 21st December is special this year for two powerful reasons. Firstly, the original people of Australia will be conducting a ceremony at Uluru (formerly Ayres Rock) to initiate a new relationship between the Sun and the Earth, and to initiate a New "Dream" for the Planet in the place of the "Dreamtime". They are calling for support and connection globally as they realign the "Rainbow Serpent" of the Earth with the Sun. This will involve a powerful cleansing and realignment that will be felt on the Earth as we move into 2021.

Then, also, on the day of the Solstice, the power planets Jupiter and Saturn will be conjunct at 0 degrees of Aquarius, which is believed to be a potent symbol of the start of the new "Age of Aquarius". This conjunction will be visible in the sky as the two planets will seem like one bright star. A new "Christmas Star" signalling the return of the Christ Consciousness to Earth. I will be outside to see if I can see it, but as it is very overcast here at the moment, I am sadly not holding out much hope. If you get to see this amazing scene, make a wish and hold it to your heart.

Pop back soon xx

 

The Train

 

I was sent this on Facebook and thought I would share it with you, because it is so beautiful and very true.

THE TRAIN: 

At birth we boarded the train and met our parents, and we believe they will always travel by our side. As time goes by, other people will board the train; and they will be significant i.e. our siblings, friends, children, strangers and even the love of your life. However, at some station our parents will step down from the train, leaving us on this journey alone. Others will step down over time and leave a permanent vacuum. Some, however, will go so unnoticed that we don't realize they vacated their seats. This train ride will be full of joy, sorrow, fantasy, expectations, hellos, goodbyes, and farewells. Success consists of having a good relationship with all passengers requiring that we give the best of ourselves.

The mystery to everyone is: We do not know at which station we ourselves will step down. So, we must live in the best way, love, forgive, and offer the best of who we are. It is important to do this because when the time comes for us to step down and leave our seat empty we should leave behind beautiful memories for those who will continue to travel on the train of life.

I wish you a joyful journey for the coming years on your train of life.  Reap success, give lots of love and be happy.  More importantly, thank God for the journey!

Lastly, I want to thank you for being one of the passengers on my train!  ❤️

500g of Mince.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

As we continue to live in these uncertain times, I am frugal person with most things. I am a hater of waste, particularly with food, because like with most things it costs money. I was bought up that everything on the plate should be eaten and if not then it is re-heated for the next day. I defrosted 500g of British Minced Beef and then thought how far can I get this to go. I normally cut it in half and use half for a cottage pie and the other half goes into a curry. This time though, I thought I would cook half for a cottage pie, which did us for two days. 

In it I added onion, carrot and half a tin of tomatoes, along with garlic, beef oxo cube and mixed herbs. 

The second half I cooked in a similar way, but this half was going to make three meals. The first was with dumplings and the rest was put into a pie which will last us another two days.

I managed to get five meals from the 500grams and I actually think the cottage pie could have done us another day, if I had cut the portion size a little. All were eaten with veg and potatoes. I know some would probably not want to eat the same meat five days in a row, so you can always freeze a portion of the cooked mince for another day. It does not bother either of us, because it was all different sorts of meals. 

Who is ready for Christmas?

I can say we are pretty much all sorted. Cards written and posted. Presents bought, wrapped and posted. We have the last food shop before Christmas, coming tomorrow and that will be it. Monday I had to pop into town and collect the final prescription run before Christmas, which means I do not have to mix with the Christmas shopping rush, which we all know will still happen despite the pandemic. We are at home for Christmas, because with the virus still very much here and the numbers rising, we feel it would be wrong to mix with others. I completely understand, why some feel the need to get together with family and friends, especially aged parents or those with terminal illnesses, because it maybe their last Christmas, but we are not prepared to take the risk with our health or that of our family and friends. Hopefully there will be time to do some celebrating, when we have had the vaccination and the virus has gone. All of which are going to take time. It is all about having a little patience and behaving responsibly. Of course it would have been wonderful to see the family and the grand-children, but with one of the family being high risk, it would be wrong to put them or ourselves at risk. We will see them all next year. 

We have decided we are not having a traditional Christmas dinner. There seems very little point in cooking it for the two of us. In past years we have eaten out, but this year we are going to be having Peking Duck and lots of Chinese Nibbles, along with the traditional Mince Pies. I will even be doing Sausage Rolls and Cheese and Onion Rolls. It means I can cook a whole batch in one go and I can then sit and enjoy a festive time with the TV and a glass of something nice. 

Life in the Arm, has been pretty quiet. We are still locked in, which has made most people feel safe during the pandemic. Some boaters have stayed with us throughout and others have come in for the Winter. Everyone has been doing their bit to help each other out. Deliveries are made to the car park gate, which is locked. If people are not waiting for their delivery at the gate and the delivery company can be bothered to ring the number on the gate, the site manager will ring me, and I will collect the parcel and deliver it to whoever it belongs to, because we are closest to the gate. It is great because it becomes part of my daily exercise. I am not very good at sitting down for long. I like to try and keep busy and active, but also making sure I wear my mask, keeping the space and washing my hands when off the boat. If I am not doing the boat chores, then I am in the garden, because even this late in the year, things still need to be done. Have you ever noticed, that weeds never stop growing?

Time to make a coffee and then do some more to the family tree. I will post a bit more about it next time.

Pop back soon. Please stay safe and well xxxx

Trampoline Christmas Advert

One of my favourite Christmas Adverts.

Who remember's.

 Dear family, friends and followers.

I hope that everyone is staying safe and well. With the vaccine now being rolled out, eventually we will all hopefully receive it and be able to get a bit more normality. Covid-19 has touched the Arm, with a member of staff sadly catching it away from the Arm. We all wish her well in her recovery. It really does bring it home, when someone you know gets it, so please stay safe. None of us in the Arm have come into contact with the member of staff, and so we have no need to worry.

Own up who, used to or still writes a paper diary?

I know I could possibly call a blog a diary, so that is why I ask about a paper diary. I remember having those lockable diaries, but I was hopeless at keeping it up. I would start out with the best of intentions and then it would wain, probably because I had nothing interesting to say. A little like blogging, which sometimes is hard to write. It got me thinking because a couple of years ago, I began writing my life story and I had completely put it to one side. It was only when Mum died in August, that I found out from my brother, that our Mum had written her life story and so it got me thinking that I really should carry on with mine, for my family to read when I am gone. I am very much looking forward to reading Mum's and to learn things about her I never knew. If you wrote a diary, what was the biggest secret you wrote in it?

Yesterday I received a data card, with Mum's funeral and photographs on it. My brother had edited all the footage he took and has made a wonderful video of her final journey and of his Eulogy. Mum would have been so proud of what he said and the video he made. I sat with a coffee and tissues and watch the whole thing and this bought back so many memories, happy and sad. 

Mum is now reunited with her Mum and I like to think of them having a good old natter over a cup of tea. I know one day I will join them around the table with my coffee and biscuits.

On Facebook I am a member of a group that looks back to our childhood. It got me thinking about the things I used to play with as a child, I then remember Fuzzy Felts. Do you remember them and did you play with them?

My childhood was very sheltered growing up on a farm and money was tight, but Mum always made sure we had something lovely at Christmas. We would have something we wanted and a surprize. I am not so sure that Christmas is the same for the children of today and that in some respects is sad. I certainly feel like I had the best of times, as to my freedom and what I was allowed to do. 

Pop back soon xxx

Tim and Mel's Christmas Salisbury Lights Walk 05-12-2020

My brother and his wife Mel took a walk around Salisbury to see the Christmas lights.

Boat chores and Christmas Decs.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

Here we are in December. Where has the year gone?

Even with everything that has been going on this year, it still seems to have flown by. With us all sliding ever closer to Christmas, I am doing my best to get in the festive spirit.

Yesterday afternoon, I put the tree up. I decided I am not putting the fairy lights up along the ceiling this year, we will just have the tree lit up. I am quite sure as the day gets closer, I will be more excited by the thought of a few days of eating, drinking and chilling out in front of the TV, which is what we will be doing. Sadly so many will be spending Christmas on their own due to Covid-19. I know the government is giving us 5 days grace over the Christmas period, where we can pretty much do as we like including being with loved ones, but many will not feel it is the right thing to do during this pandemic and we feel it is unsafe to spend time with our families, just incase we should take the virus to them or them give it to us and so we are all staying home on our own. Of course we will do zoom and phone calls, which as always will be nice. Until we have the vaccine, it is safer to stick to the rules. I have sorted out presents and the grandson's presents are already posted. I have Keith's presents, I just need to wrap them and I also need to sit and write cards. Food is ordered, as is any drink, so we are ready for what ever comes our way. 

What are you doing this Christmas?

Today, was check the bilges day. I replaced the disposable nappies under the back cabin floor, but the ones in the galley are still dry, which means I will check them again in two weeks time. Before coffee this morning, we did our three month check on the batteries and top their water levels up. Keith them ran the engine and the generator, which we like to do once a month over the Winter. Living on a boat, always means there are jobs to be done and checks to be made. A boat does not look after itself. After coffee, I filled the coal scuttles with coal, emptied the cold ash buckets into an empty coal bag and disposed of the ash. Each evening when I empty the ash pan into the buckets, I make sure I stir the bucket to get rid of any heat from the ash. This usually means the next morning, I can empty the ash bucket. It always pays to check the ash is cold before emptying, otherwise the bag will melt. If we were out cruising, I would empty the ash pan in the hedgerow, which is something all boaters do. You should never empty the ash into the canal, as I have seen some boaters do. The reason for this, is the toxins in the ash can kill the fish and takes the oxygen out of the water. Not only that with the canals silting up, emptying ash into the water, just makes the silting worse. 

Our once a month treat, whilst in lockdown, has been to have a Thai takeaway from our favourite Thai restaurant. Totally Thai, is in the square in Warwick and does the most amazing food. John always delivers it on time and the food is always exceptional. It is something we always look forward to and through these difficult times it is helping to keep this family run business going. 

Whatever you are doing, stay safe and well.

Pop back soon xxx