Boat jobs and Spring.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

How are you all doing?

I like to think I am doing just fine, when in reality I find myself overthinking things and wondering why am I doing something, which is making me uneasy.

Do you ever have that feeling, that something does not feel or sit right? 

You cannot put your finger on why it does not feel right, because it should, but it puts you on edge and has you unsettled. Well that is me at the moment and I have been feeling this way for a few months now. I know it will all work itself out, but in the meantime I have to figure out what to do, for me because as far as I am concerned I matter and I will not have or do anything which is going to upset my life. I have been through too much over the years, to allow anything to unsettle me at my time of life. I think we all go through unsettled times, and we have to make a choice to go with it or sort it out. I am running down the middle right now, because I hope the situation, will sort itself out. Of course, if it does not I will have to bite the bullet and do something about it myself. I sometimes think being an adult sucks :-).

Changing the subject with a huge swerve to the right and talk about the S word. Oi get your mind out of the gutter, I am talking about Spring. I think over the past few days, it has definitely gotten milder and clearly the bulbs think so, because we have Daffodils.

The Crocus are out and the birds are looking for new nesting sites. 

Even our Helebore's are in full swing.

I love Helebore's they have such joyous flowers and for me it say's Spring is coming. Yeah I know tomorrow it will be freezing cold and snow on the ground. Look we are in a lockdown, let me just throw a bit of joy out there. Talking about the lockdown, on Monday Boris is going to set out a map to coming out of this particular lockdown. I for one hope he does not do it too fast and he goes with the science this time, because I have felt that he has listened to businesses too much and look where that got us. Of course if we do begin to open things up, we will not be changing anything. Keith has had his vaccination, he has the Astra Zeneca one. A very kind friend took him to the local golf club to get the jab The following day he had a sore arm and a bit of a headache, but other than that he was fine. I am waiting for my text or call to go and get mine. I am quite happy to wait, because there are plenty of others who need it more than me. Hopefully once everyone has had the vaccination, we can get back to some sort of normal, what ever that may be. 

Living on a boat, it always seems that every job takes ten times longer to do than normal. This mornings job was to try and find out why we had no TV signal to the TV in the back cabin. Yes we have a TV in our bed 'ole. We like to drink our first cuppa of the day, whilst watching the news, but this has not happened for a few months, because we lost the signal and neither of us could be bothered until today to find out why. What we did was to test the aerial cable at the joints and it looked like things were alright, but still no signal. Two hours later, we came to the conclusion that the issue maybe we have too many connectors in the cable and this may be causing the problem. We have now ordered a new reel of cable, which will take out all the connectors and fingers crossed we can have our signal back. I will let you know how that goes, when the time comes to fit it. Next job was to fit a new security light on the pontoon. The old one had been up for donkey's years. Actually I do not know how long it had been up, but it was definitely a long time ago. This job actually went really well and was quicker to do than we thought. Hooray a job which did not take hours. We have a few jobs to do on the boat, and now that Keith's back is much better, I am hoping we can get them sorted out soon. I am quite capable of doing most jobs, but when it comes to plumbing, I will definitely need Keith's help. We need to fit two new valves for the heating, but to do that the stove has to go out and as it is still nippy around the edges, we will probably put that job on hold. 

Talking about Keith's back. The work with the physio, seems to have really worked. Who knew, physio over the phone could work? Well it does. The physio would e-mail the exercises over and we printed them off and Keith did the work and hey presto, he is doing much better and his off his medication at the moment. Keith has now been signed off with the physio, so we are on our own, but if it all goes belly up, we can ring him up and start again. Fingers tightly crossed. 

I recently had a phone call with a Dermatologist consultant at the hospital, who now wants to see me face to face, because the photographs I sent him did not help. He also wants me to have a couple of biopsies. I may have to wait for 6 to 8 weeks for the appointment, which is understandable. I have been waiting for months to get to this point, so a bit longer does not matter. He also told me that my GP had also put in for an appointment the Gastronomy department for me as well, which was news to me, so I have that delight to look forward to. This may have something to do with my angry Liver. My Liver was angry because of my allergies and not because I am a drinker. I rarely drink, but my Liver does not seem to like my Nickel allergy or it could be one of the other three. I guess I will find out when I get the appointments. I looks like the over stretched NHS, maybe seeing me for a while. On that note, I am going to stop waffling on and give your eyes and ears a break.

Pop back soon xx

New Venture.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

What a difference a few days makes. A few days ago we had temperatures of -7.5c overnight, ice and snow and now we are 11c, sunny and mild. Does this mean Spring is just around the corner. The birds certainly think so, as do the plants in the garden.

Like you all, we have been sat at home, doing our best to keep away from the virus and this has given me time, to think about what to do with the many photographs I have taken over the years. Many of you will already know I use Redbubble to sell my photographs, well I have found a new outlet, which I am going to try out. I have put some of my photographs on Picfair. On Picfair you buy the photographs as framed prints or canvasses. I love taking photographs and people have asked said I should sell them, so that is what I am doing. As an amateur photographer, I know what I like and I just hope that other people like them as well. I shall see how it goes. I have put Fifty photographs on to begin with and if it proves worth while, I will add more, but to do this I will need to subscribe and pay to show my photographs. I very much look forward to getting out and about, once this virus is under control. I have really missed taking photographs.

In the Arm, work has carried on as normal. The offside mooring pontoon, has been getting some TLC. It had begun to collapse due to bank erosion, so our site manager and a couple of helpers, have been sorting it out. This meant taking the old slats off, putting in more scaffolding poles and straightening the the timbers, so no one feels like they are sliding into the canal, when walking along the pontoon. They have done an amazing job.

With all the major works done and the new slats nailed down, it was time to put the new fencing up. The last job will be to put down the new anti-slip gridding, which we are now using. At least it will be nice and safe for the boat owners, when they are eventually allowed to visit their boats again. Hopefully with lots of people having had their vaccinations and the rest of us lining up ready, things will get back to some sort of normal. I am certainly looking forward to the call to say I can have my vaccination. Hopefully it will come before, I have to visit the hospital to see my new Dermatology consultant. I have been having issues with my skin for months. I have also been waiting months to speak to my new consultant, but with Covid, it has been tough to get an appointment. We finally got to speak last week and he needs to see me. I did send him photographs of my skin, but he wants me to have a couple of biopsies and a proper face to face consultation, because he cannot tell what is happening from the photos. In these Covid times, waiting for an appointment, has not been too bad, because the NHS has been stretched and so we must all be prepared to wait. I should get an appointment within 6 to 8 weeks, and I am hoping before then, I will have had my first vaccination. The cause of my skin problems, is down to one of my allergies kicking off, but I do not know which one and why, because I have been doing nothing different. I have managed the condition for almost 20 years, which out too many outbreaks, but something is kicking off, so much so I have been living on Priton tablets since last April. Oh well we will see what happens, when I get my face to face appointment. Oh and he informed me that I should also be getting a Gastronomy appointment, which apparently was booked by the GP, but was news to me. I am wondering if this is to do with my upset Liver a few months ago? Again we will see what happens. Oh the joys of health issues and getting older.

I trust that you are all keeping well?

Pop back soon xxx

Time to get physical.

Dear family, friends and followers.

Brrrr a chilly few days, with snow on and off. Not enough snow for my liking, but hey ho. 

On our wonderful mooring, we have our garden running alongside it and across the back of the garden is a 70ft walkway, which is there, so we can cut the hedge, which also runs along the mooring. Since we moved onto the mooring back in 2019, we have been worried about the walkway, because it leans and some of the slates on top are rotten.

We are having it replaced by a friend and having spoken to him this morning, I agreed to start dismantling the walkway, so he could see what lay beneath.

What lies beneath is soil, timber and broken paving slabs. The walkway has been there a number of years and because it open to all of the elements it has rotted from the inside out, which means it will all need replacing.

An hour later and I had taken all the top slats off, which pleased Mr Robin no end, because he could have a nosey around for something to eat. We are planning to use some of the timbers taken up from across the canal. Our site manager has been replacing some of the odd side pontoon and some of the timbers are still in good condition, so we are going make use of it.

Once he has finished the pontoon, I will go over and help to load all the old wood onto the work boat and then we can sort through and see what we will need for our walkway. This is going to keep costs down by a lot. Really enjoyed being out and getting physical.

Pop back soon xxx

Six Months has passed.

 Thinking about my Mum, 

Janet Martin 💔💔

Where has the time gone?

How has Six months already gone by, since we all said its time for you to rest now and let your light shine on high.

Mum I know I will see you again on the other side, and I will get to hug and hold your hand 😘.

Love from your daughter who is heartbroken 💔💔💔

I Love a little Narrowboat.

 I Love a Little Narrowboat

I love a little narrowboat, I love the old canal,

Imagining the tales these ancient waterways could tell,

I love to work the lock, those oaken gates so firm and strong,

With know-alls up above to tell you what you're doing wrong.

I love to see the native creatures busy at the bank,

The otter and the water vole, the terrapin and mink,

And peering in the water, into shallows green and still,

To see somebody's goldfish from the kitchen window-sill.

I love to moor along the bank and hear the gentle rain,

To cook a meal and watch the world beyond the window-pane,

Little bobbing moorhen chicks, the mallard and the coot,

Exhausted lovers hoping that their effort's bearing fruit.

I love the ancient bridges, every keystone, every corbel,

The singing of the little birds, the chirrup and the warble,

To feed a lonely swan, so perfect, white as alabaster,

Who struck me with his wing; observe my collar-bone in plaster.

I love to meet the other folk who use the waterways,

The walkers and the fishermen on sunny languid days,

We drift beside the towpath and we breathe the summer's breath,

Till roaring motor-bikers come and frighten us to death.

I love the inland waterways and if it's in my power,

I'll just keep on a-sailing at about three miles an hour,

And when I see that final tunnel, into it I'll glide,

I'll raise my yachting cap and see you on the other side.

By Pam Ayres.

The small things.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

Hope you are all doing ok? 

I appreciate you all have different trials and tribulations going on right now. It’s all very frightening, sad and surreal as well right now. Love and strength to all suffering and struggling. I think if we all talked more, it would most definitely help. Just to pick up the phone and talk to someone can really help and I know having Zoom calls with family is a blessing. Thank goodness for technology sometimes.

Since the beginning of the pandemic, we have chosen to treat ourselves once or twice a month with a Thai meal from our favourite restaurant Totally Thai. Totally Thai is a family run business, who has been in the town for many years and with our help, we hope they will remain in the town for many more, because as we know all businesses are struggling. Their food is glorious and really is a treat. After all we are not going out to eat, so a takeaway treat at home is so wonderful. Our food is delivered by the lovely John and we get to put the word too right over the gate with masks worn, before he sets off to deliver another meal. At the moment it is the small things that give us so much pleasure. 

What small thing makes you happy at the moment?

I really have not missed going shopping, for clothes et cetera. I have saved myself a fortune over this lockdown. I of course shop for food online, but I am not really one for shopping for clothes online, because I like to look at and feel what I am buying. I have started shopping with Savers for all the other bits we need. Yes, I have to pay postage, but then I sit back and wait for the parcel to arrive. I placed an order last week.

The parcel was delivered by Hermes in this state. Thankfully nothing escaped with the hole in the box. It looked like someone had sat on it. I immediately took photographs of the distressed looking box and sent Savers a message via Messenger and got a very prompt reply back from them, apologising for the sate of my parcel and that they would be taking it up with Hermes and the warehouse, where it was packed. I explained to the person on Messenger, that the box was very flimsy and not really up to the job in the first place. We will see if the next one arrives in a better state. 

Spring is just around the corner, and this always inspires me to get on with Spring cleaning, and clearing out the stuff, which has not been used or worn for the past 6 months. I made a start on the boxes in the hold. We have a Summer/Winter box for clothing. At the moment Summer clothing is in there and it definitely needed decluttering. So out came clothes, I know we will never wear again and they were taken off to the clothing recycle bin, whilst I went for my daily walk. The recycling bins are due to be taken away this month, so I want to get rid of things before the bins go. The reason the bins are going, is because people have abused them, which means those of us who have used them properly are penalised, which I think is absolutely wrong. Anyway one box down, several to go. I have begun going through my cupboard and draw. Once I have done with them, I will begin washing down the walls in the boat and cleaning out the food cupboards in the galley. Ordinarily it would be in preparation for us to head off cruising, but until we have had our vaccinations and the virus is in submission, we are not going anywhere, until possible later in the season. Keeping a routine, has been so important for me, otherwise I think I might have crumbled. Take our Tesco food delivery, it arrived yesterday (Monday). So last night, I sat up until midnight to get the next slot and time. I do this after every food delivery, because then I know I should get a slot, when the new day is rolled over. This has become part of my routine. I am not very good at winging things. I like to be organised, not in an OCD way, but I like to know what I am doing and when. I hate being late for anything, I would much rather be early. We know we have enough food for a while and the freezer is full. I like to keep a supply of milk in the cupboard, we use UHT milk, which means I can keep a stock of it. We do not have a lot of cupboard space, but I make good use of what we have. 

I sincerely hope that you are all doing alright and that you are coping with everything that is going on at the moment. My thoughts and prayers are with Captain Sir Tom Moore and his family at this dreadful time for them and for all families going through a really tough time. Stay safe and keep well.

Pop back soon xxxx

Let it snow.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

Wooo hoo we have had snow. Sunday morning we woke to some of the white stuff, falling from a leaden sky. At first it was powdery, but then the flakes got bigger and bigger and by 10am, we had quite a covering. This bought me a lot of joy, because I am a child when it comes to snow. The more the merrier, as far as I am concerned.

I would be more than happy to be snowed in. I guess being in lockdown, it would make no difference for us if we were snowed in. Of course I know for some it is a nightmare for travelling to work, but hey I still want lots of snow. 

It felt very festive and yes we still have the tree up in the Arm. It is giving us a lot of cheer and keeping our spirits up, whilst we wait for lockdown to end. If we had, had enough snow, I was quite prepared to go out and make a snowman, but by mid afternoon the snow had stopped and it was already melting. It never lasts for long in this country sadly. Having spent Sunday admiring the snow, it soon began to melt, until it froze overnight down to -5.6c. During the afternoon, I had a wonderful Zoom call with my wonderful girls. We spent a good hour and a half, just talking about anything and everything. They are both so precious and it is a joy having them back in my life. It is amazing how quickly the time goes when you are having fun.

After the frost overnight, it looked all white again. We were up early, because Keith had a phone call with his physio for the last time, because we seem to have gotten his pain under control and he now has the exercises to do for his Arthritis. I did not go far from the boat in the morning, because it was slippery underfoot, and I do not want to end up in A&E, holding up the NHS, when they are already stretched, so I stayed around the pontoon area, did all the boat chores and then got back inside where it was warm. 

After lunch, I decided to venture out into the Arm with my big camera to take some photographs.

The heat of the sunshine, was beginning to melt the snow and warm the air, which means the snow will not be around for long.

The birds were looking for food and were singing a merry tune. The sun must have really warmed their feathers. 

Monday has been a quiet day. No shopping delivery, that is coming tomorrow afternoon, which means all hands on deck for that, especially if it is still slippery underfoot. This coming week, apart from the food delivery, I am doing spelling with our grandson again, which will be an absolute delight. We will see what the week brings.

Until I post again. Stay safe and well and please look after one another.

Pop back soon xxx

Recycling.

 

Dear family, friends and followers.

Firstly. How are you all doing? I really am interested to hear how everyone is getting on in Lockdown Three or how others are coping across the world?. 

Keith and I are just going with the flow and getting on with it. We keep ourselves to ourselves and only venture out for exercise, well I go for a walk out of the Arm as you will know if you read my posts, Keith just walks up and down the pontoon, whilst his back is still getting better. I do collect and deliver parcels for everyone in the Arm, as I told you in my last posting. Thankfully no tights mishaps since. 

Many boaters are big on recycling and we are no different. We have bags which we collect, tins, glass, paper and plastic and at the moment being on our home mooring, we take our collection to Sainsbury's, just a couple of minutes walk up the road from us. But it seems from our local paper The Warwick Courier, we could be losing our recycle bins, because of the abuse that happens in and around them. I have witnessed the abuse for myself on a couple of occasions, when piles of rubbish has been dumped in front of the bins, leaving the Sainsbury staff having to clean it all up, which is really not right. When we are out cruising, we use the Biffa bins provided by the Canal and River Trust in the sanitary station compounds, but even these are open to abuse if they are not lockable. One such instance was at Marsworth Junction on the Grand Union Canal a few years ago now. I went to get rid of a bag of rubbish only to find the bins overflowing and rubbish strewn across the compound. When I checked the bins, some of them were filled with builders rubble and there was piles of dumped rubbish, such a mattresses, cupboards and even an animal carcass. I took photographs and immediately sent them to BW (Canal and River Trust) who were in charge at the time. I also rang them to tell them about the animal carcass. Within in the hour, BW were on the case. Biffa arrived later in the day to try and empty the bins. I was there to meet the driver and did my best to help him move the bins, but some of them were so heavy with rubble, we could not shift them. BW sent a team over to help clear the rubbish and to dispose of the animal carcass. What makes people think this sort of behaviour is acceptable? Even in the past few years, boating friends have posted photographs of the bin areas being full of rubbish. I spoke to a Biffa driver, who told me that if their carts cannot get close to the compounds they cannot take the rubbish and so have to drive away. They have arrived at bin areas, to find cars parked in the way, which means they cannot do their job. Sometimes bin areas are just overwhelmed, because of fly tipping, which is why all bin areas need to be lockable and then only boaters with the correct key can use it. 

Yesterday, Friday 22nd January, I had a fabulous day. I spent some of it working with our Grandson. Oscar is now 8 years old and is doing home schooling at the moment, because of Covid-19. Whilst he is very good with his lessons when at school, doing home schooling, has been a bit more of a struggle, because there are so many distractions. This is where Grandma and Grandad come in, because I suggested we may be able to help. We began with helping him with his spelling tests.

This weeks test was a lot tougher for an 8 year old, but with lots of practice Oscar got 10 out of the 11 right. After the spelling, he did maths with Grandad and then reading with me. It brings us both joy to help him with his home schooling and it gives Becky a chance to get some jobs done and time with Orion. I am not a maths person, so I am more than happy to let Keith do the maths. It was never my strong point at school. I remember having extra lessons, when it came to algebra, but I still failed miserably. I can of course do the easy stuff, but forget it when it comes to anything too difficult. I will stick to the spelling and reading. Oscar reads incredibly well and is an absolute credit to his parents. His teacher clearly thought he did a good job because he got the Gold Star of the week, long with one of his class mates. Proud does not come close to how we feel and it was proof to him that learning at home is well worth it.

Here we are another weekend and this morning, we woke to a frost and a few snow flakes. We had our usual cup of tea in bed. My early morning walk, took me to the Sainsbury recycling bins, because I needed to get rid of a few things and so this was my once a day exercise. Mask donned and hand sanitiser in my pocket, I set off for the bins. Thankfully the bins were not full and were tidy on my arrival. On returning to the boat, I stoked the fires and then made us our first coffee of the day. Having decided on Fish, Chips and Peas for lunch, I put the Fish and Chips in the oven and was waiting for it to cook, only to find we had run out of gas, part way through the cooking process. Thankfully we do have spare bottles, so I just needed to switch over to a new bottle, but this meant lunch was delayed. Whilst lunch cooked, I went down to the office with my trusty wheelbarrow and bought a new bottle. We like to keep at least one spare onboard when on the mooring and two when we are out cruising. It was funny because I did wonder why I could not spell fish cooking in the boat. I must check the oven more closely next time. The old gas bottle had done us well though, because we last changed it in September last year. With the cooker cooking on gas once again lunch was now back on track and there was the yummy smell of Fish and Chips cooking. Lunch was fabulous. We do not have chips that often, and so they make a nice change. Not even when we were able to eat out, did we have chips that often. I think for us they are more of a treat, as we try to watch our weight whilst in Lockdown. 

With the afternoon now in full flow, I topped up the bird feeders, because the birds have been very hungry this past few days. We have been getting a lot of Blue Tits and Great Tits coming to the feeders and Mr or Mrs Robin, who is incredibly bossy, when it comes to who they allow to eat from the feeders. The weather forecast, is snow later today and tomorrow, so we will see what we get. I would love lots of the white stuff, because it brings me a lot of joy. Yes I am a snow lover through and through. I of course realise it is not ideal if you have to travel in it, but as we are supposed to be staying at home, having some snow would be lovely. 

Pop back soon xxx