When I look around me!

Sitting in the relative luxury of my boat tied up on my pontoon at the weekend, I looked around me and suddenly I was launched into the real world. The world of "others" the unfortunate and the very fortunate, the happy and the un happy the rich and the poor!

A while backI read in the paper that an old man ( my age) was found dead in his home and had been like that for a week. The autopsy ( his stomach contents) showed that he had been gnawing at a piece of fire wood to gain sustainance, possibly to prevent his eventual demise, this is not a fitting end for a proud man! Is this the real world? didnt anyone care?

Yesterday some friends of mine set off on holiday (the first since they got togeather six months ago) they duly worked hard to prepare their boat and on the day of their departure, duly gassed up and started down the fareway towards the marina entrance keeping to the correct side of the fairway. A passing vessel one and a half times the size of theirs rammed them whilst going astern and pushed them into a moored vessel who fortunately had the presence of mind to quickly place some fenders between the two boats. the larger boat realising their folly shot ahead and turning at the same time dragged their safety rails off their vessel (the dingy and outboard caused the damage). The ensuing discussion I am informed wasn`t pleasant and they limped back to their mooring. The bigger boat said that it was their fault for being in the correct position on the fairway and that he was the better seaman! Having made some covert enquiries it appears that the bigger boat, may have lost control of their directional control system but I guess that they will try to get away without paying for the damage, which really Pisses me off my friends being financially challenged too !

What absolutely bad luck. they are not wealthy and indeed live on their boat, their jaunt that was going to be in the way of a belated honeymoon has now been cancelled indefinitely and they have to go through all the rigmarole of sorting out who pays what, and getting the work done.

Even when I visited them today they were quite positive and getting on with life. in fact their attitude is that they now have some more freetime (being off work for a couple of weeks) to get on with some more work to their boat, what rotten bad luck.

Well the trauma of helping them back to their berth and calming them down started me thinking that some day I may find myself in a similar situation either the crash or the somewhat tragic death situation.

Isnt it funny how something like that starts you to examine your own situation. Well Iv`e decided that the crash isnt worth thinking about and the tragic death can be resolved by " going out loudly so when I decide to end my life you will all hear me going from where you are at the time :o))

Yes you are right I`m bored and my post is a load of crap but there you are, for what its worth! you could psycho-analyse for me!

An Explanation Of Life?

On the first day, God created the dog and said, "Sit all day by the door of your house and bark at anyone who comes in or walks past. For this, I will give you a life span of twenty years."The dog said, "That's a long time to be barking. How about only ten years and I'll give you back the other ten?"Surprised, God agreed.

On the second day, God created the monkey and said, "Entertain people, do tricks and make them laugh. For this, I'll give you a twenty-year lifespan."The monkey said, "Monkey tricks for twenty years? That's a pretty long time to perform. Suppose I give you back ten like the dog did?"And God agreed.

On the third day, God created the cow and said, "You must go into the field with the farmer all day long and suffer under the sun, have calves and give milk to support the farmer's family. For this, I will give you a life span of sixty years."The cow said, "That's going to be a hard life you want me to live for sixty years. How about twenty and I'll give back the other forty?"And God agreed again.

On the fourth day, God created man and said, "Eat, sleep, play, marry and enjoy your life. For this, I'll give you twenty years."But man said, "Only twenty years? Could you possibly give me my twenty, the forty the cow gave back, the ten the monkey gave back and the ten the dog gave back; making it eighty then?""Okay," God said. "You asked for it."So that is why the first twenty years we eat, sleep, play and enjoyourselves. For the next forty years we slave in the sun to support our family. For the next ten years we do monkey tricks to entertain thegrandchildren, And for the last ten years we sit on the front porch and bark at everyone.

What a great day!

Today is still hot and sunny here in the UK south of England. I would prefer to be on my boat in the channel but , there you are I can`t always do what I want to, even though I am retired. We returned home about an hour ago and alreadyI have cut the grass and am now getting ready for the fox`s feed time, if they are still alive that is? I can`t wait to visit Madison Clare tomorrow and see how she is progressing.

On the way home we stopped at a small restaurant in a garden centre which I believe was a small cottage originally, I have to say that the food was brilliant as was the service. There appeared to be only one person on duty (the owner) and she produced and served the food herself. I will certainly be visiting there again.

This weekend the Festival of the Sea starts at Portsmouth and there will be a thousand vessels on display from Square Riggers to small sculls, and I am going to visit it for a day next week. I have however been invited to crew a motor boat down to the venue and stay aboard for a few days at the festival but i havent made up my mind as yetso I dont`t know if I will or not . I am tempted to take my squeeze box and blues harp and busk for something to do but I can`t playthem that well so maybe I will save the other visitors the pain :o))

Well here she is six hours into this world Madison Grace. Boy I thought a grandson would be expensive wait until I get to grips with this one 

Weathers great !

The Weather is great! its just boat weather, I could get loads of those jobs done, jobs where you can wear bathing shorts and work away un hindered in the sun, and what have I got to do??? visit the bloody hospital :o(( Oh well!! Winge over. Get on with it!!!

The engineer finally got a stuck injector out of cyliner three on my starboard engine. I tried to get it out in my usual manner but it was firmly stuck in. I had released it and could turn it by hand but couldn`t pull it out. The engineer purchased a "puller" and using it to its fullest he finally winched it out, right up to the last decimal of an inch of its shaft. (so it was well and truly coked in & I now don`t feel so bad about not being able to get it out myself).

Boring bits done with and now on to the better bits. I have just read another bloggers "things she misses from childhood", and I have to say that it was the most beautiful piece of writing that I have ever read. Its amazes me how a normal housewife ( her words not mine) and mother can write such a lovely item.

Another blogger who`s site I visit is about to go off to Mexico and start the next phase of her life and whilst I wish them well in their adventure, I will experience a void in my web life, in much the same way as when another friends computer is broken and they can`t write for a while. I do hope they will still write now and again. Mind you! I give no thought to when I take off and can`t write, but I guess thats because I feel that I am not missed as much (if ever! :o(( )

Gnasher has gone to the farm today with his nursery class, and is still suspect on the biting front. Some days he`s good and others he bad. His nickname has now changed to "Hanniball" worrying eh! I had an Ourang-Outang baby that used to bite, so when she took my finger and placed it into her mouth I did the same with hers and she screamed the place down (I didn`t bite either! honest) but she never attempted to bite me again, mind you I couldn`t begin to guess where her hand had been prior to my placing it in my mouth!! I said I couldn`t begin to guess OK! OK! Eugh!!!! I feel sick at the thought. I guess that I would be arrested if I tried it with "Hanniball" Oh well! he`ll grow out of it???.

His mum was out shopping today and I bumped into her she is looking well and convinced that she is carrying a baby boy and that its due on Tuesday or Thursday next week (yes she is pregnant and its due around then) whilst she is carrying it "all out front" I still feel that it is a girl it may be wishfull thinking but I have this feeling that it is a girl. We`ll see, anyway she is well and fit, so next week ish I become a grandfather again. Another reason for Hanniball being cured of his habit sooner rather than later.( just how many babies are you allowed to eat before you get chastized? :o)) )

Away for the weekend !

Once again I have just got back from a weekend away at the boat. I went down on Saturday so that I could attend a local boat-jumble early on Sunday, and buy lots of bargains.

I decided that I would visit Asda (a large supermarket situated in the marina) and buy myself something for my dinner, however a large iced "bun round" with cherries on the top, looked good so I purchased that and eat every scrap. Well I had a great nights sleep on saturday and awoke nice and early, refreshed. I spent the morning looking for bargains which I found (lots of "must haves" at right prices) and on the way back I visited a friend who has chosen to end his days in a holiday trailor park. He is terminally ill and so he doesn`t see himself living in grandeur until the end comes.

He was in great spirits and pleased to see me, we chatted and had several cups of tea and I departed for the boat at about 17-00. My friends who own the same style of boat that I do invited me to dinner but I declined as I prefered to eat alone. They are situated on the hard at the moment as they are doing a lot of refurbishment work to their bottom and won`t go back into the water for a couple of weeks. I went to a restaurand in the marina and enjoyed a lobster tail salad and a rather large banana split with Vanilla ice cream and toffee sauce, Yummmmmiiieeee!!! and then I went back to a very comfortable bed and oblivion.

The engineer arrived in the morning to remove a leaking injector on my starboard engine but was unsuccessful as a result of not having an injector extractor so he will visit again tomorrow and finish the job (hopefully). I closed up the boat. changed the bedding and left for home.

Now I can`t wait to get back. I love being on my own there and being able to please myself as to what I do and when. There is nothing better, for me, than to have a tiring day "playing boats" and then after a shower climbing into my bed and falling asleep. I guess that I don`t do enough long "lone sail" journeys anymore. I think I will have to redress the balance. Boy am I lucky being able to retain my space????????

I am hoping to visit Warsaw in Poland next month with a friend of mine. he was one of my entertainments managers when I was working and responsible for the employment of various acts and a circus. Which we employed for well over ten years. In that circus was a very talented engineer Chestov and his wife Danoutta and we became good friends. We have both promised to visit them in their home country for ten years now and so it is about time that it happened.

My friend is about to book the flights and I am really looking forward to meeting them once again. They have two children and during the five years that they spent in the UK they all learned to speak perfect english as well as their children going to school here for the same period.

They loved England and boy! did we try to get them a permanent visa but to no avail. Now of course it wouldn`t be a problem, Poland being a member of the EEC now? I really am quite excited at the thought of meeting them again.

And so to Dunkerque!

We left on a fair tide after having to Jump start the Starboard engine. Later I discovered that the Refigerator had gone open circuit and had drained the starboard bank of batteries and the port bank had insufficient power left in them to start the starboard engines as well so Ho hum! the generator was started and while it was charging the batteries, I jumped the engine. As I said previously our course to Dunkerque took us first to Dover and across the shipping lanes to just off Calais and then after a turn north, up to Dunkerque. We Arrived in Dover three hours after leaving Brighton for a journey of 63 nautical miles so the fair tide helped us immensly. We settled in to a pontoon berth on the tidal basin and went off into town to shop for some bits (updated flares to name but one item! Oops!). our friends joind us after a couple of days as he had to finish his teaching commitments, and off we went. The route we took, went straight across the shipping lanes at 90 degrees from the south Goodwin light ( the Goodwin sands being the famous graveyard of many boats) towards Calais and then turned north through the inshore bouyed channel past Gravelines and on to Dunkerque. There were no incidents and I had only to clip past the stern of a couple of freighters and tankers, so as to clear the following vessels without incident we arrived in Dunkerque and called into the marina Grand Large and awaited the opening of the transit lock in to the inner basin and Port de commerce. We only waited about twenty minutes and the Trystram lock started to open and so we entered and went on to the lifting bridge (Pont de universite) which lifted as soon as we approached and it was deftly around to the starboard and our Marina berth in the Marina de Maritime.

The staff in the Marina were magnificent as was the marina itself, they directed us to our berth and helped us tie up. The facilities including a commercial style laundry for patrons use and great and very clean showers and wcs, were second to none, and by far the best that I have come across in a foreigh country. I do however have some reservation about the water on the floor of the shower room as it seemed to go nowhere and laid under your feet, making it dangerous to try to "Palais glide" should one wish to!! Te He.

The town of Dunkerque was getting ready for its referendum vote and thus the D day celebrations were brought forward (0r back) to the Saturday and the town was at full tilt getting ready for the vote. (Well done France! and thanks for your support! If we are ever allowed to vote we will join you in a Non!!!I am sure).

Having settled in to our berth I popped back to the Grand Large marina ( a couple of miles away) on my fold-up bike and met with the rest of my boat club which were coming from London via Ramsgate, they all made it without much incident.

I failed, previously, to mention that I came across their convoy (doing about 4 knots) just outside Gravelines and went across to show my colours as it were before continuing on to Dunkerque.

We went out in the evening for dinner and had a throughly enjoyable time, returning to the boat at about 23.30 for Horlicks and bed. our friends stayed up chatting and devoured a further couple of bottles of red wine before bed hence they surfaced a little late having also throughly enjoyed themselves.

in the morning I rose early and shot off to the croisant shop (boulangerie) and carried a selection to my friends of the boat club, as they have a couple of miles walk to get there and stayed for a cup of tea. When I got back to our boat we all walked around the little ships and spoke with many of the owners. Unfortunately the weather was a little too lumpy for the small ships to, as is usual, go out into the "poppy drop"area where the Herculese aircraft (usually the Lancaster with a spitfire and Hurricane on each wing tip) does the drop of a million poppies) was to do the drop. Most people made their way to the drop area for the service and watched the drop when the service had finished .

For myself I had a quiet moment at one of the smaller "monuments to the fallen" on the sea defences just behind the sea front. We all commemorate in our different ways, Mine is for all the fallen in the futility of war, both sides that is.

On the Monday we arose early 05-50 and joined the small ships for the trip through the pont de universite and into the trystram lock, held back until all the little ships were in the lock and attempted to enter and was told that there was another 20 to come still, so we pulled back out and waited for the twenty. Where upon the lock closed and we were directed to the main commercial lock where the warship accompanied by her tug , The steam tug, and the RMVa vessel Appleby, were waiting. the twenty missing small ships had by now materialised with their accompanying Lifeboat from Ramsgate, so once again we held back to be the last to enter but made sure that we got in this time. The prop wash from the Warships tug caused us to be pushed a little over as we berthed along side a small ship but with little problem other than that ! We had a successful passage through the lock.

As the last in we were the first out with a few exceptions and so we again waited for all the small ships to exit Dunkerque before we followed the lifeboat (who was having races with its equavalent service manned by the pompiers de sauvatage? for someting to do!) we followed them out into the inshore channel and headed off on our own course just outside the channel and past the Little ships. we turned at out transit point off Calais and at the very same time the GPS signal ceased so it was back onto paper charts once again (so don`t let anybody tell you that it is safe not to use GPS in conjunction with charts because it isn`t) fortunately I had the course duplicated on the charts so it was simple to measure the mileage covered and the course made good and about an hour later we arrived at the south Goodwin lightship and turned for Dover.

We dropped our friends off and Bunkered with fuel (cheaper than in Brighton, isnt everything?)
we were going to stay for the night in Dover but as the weather was predicted as closing in, we decided to continue on. By the time we had got to Dungeness the weather had closed down and I recorded 38 knots of wind (and rising) over our deck and the sea state was very lumpy.

We made Brighton within a couple of more hours and tied up in our home berth glad that we were out of the now force 8 gale.

We had a great time and even my wife who is not a great sailor enjoyed herself. Thankyou Dunkerque and its populace for your hospitality

A look back at the muninciple building of Dunkerque itself Oh! and a couple of boats of course :o)) 

More pictutes of a steel barge that took part in the D day troop rescue, Gainsborough Trader which of course it was, a trader! Please not the beautiful undercut stern on the second boat out

The old 102 torpedo boats. The plyed their trade (of death) around the English Channel sinking many enemy vessels. Their speed allowed them to go out at night and up close to the vessels discharging their deadly cargo in range and turning fast for home. these craft were often skippered by junior officers and seen as expendable. The tubes mounted on the deck (one each side) contained the compressed air driven Torpedoes. A story related to me by and ex torpedo boat shipper was that as they turned for home the fog came in and the only way that they could get back into their respective port was to follow the contour lines of the bottom of the Channel until they found a break( irregularity in the bottom) and then turn up into the relevant river/harbour. One has to remember that they had no Radar which we mariners take for granted today

A view looking from the topmost point of the steam tug. I think that Sir Robin (name dropper) is still just visible on the deck. whilst up there my friend, a ships engineer, gave the whistle a quick "Kick" and I still can`t hear as a result.

Two early Lifeboats that used to ply their trade around the british coast. The inshore one (on the pontoon) is a steam driven one. these little ships were often launched off the beach from a horse driven cradle, One record relates how the boat from a cornish town was, one day, carted over the headland by its horses and carriage and launched from a beach many miles nearer to the casualty and thus save "steaming " time, hence lives.

Note the beautiful church spire in the background, and the warp leading from the camera to the steam Tug! Who volenteered to pull them off the wall as the wind was pushing them on? The vessel behind the steam tug is a Thames barge ( Greta if I remember correctly) which origionally carried grain and sugar from the Thames to Ipswich and beyond> These craft were sailed by a skipper and an apprentice. The lee boards so called because they were deployed on the leward side of the craft to reduce "lee way (seen here like great horizontal paddles) would pivot and hang down into the water. They were often used to dig into the mud bottom and help the boat to turn sharply (Pivot around them)

A whole mass of "little Ships" and owners who come to Dunkirk to pay their respects to the fallen of the last Worl War.  

The famous face on the left sitting on the hatch on this rather lovely old antique steam tug, is Sir Robin Knox Johnson. So its true, that really famous and worthwhile men of the sea do associate with "Stink Pots" and believe me they couldn`t get more "stinky" than this old girl!

Beachy Head you can see the light house on the beach, we passed this in flat seas and at about 20 kts 

Home is the sailor home from the sea!

Well were back from Dunkirk!
We had a great time, our friends really enjoyed the trip although they only went from Dover across to Dunkirk and back. (we caught the bad weather on the way from Dover back to Brighton) I have included a photo of a landmark we passed on the way! namely beachy head (the lovers leap of the south coast) where many "lovers"and others commit suicide even today?

Wow !!!! Who needs solar panels! I will start wearing a toupee in future. I have as much chance of being struck by lightening as meeting Annie Lennox :o)) 

Whoa!! Hold on. I have promised to stop swearing

What a photograph? someones upset!

Bad weather day

Well I`ve been to the cafe and had my breakfast, my daughter has just phoned to find out which day exactly she has to move in (to house sit) and they My wife and her are meeting up for shopping therapy in Guildford. Boy is the house quiet, just me and the box.


Last night whilst feeding the Vixen the lady next door stuck her head through the fence (yes there is a hole in it through which the fox transits with the food, taking it back to her cubs) and asked me if I would like to see her cubs as they were waiting in line at the bottom of her garden, which I did.

The mother was taking the food that I gave her and feeding each one individually (no free-for-all) in turn.

Her ( the lady next doors) three young sons 10,12,14, were each now able to hand feed her too and she was now quite at home with them.

Whilst I worry that we are destroying her ability to find food for herself!. Given that we have just gone over to secure wheelie bins from black sacks for our rubbish, I therefore console my fears with the thought that we are acting as a transition period, feeding wise, until she gradually gets back to her natural hunting (finds another heighbourhood that has black sacks for their rubbish). I watched the faces of the kids whilst feeding her and it was a joy to behold here was three young men that adored wildlife and were helping to nurture it in the community. OK only foxes but who knows what these little guys may go off and do as a result of this encounter. Game keepers, wildlife rangers, vets who knows what. I think its great!!

Already this has had an effect on the community as the lady next door at her daily staff meeting in a well known supermarket, was praised for taking the time to consider the local wildlife. Much to a disgruntled fellow members surprise " Bloody vermin" they said "crapping everywhere" to which she replied "not in my garden they don`t I only get the cats in mine doing that"
the disgruntled person is a cat owner owning 5 and living in a 1 bed flat Phew!!eeeee!

I love the wild life! I do miss my regular attendance at London Zoo when I was a fellow of the Royal Zoological Society. As one of the few priveleges, I could visit on a Sunday morning before the visitors were allowed in, it was a very special pleasure to me even though I don`t agree with animals in captivity, there is a very special need to keep safe a gene pool of the very rare and endangered species. Stud books are alsovery important (why arent I on one? Ah! I remember... thats self evident!) As a very fine line exists between the Zoos that exists for human pleasure and human need!

Whilst TV isn`t smelly-vision I don`t necessarily condone the keeping of the non endangered animals, although many of those are very quickly becoming members of the edangered list.

Yes TV does show us things like a now famous presenter (so called Zoologist and animal specialist sitting with Gorillas) but the cost of that was that the group of Gorillas now pinpointed by the large amount of equipment and personell needed to film it successfully, caused them to be slaughtered for bush meat immediately after the cameras left. What a price?????


One name that I do think that I should bring up at this juncture was a very "hard charging" lady fighting for the gorillas of Rhuanda, Diane Fossey, sadly killed by a "fellow part time ranger" it is believed her relationship with Digit and the rest of his group was a special turning point in animal rights (much like mine and my fox oh yes its all relevant :o))) forget those prats that stand outside vivisection joints with posters or beat up security guards so as to let out 2000 mink in Norfolk, which wiped out the fenland wild life in five year. We must all do our bit and the urban fox, to me, is as important as any other animal in the education of, the young and old alike, as to the importance animals play in the correct natural balance of this world that we live in. Pheww heavy!!!!!!!.............. Boy I really shouldnt get on my high horse!!! Now thats another point in the worls of Horse racin................ forget it Rob let it go!!!!!!!.......... dont get started again!!! :o))

Atlantide A most beautiful boat found on a beach in Malta and brought back from extinction by a loving and caring owner. To my mind the most beautiful of boats above decks as well as below, with her gratious furniture Lalique glass, cut glass mirrors and sculpture, created by her owner. She now spends her time as a support ship for a racing "J" class yacht. Far from the sounds of an ongoing battle

Blue Bird a very proud survivor of Dunkirk 

Sir Donald Campbells boat Bluebird

Once owned by Sir Donald Campbell, she ferried many people off thew Dunkirk beaches

Greta a Thames sailing barge used to shallow water and ideal for the task of approaching the beaches 

All sorts of boats pulled our guys off the beaches

Boats were taken without the owners permission and collected in the upper Thames until the time was right to take them across to collect and ferry soilders back onto the awaiting battleships and cruisers. The Valliant little boats with their navy crews did a great job. One houseboat owner had gone out to get some shopping with the meagre amount of "Coupons" only to find that her home had gone along with her pet cat whilst she was away. on the decks of the boat you can see some of the very same men that were ferried off the beaches.

Don sitting at the wheelhouse in Dunkirk inner harbour having left Ramsgate some five hours before. 

Dunkirk a small reminder of what sort of boats and what sort of people!

Above is a photograph taken five years ago at the last Dunkirk reunion I attended as an observer. The boat in the picture is called Bou Saad and was owned by Don Kahn
( sitting in the wheel house, at the wheel) Don was at Dunkirk as was his boat but not togeather at the time. He was a founder member of my boat club at Weybridge and until recently an active member if only at the bar. it was the likes of Don and many others like him that gave us British the ability to sleep in our beds at night free from the Reich. Don`s boat was always kept in pristine condition until it became too much for him, at over eighty years of age. I believe that he now lives in Spain and with failing health probably the best place to live out his days in the sun and the bosom of his family.

Dunkirk visit (nice weather needed)

Well! I am booked into the Dunkerque marina for the duration of the D Day "festivities"! I am looking forward to visiting the old town again having last been there for those very same "celebrations" some five years ago.

It`s great to watch the old veterans, of both sides as they proudly represent their countries in the rememberance of their dead comrades. Not for personal pleasure but safe in the knowledge that we all now know that this should never happen again. The numbers of them attending get less and less each year and those that do attend, do so in a less mobile way (many wheel chairs and sticks are becoming evident) but still they come. The highlight of the "Parade" always used to be the Lanchester with a spitfire on the port and a hurricane on its starboard side flying low over the small "Dunkirk boats" fleet, dropping a million poppy leaves as a tribute to those fallen in the war. I wonder if they will do it again this year as it is the 65 celebration.

The trip, for me starts from Surrey on friday next as I am taking a boat down to Ramsgate ready to be taken across the Dover straights at the given time. I will then head off down to my own boat and bring it along the south coast to Dover, where I collect a couple of friends and we will then cross to a point just off the port of Calais and turn and head up Channel to Dunkirk, arriving some time on the Thursday evening/night.

Then depending upon the times of the Lock opening High water + - 2 hours approx we will enter into the inner Marina where all the commemorative fleet will be staying, and moor up for the weekend.

A few of my boat club (10 boats)will be joining us there as part of a formal, organised cruise so it will be good to meet some old friends, they will have attended from Surrey arriving in Ramsgate after the vessel that I delivered, and departing from Ramsgate at the same time as it.

Joys of boating

I have been assisting a couple of friends with their boat which is currently out on the hard. Their hull hasn`t been out of the water for four years and the bottom was dirty so the old antifoul has to be scraped off and new applied for the coming year. So there we are standing under the boat scraping and scraping and scraping Booring!!! Blah!! arm and back aching work not to mention the toxic nature of the crap that comes off, Yes I know I should have worn a mask Boy have I been sick.

Anyway the first thing I discovered was rampant Osmosis (fibre glass pox) everywhere. the hull needs to be peeled of gellcoat and steam cleaned well and allowed to dry before re gelcoating. It won`t however get it as funds are short (they are old live aboards and intent on travel next year to reduce the frightening costs of owning a boat and living in the UK.)

Each day I would present myself for duty (O eighthundred) and at the end of the day about twenty hundred, wend my way back to my own boat and have a shower (the water would be blue from the antifoul dust)and the warm water would heal my old aching bones.

Then it was off to the the restaurant for my dinner, delightful chats with the Polish waitresses and home to "Horlicks" my book and bed! What a bore you might say? but I love it, I do exactly as I please when I please.

The joys of boating! I really do love it! nothing is ever what you would expect. the people the tasks or the boating world in general there is always something to do people to see or places to go.

When in the commercial world of boating it is of course more pressured butI think I am leaving that behind for now with its delivery dates and booring people back to my book, soon to be blog, when I get my laptop up and running on the local free Wifi system (is there really such a thing as a free lunch? Nah!)

I really love my life!!! why am I so lucky? will it last? even my friends on the Blog are great! I love em all! Snooooooreooo!

Todays a day to be sick!!

I am sick and tired of listening to the leader of the winning party of our general election, droning on about how they now know what we the british public want. With their representation in Parliament down to 36% and the oppositions up to 33% I should think that it is pretty obvious what the public want, still a further session will allow them to prevent the approaching recession they will have caused ....NOT!!.

Enough of that I am not a political animal so I will tell you about my little foxy friend. each night at about 18.00 she waits for me to come out with the dog food tin and spoon and doesn`t make a move towards me until I tap on the bowl, .

Whilst feeding her the other night. My neighbour poked her head through the fence and asked if I was feeding the fox as she was too and that her boys have indeed named the cubs. She was surprised to see that I was feeding her straight out of my hands as they couldn`t get anywhere near her. I guess the kids were a bit noisy (three boisterious, footballing, young boys)

Tonight She ( the fox not my neighbour :o))) waited at the top of the garden as usual and at the same time as I tapped my spoon on the dish the eldest Boy from next door stuck his head through the fence, and asked in a loud voice, if I was going to feed the fox and she immediately took fright, and so I didn`t get to have the same close feeding time as usual. she did however visit and take the food from the bowl but was very careful to do it whilst she was alone.

I was going down to stay on my boat for the weekend today but my wife developed a cold yesterday and is coughing and sneezing for England so maybe we will go tomorrow. the weather doesnt look too good for the morning but will brighten up in the afternoon (yea right!)

I am gradually getting the boat ready for my visit to the Dunkirk memorial service visit. today I scrubbed the dingy. and yesterday I manufactured a stainless fiddle for my gas hob (to prevent pans from sliding off when at sea) I am now clearing up the mess in my workshop and garage Blahhhhh hate it!!! I have just heard that I can get WIFI for free in my Marina so that will be a treat I look forward to that (yea right!! if its true, theres no such thing as a free lunch)!

No change!!!!!!!!

Well the British General election is over and the same government is back in power. Im not a political person but I am glad in a way because we (the country) is heading for a depression, within two years, and the current party has borrowed so much money from the IMF that it would be unfair for the opposition party to get it (which is usually what happens) and then have to spend a long time sorting out the mess.

The previous party when in power sorted out most of the problems and were ready to sort the rest and then the great British public decided that it was time for change! and hey Ho! the current lot took power and made the same changes that were already in line to be activated, under their own name and for a while we had prosperity.

Now we have had to borrow so much money that the Depression will come as we try to pay it back. The last party will be voted back in and off we go again Bloody democracy!!! what would you do without it? :o))

Foxy lady

This is the little vixen that took Gnasher by storm when he stood and watched me feed her the other day and she is Post natal so has some cubs to support. they are good parents and in the past I have observed a vixen take the runt of the litter into another garden to ensure that they get their fair share of feeding.

I`m all for the wild life!. this little vixen is feeding, I dont know how many cubs. 

Getting the needle?

No its not because nobody reads or comments on my Blog its because I had a migraine yesterday and used my Accupuncture skills to immediately erradicate it. Oh! yes you can Laugh! But it works for me.

Some years ago I was looking to buy a book on the subject and some needles and approached a Chinese doctor for some information. She was astounded that I would want to try this ancient art and laughingly sent me on my way saying that when you are ready come and visit me and I will give you your first treatment free ! well that was nice of her but I really wanted to do it myself being an independant b*astard.

I mentioned to my wife that I had been into the Chinese doctors and she wanted to know where they were, and as she wanted to try their style of medicine out, for a minor skin problem she was having. So I went back with her and she got her treatment which also worked.

Whilst waiting I had a good look at all the figures and charts depicting where the needles went making copious notes and drawings ( well they shouldn`t leave them around) and the Doctor spotting me said "you are keen aren`t you?! and I smiled politely and said if nothing I am determined. so she said that as my wife was visiting for another few weeks she would teach me how to insert the needles and some key points and the rest I would have to learn for myself, so Off we went!

Now I am a little more adept and can cure my own Migrane and the odd pain or ten. I have to say that I am very unscientific but I do ensure that the needles go in the right place and "hit the spot" and haven`t yet collapsed my lung te! he!! I keep well away from them, having suffered from that once in my life when I was impaled with a hat pin by an angry spectator at a wrestling match, Yes you guessed it, my fault for making her mad by cheating! I felt this awful pain in by back and the Ref stopped the bout (just as I was winning!) and told me that I had a pearl on my back which I asked him to take off thinking that I had fallen on to it or similar and it was now stuck to my back, as he did I found that I couldnt breathe properly and that there was four inches of steel pin attached to it. so Ambulance ,hospital, reflated lung, antibiotics and work in the morning.(what a hero? Not!)

A Foxy day

Many people dont like the local urban wildlife but I do and encourage it. In the past I have had a vixen regularily have cubs under my garden shed and as many as five is not unusual. I did however fill in the entrance this year as I was afraid of the floor of the shed collapsing on them as it was getting like the floors in Stalag 17 so she had to go somewhere else.

Today we had another visit from Gnasher and his mum who had collected my Daughter who is incapacitated after a fall in a NewYork nightclub? (I asked her whether the pole collapsed) It happened as someone pushed somebody and they fell on her causing her to fall and someone else to land heavily on her knee. So no driving for a while and hence Gnashers visit as my daughters doctor is local to us.

While he was here I introduced him to the latest little vixen who has just had cubs and upon my dinging the dog bowl in the garden she comes and feeds out of my hands sometimes, even with Gnasher standing delighted alongside. what a thrill for me to be able to show him the nicer side of life. after a whole large tin of dog food laced with an anti mange tablet she stood with us until Gnasher got bored with the innactivity and we went inside. I guess the next doors shed is becoming springy now.

Le Drip!

Well Thursday saw the boat back in the water! The yard had done their usual job of making her fast to the pontoon and I had “ bits of string” everywhere. I have purpose made mooring warps which when they would have cast off her taking her around to be lifted and placed on the hard and I would have thought that they could have replaced them without too much trouble, its pretty fool proof (or is it?)

We went down to the boat on Friday to get her ready for the season, Given that she is fresh in the water I checked out the bilges and all seemed OK! So we spent the day in a fairly relaxed mode and in the evening we checked out the new restaurants and shops in the Marina. After a great meal we returned to the boat and the Weather was closing in. By 22.00 it was raining hard and Time to retire. The Dehumidifier system had done a great job and the boat was completely dry and not “damp” at all. I looked forward to a good nights sleep back on the boat.

At 04.00 I was awakened by a barely discernable drip, drip, drip, I lay there listening for a few seconds to the rain, but the drip concerned me as it was coming from the lower half of the boat ( below or close to the waterline). I quietly got out of bed (so as not to wake my wife, Fat chance!) and clasping a flashlight I went to investigate. I checked out the heads first and climbed all around the bilge and found no water or the sign of any ingress. I moved systematically into the Galley and removed all the food stocks and pots and pans from the lower cupboards and had a good old rummage, I was “getting warm” as the drip was very loud now but after a further exploration of the bilge under the Galley there was still no water leak to be found.

My wife who was by now well awake and had been cajoling me grumpily to come back to bed, now standing by my side, could hear the drip and was helping me, armed with the flashlight she had stopped her cajoling Initially she couldn’t hear the drip and was surprised that I had heard it at all as I have damaged hearing from several diving accidents. I guess one knows the sounds of a vessel and gets attuned and this was one I didn’t want too hear, especially as she had just been put back in the water, any dripping usually denotes the water ingress from a skin fitting or pipe about to “blow off” all mostly leading to the boats eventual sinking.

I could hear the rain and thought that there may be a point at which it was dripping on to the coach roof but a quick check through the wheelhouse windows showed that there wasn’t and the drip was coming from the lower half of the boat anyway. The only other thing now was to check out the outside of the boat and this I did with flashlight in hand I left the wheelhouse door, out into the rain,and went along the starboard side looking down at the waterline and I found that a fender had been tied to the safety lines of the vessel (which gives it a good length of line on which to swing on) which with the motion of the boat this was what it was doing, whilst gently touching the hull every second. Here was my “drip”!!!!! some what disgruntled I returned to the wheel house door only to find it locked. Given that I was completely “as the day I was born” (does this man have no modesty!!! this could be a problem not for me but for the other marina users, should I still be on deck when the sun came up. Notwithstanding Hyperthermia for me) I was worried as my wife is a deep sleeper and had obviously gone back to bed leaving me locked out on deck, I was now getting really worried when all of a sudden a laughing face appeared at the Venetian blinds and requested that I say please before she would open the door, Bitch!!!:o))

Having finally been let it, Yes I did eventually say please! We giggled like two year olds at my folly and went to sleep.

At 10.30 we were still asleep and we,after showers and rising late for us, headed straight for the greasy spoon for a “belly buster” breakfast. I finished the tiling to the Microwave installation over the hob in the galley and ran the power feed to its new plug. I have to say I think it looks really good, all I have to do now is grout the tiles when the adhesive is dry.

Later in the day whilst in town shopping for “some bits” I received a phone call to say that we were to be invaded and that Gnasher and family were in the area! did we fancy some lunch? We duly met up with them on the sea front and my daughter in law like the stunt driver from “Starsky and Hutch” (surely you remember them? No! Oh you don`t!!!!!) gathered us up and performed a perfect handbrake turn to send us back to the marina for lunch.

I got to walk Gnasher around to dispel his boredom, while the family waited for a table at the pizzaria . Gnasher and I, Having been told eventually to “Bugger off” by the hotel porter, from continuously using the Hotels automatic doors, Elliot found it great fun (after I showed him how to do it) to run at the doors and when they opened run away just in time before they hit him from behind. He didn’t do so well the first time but he is a quick learner and I had grabbed him in time so he didn’t get knocked over. We were bored with that anyway and the porter wasn’t too happy so we continued our walk past the pizzaria and stood with our noses up againts the glass pulling faces at our family standing waiting inside. Elliot spotted a little cairn terrier whose gay owner was mincing past and made an attempt to stroke it. The owner, delighted that anybody should take interest in his pet, made towards us! I said “it bites” and he replied Oh no! its good with children! I replied “He does I`m not worried about the dog”. Oh! he said and minced away muttering “come Fido lets get you as far away from that horrible little child as possible” Elliot looked up at me and smiled that Jaws type grin of his and we continued on.

Our walk saw us back in time to sit down to eat but I couldn’t help noticing the finger and nose marks on the windows strange how they were at two levels?

Their visit made our day and having spent one more night on the boat we tidied up and returned home, all boated up for now! and bursting to get back soon. The first trip of this season will be the Isle of Whight and the second is Dunkirk for the veterans re union (both sides) with a few day trips in between and some deliveries, hopefully.

Not a bad start to the season eh! 

Clematis! south of "Mud Island", Yawn!!!

I can`t compete with the Cherry blossoms (Sakura) of Japan, but I thought I would post anyway. Considering they have only been in the bed for a season or two they are going to do well if the frost doesn`t get to them. The other bed has started at a rush and given that the weather will stay fine all "Summer" that should continue to blossom.

Wow! the clematis is going to do well this year 

Now theres a place I would like to visit! 

Todays a day for "Drivel"

Well here in Mud Island, the sun has stopped shining! the rain is now present and April showers are here for a while. Today I got an early start and, not being able to think of what I would like to post about, the title was born. I have done absolutely nothing for about three days except visit the Cafe, fit a new back door lock, oh! and rip out the old oven on the boat and install a new microwave with oven and grill, Oh yes wire in and test the earth lead to the forward skin fittings and install and test the heating programmer, and read cruisers logs on the net. I guess that I have done more than I first remembered? (thats the problem with getting old you just don`t remember, te he!).

Today the Pope is interred and a sad/maybe happy day for all Catholics I guess! I am a non believer so I don`t really relate to "Mourning"!I do however feel the sadness of others and miss those who have so called "gone before", am I selfish? maybe I must have some sort of "belief" I suppose as it appears that I have an ever present feeling that they have "gone before" as oposed to disintegration having started, whatever!. I read an article the other day referring to Einsteins parallel Worlds theory it appears that the Mathmaticians have now proved (to themselves ?) that it is possible and indeed exists? I guess that they could prove that I am about to eat breakfast too if they tried, perhaps I shouldn`t be so flippant.

When I decided to post today I unthinkingly (there is such a word?) filled in what, I thought was the the name of the post and chose the template an "WWHHAAMMOO!!!!!" I now have a new Blogsite called "Todays a day for Drivel" That woke me up!! how on earth can a silly old fool do that? well I did !!!! I guess it really is a day for Drivel

This aint the English channel is it? Look at the size of that ship! 

Finally the boat is beached!

Well after all this time the boat is safetly in the yard on her cradle. The bottom cleaning and antifouling is about to be completed and the small amount of interior work needed I will commence on Thursday. Consists mainly of replacing a couple of "skin fittings" wiring a heavy duty Earth wire from the aft annodes to those fittings that have electronically degraded (Bad job Princess! for not doing it in the first place). I may have to replace a couple of anodes too. I am also about to fit an electronic programmer in the forward state room so that the central heating can be operated without getting out of bed (great for cold mornings when you need to turn up the heat) I looked at a lovely Oyster 48 in London the other day! I am truly very tempted now to go back to sail. I really fancy a long oceanic trip again! the boat deliveries have deminished ( I haven`t been making the effort really!since the owner of one of the companies that used me retired) ) so its up too me to get on with it and start to plan. I fancy Scandinavia and the Baltic in early summer, and the Caribb for Christmas :o)) maybe next year? who knows.

Halo scan? is it the same as "Halo Motor" spoken with anglo german voice (Motorola)

Well! I have just "joined" Halo scan, so I really don`t know what will happen now. I did so without much thinking about it (story of my life!)I understood that it allows you to have enhanced comments? I could do with some of that (like content) te he!
Anybody out there who has it could they show me what it does please? Pretty please!!!

Hi Maria and Francesco! Heres one for you!  

Guess whos got the best teeth? 

My daughter and gnasher, covered in food and attacking a rabbit! note the restaurant had cleared by now! 

The offending bunch of flowers! 

Gosh! he`s a trusting kid! Grumps gets lessons on how to bite! from the expert