Summer 2015: Crick 4

Sunday 5^th July to

 Over the past couple of months I have noticed that, just after posting this blog I get Ian’s email returned as undeliverable. This morning, after many attempts at rectifying the situation, I finally realised that I had his old email address. This has now been rectified and so, I’m sorry to say, poor Ian will now be receiving this blog again. Happy days Ian!!

 The weather looks to be fair again today and, once everything has dried off after yesterday’s rain, I’ll try to get a lick of paint onto the toolbox.

 Only a few days to go and we’ll be out there cruising. Yippee!!

 Tuesday 7^th July

 The temperature here has cooled somewhat over the past couple of days, which means we have been able to complete the stern deck paintwork.

 Yesterday I rubbed down our toolbox, which is attached to a stern rail and which carries all the metalwork we carry with us when cruising. Items such as the tiller arm, mooring pins, hooks and chains etc. Today, after the car has been checked for timing belt and cooling fan functioning, and provided the rain keeps off, I’ll give the box a coat of paint.

 The next job before we go off cruising for a couple of weeks will be to fit some proper support brackets to the solar panel. We bought the panel back in 2007, soon after we moored at Bulbourne for the winter of that year and, since then it’s been screwed to a couple of thick lengths of timber. Over this period the wood has started to rot, so we’ve bought four corner support brackets on which to sit the panel.

 But first, before refitting the panel to the roof, I have to rewire it with new cable, and we’ll have to paint the space on the roof that the panel has covered all this time. I was pleased to note though, that this space is still free of wear and only needs a good wash before painting.

 We’re hoping to get all the above chores done by tomorrow and could be off and out cruising by Thursday morning. This all assumes that the weather doesn’t hold us up, although the toolbox could wait until we’re out there; the roof and solar panel both have to be done first.

 Happy days are here again!!

 Wednesday 8^th July

 The weather has changed over the past few days, so much so that we haven’t been able to paint that section of roof where the solar panel goes. Today I’ll fit the support brackets to the panel, and we’re going shopping this morning. But we will have to call into Homebase for a couple of small right angled brackets. These brackets will anchor the panel to the roof to prevent it ‘taking off’ in a high wind. But, if this intermittent rain continues, we won’t be able to paint the roof and won’t be able to fit the panel. And, until we re-fit the panel, we ain’t going nowhere.

 Thursday 9^th July

 Yesterday was a bit of a bummer where work on the solar panel was concerned. I only managed to fit two of the support brackets before the heavens opened up, by which time the tennis was on…….!

 Today looks like it may remain dry, in which case I can complete the brackets and then paint the roof area where panel will be fitted.

 We’re hoping to be away by the weekend, but it all depends on at least finishing the painting of the roof and fitting of the panel. It’s too big to bring inside the boat and is currently taking up space on the stern deck, so moving the boat is just not possible. Yet!

 We did at least get the shopping done yesterday, so the day wasn’t completely wasted.

 Friday 10^th July

 Having fitted the new support brackets to the solar panel a few days ago, and having painted the patch on the roof where the panel sits, I then re-wired it and, with Wifey’s help, put the panel back on the roof. Of course we waited for the paint to dry!!

 Anyway, once we had centred the panel, we realised that the brackets were unsuited to the roof of the boat, because Liverpool Boats have curved roofs, so the only part of the brackets that make contact with the roof, is the inside edge. The rest of the bracket sticks out and doesn’t look too clever.

 As it happens we had bought for small right angled steel brackets, which we would have fitted anyway, to ensure the safety of the panel in high winds. So, today we’ll remove the support brackets – thank goodness they were cheap – and just fit the metal ones at each corner of the panel.

 The main thing is that the panel has now been rewired and that roof section has been repainted.

 The stern is also finished and the wrap-around shroud has been refitted, so we can now leave here as soon as we like. Today we’ll pop over to Braunston and buy a couple of non-slip adhesive pads for the edges of the stern deck and that will be that, for now anyway.

I’m pretty sure that, if Wifey had her way we’d be going out today. But I would prefer to stay for the weekend and watch the rest of the tennis. We’ll see what happens today though and I’m pretty sure the captain of this vessel will have her way. She usually does!!

 Monday 13^th July

 After walking around the Crick stalls yesterday we paid a visit to the club, by which time it was pouring with rain. It continued to do so for the rest of our usual hour, so I felt obliged to partake of another pint, which I nursed until it stopped. It had almost stopped raining when we left, so I didn’t feel too badly about spending that extra £3.00 on the third pint of Guinness.

 We watched the men’s Wimbledon final and had intended to take the boat out after that, but a strong wind had sprung up by then, so we abandoned that idea. Unfortunately it is now raining quite heavily, so I’m not sure that we’ll get away this morning either.

 Tuesday 14^th July

 Yesterday started with light drizzle and quite calm regarding wind, so we wandered off to the Co-op for a few bits and pieces. When we returned to the marina, disposed of rubbish and returned to the boat, by which time – as you would expect – the rain was heavier and a wind had sprung up. We sat around doing sweet Fanny Adams until about 2pm, by which time the rain had stopped, although it was still pretty windy. Still, we said ‘bugger it’ and wound up our landline cable, lowered the TV aerial and WiFi unit, untied the boat and away we went.

 About an hour later, having covered just three miles, and with the clouds thickening up, we pulled in by bridge 26 and settled in for the rest of the day. By the time we had moored up down came the rain, so it was just as well we stopped.

 Today? Well, who knows how far we’ll get? We do have heavy cloud cover, but it doesn’t look too threatening.

 Wednesday 15^th July

 Back in February, as some of you may remember, I had a polyp removed from my bladder and was released from hospital the following afternoon.

 Speaking with the surgeon who performed this delicate op, I was told to expect a follow up appointment with the clinic in about three weeks’ time. February, March, April and May swiftly passed and, just as we were about to leave the marina for a couple of weeks cruising, I received a letter inviting me to the aforementioned clinic at the end of the month.

 Now, Northampton General has yet to drag itself into the 21^st century, so there’s no email address on their correspondence and, since telephoning from the marina is fraught with difficulties, I decided to write back, explaining that we would now be away until November.

 You can imagine my surprise when, a few weeks later I received another appointment, this time for July 29^th. So, once again I wrote back and, once again I explained that we would be away until November.

 Just before we left the marina my phone rang and, since it was an unknown number, I simply switched it off. NGH are nothing if not persistent and just a few seconds later my phone ‘pinged’, informing me that I had a Voicemail which, after much jiggery-pokery – I’m still not completely familiar with this 21^st century technology – Wifey discovered that my appointment for July 29^th had now been brought forward to the 22^nd.

 Well, now, we won’t be back from this short trip until the 24^th, at the very earliest and, since I do not have NGH’s phone number listed inside my phone and have not retained any of their letters, I am unable to phone or write to them. I suppose the next letter I receive will be to complain that I missed an appointment.

 We are now on our way to Market Harborough and, with luck and better weather than yesterday; we should be there before the weekend. Yesterday was a bit of a bummer weather-wise and we spent 1½ hours cruising in the rain. This is not something we normally do, but it was necessary because we want to back at the marina for Friday 24^th as I want to drive down to Harlow and Alex has an appointment with the vet on the following Monday. I also have an appointment with the podiatrist on the same day.

 Following on from all of that, we’re hoping to be away for a few months after those appointments; probably sometime during that week. We hope…..!

 Friday 17^th July

 We spent three very pleasant hours yesterday cruising the five miles to the bottom of Foxton Locks. We took a walk back from our moorings and sat on a bench with ice creams and then, on the way back from there I received a phone call. This was, once again, from NHG, confirming my upcoming appointment. I’m hoping that I’ve finally convinced them that I will be unable to attend.

 Today we’ll be cruising the final five miles to Market Harborough, where we’ll do some shopping and stay overnight, returning to Foxton Locks on Saturday or Sunday morning.

 Meanwhile, I think it’s time I posted this blog. So, without further ado, I’ll wish you all a great weekend.

 Dave, Sheila and Alex.

 

 

Summer 2015: Crick 3

Friday 5^th June to Sunday 5^th July

 Thursday 11^th June

 You will notice the time difference between this and the last blog post? Well, I have been beavering away at my new Cartoon Portrait hobby, and we’ve been spending time painting the stern deck, so the blog has simply been set aside, but not forgotten.

 Now, as far as the cartooning is concerned, I have been considering building a simple website, upon which I can display some examples of my work and encourage people to buy that “Special Present”, for “That Special Person”. Of course the person from whom I purchased this idea, has a website with all the bells and whistles, including videos and such.

 All I really want, however, is a site that depicts a few examples and invites orders for cartoons. If I make it simple enough to follow; rather than seven or eight pages of in-depth information, the whole enterprise will be much easier to control. I’m not looking for a full time income here; just a few orders here and there, which will give me something to pass the time and earn a few bob.

 We have now completed painting all the green on the stern deck, doors and side panels. Our next job will be applying an undercoat for the cream, non-slip deck paint. That’s Wifey’s job, since I am unable to get down on my hands and knees.

 Today we’ll be driving over to Braunston to replace the battery filler bottle top, that my so-called friend thought hilarious when I dropped it in the ’oggin. There are a few other things we need from there, such as more green paint and a couple more things.

 Sunday 14^th June

 So far we’ve managed to apply a couple of coats of paint to the back doors and surrounding panels, along with the tall unit that houses the control lever. However, brush marks do show through, so we’ve now bought some wet and dry paper with which to rub it all down, before applying a final coat using new brushes.

 I’ve almost finished writing up my eBay ad for Personalised Cartoon Portraits, and I’ll probably post that tomorrow morning. My first foray into the world of cartoon portraits will only be for a hand drawn cartoon on watercolour paper, which will be posted to the buyer in a hard backed A4 envelope. I will leave it up to the recipient to frame the cartoon and present it to his/her ‘victim’.

 Following on from this, I will write other ads for framed A4 and A3 portraits. But I want to see what reaction I get from the simple stuff first.

 Thursday 18^th June

 More painting on the stern deck yesterday; thankfully before the rain came. Today, if the weather stays dry, Wifey will mark out the base of the deck and apply undercoat for the cream, non-slip surface.

 I’m still undecided as to where to advertise my Cartoon Portraits. Mt mentor; one Alan Taylor; advertises on eBay and charges just £24 and sends the result by email in the forms of a .jpeg and a .pdf file, and leaves it to the client to print it out. How he gets away with the electronic mailing on eBay, I have no idea, because it’s strictly against their rules.

 I want to hand draw them on watercolour paper and frame them, but I’m not sure where to list them. There are many more sites than eBay, most of which deal with crafts of one kind or another. And then there local shops, such as our Co-op, which charges just £0.60p per week for a shop window ad.

 Look, I’m 73 years of age and don’t want to go back to ‘work’, so I have to be careful about the amount of business I attract.

 On Saturday I’ll be off to Harlow, after which we’ll be heading off for a few weeks in the boat.

 Friday 19^th June

 After applying undercoat to the stern deck yesterday, Wifey was hoping to apply a second coat this morning. Alas, the rain put a stop to that idea. However, it’s now 2 pm and the surface is now dry, so she’s outside painting that second coat.

 Monday 22^nd June

 My trip to Harlow went very well, although Les and Dave were away on holiday, so I couldn’t call in on them. However, I did get to visit Chris and Mal and help put the world to rights, along with the consumption of two cups of tea,

 Part of the afternoon was spent at the Admiral with Alan, but we had to go to his place of work later to see an engineer sort out a problem with electronically operated doors. After which it was a return to the Admiral.

 I also collected a Tablet that Alan bought for me; all I have to do now is set it up and find a use for it. Since loads of people have them I have to assume there are plenty of uses for them.

 Wednesday 24^th June

 Yesterday Wifey applied the third and final undercoat to the stern deck, after which we took Alex to meet the folks at the Vets in Hilmorton. He wasn’t that impressed because he made his liquid mark on the place.

 Today, since we are now only a few days away from our 35^th wedding anniversary and Wifey’s birthday, we’ll be taking the bus into Rugby for cards.

 Thursday 25^th June

 Yesterday was a great day weather-wise, but far too warm in the morning for any painting to be done. However, it did cool down later so Wifey did manage a coat of the final colour to the stern.

 We keep a Tupperware box of biscuits and treats in the cupboard under the sink. These are for Alex, not us and, up until yesterday we thought they were safe from prying doggie eyes. Not so!! He knows where they are and seems to have found a way to open the cupboard door.

 Yesterday afternoon I went to his box to give him a small treat, but the box looked to be rather short of biscuits, compared to the last time we looked. Obviously our little canine pal had helped himself, which was borne out by his obvious discomfort soon afterwards.

 Needless to say we have now fitted a lid to the box!!

 Friday 26^th June

 Yesterday we took a drive over to Daventry to stock up on dog food. We also took Alex over to the local park for a bit of a walk and an ice cream.

 Saturday 27^th June

 It’s another lovely day and we were planning on topping up the batteries and running the engine. Instead we took a walk up to the Post Office and had a coffee when we returned.

 I have now finished practising with the Cartoon making and have now listed on Etsy.com. Rather than attach photos of the cartoons I’ve done so far; which can be fraught with problems on Blogspot; if you would like to take a look you’ll find me at Shiralee Publishing on the Etsy site. I’m also on Folksy.com under DoneByDave and eBay, under Done-by-Dave.

 Tuesday 30^th June

 Many thanks to all who sent a Birthday/Anniversary Card; much appreciated.

 We had planned to take the bus into Rugby this morning, but it will probably be too hot for traipsing around the shops. Instead I’ll climb down into the engine bay and top up the batteries. No doubt I’ll wish I hadn’t done so, because I’m bound to climb out all sticky and mucky. I’m not sure which is worse!!

 Yesterday I removed the tool box and support bars from the stern, to enable Wifey to paint the deck behind the safety rails. I had suggested to my dear brother, that he might like to make a new box, just to give him something to do; as if he’s not busy enough!! However, the box still appears to be in good shape, so a coat of paint is all it needs. Not to worry Bruv, I’ll see if I can find you something else to do. LOL.

 Friday 3^rd July

 Since I last made an entry here we’ve been in the midst of a heat-wave. Fortunately we do have the benefit of any available breeze while we’re in the marina. Believe me it’s a totally different story when cruising and moored along the canal where, unless we’re under a tree, such weather can be unbearable.

 We watched Nadal take a bashing from Dustin Brown yesterday evening. What a surprise!!

 Sunday 5^th July

 This morning was much cooler than of late and we managed to walk up to the Post Office without working up a sweat. That’s me, by the way, Wifey just glows, as befits a lady!!

 We also walked to the Club and watched the start of F1, but didn’t stay to see Hamilton win – again.

 Tomorrow; now that Wifey has finished painting the stern deck; I’ll refit the toolbox and give it a rub down and new coat of paint. I’ll then be re-wiring the solar panel and taking a look at the state of the paint underneath it before refitting it on new brackets.

 During the next few days we’re hoping to finish painting the roof and, after a good bit of shopping on Wednesday, we’ll probably take the boat out for a couple of weeks.

 That’s about it for this blog. My apologies if the space between postings seems rather long but there’s really not much going on here and it seems pointless posting only 3-4 pages.

 Take care all.

 Dave, Sheila and Alex.