My first job was in a residential care home on a youth training scheme when I was 17 years old. I loved talking to old people and hearing their stories; that’s how I ended up a nurse.
A morning of emails and admin (assignments on youth poverty and choosing appropriate sources of information are due in this week). Then this afternoon I had some time off so I wrote 500 words for the Introduction chapter of my dissertation, introducing my main ‘Mad-doctor’ and the social context of his practice.
Tea is pigeon breasts I think, possibly on a spicy lentil and veg base.
I'll add my sympathy for anyone who visits their nearest and dearest in care homes; I found visiting Mum (and latterly, Dad) really hard.
Today did not get off to a good start: I was rinsing my hair, thinking no evil, when suddenly the shower just stopped. No descent of water, and hair still lathered up to the nines. Obviously, I tried turning it off and turning it on again, but no joy. So I rinsed it under the tap (stone-cold water, as my water heater is less than functional), and headed to work to ask my colleagues if they could recommend A Chap.
Luckily, L (bless her!) was able to give me a phone number for her Chap, who duly turned up chez Piglet as I arrived home from work. He turned the shower on, and of course it cascaded forth with water of the appropriate temperature. He wasn't quite sure what had happened (well, it wasn't happening while he was here) - possibly overheating? - but he opened up the unit thingie and looked at it, which may have scared it into behaving itself. The man is obviously some sort of magician, and I hope the magic extends to it working for the foreseeable future. I've been thinking of having the bath replaced with a walk-in shower, on the principle that there'll come a time when the side of the bath is a stretch too far for the porcine legs, and this may be the nudge that I need to get it done. He said he couldn't do the full replacement, but could replace the unit if it were needed.
And he didn't charge me anything!!!
Not all heroes wear capes ...
Supper was the second instalment of the curry, and if I'm still hungry when I get back from Night Church, the third instalment may happen.
A happy story - much better than the usual trolls and hobgoblins who take over old plumbing. Having a spot of bother with lower joints myself, I've found that carefully placed grab bars in the bathroom, especially around the tub, are one of the engineering profession's greatest contributions to contented living, and they don't cost much.
Certainly in Embra you can have a grab bar fitted for free by the Council.
One day we too will need a walk-in shower, but at the moment a combo of window sill, grab bar, bath seat and towel rail is sufficient for the necessary acrobatics.
Our cottage is too small for bath and shower so we opted for walk in shower. I do miss a good soak in a bath and make the mist if it when visiting bath owners.
German U3A group today. Very enjoyable, lots of chatting and I can't over-talk as my vocabulary is quite limited. I read very well 'tho!
A very lovely walk with the Ramblers today. It was in an area I haven't been to before and was English countryside at its best, autumn colours and pretty villages. The village we started out in had a 'cake shed' or to be more accurate a cake cupboard. Lots of delicious cakes in a small cupboard at the end of someone's drive at very reasonable prices and an honesty box. We shared a flapjack with our coffee and brought home some lemon drizzle cake.
Tonight I'm off to my writing group for a session on how to write ghost stories.
I had an eye appointment at the hospital today. One isn't supposed to drive to these so the journey involved two buses each way, with a fairly tight connection on the outbound run. I was a couple of minutes late but it didn't matter and all went smoothly. I had a bit of a wait for the bus home so had a coffee.
Re: baths - there aren't words* for how much I hate them, so it'll be no loss when I finally get round to replacing it.
Sadly, the shower magic didn't last; it offered delightfully hot water for the first five minutes or so, and then, just as I'd lathered up my hair, it went off again. I phoned the plumber (a Mr Bathgate, which I think is an excellent name for a plumber), and he said he'd call me back once he'd found a suitable unit thingie. Unfortunately he didn't message back until after I got home from work, and he's now coming back tomorrow after work. I'll have to hope for the best with how to manage tomorrow morning ...
* at least, not ones you can use on A Christian Website™.
As there wasn't quite enough curry left to feed a hungry piglet, I defrosted and tipped in a packet of prawns, and the resultant comestible was very nice indeed.
I must go to Tessie's tomorrow at lunchtime; I have very little food in the house, and I'm nearly out of WINE.
Bugger about the shower @piglet. I hope Mr Bathgate can fix it permanently next time. @Baptist Trainfan , hope the eyes have recovered from the drops etc.
The meeting tonight ended early tonight, which is just as well as I have a bit of a daft day tomorrow. I need to go and vote in the by-election in my ward, before heading to the Town Hall for an event where I need to make a speech. Fortunately it'll just be thanking everyone for coming, but I need to be there early to work out exactly who I'm thanking and what the organiser of the event want me to say. Then its my bookshop shift and then a few hours of doing nothing much before heading to the count for the by-election. At least that is being held in the council offices at the end of my road so not very far to go.
Thanks. It's incipient glaucoma, but kept well under control with jobs. A planned operation earlier in the year was downgraded, then cancelled, as unnecessary.
One of the reasons they advise you not to drive after dilating drops is that the potential for reduced vision could mean that your insurance might not cover you if you had an accident.
Noisy fireworks here, which unsettled Mochi. Today was the usual day of admin and marking, and I’m looking forward to a marking-free day tomorrow.
Tea was egg, bacon and mushroom risotto (make mushroom risotto in the oven and then put egg and bacon on top and leave the lid off for the last 15 minutes of cooking).
The almshouses where I live have gradually had baths replaced by showers over the years, on account of The Incident.
One old lady got stuck in the bath, but was able to phone the fire brigade to get her out.
She was in her 90s, and said it was the best fun she'd had for years!
For some reason, I have been inexplicably tired this last week or so. I woke so late on Sunday that I almost missed church.
I have decided to dedicate today to the patron saint of idleness*. I was in bed at 9.15 last night and didn't come around properly until 10.05 am. I haven't got dressed and am sitting here in an oodie, which is lovely and warm. I will shower and dress later, but I already feel better.
What has made me so tired, I don't know, but apart from today, I have been out every day, doing something for some weeks now. I hope the rest will do me good, but the real test will be how I feel tomorrow. Will I spring out of bed at 7.30, ready for anything? Who knows?
* There isn't one, as I understand it. It makes us wonder how the nobility have managed all these years.
Cycling home from work yesterday at 7.00 I saw quite a few flashes and heard quite a few bangs. At one point my route was going in the general direction of quite a large organised display which was great. When I turned into my road I saw a red rocket being launched from a garden which was more fart than firework.
I was on the bus last night. We stopped at one stop and could see a particularly nice firework going off nearby. The driver waited until it had finished before moving off, which was appreciated.
Our Deacons' meeting was interrupted by many loud bangs!
I have decided to dedicate today to the patron saint of idleness*.
* There isn't one, as I understand it. It makes us wonder how the nobility have managed all these years.
My suggestion would be Jerome (as in Jerome K Jerome). If you need inspiration in this try his The Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow.
For example, on "Work" he writes: "I like work: it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours. I love to keep it by me: the idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart."
The almshouses where I live have gradually had baths replaced by showers over the years, on account of The Incident.
One old lady got stuck in the bath, but was able to phone the fire brigade to get her out.
She was in her 90s, and said it was the best fun she'd had for years!
We had a noisy firework evening last night as well, I could hear them and kept looking out of the window but couldn't see any.
I've been to my usual exercise class this morning, followed by coffee with friends and - highlight of the day so far - my flu jab. I hardly felt it when it happened (I commented to the nurse, "You've done that before, haven't you?" to which she replied, "Just a few times...") but the site of it is sore now.
Salmon and roast vegetables for tea, then Mr Nen and I are both out to different things this evening. We've agreed we'll both hotfoot it home as quickly as we can at 9pm in order to watch the final of Celebrity Traitors on catch up. That had a mention on Radio 4's Thought for the Day this morning - the speaker was talking about when he goes to his barber for a beard trim they discuss the deep questions of life and were talking about the End Times. They agreed the end of the world can't come yet because the speaker needs to grow a decent beard, the barber wants to find love and they need to know who wins the Traitors .
O. Are we not in the End Times?
Another quiet, mild, cloudy day in Arkland the Calm. High spring tides for the next day or two mean that some moving about of Arks is taking place - always interesting to watch from the comfort of my Wheelhouse, assisted by BEER.
Chinese cuisine today - Chicken Chow Mein for lunch, with some nice vegetable Spring Rolls as a snack around Tea-Time.
Lots of bangs and flashes round here yesterday. The air was heavy with the smell of gunpowder when I was going to my meeting last night.
I had a lovely morning at a Youth COP in our Town Hall. It was organised by some local volunteers and involved 5 primary schools. The pupils were a credit to their schools and full of great ideas for how to make their schools and our town more eco friendly. Three of us councillors were there to talk about how local democracy works and I think we got our message accross.
Slept well and had a good swim. Phoned up my car insurers and haggled £42 off my renewal premium. Took advantage of the dry but damp weather to do some vigorous garden pruning, the green bin is now FULL for collection tomorrow.
Our street is the later extension of a rather grand road of Victorian mansions, so the address is South GrandRoad. We share a number with a building that contains a flat usually occupied by - sometimes overseas - postgrads.
Over the years, there's been a trickle of misdirected people, parcels, post and taxis between the two. Today it was a letter, which as it was marked NHS Private and Confidential I decided to redeliver by hand rather than return to the postbox. And then continue on in a circuit to a supermarket. It was a longer and more uphill walk than I'd reckoned on, so now a bit puggled.
I need to unpuggle sufficiently to prep some polenta for dinner of beef kebab and polenta chips.
We are so lucky to be in a small village in rural Somerset. Not one firework has been heard here.
I'm grateful because Ted can be reactive to noise. We often get military helicopters going over on their way to/from the Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton. He sees them off every time - brave boy!
Oh, yes, I'm sure we are. If I recall it correctly the discussion was more about The End Moment (if there is to be such a thing).
I thought of you as I watched Canal Boat Diaries on TV yesterday evening. I don't know why I watch it really as I'm scared of water and my two brief experiences of travelling on a canal are enough to last me several lifetimes. Every time the boat enters a lock I get nervous; I experienced a lock while on a boat on one of the aforementioned travels and vowed Never Again. I also get nervous when you mention high tides as I imagine the water rising and your moorings being too short and the Ark being tilted or sunk or washed into a nearby field... I'm sure you know the necessary precautions to take to avoid such misadventures but there are times when my imagination goes into overdrive. (Particularly when I'm tired - Mr Nen woke me by having a nightmare at 4.30am. He got back to sleep; I didn't.)
Spring rolls as an evening snack sound wonderful!
Regarding baths and showers, we have a shower that's over the bath but I can't remember the last time one of us had an actual bath.
Yoga this morning but no coffee with the ladies as I needed to get back and do some work. This afternoon I taught a workshop for academics on student mental health.
Tea is spicy sausage casserole with scalloped potatoes. Then we are off to the weekly bible study group later this evening.
Oh, yes, I'm sure we are. If I recall it correctly the discussion was more about The End Moment (if there is to be such a thing).
I thought of you as I watched Canal Boat Diaries on TV yesterday evening. I don't know why I watch it really as I'm scared of water and my two brief experiences of travelling on a canal are enough to last me several lifetimes. Every time the boat enters a lock I get nervous; I experienced a lock while on a boat on one of the aforementioned travels and vowed Never Again. I also get nervous when you mention high tides as I imagine the water rising and your moorings being too short and the Ark being tilted or sunk or washed into a nearby field... I'm sure you know the necessary precautions to take to avoid such misadventures but there are times when my imagination goes into overdrive. (Particularly when I'm tired - Mr Nen woke me by having a nightmare at 4.30am. He got back to sleep; I didn't.)
Spring rolls as an evening snack sound wonderful!
Regarding baths and showers, we have a shower that's over the bath but I can't remember the last time one of us had an actual bath.
Well, I once navigated the Cheshire Ring (about 100 miles, and about 100 locks) in a week though I did have a crew...
Yes, the mooring ropes etc. do need to be fit for purpose, and in times of Excessive Water can be adjusted - though I can't recall ever having to do this. There have been times when we've had considerably more water than predicted, but the only casualty (back in October 2019) was the loss of my Car. We were caught out by an unexpected surge (a very high tide and a north-easterly wind), and about 40 cars and vans had to be written off... . As you can imagine, we all keep an eye on weather forecast, wind direction, and tide tables!
The Spring Rolls were tasty (thank you, Tess Coe), and there are some left for tomorrow.
I’ve done the Cheshire Ring in 8 days, as a family of 4 (with 2 teens). We went anti-clockwise and Northern part flooded while we were there which meant we got stuck in the lock under the dodgy office block in Manchester, the one with all the signs warning you not to engage in various activities, as there was too much water to open the gates. We fought with it for about half an hour and then the dealer who had been hanging around waiting for us to leave intervened and helped us to get it open.
I’ve done the Cheshire Ring in 8 days, as a family of 4 (with 2 teens). We went anti-clockwise and Northern part flooded while we were there which meant we got stuck in the lock under the dodgy office block in Manchester, the one with all the signs warning you not to engage in various activities, as there was too much water to open the gates. We fought with it for about half an hour and then dealer who had been hanging around waiting for us to leave intervened and helped us to get it open.
Much the same happened to us! At one point, most of the crew took to the streets, as the towpath was flooded, in order to get to the next lock...
@Nenya - yes, locks can be scary, especially deep ones, but with due care (and keeping the boat from getting tangled up with the gates) they should be no problem. The trick is not to rush...
Locks on the canals in The Netherlands and Belgium are something else - large, deep, and full of vessels of all shapes and sizes. Even my first barge, at 90 feet long, was sometimes dwarfed. I joined it in Amsterdam for its journey down to the Belgian coast near Oostende, with two old Dutch barge skippers doing the honours. An interesting experience
This morning I was asked to produce a chart ( table) for my choir, resurrecting old skills I have not needed to use for some time. I got on with it ( very slowly) as my son was due to come this afternoon and would help me out if needed. I succeeded, but he showed me a better way, though complained about my mouse which is not working properly. I am not sure I shall remember what he did.
Then he moved the bed out of my little study into the new spare bedroom, so tomorrow I have a lot of cleaning to do. Finally he spent an hour in my garden and filled the green bin ready for next week.
His time is becoming more limited as he has acquired some free-lance work, but I am very grateful for whatever he can manage to do for me.
Tonight I polished off the remains of a lasagne he had made, with green beans and broccoli and a few air-fried chips.
... Mr Bathgate doesn't come from Bathgate, does he?
No, he's a Lithgae boy born and bred, but Bathgate is just over the hill (St Pete's is a joint charge with St Columba's in Bathgate).
He is also a most excellent plumber, and I now have a new shower, which looks much better than the old one, and for unfathomable reasons, is only going to cost me £160, including his time!!!
When L said she thought he didn't charge enough, she wasn't kidding!
One of Tessie's Finest Fish Pies is doing its thing in the oven, and a glass of WINE will help it down very nicely.
I'm a keen bath fan but our current bath is too small to be able to stretch out in and I'm only 5' 2". On the other hand the bath in our previous house was too big and took an age to fill. The one in the house before that was just right, but there was a lot of other things in that bathroom that weren't.
I spent a lot of my childhood on narrow boats as my dad was a fanatic. Later, when my son was small we went down the Thames on one of his boats past the Houses of Parliament. I thought it was rather exciting, but then I trusted my parents steering skills.
There are even more bangs and flashes tonight than yesterday and I assume we're in for another couple of days of this.
I saw a few flashes, and heard considerably more bangs, in the early evening yesterday, but the loudest bangs (and prettiest flashes) didn't happen until quite a bit later - around 9:30 - and a few even later still. I understand the main "organised" display is at the Rugby Club on Saturday.
Just back from the count for the two by-elections in our Town for the District Council including one in my ward where I'm a Town Councillor. Reform won both. Not a happy bunny, but we'll see how they manage when they meet the reality of what the job actually is not what Farage would like it to be.
I was on the bus last night. We stopped at one stop and could see a particularly nice firework going off nearby. The driver waited until it had finished before moving off, which was appreciated.
At a family wedding some years ago the groom, who does big firework displays, got his mates to set up in a school field across the road from the reception venue. We all went outside to watch and part way through a double decker bus stopped in the bus stop between us and the display. Fortunately it moved on again quite quickly.
We have also done the Cheshire Ring and had problems under the office buildings. This was in the 90s. As I understand it that stretch is/was owned and run by someone other than the usual Canal & River Trust and they employed a massively hairy man on a bike to look after it. He did nothing to oppose the stereotype for that kind of role. He was fuming with the C&RT who had opened some gates because their stretch was starting to flood which sent all the water to him and they hadn't warned him. As usual. He put a lot more welly into opening the gates than we could or dared to and we got into the first lock with the man muttering and going off on his bike to see what was happening lower down. I suppose that a built up area like that is not a good location to have the facility to dispose of excess water easily.
One of Tessie's Finest Fish Pies is doing its thing in the oven, and a glass of WINE will help it down very nicely.
That's reminded me to put some wine in the fridge for later. Mr Nen is away overnight so I shall be Home Alone. A nice easy tea of jacket potato and baked beans for tea for me; one of my favourite meals and the thing I always hoped my mum would have ready for me on my arrival from senior school (which involved a bus journey) on dark evenings. I might go wild and add some grated cheese.
Where we live at present we have a car journey (or a long bike ride... Mr Nen has done it, I most definitely haven't ) to get to our nearest canal, but if our proposed house move happens we'll be within walking distance of one so I should try and get over my fear of them . I guess if I'm just walking along the tow path it's not going to jump out and grab me, is it...?
Domestics this morning - I'm eyeing up a pile of paperwork that needs sorting - and out for coffee with friends this afternoon.
A few years ago, I was on the last bus to Hereford (I needed to catch an evening train) on Bonfire Night. The bus driver was Eastern European, and every time fireworks went off in the distance (which happened a lot - there are a lot of small villages between Hay and Hereford) the whole bus could hear him going "Ooooh!"
@The Rogue - IIRC, the bit of canal in Manchester with half-a-dozen locks, and the dreaded office building was owned by the Rochdale Canal Company, not British Waterways (as it was then - I'm going back to 1977). We had to moor up, and make our way to the RCC's Dickensian office (clerks with quill pens, sitting on high stools - well, almost) to get our licence or permit to navigate their waters.
The rest of the Rochdale Canal northwards was then un-navigable, but things may well have changed since then.
@Nenya - English canals, consisting of mainly 18thC technology, tend to be rather benign things IMHO, and offer a pleasantly restful alternative to the rush and hurry of Modern Life. A walk along the towpath, especially in a rural area, can reveal lots of interesting flora and fauna, not to mention idiosyncratic boatpeople...
Another mild day in Arkland the Calm, where today's high tide is just starting to ebb, and the Sun is beginning to break through the Clouds. All is well - no vehicles appear to have been affected, as everyone is either at work, or has moved them to a safe distance. I spotted one person, with Trowsers rolled up, and Wellington Boots on his feet, ploughing through the flooded car park area - alas! the water was deep enough to enter his Boots, and Norty Wurds could be heard...
Lunch today is Italian - LASAGNE al Forno (from the Co-Op), with (of course) Italian BEER. Yesterday's left-over Spring Rolls formed part of Breakfast (!), as I needed space in the fridge after visiting Tess Coe this morning.
We “did” a number of canals with friends from university. I have memories of seeing kingfishers in Woodseaves cutting, and lots of other things, amongst which were kneading bread on the move and passing bacon butties between two boats!
We had a narrowboat. We bought a shell and Mr Boogs fitted it out. Many happy weekends and holidays were spent on the canals when our boys were little. Even better when grandparents came and we had built-in babysitters!
For years it was called 'Black Pig' - not its real name!
It was moored in Whixall near Whitchurch so our weekend trips were to Llangollen. Holidays - all over the country.
We sold it when the boys were young teenagers, at the ignoring instructions stage - and I didn't feel they were safe round locks.
We paid off the mortgage with the proceeds. Narrowboats bring a very high price!
We “did” a number of canals with friends from university. I have memories of seeing kingfishers in Woodseaves cutting, and lots of other things, amongst which were kneading bread on the move and passing bacon butties between two boats!
The start of a family canal holiday with the first Mrs BF and her parents was usually marked by the appearance of the first slice of CHOCOLATE CAKE, being handed to the skipper (Me) as I resolutely steered the Vessel away from the boatyard whence we'd hired it. My mother-in-law made the best CHOCOLATE CAKE I've ever tasted...
Other not quite so fond memories are of using the Bread Knife to saw away a plastic bag (often blown into the cut from a field) which had wrapped itself firmly round the propeller.
Just back from the count for the two by-elections in our Town for the District Council including one in my ward where I'm a Town Councillor. Reform won both.
I'm so sorry. How anyone with a functioning brain cell could vote for those cretins is completely beyond me.
I picked up my f&c for supper on the way home from work, as there's one of my boss's jazz concerts at St Pete's this evening, so I thought, supper, mild snoozage, concert. It doesn't start until 8 o'clock, so I have plenty of time.
One of my other bosses, J, headed off early as he's on duty at the rugby club where they're setting off fireworks (I had thought it was tomorrow, but as is so often the case, I was Wrong).
I probably shan't see anything, unless I take a wee stroll along the road before the concert, and I'm not sure I can be bothered.
I couldn't face going out this morning to my philosophy class but cheered up as the day went on. I went out for a haircut and then off to an event to celebrate a local artist which was lovely.
A busy day today, with the usual admin and comms, phoning a student writing a tutorial (mental health models) and marking essays. I’m looking forward to the weekend.
Tea was Thai yellow pork and lentil curry made with pork escalopes and the lentil sauce from last night’s casserole. I’m now drinking rose Prosecco and munching on shortbread.
I was awake for about two hours in the night, chewing over various problems, but did eventually get back to sleep. I have been to my exercise class, which ends up taking all morning.
I had better spend this afternoon trying to resolve those issues within my power to resolve so I have less to dwell on in the night. Admittedly some of the issues are ones I can do nothing about, which is very frustrating, waiting for others to do their bit.
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A morning of emails and admin (assignments on youth poverty and choosing appropriate sources of information are due in this week). Then this afternoon I had some time off so I wrote 500 words for the Introduction chapter of my dissertation, introducing my main ‘Mad-doctor’ and the social context of his practice.
Tea is pigeon breasts I think, possibly on a spicy lentil and veg base.
Today did not get off to a good start: I was rinsing my hair, thinking no evil, when suddenly the shower just stopped. No descent of water, and hair still lathered up to the nines. Obviously, I tried turning it off and turning it on again, but no joy. So I rinsed it under the tap (stone-cold water, as my water heater is less than functional), and headed to work to ask my colleagues if they could recommend A Chap.
Luckily, L (bless her!) was able to give me a phone number for her Chap, who duly turned up chez Piglet as I arrived home from work. He turned the shower on, and of course it cascaded forth with water of the appropriate temperature. He wasn't quite sure what had happened (well, it wasn't happening while he was here) - possibly overheating? - but he opened up the unit thingie and looked at it, which may have scared it into behaving itself. The man is obviously some sort of magician, and I hope the magic extends to it working for the foreseeable future. I've been thinking of having the bath replaced with a walk-in shower, on the principle that there'll come a time when the side of the bath is a stretch too far for the porcine legs, and this may be the nudge that I need to get it done. He said he couldn't do the full replacement, but could replace the unit if it were needed.
And he didn't charge me anything!!!
Not all heroes wear capes ...
Supper was the second instalment of the curry, and if I'm still hungry when I get back from Night Church, the third instalment may happen.
One day we too will need a walk-in shower, but at the moment a combo of window sill, grab bar, bath seat and towel rail is sufficient for the necessary acrobatics.
German U3A group today. Very enjoyable, lots of chatting and I can't over-talk as my vocabulary is quite limited. I read very well 'tho!
Tonight I'm off to my writing group for a session on how to write ghost stories.
Re: baths - there aren't words* for how much I hate them, so it'll be no loss when I finally get round to replacing it.
Sadly, the shower magic didn't last; it offered delightfully hot water for the first five minutes or so, and then, just as I'd lathered up my hair, it went off again. I phoned the plumber (a Mr Bathgate, which I think is an excellent name for a plumber), and he said he'd call me back once he'd found a suitable unit thingie. Unfortunately he didn't message back until after I got home from work, and he's now coming back tomorrow after work. I'll have to hope for the best with how to manage tomorrow morning ...
* at least, not ones you can use on A Christian Website™.
As there wasn't quite enough curry left to feed a hungry piglet, I defrosted and tipped in a packet of prawns, and the resultant comestible was very nice indeed.
I must go to Tessie's tomorrow at lunchtime; I have very little food in the house, and I'm nearly out of WINE.
The meeting tonight ended early tonight, which is just as well as I have a bit of a daft day tomorrow. I need to go and vote in the by-election in my ward, before heading to the Town Hall for an event where I need to make a speech. Fortunately it'll just be thanking everyone for coming, but I need to be there early to work out exactly who I'm thanking and what the organiser of the event want me to say. Then its my bookshop shift and then a few hours of doing nothing much before heading to the count for the by-election. At least that is being held in the council offices at the end of my road so not very far to go.
Mr Bathgate doesn't come from Bathgate, does he?
Very noisy (because of fireworks) Deacons' Meeting this evening!
Noisy fireworks here, which unsettled Mochi. Today was the usual day of admin and marking, and I’m looking forward to a marking-free day tomorrow.
Tea was egg, bacon and mushroom risotto (make mushroom risotto in the oven and then put egg and bacon on top and leave the lid off for the last 15 minutes of cooking).
One old lady got stuck in the bath, but was able to phone the fire brigade to get her out.
She was in her 90s, and said it was the best fun she'd had for years!
I have decided to dedicate today to the patron saint of idleness*. I was in bed at 9.15 last night and didn't come around properly until 10.05 am. I haven't got dressed and am sitting here in an oodie, which is lovely and warm. I will shower and dress later, but I already feel better.
What has made me so tired, I don't know, but apart from today, I have been out every day, doing something for some weeks now. I hope the rest will do me good, but the real test will be how I feel tomorrow. Will I spring out of bed at 7.30, ready for anything? Who knows?
* There isn't one, as I understand it. It makes us wonder how the nobility have managed all these years.
Our Deacons' meeting was interrupted by many loud bangs!
My suggestion would be Jerome (as in Jerome K Jerome). If you need inspiration in this try his The Idle Thoughts of an Idle Fellow.
For example, on "Work" he writes: "I like work: it fascinates me. I can sit and look at it for hours. I love to keep it by me: the idea of getting rid of it nearly breaks my heart."
We had a noisy firework evening last night as well, I could hear them and kept looking out of the window but couldn't see any.
I've been to my usual exercise class this morning, followed by coffee with friends and - highlight of the day so far - my flu jab. I hardly felt it when it happened (I commented to the nurse, "You've done that before, haven't you?" to which she replied, "Just a few times...") but the site of it is sore now.
Salmon and roast vegetables for tea, then Mr Nen and I are both out to different things this evening. We've agreed we'll both hotfoot it home as quickly as we can at 9pm in order to watch the final of Celebrity Traitors on catch up. That had a mention on Radio 4's Thought for the Day this morning - the speaker was talking about when he goes to his barber for a beard trim they discuss the deep questions of life and were talking about the End Times. They agreed the end of the world can't come yet because the speaker needs to grow a decent beard, the barber wants to find love and they need to know who wins the Traitors
Another quiet, mild, cloudy day in Arkland the Calm. High spring tides for the next day or two mean that some moving about of Arks is taking place - always interesting to watch from the comfort of my Wheelhouse, assisted by BEER.
Chinese cuisine today - Chicken Chow Mein for lunch, with some nice vegetable Spring Rolls as a snack around Tea-Time.
I had a lovely morning at a Youth COP in our Town Hall. It was organised by some local volunteers and involved 5 primary schools. The pupils were a credit to their schools and full of great ideas for how to make their schools and our town more eco friendly. Three of us councillors were there to talk about how local democracy works and I think we got our message accross.
Over the years, there's been a trickle of misdirected people, parcels, post and taxis between the two. Today it was a letter, which as it was marked NHS Private and Confidential I decided to redeliver by hand rather than return to the postbox. And then continue on in a circuit to a supermarket. It was a longer and more uphill walk than I'd reckoned on, so now a bit puggled.
I need to unpuggle sufficiently to prep some polenta for dinner of beef kebab and polenta chips.
I'm grateful because Ted can be reactive to noise. We often get military helicopters going over on their way to/from the Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton. He sees them off every time - brave boy!
Oh, yes, I'm sure we are. If I recall it correctly the discussion was more about The End Moment (if there is to be such a thing).
I thought of you as I watched Canal Boat Diaries on TV yesterday evening. I don't know why I watch it really as I'm scared of water and my two brief experiences of travelling on a canal are enough to last me several lifetimes. Every time the boat enters a lock I get nervous; I experienced a lock while on a boat on one of the aforementioned travels and vowed Never Again. I also get nervous when you mention high tides as I imagine the water rising and your moorings being too short and the Ark being tilted or sunk or washed into a nearby field...
Spring rolls as an evening snack sound wonderful!
Regarding baths and showers, we have a shower that's over the bath but I can't remember the last time one of us had an actual bath.
Yoga this morning but no coffee with the ladies as I needed to get back and do some work. This afternoon I taught a workshop for academics on student mental health.
Tea is spicy sausage casserole with scalloped potatoes. Then we are off to the weekly bible study group later this evening.
Well, I once navigated the Cheshire Ring (about 100 miles, and about 100 locks) in a week
Yes, the mooring ropes etc. do need to be fit for purpose, and in times of Excessive Water can be adjusted - though I can't recall ever having to do this. There have been times when we've had considerably more water than predicted, but the only casualty (back in October 2019) was the loss of my Car. We were caught out by an unexpected surge (a very high tide and a north-easterly wind), and about 40 cars and vans had to be written off...
The Spring Rolls were tasty (thank you, Tess Coe), and there are some left for tomorrow.
Much the same happened to us! At one point, most of the crew took to the streets, as the towpath was flooded, in order to get to the next lock...
@Nenya - yes, locks can be scary, especially deep ones, but with due care (and keeping the boat from getting tangled up with the gates) they should be no problem. The trick is not to rush...
Locks on the canals in The Netherlands and Belgium are something else - large, deep, and full of vessels of all shapes and sizes. Even my first barge, at 90 feet long, was sometimes dwarfed. I joined it in Amsterdam for its journey down to the Belgian coast near Oostende, with two old Dutch barge skippers doing the honours. An interesting experience
Then he moved the bed out of my little study into the new spare bedroom, so tomorrow I have a lot of cleaning to do. Finally he spent an hour in my garden and filled the green bin ready for next week.
His time is becoming more limited as he has acquired some free-lance work, but I am very grateful for whatever he can manage to do for me.
Tonight I polished off the remains of a lasagne he had made, with green beans and broccoli and a few air-fried chips.
Over here you see barges with a bike or two on the back. Over there... well, I've seen Winnebagos!
He is also a most excellent plumber, and I now have a new shower, which looks much better than the old one, and for unfathomable reasons, is only going to cost me £160, including his time!!!
When L said she thought he didn't charge enough, she wasn't kidding!
One of Tessie's Finest Fish Pies is doing its thing in the oven, and a glass of WINE will help it down very nicely.
I spent a lot of my childhood on narrow boats as my dad was a fanatic. Later, when my son was small we went down the Thames on one of his boats past the Houses of Parliament. I thought it was rather exciting, but then I trusted my parents steering skills.
There are even more bangs and flashes tonight than yesterday and I assume we're in for another couple of days of this.
At a family wedding some years ago the groom, who does big firework displays, got his mates to set up in a school field across the road from the reception venue. We all went outside to watch and part way through a double decker bus stopped in the bus stop between us and the display. Fortunately it moved on again quite quickly.
We have also done the Cheshire Ring and had problems under the office buildings. This was in the 90s. As I understand it that stretch is/was owned and run by someone other than the usual Canal & River Trust and they employed a massively hairy man on a bike to look after it. He did nothing to oppose the stereotype for that kind of role. He was fuming with the C&RT who had opened some gates because their stretch was starting to flood which sent all the water to him and they hadn't warned him. As usual. He put a lot more welly into opening the gates than we could or dared to and we got into the first lock with the man muttering and going off on his bike to see what was happening lower down. I suppose that a built up area like that is not a good location to have the facility to dispose of excess water easily.
That's reminded me to put some wine in the fridge for later. Mr Nen is away overnight so I shall be Home Alone. A nice easy tea of jacket potato and baked beans for tea for me; one of my favourite meals and the thing I always hoped my mum would have ready for me on my arrival from senior school (which involved a bus journey) on dark evenings. I might go wild and add some grated cheese.
Where we live at present we have a car journey (or a long bike ride... Mr Nen has done it, I most definitely haven't
Domestics this morning - I'm eyeing up a pile of paperwork that needs sorting - and out for coffee with friends this afternoon.
The rest of the Rochdale Canal northwards was then un-navigable, but things may well have changed since then.
@Nenya - English canals, consisting of mainly 18thC technology, tend to be rather benign things IMHO, and offer a pleasantly restful alternative to the rush and hurry of Modern Life. A walk along the towpath, especially in a rural area, can reveal lots of interesting flora and fauna, not to mention idiosyncratic boatpeople...
Another mild day in Arkland the Calm, where today's high tide is just starting to ebb, and the Sun is beginning to break through the Clouds. All is well - no vehicles appear to have been affected, as everyone is either at work, or has moved them to a safe distance. I spotted one person, with Trowsers rolled up, and Wellington Boots on his feet, ploughing through the flooded car park area - alas! the water was deep enough to enter his Boots, and Norty Wurds could be heard...
Lunch today is Italian - LASAGNE al Forno (from the Co-Op), with (of course) Italian BEER. Yesterday's left-over Spring Rolls formed part of Breakfast (!), as I needed space in the fridge after visiting Tess Coe this morning.
For years it was called 'Black Pig' - not its real name!
It was moored in Whixall near Whitchurch so our weekend trips were to Llangollen. Holidays - all over the country.
We sold it when the boys were young teenagers, at the ignoring instructions stage - and I didn't feel they were safe round locks.
We paid off the mortgage with the proceeds. Narrowboats bring a very high price!
The start of a family canal holiday with the first Mrs BF and her parents was usually marked by the appearance of the first slice of CHOCOLATE CAKE, being handed to the skipper (Me) as I resolutely steered the Vessel away from the boatyard whence we'd hired it. My mother-in-law made the best CHOCOLATE CAKE I've ever tasted...
Other not quite so fond memories are of using the Bread Knife to saw away a plastic bag (often blown into the cut from a field) which had wrapped itself firmly round the propeller.
I picked up my f&c for supper on the way home from work, as there's one of my boss's jazz concerts at St Pete's this evening, so I thought, supper, mild snoozage, concert. It doesn't start until 8 o'clock, so I have plenty of time.
One of my other bosses, J, headed off early as he's on duty at the rugby club where they're setting off fireworks (I had thought it was tomorrow, but as is so often the case, I was Wrong).
I probably shan't see anything, unless I take a wee stroll along the road before the concert, and I'm not sure I can be bothered.
A busy day today, with the usual admin and comms, phoning a student writing a tutorial (mental health models) and marking essays. I’m looking forward to the weekend.
Tea was Thai yellow pork and lentil curry made with pork escalopes and the lentil sauce from last night’s casserole. I’m now drinking rose Prosecco and munching on shortbread.
I had better spend this afternoon trying to resolve those issues within my power to resolve so I have less to dwell on in the night. Admittedly some of the issues are ones I can do nothing about, which is very frustrating, waiting for others to do their bit.