How old is ‘old’?

Back on Iona last Spring the young lady on the ticket desk of the Abbey gave me an age concession ……… and I hadn’t even asked!!  No wonder I’m now even more despondent about my advancing years!  (I’ve been in crisis about it for at least the last 18!)    The years seem to have crept up on me and mine whilst we have been pre-occupied focussing on other things!  I know that many people accept growing older with grace and dignity but, sorry, not me!  The only positive thing about it as far as I’m concerned is that our closest friends are either:-          already older, as old or nearly as old!!

Yesterday, however, I had a salutary lesson. 

As we were walking past Crick Wharf along the tow path we were enthusiastically greeting by a four year old long-haired, sandy-coloured little terrier called …… Sandy!  We got talking to Sandy’s owner (like you do) and, after establishing that we too are boaters, topics of conversation included the advantages of bow-thrusters when they are working properly and the disadvantages of chain saws when they are not!

THEN …………… we found out that this single-handed boatman is 84 years young!!  Looking at him, I thought he was in the same decade as John!  Now it might be, I hear some say, that John is wearing particularly badly ………………. but I don’t think that is really the case.  This elderly gentleman is fit and very proud of his full head of hair.  Sadly, his wife died a year ago and, rather than sit at home feeling lonely and sorry for himself, he decided to sell up, sell his old boat, get a new one built with everything on it that he always wanted and set off as a liveaboard.  TRULY AMAZING!  Only 84 years young – fit, positive, determined and courageous.  An inspiration to us all. 

I still hate the thought of the number of candles to be crammed onto my next birthday cake but ……………….. I will at least now attempt to blow them out with more humility than usual.

Other News

•  Megan is no longer with us.  She is spending the rest of this week with her friend, Lynn, in Reading and flies out to Alicante next Monday. 
• We are still having intermittent blue screens on the computer.  We have had a new drive fitted but …………… it’s still happening!  We now strongly suspect dodgy dongle extension leads.  (Try saying that when not sober!!)  Clearly, finding the solution to this frustrating technical fault will have to be a process of elimination.  If we find that it is a dodgy dongle extension lead John says he will definitely dangle the said dodgy dongle in the drink before dumping it to it’s detriment!!

Drink?  Who said drink?  What time is it?

Domesticity rules OK?

This week my tiny little galley has been a hive of activity and lots of homemade goodies have graced the cake tins.  Every now and then I have this mad impulse to bake cakes but this week I have also ventured into the baking of  pizza and ……………………..

BREAD!!

Back in the summer my friend Chris on n/b ‘DuMorvan’ assured me,

 “Of course you can bake bread without a bread-making machine – I do it all the time.   What you have to do is ………….”

“O.M.G.”, said Megan, “It’s sure to be like a brick!”

“O.M.G.”, said John, “the ducks will sink!”

Well, despite scepticism from the other crew members I thought I would give it a go and see what happened.  They took the rise out of me but they couldn’t take the rise out of my bread because this was the (somewhat surprising to us all) result.  It must have been all that pummelling!!!!!!!!!!!  Oh, they of little faith!  It actually tasted good too!

I’ve also been plodding on with the crocheting of new cabin lace for the windows and have completed two sets.  It always takes a while to get used to something new but I’m pleased with how they are turning out. I can’t quite decide to keep the dingly-dangly-sparkly-bits or not:-

Without dingle-dangles.                                                                              

(Yes, the next job for this Mature Domestic Goddess Student must be to clean the windows!!)     

With dingle-dangles – every one or every other one or interspersed with something completely different?  Can’t decide as yet.

 

Megan has spent the weekend with her best friend from Uni days – Natalie – who, having met the love of her life when she went out to Malta last year to see Meg, now lives near Buckingham.  We are going to collect Megan later tonight and she will spend the rest of the week with us here in Crick.

Sun-set over the marina.

The Wanderer Returns ………… albeit temporarily

Last Sunday Megan’s best pal, Lynn and George her dog, acted as chauffeurs to bring Megan to us at Crick.  Lynn and George stayed until Monday afternoon; Megan is staying until Friday.  During a walk on Monday it didn’t take long for George to find the water – all but his head went in and under!  He definitely got more than he was expecting when he wandered down the bank!  Fortunately it didn’t take too long for him to dry off – the poodle part of his fur maybe.

                                          

We ended up in ‘The Red Lion’ for lunch ………….!  Even on a Monday it was busy, busy.

We have now seen all the photos of Meg’s travels and Argentina and Brazil are certainly very beautiful countries.  The mountains and most of the beaches are just fabulous.  What an amazing experience she has had with only a couple of incidents that I was definitely better off not knowing about at the time!

Before she left Lynn told us about a huge Shopping Centre called Fosse Park just off Junction 21 of the M1 so, today, that’s where we have been ……. for hours and hours!  It was well worth going because Meg got lots of bargains and nearly everything she wanted.   Me? I went along in a supportive role!  Now?  Shopped out – I definitely don’t need to see another trendy clothes shop for a long, long time!  ‘We’, needless to say, does not include John!  I guess he has had a very peaceful day …….

“Lovely, Lovely” (sorry but it’s an in-house joke!)

First of all – HAPPY NEW YEAR to all those we know and, all those we have yet to know!

For the New Year celebrations we went to stay with our lovely, lovely friends Mick and Lynn.  It’s not only our Queen who can celebrate a Jubilee in 2012 – it’s the Clayton/Allebone Ruby-Juby – 40 years of dedicated friendship and, at some point during the year, we fully intend to celebrate this momentous occasion in style!    

On our arrival on Friday we beheld a vast assortment of lovely, lovely Christmas decorations adorning both inside and out. 

I think being the proud grandparents of two lovely, lovely little boys might just have gone to their heads a wee bit because the back garden was akin to Santa’s grotto!

Lovely, lovely coloured lights adorned every fence, hedge, bush, tree and flower pot – it looked truly amazing!

On New Year’s Eve we met up for lunch with Andy, Rhia and young Harry at a lovely, lovely pub local to them.  It was really good to see them all.  What a lovely, lovely little boy!

Back in Harlow in the evening we watched a lovely, lovely DVD (one I’ve been wanting to see since it’s release), played ‘Who’s in the Bag?’ and a selection of games on Wii, or is it Wii games?  – all new to us anyway.

With the emptying of each fresh bottle, laughter increased but memory-skills and thinking skills got regrettably slower and slower – strange that!!!

On New Year’s Day Lynn cooked a huge, lovely, lovely roast dinner for eight.  Their other son, Chris, his partner Lisa and their lovely, lovely  little boy, Leo came over ……………… and a couple of their friends too.  I was also allowed to indulge myself and watch the very last Harry Potter film – yes, I’m another addict!  What a brilliant film.

        

On Monday, in bright sunshine, we went for a lovely, lovely walk around the Fisher’s Green area of the Lee Valley Country Park.  It was really nice to re-visit a part of the Lee Navigation that we cruised 18 months ago on our way to to Andy and Rhia’s wedding.  What a lot has happened in those 18 months!

LOTS of people were out enjoying the crisp but bright weather.

SO, in summary, the ‘Shouting’ was fab-u-lous. Thank you very much Mr & Mrs Clayton for a lovely, lovely few days.

We are now back on our boat and Megan …………….. is in Reading, ENGLAND!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It’s All Over Bar the Shouting ……

Don’t know what it means but it’s the sort of thing my mum would now be saying.  Perhaps it’s all about the large amounts of money we have been tempted and succumbed  to spend – all over bar the paying for things that have been put on credit card!!

We have had a completely different Christmas from any we have had before.  Despite my reservations about not being in Staines, it’s been really nice Ben coming here to us for a change.  He seemed happy enough being back on a narrowboat, was very observant and complimentary about anything we have done on board “Ellen” and definitely appreciated being catered for and waited on!!  Probably like everybody else, we’ve eaten too much and drunken FAR too much.  Do hope that everyone else out there has also had a nice Christmas.

A new ruler for the tool box!!

                                              Do I smoke it, eat it or ……. HIDE it!!

 

Maisie has enjoyed having someone else to sleep with (! – she gets right down under the covers given half a chance) and play with – fighting with poor old Mr Lion.  We gave her a large bone/biscuit thing for Christmas and she didn’t know what to do with it!  She just wanted to hide it and then guard it!!  Maggie on the other hand got well stuck in!!

On Boxing Day we thought it was a good idea to take Ben to Foxton to show him the locks and the incline plane.   THE PLACE WAS HEAVING!  Car parks both top and bottom were virtually full, both pubs, both cafes and the shop were all chock-a-block.  Investment in the development of this area as a tourist attraction is certainly paying off.  We were staggered at just how busy it was.  A quiet stroll around Foxton it was not!  I’m still hoping to get out on the boat and go there whilst the canals are not frozen – from Crick to Foxton is one of my favourite stretches.                                       

 Looking over the Inclined Plane at Foxton Locks.

                                     I like the way this sign has been made to look like a lock beam.

Ben left this afternoon (borrowed my brother’s car rather than come up on his motor bike).  Bye Ben – maybe he’ll come again next year.

 

     

A Moment of Extravagant Madness!

Today it has rained …… and rained …………….. and rained ………….. and rained!!

The reservoirs need it really badly so no grumbles.  It’s a necessary delivery of what we float on!

But what to do on a day like today?  Go to the posh kitchen shop in The Heart of the Shires complex and buy a lovely new set of saucepans of course!!  I had NO idea how many different types of saucepan there are!  But, yes, a moment of extravagant madness took place.  I blame Nigella and all that scrummy Christmas cooking she has been broadcasting on the tele this week.

BUT ….. if you had seen the old ones ……………… !!!  UGH! 

It’s really quite dangerous having access to a car!

A Year ago Today

…………… I lost my mum and …………….. I’m still so very, very sad.  I’m still on the side of that invisible assault wall where you feel  agonising sorrow for what you  have lost.  On the other side of the wall I’m told you feel intense joy at what you had but ……. how to get over???!!!

Anyway, special memories today of my mum ……………

                                                

xxoo