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A Firewood poem
Beechwood fires are bright and clear, if the logs are kept a year
Chestnut's only good, they say, if for long 'tis stored away
Birch and fir logs burn too fast: Blaze up bright and do not last.
It is by the Irish said, hawthorne makes the sweetest bread.
Elm wood burns like church yard mould; e'en the very flames are cold
Poplar gives a bitter smoke, filling our eyes and making us choke.
Apple wood will scent your room with an incense-like perfume.
Oak and maple, if dry and old, keep away the winter cold.
But ash wood wet or ash wood dry, a king shall warm his slippers by!
Anon: Quoted by: "Y" in his column in the Irish Times.
("Y" was a pseudonym of the late Douglas Gageby, on time editor of the newspaper)
Lucie and I send our seasonal greetings to friends and family - wishing you all happiness and health for the coming year.
Castets-en-Dorthe is beautiful - see lots of photos in the "Christmas Message" album displayed in the left hand column of this page. Towns with good facilities nearby include Langon and La Reole, both within 10 minutes by car - The Friday market at Langon is the best I've seen and pleasantly "French", (in the nicest possible way) :The surprising absence of "Les Anglais" is doing wonders to my linguistic skills - I am told.
We have found an excellent, family run, DIY shop called "Bodin" in the centre of Langon (much better than Mr. Bricolage or Point P) - charming and helpful staff and an incredible stock of everything imaginable. Body and Soul now sports smart "polythene type" sheeting, protecting the stern deck from the elements and giving us an extra dry "boot room" and a place to sit out in the winter's sun.
There's free Wi-Fi, water and electricity within our monthly mooring fee and fallen branches from the plane trees lining the canal, (something like maple, as above) give us free winter fuel for the "Jotul" wood burner. We are cosy and warm despite the unusual amount of autumn rain that causes much mud throughout the port .
Our 2CV van (Mange tout) gets bogged down and splattered. Her engine and chassis are fine but the bodywork is increasingly held together with paint and Isopon - major work needed there.
Teddy and Spud must be rubbed down after each walk:Cleaning the boat gets harder. Spud, now 13, is totally deaf and more cumudgeonly than ever. Teddy, two years younger, is gradually taking the role of pack leader from his aging friend. I wonder which one of them will hit the buffers first, but try not to think about it too often!
Our lives throughout the last six months have been exceptionally busy with lots of "Foodie Cruises" and piano "Gigs", then visitors and visits to and from our families in the the UK, and in my case, to San Francisco as well. New neighbours have taken priority on the social scene and we have even found time to visit the Chateau du Hamel - which dominates the port.
Boat maintenance and painting is fitted in to all this somewhere. Our second set of batteries are getting weaker by the day and must be budgetted for - as is the next visit to the dry dock for another bottom scrape and some additional anodes. Lucie and I often talk about a "probably last" expedition up somewhere nice - perhaps to the North - who knows? The Canals of Europe offer so much more to explore or to re-visit - but it is very comfortable here and, no doubt, we will be having a great Christmas on board Body and Soul !
Please note this wine tip: (if you haven't already experienced it)
Having just returned from a lovely weekend in the Gers at Saint Mont with our friends (and boating neighbours at Castets) Michel and Yolland, we discover Madiran wines and we are now hooked on them - largely because they are made with (40% - 70%) the Tannat grape - reputedly especially good for the heart, say the doctors - the rest being Cabernet Sauvignon or Fer or Cabernet Franc: (it tastes good too!).
I'm trying hard to expunge the image of Clive's excellent homebrew pint (shown left) from my psyche, as Lucie and I - with glass of delicious Madiran (rouge) in hand - wish everyone a merry Christmas and happy new year 2014.
But as oft' said, it ain't all plain sailing y'know! cheers! - have a good one never-the-less!.
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