The Christmas lights are still ablaze
In Evran Town, for the past 12 days
"What heathen practice is this" I cry.
In France ? with more faithful than first meets the eye?
The answer to this question is now being told
As pagan history is seen to unfold
"Real" Christians count twelve from boxing day night
after which these lights must be out of sight
I need more input for my research
probably from people who go to church
But breaking news has just been aired
(I trust your patience can still be spared)
about all these 12th nights and strange traditions
confusing the real message of their missions
Ukraneans, on the 6th, eat one course per apostle
(with twelve, the bill must be colossal !)
We eat "les Gallettes des Rois" (it's made of frangipan)
hoping to find a holy star? that's if we can.
None of us is born a Christian, Moslem, Hindu or Jew
We can choose a belief from a list of quite a few
Or we can learn it all from other sources
like doing right or wrong, whatever the cause is.
So just when one's life seems to be in tatters
when nothing seems to solve these matters
it brings me to my central point
Stand tall, enjoy it all - stub out that lousy joint!.
.
Yes, well we're still here, happily moored, in the Port at Evran. waiting for the proper arrival of Spring....and the official opening of this lovely new wash-house facility!
.....yes I did offer to 'stand in' for the Queen at the opening ceremony on the 8th April but didn't want to upstage the Mairie, so had to turn it down!
The above picture should not be confused with......
The Lock-Inn Brewery ...you see here, my friend Paul's concrete brewery foundations with access to power, water and drainage.
The housing arrives next week. Then I apply my brewing and training skills to the full, with many tasting pleasures to come...not to mention jolly good company.
I'm just finishing the inside plan for a '60 litre brew' house. I'm so excited. Plans will be published next.
We plan to have two fermenting vessels which will enable us to brew two varieties on the same 'brew day'. There will be no bottling needed. All beer brewed will be cooled and stored "live" in "Cornelius kegs" and served using hand pumps and/or gravity.
To our families and other readers (?) a very prosperous and
Happy new year !
Putting a positive slant on 2021 is difficult but there are some bright moments to remember (some photo moments below) and we are grateful to report that all our close relatives, in both our families, seem to have survived the pandemic so far and have been drawn closer together, helped by the miracle of the world wide web but, more importantly, from a series of 'family' visits to us throughout the spring and summer months, despite horrendous travel complications and additional expense caused by 'Covid'.
(Visits from the Falshaws - Moo, Alan, Lois, Harry, Jake and Rosemary Walker with Emily, then son Clive and Aileen Walker from California, then Lucie's Sophie Blair, then brother Robert Walker with Di. and then co Narrow boat friend, Alex Melville with Sue - all were locally accommodated)
My eightieth year has been a year to remember- and I have to say - mostly for the wrong reasons. If we are to believe all the dismal reports from the media, 'homo-sapiens' seems to have lost the plot and is diving into a grubby pond of self destruction, taking with it all other living things. It's enough to make us all join the ranks of Jehovah Witnesses 'en mass'. Armageddon is surely just round the corner !
What the hell is going on? or is it just me having a bad day?
Well no ! - we are happily moored, back in le Port d'Evran - now bedecked with Christmas fairy lights - after 5 weeks enforced exile 5 kilometres upstream at St. Domineuc, allowing the canal maintenance people to drain our pound dry - and to repair a lock gate. We did not enjoy being away - the autumnal starboard view across the canal was lovely but being double-parked against a rather sick looking narrow boat (widebeam) darkened our port side as well as our mood.
In June, after a routine colonoscopy I was informed that there was a tumour in my colon.. I have had scans and MRIs and 18 weeks of chemo treatment. The medical team is very pleased with progress and I will learn this week, the date of an operation to remove the 50% that's left of the nasty bit.
In our 18th year of retirement on board 'Body and Soul' we are naturally somewhat limited in activity whilst both dealing with unwanted health afflictions and the inevitable encroachment of old age. My birthday bash had to be cancelled (postponed) until next year, or whenever. Actually we were quite relieved to celebrate quietly with just a few local friends and drop-ins.
..and now back to Christmas - but click here for Carols from Kings to cheer up even the most hardened atheist !
For welcome to new readers, click here
My Poem of thanks
I've been hanging on aged 79
for as long as I can and that's just fine
but, I'm naturally a bit partial to having fun !
and important matters have been left undone
Sadly - the 12th September has long passed
and upon reading my calendar I am somewhat aghast !
So I've dedicated this late poem to all Walker family ties
Too many souls to name here - for sore eyes
But thanks to all my 'rellies' and just to be PC
to the Rytinas, Blairs, Baileys, Balmes, Ridouts and Yeatts-Walkers
and the Crawfords, Mcbrides and Diamonds we can all agree
from the Chadwicks to the Falshaws - so much talent they expose
and to my Lucie without whom little happens? heaven knows !
Our weekly pension comes in, then out it goes
Like the sand at Saint Lunaire - between the toes.
But in my eighty first year, we've entertained a lot on board
helped by glasses of home-brewed beer and wine - that's all we can afford
But there are faces in this video, I confess, I've rarely seen
Who now live in lots of places where I have never been
Sending in kind wishes and singing that bloody song
whilst I appreciate the sentiment, it can be a bit too long
Upon hearing it in Lithuanian, and even in Chinese –
We may well have left the EU - but in France, life's still a breeze
Anyway, we are not complaining?
After sixteen years of entertaining
and we've survived this pandemic so far.
And one can never forget the people we've met
on Body and Soul – 'la peniche' with a bar
Be that as it may and suffice it to say
On board, life goes on whilst one's healthy
and through thick 'n thin if you havn't been
You are welcome whether sick, poor or wealthy
What matters in life, as our mummies would say
Is what gifts you can bring to others
- in monetary terms you've given nothing away
clearly advice well taken from your mothers
But for sending in messages and presents of all sorts
- and the fact that you have given me your sweetest of thoughts
and your artistic contributions to this epic CD
your good-will and talents laid bare to see
In thought and sincerity –you've been generous but snappy
and you've certainly kept this old man happy.
Thankyou
A view of our mooring (on the left-side of the canal)
click to enlarge
Our new port facility, now complete, to be formally opened 8th April 2022
Has washing machines, showering and other toilet requirements the public who haven't got their own on board and for campers.
Sewage disposal ? We'll see!
It's February 28th 2021. Spring chases winter away in Evran with cherry tree blossom and this week's glorious sunshine. But Covid 19 rages on - with transmission rising in specific areas such as Nice and up north around Dunkirk, where lock-down is re-imposed and new cases are still rising.
Today, for the record, France has 23,996 and the UK has 7,434 new cases recorded over the last 24 hours. The UK lies 23rd, internationally, in cases found per 1 million of her population and 16th amongst all European countries (not just those in the EU). Rarely, if ever, do we find this relatively better performance, compared with other nations, reported by the media. - One is tempted to ask, who needs a parliamentary opposition party when one has Sky News and the BBC ? ( these are figures taken from the United Nations Geoscheme -
Brewer's notes: This top fermented ale, called 'Spitfire bitter' - was brewed from malted barley grain, imported from the Uk, - supplied by BrewUk Ltd to the 'Body and Soul' Brewery (a Narrow Boat - wide-beam - currently moored at Port D'Evran, France, bringing relief to all aboard her. Any similarities to ale brewed by Shepperd Neame, of the same name, is purely incidental.
Thanks to the generosity of Clive (my son in California) who has provided me with the means to preserve, mature and serve this tasty, 'throat opening', home-brewed ale without the need for bottling - and all the mess that is involved - the above pictures are from the 'Spitfire Ale' recipe (yes you're right, "no Focker can touch 'em!" - the slogan stolen from Shepherd Neame). See the dispensing tank on the right above, with its tap, ready to serve. That's the one - delicious!
But it ain't all plain sailing, y'know....
Our old port public loo - Soon to be replaced with a brand new building!
For welcome to new readers, click here
Don't get me wrong, we love animals and the natural world within which we try to play our part as best we can. We realize how little we actually know about it and are often surprised by its wondrous ramifications - I can't believe that I got 'A'level Zoology at school, anyway we are all for saving the planet.
Be that as it may....
Take this invasion of moles (les taupes) for instance, their molehills multiply daily on the strip of grass bank along the canal-side that we call our own - why did they choose us, one asks?....
I counted ten hills this morning - alongside Body & Soul (see picture) - and that doesn't include the piles of earth that I have already cleared up yesterday and the day before. The molehills provide ideal soil for an outside toilet facility for cats - another example of inter-animalia(l) mutual aid. (symbiosis?)
With a powerful combination of advisors - Prince William, Sir David Attenborough, Google and Wikipedia - to help me, I hasten to do research which deserves the gratitude of posterity and partly to paint a picture of how we fit in to it all - or not - as we float in happy retirement at Evran, on this muddy old canalized river, called L'Ille et Rance - in Brittany - For moles again, click here
But here's another thing; learning from our previous successful experience with 'fat balls' and bird seed for tits and the rest, we have brought our 'hanging' bird table, from our previous mooring at Tinteniac, expecting similar success in Port Evran - so far without much luck. There don't seem to be many 'thin tits' flying about here. The same fat balls are turning black and the bird seeds remain UN-pecked. It is true that we are surrounded by mature hazel nut trees - after all, who needs smelly fat balls when deliciously fresh hazel nuts cover the ground beneath?
Our front path with molehills and hazel nuts.
Do we fish?
No we don't; but "fish" feature highly in our diet and on Lucie's shopping lists.
Last week, one of the many canal fishermen, who spend hours at this noble pastime on either side of the canal, caught a large pike (un brochet)- about 10lbs - just off the stern of Body & Soul. I offered him untold riches in order to acquire this tasty beast for eating (for recipe click here), but apparently French custom requires fishermen to put their catch back in the water alive and, after what seemed to be far too long, this pike was indeed allowed to slip away surprisingly unharmed. It is certainly comforting to know that fresh water fish thrive in muddy canal waters; just like French people can drink cloudy beer - Surprising, but 'Enuff sed'!
Did you know?
A pike can eat a prey item up to half its own body weight, even taking moorhens or young ducks. (Maybe that's why we don't have many mallards (ducks) here in Evran! ed.). Because of its size and predatory nature there are many stories about very large pike. The largest specimen caught in the UK so far was found in 1992 in a lake in Wales: it weighed in at just over 21kg - over a third of the weight of an average British woman. Larger fish have been caught abroad and there are stories of huge pike possibly weighing up to 42kg.
We also see Cormorants (Phalacrocorax carbo) regularly feeding in the port which is a good sign of healthy waters. For obvious reasons, fishermen don't like them... but we do... seeing them almost daily, flying, diving for fish and swimming almost within touching distance from our poop deck. It is a real treat. We especially love to see them hanging out their wings to dry in the sun; so unlike any other water fowl.
Dr. David Grimes has this diagram on his most recent blog posting which certainly helped me understand the process of Vitamin D, from the Cholecalciferol vitamin D state, through the liver becoming Calcifediol - the latter taking immediate effect in boosting the immune system against Covid 19 (and others)
In summary
Cholecalciferol is fine but, because it has to be converted by the liver to Calcifediol, the effect on Vitamin D levels in the blood takes longer.
In other words, for an immediate boost to Vitamin D levels, Calcifediol should be taken.
New readers Click here for our Blog welcome
Wishing all relatives and friends - good cheer for Christmas and for 2021.
Have a good one!
We're in our 16th year living on board "Body & Soul" (for Google map link click Here) and we are spending the winter months at Evran.
Bateau Body & Soul
Place No: 6
Quai de Port Evran
22630 Evran
Brittany
France
As you see from the photo below, Lucie is looking good - taking her tablets and injections bravely - keeping PMR and GCA at bay - Her greatest friend Anita, quite by coincidence and good fortune, has moved into a delightful rented cottage within spitting distance from our mooring - A happy state of affairs for us all - not 30m away!
But it ain't all plain sailing, as you can imagine !
Thankfully, I am fit and well but all my brewery equipment has had to be moved back on board Body & Soul. I will miss the Old Mill at Hede - now too far away - and the company of Mick and Shelly too who kindly allowed me to make use of their premises.
We've got a 60 litre brew of English ale already bubbling away on the poop deck - wrapped in an electric blanket - to be bottled in time for the 2021 celebrations - an added temptation to my annual "dry January" resolution perhaps? - but on the other hand, the brew will improve a lot in the bottle and I look forward to a less dreary February after a full 4 week period of maturation.
Clive'n Aileen have generously sent me some more supplies (another beer kit from the UK, for making 23 litres of "Spitfire' ale) to keep us quenched in the hard times ahead.
Lucie in control of PMR and GCA
Being old and retired has its advantages. At last one has the time to tease out the data which swamps the media regarding covid 19, Brexit, Trade talks, parliament etc - both political and scientific - to support our opinions.
Additionally we are more restricted in our normal activities - being confined to little else outside our boat. Our excellent WiFi connection is ever more important to our daily lives and we are grateful for the Evran authorities for this provision, 'free' of charge. We are pleased to respond to these benefits by spending our weekly pensions back into the local economy through the local shops, the pub, the log man and a reasonable mooring charge which includes the provision of unlimited electricity and water. We are close to Dinan for any cultural needs.
Click the above for the jazz accompaniment
Click pictures to enlarge
Our new neighbour has been plagued by a nest of 'Stone Martens' in her attic (click for a full description) They are nocturnal animals and they have chosen to be active, give birth, defecate and to nest directly above her bedroom. Pest control is needed and the expense, as described by the lease, is covered by the landlord (who lives in UK) along with a serious plumbing problem of a long standing nature, involving digging and the laying of new ground pipework. Then of course, there is what one might describe as "normal maintenance". Cuh!
Now, as half expected, with the new arrangements caused by Brexit, tax on profits is to rise from 7.5% to 17.5%. Then there is the distraction of Covid 19 which is currently causing havoc with all commerce ...customers are just not coming.
Now, a dear friend has taken a years' renewable lease on a beautiful furnished cottage on the side of the canal.
Finding a suitable property and agreeing a rent is rarely, if ever, simple in terms of the rights of Landlords (owners) and tenants. By default we were soon appraised of French Laws which are very clear about the protection of both and how this law is enforced.
However, there must often be circumstances - perhaps because of the unavoidable distance between the protagonists - unforeseen danger lurks when important matters of detail, demanded of the law, are 'brushed-over' in the understandable desire of both parties to seal the deal in the most friendly and efficacious manner - either on the phone, a hand-shake or even email or text perhaps.
When called to sign what one thinks one has agreed to - now seen in writing, it may not comply with what one thought one had agreed 'verbally'. The document you are being asked to sign may not even comply with the law in which case it becomes 'null and void' and offers no protection to either side if later there is a dispute.
The temptation to start moving in - 'sorting things out' if there are any problems later - may soon lead to unhappy relations between the parties and could end up with huge legal fees and bad feeling.
Whilst the onus lies with the Landlord to ensure that a full inventory of contents and defects are agreed and signed off by the new tenant, it is unwise for the tenant to move in until this has been done. No deposit need be paid until it is. This is often inconvenient. With furnished properties such stock taking will take a day or two to be completed, with every teaspoon and gadget and fault having to be included.
I am neither a Lawyer, a landlord nor am I a Professional House Agent, but given the realities described above, I realize how important they are to both parties.
To be a landlord, It just ain't all plain sailing y'know - I'll just stick with our barge, keep making beer, and happily float away.
Welcome to our blog
We are in retirement on our barge called "Body and Soul", on the waterways of France - since 2005 - with "Coco Chanel" and "Minky" our two cats.
For a good description of all French Waterways, Click here
Click below for musical accompaniment as you scroll down for more ! ?
Body & Soul - 60ft British Narrow Boat (widebeam)
Our mooring at Evran Autumn 2020
Lucie, my Wife, is a brilliant cook. She speaks French fluently and without accent, ( I am so glad she agreed to come with me!) .
Her interests are expressed by including photos of her delicious recipes
Most of my postings contain some family news and/or, descriptions of where we have been on "Body and Soul", but if you are not a family member just click on the line below for something more entertaining:
“It isn’t all plain sailing, y’know!”
Please Note:
Finally: to find a list of all postings since 2006, click on the word “Archives”
Our email address is: tillersandtastebuds@yahoo.com
or
simply click here on OPEN to go to the main pages
Here's A short video of our trip out to sea and towards St. Malo
taken by friend Guillaume St. James in his Zodiac - June 2020
More explanations later with photos etc....but currently enjoying the sunshine in Evran and under the satisfying glow of having done a good job in the docks at Saint Malo.....yes, all but painting the roof, the stern deck and finishing the steps project and restoring the 'bimini' ... and so on....it's like the Fourth Bridge really.....one just has to keep on top of it.
I'm bound to say that if we live another six years, making me nearly 85 and Lucie 80 - we'll have to get someone else to do this job! .......and yet, it was so much fun and took us 15 days on the "hard"...... but it really wasn't all plain sailing y'know?
We had been worried about the six years that had mysteriously passed without ever seeing the condition of our hull - lying idle in Hede (2 yrs) and then in Tinteniac for four more; not quite knowing how bad the problem was with rust and our dodgy rudder. We have managed in the past to have her inspected and re-blacked every 3 to 4 years, but for one reason or another, we had allowed this discipline to lapse.
However, we were pleasantly surprised by the condition of the hull which had less rust than expected after such neglect and I was pleased to be able to re-enforce the rudder with a larger replacement steel bolt - 'borrowed' from 'Fred' (the 'godsend' who works at the Bassin) together with his large drill bit, which I broke trying to make a bigger hole to put this bolt in - Lucie went to great lengths buying a replacement - one musn't upset the natives, they were all very helpful.
Maybe, because of some advice we took from an electrician when we were last in Toulouse Dry Dock six years ago the rust was less than expected,. He recommended a really good 'galvanic isolater' replacing the tiny and obviously ineffective one that came with the boat when new.... its replacement has protected us from the rust caused by electrolysis. Proof positive!
Another 'Fred' came to weld on 6 large magnesium anodes (skilled labour @60E) which we had already bought at the local yacht co-operative . The old ones showed just how important they had been during this period of neglect and I - already handy with my angle grinder - cut off the remnants of 15 years of sacrificial activity with ease.
Grinders must be the cause of many DIY accidents - they are so very dangerous - but so far, like Basil Fawlty, " I seem to have got away with it."
Above - our 'sea trips' to and from the EDF BARRAGE and, in the distance, St. Malo and the four Bassins . The EDF Barrage lock can just be seen on the left end of the barrage.
Above, we enter the St. Malo - Bassin Jaques Cartier - through the lock shown in the above chart, marked 'ferry terminal', then straight under the lifted road bridge into the bassin. ('our' Bassin is in the middle of the four)
Thursday 8th July, after a marvelous and exciting trip back from the Bassin Jaques Cartier, with everything done that ought to have been done to our hull and the blue stripe just above the water line we are more than ready to take a break at one of our favourite spots, Le Cale de Taden.
More later...after a break! Details of works done at St.Malo to be found on the left hand column of this page. But here's a summary in pictures before and after?
It all seems good now, but believe me, it was never going to be plain sailing y'know
Ready for work
Port side, ready for lifting back in
Starboard side now ready
Considering all that was going on with this disruption to their otherwise peaceful life, moored at Tinteniac, it was no surprise to get into trouble with either Coco or Minky (or both our cats) who were suddenly given to explore several different and exciting new territories. We had to 'box clever' when faced with the timing of our departure to coincide with their presence. 'Time and tide' (and weather!) truly waits for no man - (or in our case) - Cats.
Coco, the elder and a 'farm cat stray' from our time on the Garonne was quite happy to remain on board for the most part but little Minky (the local stray from Hede) found it all too exciting and tempting - and she disappeared into the unknown for several days at a time, both whilst at Taden and more alarmingly when we were parked high up on blocks after being lifted out in the Bassin Jaques Cartier. So far, she has returned unharmed after each adventure - seemingly pleased to see us.
We feared that she might have been frightened by the monstrous size and noise of our lift out....but no.. she is stimulated as never before, .... we believe.
Just a few to get on with....."'you mean there's more?"' ......'fraid so!
Left: Pointing out to sea and our destiny?
Arriving at the Port of St. Malo with the lock in sight.
Treverien port was completely full, mostly with old wrecks, which seemingly were dumped on the town when the pound at Evran (downstream) was emptied for repairs earlier this year. We tied up reluctantly against two of them. Our cats seemed quite sanguine about the whole move - quite excited in fact, with lots to climb on - this first night, we all woke up quite late and with a leisurely breakfast set off around 11am for Evran -
Frankly, we were glad to leave Treverien but sad for the town. It is such a pretty port and village with a lot to offer - if one can squeeze in between the wrecks.
Evran - not only the town with our annual pantomime group members (I'm the piano player, for my sins, Lucie turns the pages!) but also a lovely little port, with useful shops, electrics and water. Nice friends took Lucie back to Tinteniac to collect our car. A whole 18kms from home, normally 20 mins by car! (click on photos to enlarge)
We feel we have been away a long time already ! These slow cruises mess with your mind. A very 'freeing' style of travel. We are enjoying the beauty around us with all the new Mod Cons available this year.. a very smart Port is Evran, attracting smart boats - but the Mairie would do well to take charge of the youth on motor bikes who have been setting off fireworks and zooming about - noisily and illegally - since late afternoon today
Maybe it's just a one off - but a reputation can be tarnished by such easily policed nuisances - Very irritating after so many improvements have been made at great expense to the local tax payer.
Today (Wednesday 17th June) - boy! has it rained! But now, with our lovely old Peugeot 406 we take the opportunity to go by road further down-stream to Taden, through Dinan, to check on the availability of a mooring space. It is here that we plan to tie up until we are sure of the Chatelier Lock opening times, published each Friday. We find that a new 'borne', complete with 4 electricity points and water is installed. Through this lock we enter La Rance Maritime and into tidal waters.
Our leisurely trip to St Malo from Tinteniac is summarised below:
(approx. 58km and 17 locks)
Tinteniac - Quebriac -Treverien - Evran - Taden - Le Chatelier Ecluse at Livet - Le Barrage de la Rance Ecluse - The Port of St. Malo Ecluse - Le Bassin Jaques Cartier (Dry dock lift out)
Friday 19th June. After a couple of nights moored in the lovely port of Evran catching up with friends and making new ones. We left, almost reluctantly, this morning for our favourite summer mooring at Taden.
Lucky to find a space and newly installed water and electrics - allowing us 2 hours power before automatically switching off. Restoring power is simple but requires us to physically reset it each 2 hrs. (a simple gadget preventing owners from plugging-in long term. It is a free service from the local Mairie and gratefully appreciated.)
I'm glad to say that our new batteries are serving us well and keep the fridge and freezer going all night, without the help of shore power or solar. We have bought the same as last time, 6 years ago - 4 x 6v 'Trojan' 225ah - and as before I linked them in series and parallel to give us 12volts. Boy! were they heavy for an old man like me? Those discarded, in fact, could have lasted longer if only we had not had an accidental burn-up when they cut the shore power unexpectedly. Two of them were perfectly OK and gratefully received by our lovely neighbours - as spares.
Thanks for your comment (lady (D) in orange?) Can only read some of it for some reason, but will try to fix this.
The trip from Evran to Taden (9.30am - 1.00pm) is one of our most beautiful and memorable with the weather warm and windless. It was completely free of other boats and very few tourists until we passed through Dinan Port where we were received with some cheers and glasses raised in appreciation from those few just tucking-in to their lunch. Dinan Port is always full of tied up yachts worth millions but rarely used, it seems, by their owners - but they do look good!.
Our plans may continue changing because of possible weather variations, but the current plan is to exit Taden on Tuesday 23rd to reach the Chatalier ecluse (Lock) at Livet, at around 9.30am for 10am opening. Our friend Guillaume St. James will meet us in his speedy boat, ready to accompany us down the Rance Estuary, through the Barrage ecluse and for the short but hazardous hour or so 'out to sea' and into the safety of Port St. Malo and the Bassin Jaques Cartier.
So far, the weather forecast looks good to go. For those of you still fond of the Salcombe Estuary (Devon) - as indeed I am - the trip we are about to make, is also full of similar beauty but is much bigger, wider and longer. It will indeed be another real treat.
Guillaume's boat will give us protection should our slightly 'wonky' rudder finally break, or our engine fails for some reason, leaving us without steerage or power at sea. We hope this will not happen of course but his presence will be reassuring.
We also have increased insurance cover just for this trip from the Barrage as indeed we did when we made the reverse journey 5 years ago. We have of course, once again, sort useful advice from Louis, the Capitaine, at St. Malo Capitainerie as to tides and times, so with all this help and guidance 'gung-ho' is only a mildly appropriate criticism !
Wish us luck because it isn't going to be plain sailing y'know
(you can click all these photos to enlarge)
I am at risk of sounding 'Jokey', at the height of this terrible pandemic, 'Covit 19', and whilst it appears that all might be lost for Homo Sapiens - with our fellow humans dying in droves throughout the world - It might seem insensitive even to try looking for something cheerful to raise a smile. It really should not be done.
We are well into the eighth decade of our life and now in retirement - Like it or not, we are in the "at risk" population with the additional risk of Lucie being back on steroids which compromise her immune system.
We do feel a little helpless by this necessary confinement, the dependence on others and the guilt at not being able to do our bit to help. So, running out of marmite is just a trivial example, perhaps one of many, which can be allowed to fill the empty spaces, if we are not careful.
On the bright side, provided that our state pension drops into our account every Monday and drops out of the wall on demand, it's hard to complain - we just keep taking the tablets and being ever more grateful for our lives when others, much more deserving, are losing theirs.
In fact, spring weather is upon us - bright blue, vapour-free skies are above us, the trees get greener by the day - the bird-song is louder, traffic noise is silent, the air is fresher, there's no-one about to disturb the peace and our neighbours save us the cost of petrol by insisting on doing our shopping. We have much for which to be thankful.
(As I expect of any lager, the tin shown on the left does the job but is far too strong at 8% by volume - it has to be sipped rather than swallowed - better to take wine? The tin on the right is devoid of any taste or 'throat opening' quality what-so-ever. It just takes up fridge space... Better to drink water)
I am looking forward to reopening our little brewery and making real beer at the Old Mill, just outside the village of 'Hede' - but this is not possible because of the crisis....but hey....
This visitor to our new bird table - is definitely a fledgling - could it be a little Golden Oriole? or is that wishful thinking? ... its breast plumage is a soft yellow colour. It seems woefully unaware of our presence and the danger it is in with our cats. Below is a 'google' picture of a 'Yellow Hammer'.
It's spring and we are preparing for our epic journey to the Bassin Jacques Cartier in St.Malo where we hope to repaint and do some minor repairs to Body and Soul...So far the canal remains closed to all traffic - Perhaps the 1st of June is a bit ambitious. But this year it's never going to be plain sailing y'know.....
We are keeping to the French rules of 'social distancing' with increased vigor, mainly caused by a relapse in Lucie's Hortons disease which has put her back on steroids (20mg/day) and self administered weekly injections of Tocillizumab.
That, as you can imagine, is a step backwards for Lucie, although she is relieved by the continued exceptional attention given to her by the medical establishment who are concerned, although not surprised by, this relapse. It is apparently quite a common feature of the disease. But her latest 'PET scan' showed a bad result.
'Google' our goose with his (her?) inseparable friend, the Duck (Quackflix?)
The problem is that the taking of both steroids and tocillizumab, as we understand them, compromise her immune system thus making it imperative to keep Lucie away from all infections and especially the bloody Corona 19 virus. Hence our zealous attention, not just to the French rules but attention to the detail of our life-style in all sorts of ways.
The Golden Oreol/Oriole - My favorite song-bird, seasonal immigrant, heard but rarely seen, found in the south of France and particularly high in the poplar trees of Aquitaine - the Golden Oreol/Oriole - I miss its lovely, unique and fruity sound.
Having said that, the sun is shining at last - Spring is really with us now (see pictures) and we heard our first cuckoo this morning (8th April) Our lovely neighbours have been absolutely fabulous in their kind attention to our every need. This comes in the form of shopping for food, the gift of fire wood or by the collection of medical supplies as well as lots of distant chats. There are no other shops open.
Thankfully, this department in France, - L'Ille et Villaine (which includes the city of Rennes )- has had very few Corona cases, (if any - at least locally induced ones) and even our lovely local GP says she has been unusually quiet since the beginning of this ghastly business. We are both trying to get 'Body and Soul' together, ready for the great trip to St Malo and reparations on 'the hard'. Currently all the Locks are closed by decree until at least 1st of May. We are hoping to set off mid-May, although all the winter works draining some lock pounds on the canal between here and St. Malo, may have to be carried out - this will delay cruising until who knows when.?
Meantime, we are not 'allowed out' unless in a crisis, although I still go to the 'Parcours' for my daily exercise with the ubiquitous 'Document d'attestation' in my track-suit pocket - And, I have been forced to drink tins of LAGER 'sacre bleu!'. (My brewery has had to be closed)
(our bird table)
'Made in Dagenham' The musical, produced during lock-down by Barnard Castle School with our Lois (year 10?) in a star role. Click on link below
Here in France, in Brittany, moored in Tinteniac on Body and Soul, we are facing up to the Corona Virus with great fortitude and common sense.
With our doors wide open and the sun streaming through the windows - the wild goose (named Google!), a Duck (named Netflix) and, just today, a newly arrived cormorant and a signet Swan, together, sharing breakfast - one could be forgiven for feeling lucky to be alive and in good health - looking forward to plans for the coming spring and summer.
But the news and social media brings us doom and gloom in abundance. A lot of 'state applied' restrictions (decrees) to our lives, have become hard to ignore.
For instance, going out for my morning routine exercise or for any reason at all, requires that I am forced to produce a document called an 'attestation de deplacement' showing to the police just what I am doing and why I am doing it - which can only include - getting medicine, shopping for food, exercising (on your own), going to work (if unable to work from home) emergency visits to elderly relatives - the fines for contravention are from 130E upwards including an arrest for serious or repeated contraventions.
The above form is available on line, but if one has no printer (like us) a written version is OK but it has to be current to the activity and dated.
All shops, including coffee shops and bars are closed, with the exception of food providers. D.I.Y shops are included of course which puts a lot of home alterations and maintenance on hold. Not good.
We are fine thanks! luckier than most - please keep our UK pensions coming in. We have some really attentive neighbours and friends who visit us daily - checking our welfare. - See below, showing how we keep in touch with them now. It beats the ubiquitous double kissing....maybe this virus shambles will teach the world something about true values. The air is already much fresher ....perhaps it is a new beginning? We really really hope so.
Violette, Anne-Claire, me, Marie (Loo is behind with her bike) doing our bit taken from 'Body and Soul' .
Body and Soul, moored at the Port of Tinteniac d'Ille et Rance
We send best seasonal wishes to our family - to old and new friends.
Looking back on 2019 as the year ends - much of it is sprinkled with matters of ill-health . (Click here for nasty details!) In truth, we are happy to be alive and living a busy life moored in Tinteniac making full use of the great facilities available to us and coping well with all that aged-life throws at us.
The hot summer months brought us joy with several family/friends to stay with us and we were able to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary with a trip to Pont Aven in the far west coast of Brittany. Our close neighbours lent us their house whilst they were away which, as last year, became a popular and favoured choice of accommodation for visitors.
We are now grumbling a lot about the weather which has been appalling this Autumn and early winter. We have never experienced such protracted, dull and wet weather. We are tempted to buy a barometer in order to be prepared for any lowering of atmospheric pressures and 'first in' with the paracetemol. Lucie is particularly sensitive in this regard. But Here's an on-line barometer site that we find just as useful.
On a much happier note.....over the last three months we have been busy with the Creme Anglaise Pantomime 'Am Dram' which is centred in the Town of Evran (15 k downstream) and who's many members, both French and English, with incredible enthusiasm and team spirit, produce an English style pantomime each year. Video links for this blog may be forthcoming. Their production of Cinderella has kept our minds, talents, time and energy engaged and we have made lots of new friends within the group.
Unfortunatelyr latest photos, taken on our Iphone were dropped in the canal !
Our extra-ordinary cat Snoopy who takes me for a walk each day
Sadly, 2019 has been a year which we would rather forget - not just because of the weather, the divisions over 'Brexit' (now happily resolved?) and our various health problems - as if they were not enough to depress anyone - but I highlight just a few of the other incidences which have tried to prick our otherwise perfect 'retirement bubble' on board Body and Soul.
A string of maintenance failures have upset our happy daily lives. Problems with the loo mechanism and broken seat. (spares only from the UK!) Access to the plumbing is a nightmare ! Then a blockage to the 'poo-tank' extract macerator pump - a really filthy job - requiring one to lie face down in the bowels of the boat in order to reach essential nuts, valves and tubes - taking the damn thing to pieces to unblock the same - cleaning up and refitting it. (bleach, antiseptic sprays etc) Then the bathroom basin springs a serious leak from the drain hole which needs replacing with completely new - The 'Mastic' sealing too! is another skill learned.......not to mention lots of other horrors
We are in the middle of a serious and expensive change to the back steps (up to the poop deck and out) which is shown below, half finished. The boxes on the left of the steps are temporarily full of 'stuff' which will eventually be stored in the newly commissioned chest of drawers. (left of steps below) - all made by a fellow bargee and cabinet maker who we have got to know. He is conveniently moored down-stream a couple of kilometers at Quebriac. The new steps 'project' will improve access for us oldies - both in and out of our home whilst providing more storage space.
Don't miss the next exciting episodes -
"How to crash your car without moving it"
"what to do when your ignition key is jammed on"
and
"Plans for scrubbing our bottom in May 2020 in St Malo"
and that really isn't going to be all plain sailing y'know!
Click on any photo to enlarge
Lucie's health problem over the past year has, naturally, changed our priorities and, in certain respects, our outlook on life - but thankfully, her current disease prognosis is good. She is cooking as well as ever - Click here for a Steak and Guinness pie recipe.
According to her specialist at Rennes (CHU) (the University hospital) her treatment for the Giant Cell Arteritis (Horton's disease) is working to plan. She swallows a daily handful of pills and has to bravely inject herself each Monday with some other stuff which does nothing for her mood - but she is well served by the local nurse for regular blood tests and it is from these results and from a series of x-rays and scans that the medics make their deductions. She has to endure a two year period of treatments and regular assessments. Our frequent hospital visits to Rennes, a city which we are growing to love, are often combined with shopping for stuff which we cannot obtain locally... so that's alright then. Here's another of her recipes: Sicilian Panelle - street food.
Apparently, the down-side of long term steroid treatment is the osteoporosis which it induces and Lucie is suffering continuous pain from this side-effect in her hips and spine. Steroids also compromise the body's ability to resist infections, consequently, she has to be careful physically, to avoid bone fractures and, where possible, infections from other sources.
This last point may seem a little counter-intuitive since kissing people in France, on both cheeks, whenever one greets or says goodbye - is 'de rigueur'......and we continue to kiss everyone with gay abandon - including all our neighbours with their lovely but 'snotty' children..... so far, no harm done - but we have also joined the local choir of over thirty choristers, practicing every Tuesday throughout the year. This means, roughly speaking, greeting AND saying goodbye to each choir member - that is, for Lucie alone, 120 kisses every practice! Extending this conjecture still further, for the whole choir, that's 3600 points of cross-contamination at each gathering, .... 'zut alors!' I hope we stay healthy enough to sing the Lords Prayer as brilliantly as this choir - click below:
' Otche Nash' the Lords Prayer - click here
Our choral activity at Bazouges-Hede (not to be confused with nearby Hede-Bazouges, where we were moored for 2 years) brings us opportunities to mix with a splendid and multi-cultural bunch of friends, based in this highly active community just three kilometres from our mooring in Tinteniac. We have found a base from which many other activities spring - some, but not all, being social.
The village population is small but young and family orientated and, through a fortunate civic decision to combine the two 'Hedes' into one Commune, they have been 'given' the Old Mairie building to create into a village club-house for social and artistic purposes. All facilities and activities, which includes a bar and meeting rooms, are organized and over-seen by a properly elected and highly energetic committee with an excellent constitution. A modern village hall is right next door and there is a small weekly organic food market and free parking. Lucie, with her fluent French, has become involved already with the organization and we are both paid-up members.
Nick, Laura, Archie and Skya on holiday in Cromer
Below, a few dishes from Lucie's kitchen. Click to enlarge!
Who's a lucky boy then?
From Malcolm and Lucie to all friends and relatives
Click here for " Now thank we all our god"
and/or
Click here for "Hark the Herald Angels sing"
Have a merry Christmas and a happy new year!
July 15th 2018 - Brother Rob Walker's 80th Birthday Party at their house in Walmer - showing the birthday boy holding a glass of Yorkshire Bitter, made by me, in France at my Pigstye Brewery. It was indeed a brilliant party with all Rob's direct family in attendance. Lucie, as ever, played her part doing much of the cooking - pre-prepared in Body and Soul and transported to the UK in the back of our car. She and Di Bailey (Rob's lovely partner) were a good team producing several delicious meals for 14 people each time.
There was much home-grown music and laughter and everyone played their part. Simply memorable! Here are the Birthday song lyrics; sung rather badly by Lucie, Judy and me (on piano) to the tune of HMS Pinafore - Gilbert and Sullivan.
Soon after Rob's 80th came the brilliant news that Emily (Jake and Rosemary's eldest) had been awarded a First Class Honours Degree in Ophthalmology, by Sheffield University. She has since landed a good job, which she richly deserves for her hard work and dedication....she is now a registered "orthoptist". She also won the prize for "best pathology essay" about "uveal melanoma" and will get it published in a text book at some point in the near future, by all accounts. Gosh!
Sadly my Pigstye "Just a Pub" brewery has had to be closed for "re-developement" - there is a joke there somewhere! We have plans to move it all to a site in Tinteniac, yet to be disclosed but it may well be back on board Body and Soul on the Poop Deck - at least, if we cannot find another suitable site.
Talking of medical matters, I have been suffering from what I assume to be some sort of rheumatoid arthritis in both hands for about five years now and it seems to have become progressively worse. Unkindly, some say my piano playing has improved because of it, but there you go!
My Symptoms. I have a bent middle finger in my left hand which does not hurt but looks very ugly. My right hand is always tender and swollen at the knuckle of the index finger and can be extremely painful if squeezed or accidentally knocked. Quite by chance and coincidentally, Lucie and I have started drinking Goat's milk and making Goat's yoghurt and avoiding cow's milk dairy products and Cow meat for reasons that I need not explain but - believe it or not, scoring pain levels from 1 (low)to 10 (high), I can honestly say that the pain level and swelling has dropped quite dramatically over the past week or so from 10 to level 2. In fact both my hands have become noticeably more supple.
Spurred on by Google to research this matter for the benefit of other sufferers, I came across this letter from a long time dairy farmer written to a Mr Cohen.
To read it click here.
But as readers (both of them!) will be aware It ain't all plain sailing y'know - and it may well be just a fluke.... we will see.
Summer has been full of good things. Life on board has been quite relaxing as we have necessarily decided to stay in one place this year whilst Lucie can concentrate on recovery - there's good access to the local GP who is in charge of her treatment by Rennes Hospital. We have both enjoyed a lovely weekend exploring St Malo on her 71st birthday...all organised by her, of course....
Her treatment is going to plan and she is on good form. Her blood is tested regularly by the local nurse, on board before 9am and the results are made available by 12 noon, each time on line. Fantastic!
Our recently found friends (Fred, Anne-Claire and family) suggested that we could use their house for any visiting family whilst they went on holiday. The house is situated less than 50 yards from our mooring and has a Cat (Hercule) to be cared for by the incumbent.
Five days with Nick, Laura, Skya and Archie who were delighted to take up the offer, resulted in a very energetic time including, amongst other things, two visits to the Beaches, on the Brittany coast to the west of Dinard, complete with picnics made by Lucie, and with brilliant weather.
( you can click on any photograph to enlarge)
A day trip on Body and Soul to Hede, four locks there and back, for an ice-cream or so with our friends Guillaume and Catherine who live in the lock house there. It was fun getting our old boat "back on the road", as it were - no problems there - she managed without a hitch.
Maintenance is now all important as the summer comes to an end and Lucie and I are wizzing about with paint brushes and cleaning tools trying to keep Body and Soul in good order.
Yesterday we managed to remove and replace all four internal radiators in order to flush them out, (click here for a good video on this task) in readiness for winter central heating.
The problem with that is that we have yet to afford a replacement to the Eberspacher. So far we haven't decided whether or not to change to a "Kabola" or something else. Either way, we have our Jotul wood burner and electric radiators to keep us warm. We have been given a friendly neighbour's small microwave oven which is surprisingly useful for heating small amounts of water - enough for a shave- and for cooking vegetables.
As August ends with less stable weather, pidgeons continue to flap lustful wings on the boughs of beautiful birch and pine trees above us, showering wind blown seeds and bits of sticky resin (and worse) onto the barge and our car; but, like "Brexit", it is a costly, but natural and essential inconvenience - well worth the trouble in the overall scheme of things - taking the longer view.
( you can click on any photograph to enlarge)
Breaking News
It was lovely to hear from Charles and Pam Biggs who we befriended at Vias on the Midi whilst waiting for our lift-out at Agde and for our great journey up to Brittany where we are now..
Click on the line below for their Blog or, alternatively, on the link at the top of this posting in the left hand column
www.xeniaboatlog.wordpress.com.
Breaking news from "Family Blair" and other Walkers not yet included.
I try to keep up with the technology....patience please; it never is plain sailing!
Remember one can enlarge most of these photos by clicking on them.
We are happily moored at Tinteniac - about 45 klms South of St. Malo and 25 klms North of Rennes. We have great neighbours - 'live-aboards' with their families, pets, and a growing number of local home owners. All important facilities are within easy walking distance and our fourth-hand VW Golf appears able to take us to the beach or wherever needed - so far, without breaking down.
Frankly, the whole of spring was dismal, weather- wise - Neither of us can remember being subjected to so much continuous rain anywhere before. Last week, however, the promised heatwave arrived and Brittany is green, lush and warm again at last - just right for the French holiday season, July and August.
Lucie is under excellent treatment for her Horton's disease and we regularly visit two of Rennes' hospitals for its continuation. The steroid dose has been slowly reduced because of the known negative effects upon the body's immune system and calcium levels. There is going to be a long but careful recovery period - maybe up to two years, apparently.
We have regular, sometimes daily, visits by the local nurses (lovely ladies) who administer various blood tests and blood thinning injections, whilst acting as the link between the GP and the hospital's specialist department. The medical care service is indeed as good as it sounds and we are both impressed and reassured. There is further encouragement felt as the wheel-chair and the zimmer frame are returned to the local pharmacy - restoring space in the back of the car. So things are on the way up. My plans for the installation of a 'Stenna' lift for our back stairs are on hold - for the time being!
Staying where we are for this summer and winter 2018/19 is allowing us time to pay more attention to our own well-being and to long term maintenance matters in Body and Soul. There is merit in having a secure shore power source and access to water as opposed to moving from port to port, or having to use our generator as we "wild-moor" - but we will miss, for the time-being, the excitement of travelling as experienced during the last 13 years on canals. We have, perhaps belatedly, understood the impact of age-related ill-health and are moving accordingly.
Our 12 volt system and Trojan batteries, are kept healthy, fully charged and lightly used. Our 70hp Isutzu engine is run, under load, at least twice a week for half an hour keeping in great running condition whilst also giving us hot water.
Our Eberspacher water heater is permanently defunct - now a familiar blow to our creature comforts; but we 'make do' with kettles and our engine. (and we have since been given a small microwave oven) We are trying hard "to think out of the box" and devise a system- using either gas or electricity, (both of which we have) solely for hot water. to replace the Eberspacher (or similar machine, 'Wabasto', 'Kabola'). Our four radiators and towel rail, however, stand empty, cold and probably unnecessary as we have our Jotul Wood burner and a couple of oil-filled electric radiators to keep us warm in the cold months.
The question is, would we endanger the value of our asset by too much 'out of the box thinking': Should we dig deep and bare the cost in order to preserve the status quo? Answers please....because it ain't all plain sailing y'know!
Next post - don't miss more about what we have been doing and where we are going and what's brewing at the Pigstye Brewery! News of various friends and families, Bro' Robert's eightieth birthday party (planned for the 15th July, at their home in Walmer) - close rellies only - so hear all about it - only on this site!
We are having to put any plans we may have had "on hold" for the time being; Lucie and I still dwell on the possibility of returning to the UK for a final fling in our old age - but her problems with:
"polymyalgia" or (PMR) and "Horton's disease"(Giant Cell Arteritis or GCA)
and the excellent medical care she receives for it here, has meant that we stay where we are for the foreseeable future and count ourselves lucky. So we are moored in little old Tinteniac ; We may well take short trips up and down the canal this summer and we are being quite positive about our lot on board Body and Soul.
Spring is upon us, our pile of winter's logs for the Jotul is no more; the exceptionally wet, cold and windy winter seems conveniently at an end. I notice the first signs of a dawn chorus this morning and we celebrate a warm spring day (11th March) by taking a sunny trip to the coast at Saint Malo where the tide is half in; most of France and their dogs join us on a Sunday beach walk and we take a "roof-top coffee" at the hotel Des Ambassadeurs. Highly recommended !
(Click on each to enlarge)
Lucie spent most of February doing a "house sitting" job for friends near Salisbury; Just escaping the horrors of Putin's alledged crimes which have since dominated world news.
Being near to her daughter's family at Steeple Ashton she was well able to use her time with them and other west- country friends.
Back home on board Body and Soul, the job of angle-grinding a large square hole/ panel in the tiled wall behind the toilet - would not have been conducive to normal home life to which we have become accustomed and, as it turned out, the mess seemed apocalyptic for a week whilst I bravely handled my very dangerous angle grinder - complete with face mask, ear muffs et al - whilst trying to reach the hitherto inaccessible plumbing and machinery, which had operated our loo for the last thirteen years - alas no longer. ..... Is life plain sailing? No.
Matters were made much worse when the initial, unanticipated, vibration caused a glass shelf to crash down onto the basin, along with everything that was on it, including some valuable glass trinkets and bottles together with their expensive perfume contents. Thank goodness Lucie was away but my subsequent cringeing telephoned admission was not pleasant, as you can imagine.....all is well now but we are saving up for a new floor for the wet room and possibly a super glass shower curtain.... Is life plain sailing? double no.
My pigstye brewery at Hede, 3 klm up the canal and 5 mins by road, is still very cold.
This means that any brewing activities have to be done with this in mind. I am making 23 litres at a time, from the grain - bringing each batch back, after the boil, to Body and Soul for the fermentation period in the warmth of our sitting room, where it bubbles through a water trap for around ten days. Then I decant it to another vessel using gelatine as a clearing agent; returning it to the brewery for bottling. I'd love to spend a lot more money on dispensing equipment in order to avoid the time-consuming bottling process. We will be saving money, for this purpose, from our Club members over a period of several meetings where they are charged, voluntarily, for what they drink. (2E per 75cl of ale)
As at 22nd March 2018; it is worth noting that we have a full house of bottled Yorkshire Bitter (the favourite), Christmas Ale, Strong Mild ale, and Normal mild, ready for our next meeting - less, of course, what I have personally drunk already! mmm...Delicious!
Clive....especially, I hope you are watching this. Pity you can't be here. Cheers! Must go now.
...but it ain't all plain sailing y'know!
Incredibly, it is now 25th March. It is still raining; very cloudy and cold. How long can this depressing weather last?
Our canal (Canal d'llle et Rance) officially re-opens on the 1st of April. We are far from being ready. Lucie's food is the answer!
Now let's see. How was our 2017? Well, we are still alive. How was yours?
One must'nt complain but....
Firstly the good things - there are some worthy of a mention. But one has to wonder, just sometimes, whether it's the encroachment of old age or just another stage in life, now reached, when our "boaty" dream is coming to an end and that we should be sensible and make plans for down-sizing....what was that?
DOWN-SIZING?
Yeah right!
We are very happily moored for the winter at Tinteniac. (click this for a google map) a small town about 45 klm South of St. Malo which looks across the Channel at the head of the Estuary of the two rivers, the Ille and the Rance. For more about Brittany and its five regions click here for the W/pedia info. It is very detailed.
Tintiniac has many advantages, the first being that our lovely lady doctor, Madame Le Prise (with an accent ecute on the 'e'), is within five minutes walk.
For every-day living, everything is within a short walk, including two supermarkets, the weekly market and 'Cafe Chez Tonton', the town square and the Boulangerie. There are lovely open recreational spaces and a library, the town hall, the Mairie - still flying the Union Jack flag (amongst other world visitors) and the music school.
The town provides us with water and electricity (120E per month which might seem a lot!) We have several lovely 'live aboard' neighbours and their families and also get a free wifi connection from another neighbouring family.
Happy memories of little Hede-Bazouges upstream 3klms (situated at the third of the eleven lock staircase), where we happily spent two previous winters and where "my" Pigstye brewery is located, are still close to us, with our friends still there - the St.Jame's family, who live in the lock house at the Petite Madelaine Ecluse - fondly remembered and continuing as friends do.
Alain and Me outside his Pigstye, now the "Justapub" brewery - with wild hops around the door...
But here in Tinteniac we don't depend on a car - that's a big advantage to being in Hede-Bazouges where the village itself is two klms up hill from the port. I still occasionally play the piano at La Petite Porte pub there, for drinks and a free meal....(It still hasn't closed, Mike! Give it time.) and we try to use the village shop when passing.
We had plenty of visitors whilst in Taden, including brother Rob n'Di and sister Judy. Lucie found a very good 'gite' just opposite the Taden village pub for their 5 day stay - and within walking distance of 'Body and Soul'. We all had 'a blast' as they say.
Jake and Rosemary 'en famille' arrived towing their new caravan and we had great time visiting places and catching up.
Clive and Aileen, all the way from San Francisco, stayed on board but their short visit was marred by Lucie's urgent visit to Dinan Hospital. Several hospital visits were the order of the day and thay had to put up with my cooking. We were full of admiration for their energy in what must have been a really busy time, apparently 'doing' Europe - seeking out their various relatives. It can't have been an easy trip and I imagine they were glad to be back home where they have jointly become very seriously bitten by the dreaded yachting bug.
Nick, Laura, Gabby, Skya and Archie are often in touch on Skype and I have enjoyed a couple of visits to the Lincoln/Peterborough area both to see them and sister Judy who lives nearby. Nick and I helped her clear her garage in September which was a lot of fun. I'm glad they are upgrading the Peterborough rubbish dump quite near Judy's house. It is horrible at the moment.
It would be nice to hear or even see Amanda, Alan, Harry and Lois this year, and we wish them a very happy Christmas and hope to see them sometime, whatever, in the next year. I live in hope. Ann's horrible condition worsens every hour. At least we know she is in safe hands, but that is of little comfort to her torment.
Now just a few happenings this year which proves that life is never plain sailing by its very nature, Lucie says I'm just getting grumpy.
Our annual UK jaunt for ten days was very enjoyable - we were looked after so well by two sets of friends to whom we owe many thanks especially as we left both couples with our horrible coughs. They are still talking to us. That makes them real friends!
However, our much loved Peugeot 406 unfortunately failed its MOT with no time left to repair it and it is now awaiting its fate near Salisbury. This decision depends upon our being confident of the VW Golf that we've bought in its place ! I try not to think about it, but it has already had to have all its brakes repaired despite passing its MOT. Cuh!
Then we had an appointment with a firm called Kruger, agents for our troublesome Eberspacher - the water heater and central heating machine on board. We have had to 'let it go' after the testing proved that we'd have to buy a new one. Cuh x 2!
Here's 'Body and Soul' moored in the leafy Port of Tinteniac.... showing our winter conservatory "extension" which acts both as an insulator and a garden shed where we protect our potted plants from frost..
- Lucie has had to contend with certain unpleasant health matters over the past 5 years or so, with painful shoulders and knees which were assumed to have been age related arthritis and some kind of persistant blood infection which failed to be cleared with the usual prescribed oral antibiotics.
After three separate 10 day visits to various hospitals (Marmande, Dinan, Rennes) and numerous blood tests over this long period, she remained in 'arthritic' pain but was also diagnosed as having diverticulisis and, cleared of the bacterial infection by antibiotic drip. In the third hospital, this October, the University Hospital in Rennes diagnosed suspected "Horton's" disease. (Click on this for details of this nasty condition). Her assumed and incurable arthiritis in her joints, apparently, is not that at all but, instead, has been diagnosed as polymyalgia - part of Hortons - and she is on a strong dose of steroids which will be, all being well, slowly reduced over a period of up to two years. The steroidal way forward, so far, has had a remarkably successful outcome and Lucie now has no pain in her joints at all. Bingo!
It has to be said that Lucie's treatment by the French medical establishment and at these three hospitals has been exceptional. It is not until one has to experience the French system that one realises how good it is. It is a system based upon the prevention and early detection, diagnosis and early treatment of medical conditions. As I see it, blood tests are fundamental to their whole approach. To this end, they depend upon a network of "laboratoires d'analyses" one of which can be found in every reasonably sized town - including for instance - little 'ole Tintiniac.
As just one example; with a prescription from a GP (general practitioner) Lucie has her blood sample tested at 8.30am when the laboratory opens. She takes a coded document away with her, confirming that her blood is being tested for whatever is suspected by her GP. Incredibly, sometimes by noon or by three pm the same day, clearly depending upon what time is needed when difficult cultures may have to be grown, her 'results' are immediately posted on the internet, accessible by her at home using the code given. A copy of the results are sent direct to the GP through the internet. The patient (Lucie) is then referred back to her GP, usually by phone if urgent, after consideration by the GP. QED!
Her treatment in all three hospitals, at which she has always been given a single room with private bathroom, has been impeccable - serviced by highly competant, clean and pleasant nursing staff. Because her condition is deemed 'long term', all treatment of her condition is free and this, as you can imagine, is of great help to our finances.
Horton's disease is quite rare, slow to develop and was spotted finally by a lady doctor at Rennes Hospital, where presumably it had become more apparent over quite a long period of time.
Lucie's treatment is now on-going and, so far, very successful. We are looking forward to a restful and delicious Christmas at home thanks largely to the French health system - on board with Coco and Minky (our cats).
Steven, Sophie and Lucie's granchildren, Charlie and Max, continue to be of great pride, joy and comfort to Lucie in their support and as they grow in health and vigour. We have almost daily contact with them and will certainly be in touch on Christmas Day. That's alright then.
As the Tintiniac church bells ring out on Christmas eve- I'm signing off at last, so......
I trust that all readers of this blog and even those that don't read it....have a wonderful time too, with the prospects of a happy and healthy 2018 to come.
We've been at the Cale at Taden since the 8th of June (click here for photos) and are thoroughly enjoying it - there's lots to do and to see all around us. We have our old Peugeot 406 which has proved an amazing buy, thanks to friends Rob and Karo. It is British registered and has had only very small, easily fixed, problems so far, costing relatively little. (133E for a geer cable and some anti-freeze from a very good Peugeot garage!)
The north coast of Brittany is near at hand for extra sunny days - with a choice of beautiful beaches - and the ancient town of Dinan is not 2 kilometers by boat or car. The village of Taden is a delight but has just a pub and a church as well as a huge but unabtrusive caravan/camping site. Our friends Rose and Hubert Eychenne have a lovely house there. So that's all good on the social side and I have already played the piano at the pub three times for the 'Hat money ' and for beer. (It still hasn't had to close!!)
So is it all plain sailing? 'Fraid not! There are some additional costs to wild mooring which we would not have had if we had stayed in Tinteniac, plugged into the mains electricity and water supply for which there is no charge from May to the end of October; whereas here at Taden there are no services nor additional charges at all but we have to rely upon solar panels and our petrol generator to maintain our batteries - and the problem with that is, although it is easy enough to get to the 'absorbtion' stage - ie around 97% full - the 100% full (nervana) can only be reached with an additional 3 hours of running the generator. That is where it becomes expensive on petrol. We reckon on spending about 20E per week on petrol including an unknown but small amount of engine diesel when we take Body and Soul downstream to the Port of Lyvet once a week, to fill up with water. It is beautiful but just an hour's trip all done.
It is true that in order to get supplies we have to use our car a bit more than we would like, but then we are much closer to the beaches and the wonderful places and events going on all the time in the holiday period - July, August and September. That is our choice and it has already been great to offer visiting guests, so many things to do and to see.
Son Jake and family arrived at very short notice, in their new van with caravan on tow complete with gifts of beer and the like. We had a splended few days visiting places, beaches and the annual 14th July firework festival, marking Bastille Day. Unfortunately they just missed the annual jousting competition at Dinan which we loved. Perhaps next year? Below is a description of the Cale de taden, where we are moored.
Our new 'Tender' (we call her 'Tenderly' after the famous Song Tenderly Eb)took it upon herself to untie her own mooring rope and disappear into the unknown; for three days she was missing - either an escapee and of her own accord, or perhaps she was stolen - but we found her neatly folded and tied on the deck of a cruiser tied up at Dinan with her oars safely stowed away inside the cabin.
I was able to identify her by the plastic 'collers' which I had used to repair one of her side ropes; thus the friendly and efficient 'Port Capitaine' was able to negotiate her return with the people who had found her. She now has an indelable name written on her side to help prevent further problems; I should have done that before...but there you go...
The use of the generator (A Honda EU20i) is not just a matter of using expensive fuel. There are several domestic appliances which require as much wattage as the poor thing can give without making it overload and cut out. For instance, Lucie's hair drier has to be plugged in to the generator alone, with the fast setting switched on. This applies also to the Kartcher vacuum cleaner and the washing machine.
I'm really not sure about the benefits of the three solar panels which we have on our roof. I believe they are each 60 watts and that I have wired them in parallel to give me 180 watts at 20 volts in maximum sunlight.....but there is something I haven't got right about this calculation which, in my book, should make 9 amps available. Someone please tell me if this is correct! But then, of course, the panels do nothing for us during the night which is when we can't use the generator (because of the noise) and have to rely on the batteries through the inverter to run pumps, fridge, computer, amplifier, coffee capucino milk frothing - machine and lighting. We try to use oil lamps and candles which does a lot for romance but not a lot else......
Currently, our four 'Trojan' 6 volt batteries are wired in series and parallel to give us 12 volts. They are now three years old, are well watered and seem to be holding their own but they are only just good enough to maintain their voltage above 12v for one night during the hot weather. We have an anti- sulphation device fitted which is supposed to make them last longer and work better.
I am told that once batteries reach the absorption stage whilst being charged, they are 97% full. It then takes three hours of generation (factory set) to bring them up to fully charged state. That is a lot of petrol for such a little reward, but I am trying to do this once a week in order to keep them 'healthy'. That may or may not be correct practice, or indeed necessary. I am seeking advice on this.
Our Eberspacher, when it works, is the central water heating system. For each hour it delivers heating, if required, and enough hot water for domestic purposes. It runs on domestic diesel (pink) fuel which can be bought locally at around 80 cents a litre. One has to sign for this each time one fills up. It consumes about half a litre of this stuff per hour. Woe betied anyone who mixes even the smallest amount of the tax free pink stuff with the main engine fuel tank. We are very careful about this and since we have been in France I have devised a completely separate fuel system and tank.
So our life on board Body and Soul, whilst 'wild mooring', is very much about using fuels of one kind or another, as efficiently as possible. Listing them all gives me quite a fright!
1. Petrol for the generator and car,
2. Pink diesel for the Eberspacher (the central heating/hot water system)
3. Normal diesel for the boat's engine, (approx one litre per three kilometers)
4. Bottle gas for the cooker
5. Parafin for the oil lamps (and candles)
6. Logs for the Jotul wood burner. (weather dependent)
So the 'Annual Fuel Allowance' that we get from our government is very much appreciated !
But it's never all plain sailing, y'know, is it?
We plan to be in Taden for at least some of the summer season. Our friends Rosie and Hubert live in the village and are an important part of a group of other friends - and so on........Going south from our spot we reach the port of Dinan by barge in about 45 mins (10 mins by car) whereas if we go north from this same spot, towards St. Malo - downstream (30 mins by car) - we come firstly to the small port of Lyvet - and the last lock (le Chatelier Ecluse at Lyvet) before getting into the estuary proper - which takes us a mere 30 mins by barge - this is where we can pick up fresh water, say once a week, depending upon how much we have washed.
There are no services at Taden (Click here to see photos) but.... oh how beautiful and interesting it is! We love it.
or here for details and photos of our JUSTAPUB brewery
Should I be changing our anodes to suit the slightly brackish water? We'll have to seek advice and probably hang some aluminium anodes over the side whilst moored here. (bright idea is to hang one of Lucie's aluminium pans over the side, connected electrically to the hull - does it work? we shall never know but that's what we've done anyway!)
Our three solar panels and our generator are put to good use and candles are a delightful essential "means of light" at night. How romantic is that?
By some enormous bit of incomprehensible technological brilliance, we can now get a wifi signal through our Iphone by "internet sharing" to this computer and also to our Ipad.....that is ...as long as the telephone signal is strong enough and consistant enough to allow a connection to the world at large. Some times this signal does fail us, for reasons which we cannot explain! But so far so good and here I am posting this blog to prove it!
Our newly acquired Zodiac, tender to Body and Soul, (named Tenderly after the song) is shown below from the moment we relaunch it. It was kindly given to us by friends Rob and Karol who know better now, that it never is plain sailing...and have, wisely, gone back to life ashore. As you can see, I really haven't got the hang of it yet!
<Another birthday present for Lucie's 70th!
<We are here!
and it never is plain sailing of course!
As I write this blog posting (29/05/2017), we are moored at the small town of Tinteniac three kilometers downstream of our winter's mooring at Hede - Bazouges. Lucie's 70th birthday celebrations are already ongoing, having just returned from a marvellous five day break in and around Roscoff, all of which we found enchanting, especially in the sunshine and we had our fair share of that when it mattered most. Our group of special friends, which we somehow to have acquired during the two years we have been in Brittany, joined us in our delightful Airbnb Gite chosen by Lucie.
Friend Steve brought his guitar to entertain us on a splended musical soiree. I brought my piano. Even Lucie, albeit reluctantly, sang her funny song and all eight of us drank quite a lot of wine whilst singing very badly. I presented Lucie with my present of a Yukalalee. She is trying to learn how to play it, using this site.
Do we have the beginnings of a group band here?
Other activities including, restaurants, beaches, islands, pubs. Long walks were crammed in to the five day treat - all not to be forgotten. A long walk around the tidal island at Dossen.... Another special evening to remember, hosted by Steve and Christine, in their fabulous caravan on top of the cliffs overlooking the beach at Roguennic. Some of the sites like Rogennic near to our Gite.
Isle de Batz - The exotic gardens
Our thanks to all 6 of our friends, Rose and Hubert, Alison and Gerard, Steve and Christine for all their generous contributions and lovely company. Lucie and I will certainly return for a closer look at Roscoff, soon.
I regret that I am hardly gifted in the so called "finer arts" and I am jealous of people who seem able to create beautiful shapes, paint pictures, draw cartoons, carve statues out of stone and so forth. I am shamefully ignorant of the history of art and can only express the merits of paintings or sculptures with a vocabluary strictly limited in its depth of feeling and appreciation.
It has therefore been a surprise to me, that since being in Brittany - here at little 'ole Hede-Bazouges - we have become involved with a crowd of people- mainly French - who are bursting with talents and who love to share their enthusiasm with others. I am indebted to Lucie who continues to facilitate the introductions! - Net-working is her special talent - amongst a lot of others, of course.
We are so lucky too, to have made friends with Guillaume and Catherina St. James who are our neighbours and who's family home is the old Lock House, directly opposite to Body and Soul - across the lock. Their home, shown below just behind B & S, is l'Ecluse de La Petite Madelaine and from there, we receive a free Wifi signal as well as their friendship.
Guillaume is a professional musician ; an "all- rounder" with talents in every genre (not forgetting to mention his DIY responsibilities for the business and the home). Qualifying out of the Rennes School of Music and the Jazz Conservatoire in Paris, he writes his own "avant garde" but serious classical compositions and gets commissions to write music for anyone who will pay him. His particular bent and obvious pleasure is to play Jazz saxophone of all types - soprano, alto, tenor - and he has recently returned from a tour of the USA with his friend Chris Brubeck, a trombone player (yes! son of the late pianist Dave Brubeck!) Guillaume also plays a mean jazz piano with great swing and enthusiasm. (Click on his name above and listen to his music)
Catherina is not only running their family "Glamping" business but also holds down an important full-time post promoting "Culture" in the region - besides which she is a loving mother to their three children and all that this entails.To describe her life as busy, is clearly an understatement.
As I write this blog, I hear Guillaume practicing his tenor sax from his floating office opposite us. Surprisingly, he likes to accompany me on the piano at social occasions whenever our calenders collide. We all enjoy each other's company and even Coco Chanel (our Cat) roams freely through their open house, much to the delight of their children. The international rugby matches add further grounds for a healthy relationship, albeit with a distinctly competitive edge - we often watch the series on their television "en famille".
Guillaume is the founder and over-all organiser of the Annual Hede-Bazouges jazz festival, now preparing for its ninth year. (17th and 18th Sept) (make sure you click on the links at the very top of the front page for all the details and picture records) This festival is not just about Jazz but also about art and the promotion of local talents in any of the art disciplines - both professional and amateur - even great cooks and professional clowns are included. Entry is free to the festival site with many services and entertainment to be enjoyed by the family - bookings for the main band events in the huge circus tent, however, must be reserved and paid for in advance.
All the organisational activity is carried out by volunteers (the French word "benevoles") who include, in large part, a group of art lovers and talented locals, over-seen by Vincent Brodin a delightfully modest professional in his own field as a sculptor/plasticien. Ten thousand people are expected over two days of the jazz festival, subject to good weather. Much needs to be done at this early stage. Click here for the facebook photographs from last year's event.
Another couple, Alan and his wife Pascale Beauchamps - she is a sculptor of stone and cement and they live in a remarkable old family house, absolutely stacked full of interesting "objets d'art" at every turn, together with a large barn-like studio which they make available for the jazz festival artists, the volunteers and their paraphenalia.
Lucie is involved with the whole project - planning to run the "Cream Teas" tent again this year, served through the Houdini hatch from Body and Soul. She also goes for her weekly health-walk with Pascale. Good friends.
Surprisingly, in view of my afore-mentioned lack of artistic talent - this Sunday, we are both invited to a "creativity forum" for the 2016 Jazz Festival where talented art lovers, under Vincent's direction, help to create new display material - to be hung up in trees and in strategic places - as objects of interest and beauty. This all takes place in the above mentioned Beauchamps' studio.
On arrival at 10am, whilst Lucie goes off to do something useful, Vincent sits me down at a table, seen below, suggesting that I might create something from a box of assorted drinking straws, a piece of wire and some plastic off-cuts. He supervises the real talents that drift in and out throughout the day - each one making great mobiles and chandeliers, seemingly within minutes - from absolute rubbish.
It isn't until nearly "midi" when - encouraged by the thought of lunch - I have an idea as to what I could make after considering the paucity of the material in front of me, without much hope.
There is no photo of it, thank goodness, but I managed to cobble something together by the end of the day which is certainly of no use to anyone - neither is it interesting and really it is quite ugly - even with the day-light shining through it ! - we laugh a lot and I enjoy the day making it - especially the "apres art" - Lunch and Supper - prepared by Lucie and Pascale with Alain, Anne, Olivier, Janique and Vincent - Friendship, food and wine ( or beer?) - these are the best creations of all.
Who'd 've thought it - me, a "plasticien"?
Possibly, but it ain't all going to be plain sailing, y'know!
My favourite photograph of our freshly painted "Body and Soul" ( Hede-Bazouges France July 2015),
assuring readers that we are happy and healthy in our floating home.
(click on above line for the melody)
I am in my 75th year, maybe too late for any change in my diet; but I am impressed by both the scientific evidence published by the BMJ (and other journals) and by a dramatic change ("volte-face") in what has been medical, doctrinal advice over the last 50 years or so; This is for those of us who are anxious about their fitness, fear of diabetes type (2) or simply being over weight.
This change (over-simplified!) now recommends the following:
Eating fat is good, not bad. ( excluding " transfats" as in cookies etc)
Eating carbohydrates (sugar+) is bad, not good (the body makes its own carbs from fats and proteins by a process called gluconeogenesis).
(Click on the each of the above to elaborate)
What I thought was sound practice, but now isn't
(click the line above for a very convincing site)
These sites above are helpful and I am persuaded that previous official medical advice since the 1970's has been terribly wrong. They also confirm my understanding that the number of calories found in what I am eating is not, and never has been, the root cause of gaining weight.
I am a triumphant witness to the exposure of this fallacy, preached by those "cockey" calorie counters who have had it so wrong for so long. Try this site below.
For the obsessive calorie counting person
Ok, so we cut the carbs......
However, the difficult areas of my lifestyle are:
But I am delighted with the allowances made for:
(upon writing this, my January "booze-fast", now 26 days old, has made a difference in my general feeling of well-being and has already delivered a stonking 5kg to-boot from my body and soul!)
The question now is; what should I do with the 48x50cl cans of Boddingtons Bitter? (at a mere 3.5% abv); and the large bottle of Russian brandy? - (in a glass bottle shaped like a kalashnikov Gun and now lying in the boot of the car) - all awaiting the 1st Feb and for my loving attention!... Mmmmm....
It isn't going to be plain sailing y'know, is it?
Just listen to this lecture by a Dr. Sarah Hallberg and take heart - click below.
Hallberg on something exciting about over-weight and diabetes 2
and then
What happens to alcohol inside the body (Male)
The benefits of good water to drink
TheTruthAbout-20160205-TheTruthAboutDiabetesDebate
(Click on the BBC podcast above)
Some future plans for our summer cruising season
(click on the above for our ideas for the summer cruising)
I am determined to discover how to add "podcasts" to my blog postings - it could be the best way to go. My readers (more than 7 hits per day now!) will be able to link to a BBC program (or any other podcaster) related to the subjects raised in each posting. This idea may well enhance interest and involvement.
I've opened a "help Ticket" with the "typepad" host that I use for my blog. They have been really excellent in their response with previous cries for help. I suspect that I am not alone in being afraid of "computer jargon" which emanates from loads of those "Turkeys" over there. (By turkey, I am referring to their language of "gobbledegook".) They don't realise that some of us really don't understand the lingo that they use all day in their lives. Computer acronyms are especially painful. (Click on the highlighted words for the best site)
If anyone out there knows how, please get in touch; it all helps you know!....and no, I haven't got an Iphone.
Incidentally, did you know that the "Marmite Loveline" is 0800 0323 656 (Monday to Friday 8am to 6pm) They need help with their image in France which is appalling.
That awfully sweet Nutella chocolate spread (that most French children have long grown up with at Breakfast) looks very like Marmite (a smidgin lighter brown in colour) and since French people taste firstly with their eyes, their expectation is for something sweet, when trying Marmite; well, the shock is just too much for them. Hence they think it is "degoutant"! They hate it!
You must help!
But as you have gathered by now; it ain't all plain sailing y'know - is it?
Here is my first Podcast from the BBC's broadcast on the world's migration of people this year. It certainly hasn't been plain sailing for them, that's for sure.
Below, our friend Olivier conducts the annual singing battle at the final event of the 8th Hede-Bazouges Jazz Festival in September. The band rises in the lock to accompany them; the loudest side, singing their traditional songs, wins the trophy. There were approximately 3,500 people attending, on each of the two days of events.
(click to enlarge)
Firstly; about the title of this posting. The word "wet"; simply applies to the weather in Brittany this January; the word "Dry"; refers to my 7th, annual, month's-worth of abstinance from alcohol - and to probity, the promotion of homemade Yoghurt (Easiyo), Meusli, Marmite , brown bread, English Tea, mindful excercise, pious clean living and five-times filtered water. (click any of these highlighted words for more info. or a different slant!)
Views of our winter mooring at Hede-Bazouges, with La Petite Madelaine lock house in the background and "Runner Bean" in the foreground.
27th Dec.at 1.00am We're back from a Christmas tour to visit our Children and Grandchildren and some close friends - A trip of around 1200 miles and lots of great real ale in some great little pubs. A ferry crossing on the good ship Bretagne which seems virtually empty. It is great to book a cabin and to crash out after an enormous English breakfast as soon as we are on board. The trip on shore includes a MOT for Little "Runnerbean" (shown above ) She "done good". Many thanks to Keith and Louise Ritchie who arrange it whilst we are in Lincoln. We cross the Channel from Portsmouth to Caen on the return, day time, voyage, with no problems excepting for a rather late 2 hour drive to Hede from the port. Not recommended.
The Itinery for the record:
We visit Alan and Nicki Robinson, Nicholas and Laura , Gabbie, Skya, Archie Walker, Keith and Louise Ritchie - a quick lunch in Sheffield with Jake, Rosemary, Emily and Cameron Walker - then Alan and Amanda, Harry and Lois Falshaw and then Steve, Sophie, Charlie and Max Blair for Christmas day and Boxing day. We have such a good time with all of them and have many memories of the excellent programme of events arranged by them all. Thanks. But we missed seeing Clive and Aileen - one can't always do everything one would like.
After 14 days away, Coco chanel, our cat, welcomes us home like never before, having been regularly fed, twice a day and socialised by our neighbouring old lady, Simone - this new voluntary service is a relief to find and bodes well for any future forays away from home. All is found to be safe and well with "Body and Soul" too, which we left with low heating and the fridge turned on.
We turned off our inverter/charger but we find the trojan batteries in good order; probably being kept topped up by our single solar panel.
Eden (7), the Youngest of our Neighbours daughters, with Guillaume St. James - proud father, looking on.
Guillaume is a professional musician, from the Rennes School of music and also a Jazz college in Paris. He now composes classical music and plays jazz tenor sax. He is the founder and President of the Hede- Bazouges jazz festival now in it's ninth year (2016).
The St James' - Such a lovely family and now our friends as well as good neighbours. We plan to be back in Hede-Bazouges from our spring exploration on Body and Soul - Southwards towards Rennes, Redon and the Canal Nantes a Brest.
Olivier, the professional clown and our friend from Tinteniac, doing his bit at the Hede-Bazouges Jazz fest. 2015.
Below I am accompanied by Jerome, bassist, and one of Olivier's Clowns playing tenor sax (impromptu!).
Behind is "Body and Soul" from which Lucie and her helper, Louise Ritchie, produce and serve over 60 English Cream teas for the French, my audience.....! We are performing under a sideless tent with chairs and tables within. The next Hede-Bazouges Jazz Festival is set for 17th 18th September 2016. We will be there!
Click here for information on the Canal D'Ille et Rance
Before indulging in the customary tales of woe as in "it ain't all plain sailing" ....for that, you must read on - but just a moment - and for the record; we are moored at Hede-Bazouges (about 5 klm south of Tinteniac) for the forseeable future and loving it all very much. Our address is :
Malcolm and Lucie Walker,
Bateau Body and Soul,
Ecluse De La Petite Madelaine,
Hede -Bazouges, France 35630
Our telephone numbers are as follows:
0033 640 73 38 49 (recommended)
0033 684 69 92 20..(if all else fails)
We have good wifi connection from the Lock Keepers Cottage in which our new found friends Guillaume (Pronounced "william" only starting with a "G") and Katerina live with their three children (8,12 and 17) and we are moored on the left bank, by the third lock of the longest stair-case flight of locks in France. We are opposite the Petite Madelaine ecluse (Lock House), and have at the moment, free electricity and water, though we expect to be charged by someone sooner or later.
Hede-Bazouges (not to be confused with Bazouges-Hede - a smaller village nearby) has a very small port which we share with several other boats, three of which are fellow "full-timers". So far, it could not be better, especially as we have a car which enables us to reach other essential places and "must do's". The village is pretty in itself and has plenty to offer both in terms of food shops, pubs, post office - but it also has a thriving theatre which could be fun. We will soon find out.
Our local friends Marie and Olivier - from Tinteniac - have joined us in the port at Hede-Bazouges, with their two boats, and our other friends, Katerina and Guillaume, are geering the place up for the September 19th and 20th Annual Jazz Festival at which I am invited to contribute, with my piano and melodies divine. Guillaume has found me a base player to accompany me.
To our delight we are surprised by the arrival of Keith and Louise (Ritchie) on "Saltire" (last met in Meilhan 2 years ago). They have had a very exciting sea-trip from Bordeaux. We listen to this hair-raising story of near ship wreck and life-boat drama on their sea voyage up the coast from Bordeaux to the Arzal estuary and the rivers and canals of Brittany from the south. We feel relieved that, not being built for the sea, Body and Soul could never have followed suit. Crossing the St. Malo estuary and as far as the barrage, is about the most we can risk.
Happily, they complete their journey thanks to a French lifeboat team, and are able to travel north towards us, up the Villaine river through Redon and Rennes meeting us, quite fortuitously, at Tinteniac as we steam southwards from St. Malo.
We can laugh about it but - enough of the good times! - Now for the bad and the sad and not very funny....it's the 28th of July.
I speak about the death of Teddy who is "put down" on this day - his final visit to the local vet; exactly a year and one month after the death of his older mate, Spud. His heart and lungs cause him increased difficulty breathing. He has strong medication which sees him happily through the last three months of his life. Just over 15 years old - he makes it to Brittany against all expectations.
In his last week we take him for a cooling "wallow" in a rock pool on the beach at Cancale. He loved the beaches and the sea. Sadly, we are now dog-less.
Lucie and I agree that we should bury his body in a nice patch of ground - not 10 yards from our mooring. Our lovely lady vet (who also cries at his final parting) expresses surprise at our request for the return of his body - she is concerned about our plans for his private burial and tells us that we would actually be breaking French law. She reluctantly suggests, however, that we should buy some lime to cover his body in the grave to hasten decomposition and prevent odours.
Off we go, tearfully, to the nearest "brico" shop to buy a garden spade and a bag of lime, believing that we are "doing right" by him - you can understand? ...a beautiful resting place with some flowers, close by us in the Port .... best for him and both of us - we could visit his grave?...and so on.
Readers may remember the green plastic flower pot we bought for Spud, planted with a sprig of rosemary for remembrance, which lit up in the dark . Yes?
No?... really, I'm afraid so.
But then we find that lime is only available, on order, from a farm shop in large bags which would anyway need a tractor to carry even one of them.
So - still keen to be doing the right thing - I try digging the selected spot for Teddy's grave with my new spade, thinking that if I dig it deep enough, we wouldn't need lime at all. Nobody but us will know. It is getting dark.
Teddy's stiffening body is lying on the back seat of the car but neither the cheap Chinese spade nor I are up to the job. Alas, the spot we choose has inches of concrete and hardcore covered with a thin layer of grass. I give up.
We decide to take his body back to the vet's surgery the next day; to be sent for cremation by a commercial company. His ashes, they assure us, are to be scattered out at sea.
We have a cheap Chinese spade by which to remember him .....it is hardly used.... as well as a ton of photos on our PC computer - but ahah! Wait.....
You won't believe this, but on the very same sad morning, after returning from the vet, our pc/computer also gives up the ghost (the hard disc apparently) - so we take the "stack", together with our slightly out-of-date external back-up disc to a marvellous man in Combourg who tries his hardest to save our files. We trust him completely and indeed he finds the back-up disc to be in good order. So there is hope. We leave him with his promise to ring us when he has tried again to salvage whatever he can of our files.
True to this promise, he calls after midi with more bad news. The "mother board" has "gone" too, he says. So no files are recoverable.
As it happens, of course, he can offer us a brand new replacement computer with all the latest stuff on it and as fast as one could ever imagine, at a truly amazing price. So amazing is this offer that I lose my presence of mind and I drop the little external back-up disc - our last resort - on to the tiled floor where it smashes irretrievably. So now we have a new tower computer/pc. with no files/music/photos at all, other than those we manage to scramble from a few past USB sticks and, of course, the albums on this blog (in the left hand column) which can be copied back in to our "pictures" file. We miss our old friend, of fourteen years, very much.
Two deaths is quite enough for us and so we decide to "dry our eyes" and "call it a day". But there's another shock coming; In the middle of the night - Lucie wakes up in a sweat after dreaming that my passport is out of date*. We need this for our trip to the UK on the 7th September. So we're up at 4am to find out, incredibly, that her dream is proved to be true. It ran out this July. Let's hope it only takes three weeks to process.
Lucie completes what's necessary, post-haste, with forms filled out on-line, using our super new 'pooter and, with new, sinister photos of me from a local passport machine and loads of stamps from the post office, it goes off before midi that morning. Phew!
We're still waiting.
Huh! It's never all plain sailing is it?
*Mea culpa -
Lucie, upon reading this blog, gently reminds me of the enormity of her role in sorting out my passport problem - and almost everything else, for that matter, in what is for me a lovely, but still foreign, country.
As Lucie rightly points out, and I confess, that it is she (not "we"as above) who gets up at 4 am to tackle the on-line passport renewal form, having dreamed the problem in the first place. In truth, I arrive on the scene in time for breakfast!
It is Lucie who arranges our early visit to get colour photos, colour photo-copies, envelopes, stamps etc. We are taken there by Keith and Louise who happen to be going to the market at the nearby town, Combourg. Whilst they enjoy the market, Lucie drags me reluctantly in and out of the post office and photocopying shop and she finally makes the post before lunch. I can only do as I am told, watch in awe, buy les cafe cremes and tell the jokes.
I'm writing this on Thursday 2nd July 2015. We've made it to Brittany! (arr. 18th June) - after an exciting "sea" crossing from St. Malo to the Barrage de La Rance and a beautiful run up the estuary, a night's free mooring at Dinan and also at Evran, we now find another great town called Tinteniac situated on L'Ille et Rance - about 35 minutes South of St. Malo by car and a bit less, North of Rennes.
We decide to make our home base here at Tinteniac where we are befriended by a very special "fellow boating" couple - Marie and Olivier and their young family. (responsible in large part for the decision to stay.) We meet up too with their artist friends Fred and Anne-Clare who's house over-looks the port. They all make us feel at home.
Cick on the above highlighted words for some pictures....
("Jacques Cartier" Basin, St. Malo - shown here with the red boat coming out - is where Body and Soul was re-launched)
Barrage de la Rance looking North - click here for more exciting pictures
We land at Tinteniac
After the first week we decide to book in for the winter and operate from here at least for this season. It's a dream come true and the beginning of a new life. But what a journey all the way from Montauban ! starting on the 23rd March - eastwards on the canal de Garonne to Toulouse for our hull painting in the dry dock there, then, with our good friends - Bob and Christine Hoye-Turner on their boat Sassi ; we travel in tandem on the Midi to Le Somail where we say our fond farewells and proceed alone, towards the important encounter with a crane and transporter at Grau D'Agde, pausing for a few weeks at Vias whilst waiting for a final date from the transport company and the crane people :
Alte'AdAugizeau . We could not fault this Company for their efficiency, price and general helpfulness. The "Convoi Exceptionel" lorry driver, Nicholas managed the journey from Agde to St. Malo in only 2 days! (Normally 4 days)
Allemand Chantier , responsible for lifting out, were also faultless in their professional treatment of us.
There are so many people to thank.
Pictures will be plentiful if you are interested - in the appropriate album in the left hand column of this page ("The adventures to Brittany") although this process is on-going and will take time to complete and depends on the availability of "wifi" . Otherwise read on when there is more....
But firstly, what's good about Tinteniac?
1. All services are within easy walking distance, including a library, bank, doctor (medical centre), large "Super U" and fuel, weekly market, bars, Vet and post-office, bus service (50mins to St Malo or Rennes.)
2. It's a petty port with large grass verge, mature trees, good walks, tables and exercise park etc - electricity and water at a very reasonable price. It is free of traffic.
3. Will take us for a winter mooring, again, at a very reasonable price.
4. Situated within easy reach of both St Malo and Rennes.
5. Excellent unobtrusive camp-site for caravans or tents.
6. A delightful neighbouring French couple (boat people) with new born baby who have made us so welcome - introducing us to their jazz loving friends - including two excellent, professional contra-bass players, both of whom have already accompanied me - plus drums and guitar! (oh rapture!). We now have wifi from their box.
The story is yet to be told....watch this space for all the interesting cock-ups on the way...and for our decision to move another 5klms to Hede-Bazouges.....
After all, It was never going to be plain sailing, was it?
My friend Alex Melville, moored just beside us on the barge “Busted Flush”, has a sweet little, brindled coloured Jack Russell called "Rosie" ; we have an adorable little black and white cat called "Coco Chanel".
Despite his denials when I raise this particular topic with him, I sense that Alex obviously hates cats; even our adorable Coco Chanel – living next door – and this is the essence of the subject about which I am compelled to write; comparing human with animal behaviour and its connection to race, prejudice and religious intolerance. No kidding!
Clearly, Rosie and Alex, her master, are inseparable. She personifies the idiom “Man's best friend”; Apparently Rosie and Alex sleep on the same bed and they talk to each other all the time and she leaps endearingly upon his lap at every opportunity. It is clearly a splendid and admirable relationship between man and beast and one to which I aspire with my own ageing Norwich Terrier “Teddy” : but there is a dark side - clearly revealed by the manic anti-feline behaviour of Rosie. - that sweet little, afore mentioned, lanky, brindled Jack Russell - She hates cats too!
Sweet Rosie is undoubtedly a potential killer. So much so that, in order to prevent her from escaping to kill cats which, clearly, is her life's ambition; she has to be kept strictly on a lead at all times thus avoiding the wrath of many a cat owning neighbour now wintering in the port of Montauban..
Rosie is so intent on getting our Coco between her teeth that the poor dog is almost permanently shivering with frustration at the possibility of a “Kill”. Indeed, judging by the time she spends intently and maliciously staring out of next door's window, standing on her hind legs, quivering and looking pointedly at Coco as she calmly cleans herself on the roof of our barge next door, is evidence of the subliminal phobia which has clearly been passed on from her master; her commander.... and my friend Alex Melville!
Just to emphasise the seriousness of this anti-cat behaviour; a few days after arriving at Montauban for the winter, Rosie's leash brakes under the manic strain of her forward lunge at Coco as she innocently tries to sneak past Rosie on the pontoon. Without Alex's lightning intervention, who knows what the outcome would have been? - as he leaps to prevent a catastrophe, with both combatants falling into a wintry canal. Somehow Coco scrambles desperately onto the back of Alex - who is now lying flat on the pontoon - she is clinging to his neck. I grab her and drag her claws from his delicate skin. I am then badly bitten by Coco who, in her panic, mistakes me for Rosie. All ends well; wounds are dressed, leads repaired, and - one hopes - lessons learned.
My point is this – we are all subject from birth to the influence of our parents both good and bad - truthful (like one must not put ones hand in a fire) - or baseless (like one should believe in Father Christmas or indeed a particular religious creed). This is neither surprising nor new as a subject for research. Indeed it is well described by the respected biologist, Professor Richard Dawkins in his book “The God Delusion”.
On the one hand it is an essential behaviour ensuring the survival of the species; on the other, depending on parental cultural influences, it perpetuates counter productive behaviour, beliefs based on sorcery and witchcraft and animosity towards other species or breeds. Rosie's behaviour is surely an example of this latter kind. Her little mind has been corrupted by parental prejudice. It doesn't help when the first words Alex utters upon taking Rosie for a walk each morning are “Come on Rosie – cats, cats, cats!” - mind you, I agree, this type of influence could hardly be called subliminal.
In contrast, but to support this illustration, there is another young Jack Russell called Alfie. He is equally adorable and lives with his “Parents”, on the barge next door on the other side of Alex's barge from Body and Soul. He is a lively, friendly dog, almost completely free to roam; who, after some “testing encounters” has found peace with Coco and now appears to have friendly relations with her. They seek each other out each day. They really play together. It is wonderful to watch.
Alfie's "parents", (Nigel and Trish) have a long history of dealing with pets of all kinds - including gold fish. They have no issue with CATS or dogs - or elephants for that matter. Is this a “ Q.E.D.” moment? I believe so.
These two contrasting pieces of evidence are examples of animal behaviour which surely indicate how “early parental” prejudice is crucial to the behaviour of young offspring; but it is hardly, on its own, adequate scientific proof. It may be inadequate to the professional zoologist but there is countless anecdotal evidence which supports this hypothesis: For instance; examples abound of other amazing and unlikely co-operation between species, from cats living happily with pet mice – dogs sleeping with cats or pet rabbits, horses with dogs and so on ; Also applicable to dogs of completely different breeds of the same species – say a Rotweiller with a Yorkshire Terrier. How they get on with each other is, it seems, dependent upon early parental influences.
My own fascinating experience in Kuwait occurred when a feral cat (of which there are many in this country) entered my flat through an open window and promptly gave birth to four kittens on my bed. Clearly the mother cat thought that she had found a cool and safe place for her brood - but her relationship with me proved to be one of mutual fear and aggression. From the first day after the birth she would prowl around me as I dressed myself fearfully whilst standing on a chair!
I supplied only water to this cat on advice from a friendly Arab, which meant that she would have to find a food source outside. This gave me the opportunity to approach the tiny kittens when she was out hunting, in order to handle them and with a view to moving them off the bed to somewhere more convenient: I was shocked to find that they rose up on their tiny back legs - as if as one - spitting ferociously at me when, cautiously, I approached.
How did those kittens know that I was dangerous? This was, surely, an example of subliminal communication through the mother which might have saved their lives. After several tense days, the mother cat took the hint and removed all four kittens elsewhere, one by one and I never saw them again.
Now, I understand that 6% of the population of France is of the Islamic faith, of one kind or another. From this minority, a tiny number create havoc and perpetrate violence in defence of their faith. Hence the recent atrocities in Paris and in Belgium. But as newborn babies, those men (terrorists) had no idea that they were of the Muslim monotheistic faith. Like Rosie who is taught to believe that Cats are her enemies, they were indoctrinated into just one of the three main Abrahamic faiths and into its cultural norms in which they still sincerely believed and for which they were prepared to die. They might equally have been of the Christian or Jewish faith.
Blind, unquestioning faith is the problem which surely has to be addressed in "civilised" society but with Alex and Rosie - in this port of Montauban, - it ain't all plain sailing, y'know!
See also What I believe
A quick film strip on the subject of racism
I am only now able to talk about it - I mean, that awful day (27th June 2014) when, with advice from the nice vet lady, we decide to have Spud "put to sleep" (a topical euphemism for murder?); We are told he has a tumour in his brain and are at the surgery, having carried him up in a basket, when our vet tells us this news and that all other treatments - the pain relief pills for what was previously thought to have been Arthritis in his neck - fail.
Decision made: I hold him in my arms whilst the anesthetic injection is applied. I struggle to ask for some paper roll for the tears that freely flow. Just a minor complaint from Spud. He soon relaxes and sleeps like a baby; a clever tourniquet gadget around his right front leg followed by the killer injection and our friend of fourteen happy years is finally at peace.
Euthanasia is what it is called - and we are, in a sense, relieved that he is free of pain. Latterly he became blind, stone deaf and very unsteady, but we shed tears of genuine sadness at losing a quarter part of the family. Spud was son of Puck, our previous and much loved Jack Russell, who we "put down" at the age of sixteen. It is the end of a line - call it what you like.
We agree to have him cremated and sign documents to this affect. The nice lady vet says that they don't charge for the euthanasia. We choose the cardboard container rather than the solid oak alternative.... We are to be phoned when the ashes are returned from the doggy crematorium. A gift of a flower pot from Grant and Moira (which lights up in the dark!) is planted with rosemary in his memory and so far we have not been phoned by the vet, nor have we paid the 165E !
So now we've acquired Coco, a sweet stray kitten of the same colour as Spud....and an absolute clown ......Rather like this very funny video.
How naff are we? (Click on the links below and above for lovely pictures.)
Just a few family photos recently received:
The green flower pot behind is for Spud's ashes, planted with rosemary. It lights up in the dark! No...really!?
Below: The Bassins of St Malo into which we will be craned in May2015
Spot the cranes? It could all go terribly wrong!
Today, the dogs take me out as usual, for our morning walk. Readers unfamiliar with our dogs have to understand that they are both small terriers. One is a fourteen year old, black, white and skinny Jack Russel and the other, a rather furry over-weight Norwich Terrier now approaching his twelth birthday and badly needing his spring shave. You can read more about them and their training on the following link:
I am musing during this particular walk; it is the first of the two dog walks taken each day over the last 14 years and that, calculating from the 1st Feb to 31st January at an average of, say, 4 kilometers per day - adjusted by an occasional "wife walk" (which is much shorter!) when I am away , birthdays and leap years - (365days x 2/day = 730 walks per year x 14 yrs = 10,220 walks at a daily average of 2 klms per walk = a phenominal 20,440 klms, roughly speaking or, for those at home, 13,627 miles or approximately 15.5 times the distance by road from John O'Groats to Land's End! Did you get that?
Fifteen point five times the distance by road between John O'Groats and Lands End - that, is true dedication!
But I hardly complete 50 yards this morning when behind us I hear great shouting, a barking noise and rushing of feet. Before I have time to do anything about it, a huge German Shepherd dog rushes up to us, showing every sign of fierce aggression and sinister intent. It circum-navigates my waving arms and picks up poor Teddy (the fat, furry Norwich Terrier) in his mouth, by his back, and shakes him like he would kill a rat. Death must surely follow.
Quickly following the aggressor is his owner. A youth of some 18 years of age - dangling a useless lead in his hands - grabs his dog by the collar and starts to beat the beast viciously until he finally opens his mouth to release his "prey" - and all this takes, after what seems to be 5 minutes - probably only one and a half.
The youth is beside himself with rage and continues to beat his dog hard until I am prompted to remonstrate with him - and am beginning to feel sorry for the animal for what must have been an action done in all innocence and probably because of innappropriate training or backgound experiences.
Teddy, by some querk of fortune, seems completely unharmed and unaffected by the ordeal and struts off with a quick shake of his thick coat which must have been what saved him. The youth is suitably shame-faced and apologetic. I continue to quiver for an hour, until the extra adrenalin, now useless, has been dispersed into my blood stream.
We abort the walk and even Spud, who has just watched this carnage from the sidelines, seems to be relieved as we return home. I murder a cup of strong coffee and ruminate over what might have been; concluding that if the beast had chosen skinny Spud rather than fat Teds - his life long friend - the resultant injuries - at least a punctured lung - probably would have been fatal.
Dangerous dogs like this one should, at the very least, be muzzled before putting others in danger of their lives, but it really ain't all plain sailing y'know, is it?
We have learned so much from past mistakes; so we decide to make some more!
Please note:
For maximum interest and enjoyment, make sure you try clicking your mouse on the highlighted text below.
We are planning another trip - March to November 2014 - ending up in Montauban which we briefly visited five years ago. We have booked for winter 2014/2015 having been to see the splendid improvements that have been made there, under the new regime, and meeting the new Capitaine.
Montech is a relatively small but important town at the junction between the Canal Du Midi and the The Canal de Montech a Montauban. The river Tarn also links Montauban directly with Moissac but there are five delapidated locks on this stretch of it. Work is in hand to restore them, opening up an exciting and new ring (called "the Tarn Ring" or "Boucle du Tarn") of navigable waterway for boaters and commerce. Time and funding will decide when the work is to be completed (started?). We hope to be alive to see it! A mouse-click on the relevant links above will take you to a very impressive blog, showing the facts and all you need to know about this project.
The proposed trip going east will be different from any of our previous trips in that we plan to take our beloved van with us - not on board of course but - we will go back to fetch her each time we moor up. My bicycle is being restored after a long period of neglect for this purpose.
By keeping each day's travel to a reasonable distance, say around twenty kilometers, we can limit Body and Soul's diesel consumption to what is affordable whilst making good use of our van. France's excellent train services will be used if travel distances are too great for an old man (Me) to pedal.
The van will enable us to explore our surroundings in much more depth; a luxury that previously we have missed. Shopping will also be made easier and, in any case, the bike will keep me fit.
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It is January the 10th and my body is now over the initial shock of my 4th: annual, January "No alcohol" regime. I'm beginning to feel better in myself both physically and psychologically. I am pretty certain to be losing weight. (Lucie is doing an "occasional glass" diet!) Last year I suffered an immediate winter cold over this period but this year it has been more to do with the gut! (details upon written request only!)
Now, about battery replacements. We originally had five deep cycle lead/acid 135AH set in parallel giving us 12 volt domestic voltage. Gradually, and in a curious order of decline, we are left with two useable ones after four years of use. Whilst hooked on to the shore power, which in Castets en Dorthe is less than reliable, we can manage. However we must always remember to switch off the inverter whenever we go out, and at night. This is crucial. Should there be a shore power cut, our less than adequate battery bank would immediately be flattened beyond repair.
It turns out that, after seeking the opinions and advice of many people who know better than I, I choose 4 x Trojan 125AH 6 volt (to be wired series/parallel giving us 12volts and 450AH) from the Battery Mega Store; delivered to my fellow bargee friend's house in the UK. He is due out in April and has kindly agreed to bring them with him. Apparently, because we are a live-aboard boat and are of a certain size, VAT is to be zero rated. I'll believe it when I see it!
Date Friday 24th January:
Oh horror! After a hellish week of bad weather and multiple power cuts, one of the two remaining batteries is gassing badly and we are left with only one. We abort plans to buy in the UK and have to place an order with the same company's French division. This means we are compelled to pay for "shipping" and for the French equivalent of VAT. They arrive within 48 hours.
Since their arrival, our shiny new batteries - now all wired up and ready, albeit on the lounge table - two unforseen matters have arisen which completely alter the picture:
Firstly: Even as I write this post - it is still raining hard - thus preventing me from installing them in the engine room until it stops.
Secondly: The port electricity supply, after months of constant promises, has finally been upgraded, thus removing the urgency that made us buy in France in the first place.
But there you are, it ain't all plain sailing, is it?
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!.
Click here for Richard Dawkins.net
Lucie always says that when things go wrong, they happen in sets of three. Of course, as a bit of a nihilist myself, I dismiss this "old wives tale" entirely as superstitious nonsense. But I have to admit to a day of three such nasty events on Monday - we'll call it "Black Monday" - it is all about things that go wrong in boats.
Anyone familiar with the "macerating loo", whether in a house or in a boat, has a hilarious story to tell, and without them, many a dinner party would be all the less for it.
I have experienced eight occasions in our eight years on board Body and Soul, when our "Tecma" macerating loo has given us another grim story to add to an already extensive repertoire.
The problem is always caused by the user who, in one way or another, asks too much of this device with dire consequence.
Wet wipes, sanitary towels, kitchen paper, match sticks, tooth picks, nappies - or simply too much toilet paper - in fact, anything other than human waste can cause havoc to daily life on board.
It is now "Black Monday". The macerator within the loo becomes jammed and my job is to unjam it. We cannot flush. We cancel all other plans for the day.
Firstly, I must clear out what remains un-flushed; Not a pleasant task, requiring the protection of rubber gloves, disinfectants and bleach, together with an ability to turn off ones imagination and ones nose completely - I am happy to have acquired both these skills, as an Hotelier and Licensee, from years of dealing with some of the less attractive aspects of human behaviour.
After unbolting the ceramic pedestal from the floor, disconnecting the electric cable, the water supply and draining pipe, the whole thing is turned up-side-down. There are several jubilee clips and eight bolts to remove. The offending blockage is deep within the motor.
Putting it all back together is an unwelcome addition to this nightmare, caused, in our case, by the ridiculously small hole in the tiles behind the pedestal through which all the pipes and wires must be crammed.
I am terrified that one false move or failure to tighten up a clip or bolt properly, would lead to a leak of sewage into the bilges and leave a permanent smell in our beloved boat for the rest of our retirement. An unthinkable thought!
We remember well the first of these dreaded occasions in our early life on "Body and Soul", which takes me nearly five hours of sweat and toil to put right (with sympathy and help from Lucie who always supplies cups of tea and beer with perfect timing) and with this experience and others that follow, each occasion takes progressively less time and I am now an expert in yet another essential boating skill. If it were not such an unpleasant job, I would make a viable business by offering advice to others - for money.
On "Black Monday" however, the much dreaded loo blockage, being the first of three misfortunes on this day, takes me just fifty (50) minutes to complete the same actions which once took me five hours, six years ago.
I am elated by my success but, such self congratulation is, as often the case, rewarded swiftly with the proverbial "slap in the face with a wet fish" - within minutes of putting all my tools away.
It is the washing machine that packs up next. What the...!
At first glance, I find the machine is full of grey water and is stopped "mid-cycle". It is obviously still electrically connected but nothing I do, by way of twisting knobs and pressing buttons, persuades the program to restart. To force the door open is not an option. Again, I shudder to think of gallons of smelly water irretrievably gushing into the bilges.
Clearly the pump is jammed. How do I get the water out before delving into the pump chamber? This is accessed, as with most machines, through a conduit at the front, just half an inch from the floor.
By way of a test, I tentatively unscrew the plastic plug leading to the offending pump and as expected, water starts leaking out on to the floor. I tighten it again and quickly mop up. I take a pause for a quick cup of tea and rethink. Perhaps a beer or two....?
Then, like the proverbial light bulb turned on in my brain - of course, helped by the cup of tea - I have the answer! Use the "Kartcher" ( the vacuum cleaner and water sucker) - Brilliant!
I convert this great domestic appliance into its water sucking mode and, using its crevice nossle, I return to the plastic plug, gingerly opening it so that the water is released but sucked up by the "Kartcher" at an equal rate. Several gallons later the washing machine is empty, the floor is dry, and I am able to extract the offending plastic object and a coin from the pump.
Bingo! cela marche! All is well !.......... is it hell?
It's the water heater and central heating system that packs up next. I just don't believe it!
This gadget has served us well for over seven years unlike its predecessor which gave us so much trouble, fortunately whilst still under guarantee. The "Erbespacher" is fired by "pink" diesel but also has an electric pump to circulate hot water around radiators and the hot water tank. I observe a tell-tale whisp of smoke and a smell of electrical burning whilst I am trying to restart it. The pump is burnt out and we need a complete replacement.
A quick search on the internet and a new one is ordered from the UK - on line and at great expense (780gbp). It arrives, with full installation instructions, seven days later.
I wish all problems could be solved through the internet. What a different day that might have been!
but it really ain't all plain sailing y'know, is it?
Note: Readers will no doubt have realised that the pictures inserted within the above text have nothing to do with the story itself but, hopefully, do add some indications as to our general well-being since the last posting. For more photos, one can click upon any of the albums listed in the left hand column of this blog.
