Vaughan

I notice the lack of fenders on those hire boats. Hearts boats only had three each side and most hirers put them up when under way. Notice also that Reedham village had no need of a flood wall in those days. I wonder why not?

Personally - and I am no chemist - having seen the advert I would think it would be effective on a fire with instant flame, such as petrol or a chip pan fire. Who deep fries chips on a boat these days? I am not sure that it would be much use on a fire which had developed a good heat base, such as wood or indeed, Fibreglass. May be good though, for giving you a few seconds in which to escape.

The fact is that today, the 15th June, as regulations stand, it is impossible to run a hire boat business or holiday accommodation.. The reason for this is that neither the government or even the public itself, are prepared to allow each other to behave in public in anything other than mutual distrust of each other. Unless they are setting out to pull down statues. The reasons for that may be scientifically valid (note may be) and I am not knocking anyone who has decided to keep well out of the way in view of their own personal circumstances. e.g. self isolation. But the fact remains that tourism and especially boat hiring, on the Broads, is not practical under these circumstances. So unless and until our behaviour towards each other can be persuaded to return to what we used to call normal, then Broads tourism will never be the same again since the seasonal tourist businesses will no longer be in business.

Personally, I think intelligent human beings have got to somehow return to living with each other in public without poking each other with a long pole to see if they are far enough apart! That may seem a flippant answer to a genuine and most valid question but I think this is really what the whole thing will depend on. Our own future inter-active public behaviour.

Wise words from JM. Mid winter will be the telling time, for boatyards as well as any seasonal tourist business. I feel especially for Andy as I had to make this same decision about a Broads business back in the early 80s. It is a nasty place to be, when circumstances are beyond your control. Life does go on though and there are always other "avenues". I can assure him of that!

To name but one location.

South Walsham Broad?

Strange, to be asked to sign a petition about the BA, started by Miles Weston!

Its action looks to me rather like Halon, which is very effective at knocking down flames, such as in a car engine. It is illegal nowadays in a living space although you can have an automatic one in an engine compartment. Its fumes are noxious and can kill. If it is from America then the rules may be different there. This is assuming it is Halon but I notice they don't tell you anywhere what it actually is. Dry powder is still the best in a boat, despite the mess, as it has the effect of smothering a fire as well as knocking down the flames. You can actually wave a dry powder extinguisher in front of you and it will smother a fire long enough for you to get through to a door. Believe me, I have done it. Although only in training!

I'll tell you what! Any collisions, bumps and bangs or general wonky boat handling - we can't blame it on the "bloody hirers" any more, can we?

The sweetness of Sauternes comes from the "cepage noble" which is the method of leaving the grapes on the vine right through until sometimes early October when they are almost shrivelled. This concentrates the sugar in the grape but is difficult to produce, normally hand picked and so quite expensive. It does keep a lot longer as well. It is a dessert wine to have with your "pudden" at the end of a meal. But not with Christmas pudding, which is too rich. The best thing with that is Asti Spumante, a sweet sparkling wine.

Gimballed oil lamps, I hope?

You know what they say in Norfolk : Fust that blew Then that snew Then that thew An' then that tun around' an' frooz roit hard!

It is L.P.G. Butane gas, without the odorising agent added. That's why hair sprays set off gas detectors on boats.

I heard that! Pardon?

So do I. It was full of genuine antique horse brasses.

No problem! It's just that it was known, in its day, as one of the best small restaurants in the county, outside Norwich. A lovely little place for romantic, candle-lit assignations. That's why I remember it!

So do I. I guess this weekend will tell us more about law and order on our streets. I very much doubt that the boarding up of the Centotaph in Whitehall will be tolerated by veterans' associations for too long. I am feeling rather glad that I am no longer a special constable, in these fearful times for civil peace. I used to think having to patrol home games at Carrow Road in Norwich was a bit stressful. Little did I know!

How things come back to repeat themselves, even 3 years later. On the subject of Nelson and his statue, I recommend members to this thread, where we discussed it at length.

What about Hadrian's Wall, built by the Romans to try and control the Hill Tribes. On second thoughts, after Brexit we might need to keep that . . . .

Old Timbers or Old Beams?

I suppose what TheQ is asking is : once you have started down this road, how far do you go and where does it stop? Having read the papers this morning I don't at all like the way local councils are meekly acceding to the demands of a social media "petition". Signing a petition does not just mean "liking" a post on the internet.

Thank you for that Q and I liked the reference to Braveheart. I have always believed that good satire is never far from the truth.

If Man is still alive . . . .

Sorry again for the drift but worth mentioning Olivier Chauvin. He worked for John Riddel before he became manager of the Crown base at Jarnac on the Charente. He is the one who assembled all the cruising information and detail for the du Breil maps, by travelling all over France on a moped. He, like John and myself, was later forced out by company age-ism after the yuppies took over, but he still writes regular articles for "Fluvial" magazine.