What Have You Learnt From Lockdown

[Oldspice]

Fortunately I've been able to carry on working through all this so haven't been stuck at home full time.

What I have discovered during the time off from work and not going to the boat every weekend is with the fine weather doing some gardening and discovering just how many fish are in our pond.

Amazed at the amount of wild birds visit our London garden ... Discovered completely by accident that we also have a one button shove it all in washing machine.

Discovered that we have a vacuum cleaner called 'Hetty' however you still have to plug it in and push it around.

Biggest thing learnt by far is just how much I spend going to the boat every weekend ... unbelievably around £600 per month .... 

Most humbling has to be the work of NHS and all key and essential workers ...

[Lulu]

I will never take freedom for granted

Not being allowed to see and hug my family has been the hardest part. Thank goodness for FaceTime. At least my 1 year old granddaughter seems to recognise me on the screen.  

Working from home works really well and hope I can continue to do that at least a few times a week after things get back to ‘normal’ , or whatever normal will look like.

Ive been lucky to have been able to keep working but it has been extra stressful. The situation has just made us want to try and bring our retirement plans forward and not waste a moment.  I dont know if that will be possible but we are working on it. 
 

[MauriceMynah]

5 minutes ago, Oldspice said:

Discovered that we have a vacuum cleaner called 'Hetty' however you still have to plug it in and push it around.

Mine's automatic, it sits in the corner gathering dust.

[SwanR]

8 minutes ago, Lulu said:

Ive been lucky to have been able to keep working but it has been extra stressful. The situation has just made us want to try and bring our retirement plans forward and not waste a moment.  I dont know if that will be possible but we are working on it. 

I've also been fortunate to be able to work from home although I miss being able to just get up, walk over to someone's desk and have a conversation. It takes more effort to make things happen.

The irony was that with my mother-in-law's passing at the end of January, work was the only thing stopping us from moving house. And then the lockdown scuppered our plans to start some serious house hunting. I don't feel ready for retirement but now we are seriously discussing the possibility of taking a chance on moving anyway and managing with the income we would have if we did that.

[SteveO]

How much I don't miss getting in the car and driving a 340 difficult mile round-trip to Norfolk and back. How much we spend on diesel, drink, pub food, to say nothing of tolls, mooring fees, insurance and maintenance.  How much of a worry it has been  not being able to see our boat since February. Not saying we will sell up, but am thinking very hard about it. 

[OldBerkshireBoy]

2 minutes ago, SteveO said:

How much I don't miss getting in the car and driving a 340 difficult mile round-trip to Norfolk and back. How much we spend on diesel, drink, pub food, to say nothing of tolls, mooring fees, insurance and maintenance.  How much of a worry it has been  not being able to see our boat since February. Not saying we will sell up, but am thinking very hard about it. 

Have a feeling you aren`t alone there however I wonder what boat prices will do.

[SteveO]

1 minute ago, OldBerkshireBoy said:

Have a feeling you aren`t alone there however I wonder what boat prices will do.

That's one of the reasons I'm holding back. 

[MauriceMynah]

On 16/05/2020 at 21:47, OldBerkshireBoy said:

How boring TV is in general.

How much I miss a pub and live music.

Backgammon computer games cheat.

I have been looking for a "straight" computer Backgammon game for ages now. I'm starting to think one doesn't exist but I can't think why!!!

[unclemike]

if you have facebook john try this

https://apps.facebook.com/backgammonking/?fb_source=bookmark&ref=bookmarks&count=0&fb_bmpos=_0

 

[Happy]

On 17/05/2020 at 14:07, SteveO said:

How much I don't miss getting in the car and driving a 340 difficult mile round-trip to Norfolk and back. How much we spend on diesel, drink, pub food, to say nothing of tolls, mooring fees, insurance and maintenance.  How much of a worry it has been  not being able to see our boat since February. Not saying we will sell up, but am thinking very hard about it. 

 To be honest we had the same thoughts a few years ago.  We wetre both working even though I had passed retirement age.  We were not using the boat enough and when we did go spent time on board cleaning and maintaining and just when it was time to enjoy it was time to go home!  Been around boats all my life and never thought the day would come when I would not have one.  I still miss the life and sometimes the boat but find a few days hiring gets it out of my system for a while.  Good Luck.

Keep safe all of you.

[JennyMorgan]

On 17/05/2020 at 14:11, OldBerkshireBoy said:

Have a feeling you aren`t alone there however I wonder what boat prices will do.

Boat prices, in my opinion, have long been artificially high, driven by commission paid salespeople. Now prices might be driven by people keen to offload what have become their liabilities, their pleasure over taken by costs and reduced commitment. Boat prices on older sailing boats in particular have definitely dropped, both on the Broads and around the coast. I suspect that the same will soon happen with motor boats and subsequently moorings. Inevitably there will be winners and losers. When your boat becomes a ball and chain then it is time to let it go.

[OldBerkshireBoy]

20 minutes ago, JennyMorgan said:

Boat prices, in my opinion, have long been artificially high, driven by commission paid salespeople. Now prices might be driven by people keen to offload what have become their liabilities, their pleasure over taken by costs and reduced commitment. Boat prices on older sailing boats in particular have definitely dropped, both on the Broads and around the coast. I suspect that the same will soon happen with motor boats and subsequently moorings. Inevitably there will be winners and losers. When your boat becomes a ball and chain then it is time to let it go.

I haven`t been around long enough but have the costs of moorings ever dropped during other times of trouble or taking that one step on have the tolls ever been reduced ? 

[Smoggy]

15 minutes ago, OldBerkshireBoy said:

have the tolls ever been reduced ?

Are you training to be a comedian?

[OldBerkshireBoy]

6 minutes ago, Smoggy said:

Are you training to be a comedian?

Well I may loose my day job.  

[Simondo]

How much I miss socialising pubs and restaurants (but saved a fortune)

How much I missed fishing but back out now so big plus there

How little I've missed football, no season ticket for me next year and about 30 days back to socialise and fish

[Malanka]

The United Kingdom is still great, our people are still selfless, our spirit still unbreakable, our willingness to sacrifice unbounded, our capacity for kindness boundless. 
Years and new generations have not changed us, immigration has not denigrated anything, it has made us richer in many ways, broader in outlook and hope. 
 

We are different now but still the same, Britishness is a thing, not a colour or a race or a creed. We are a magnificent coat of many cloths, it feels great again to be British. 
 

Despite doubters and nay sayers our Gurkha Logistics regiment built a 4000 bed hospital from scratch in nine days. Those little men from far away typify British, they always have. 
 

Our corner shops now sell weird stuff with labels we can’t read and we don’t care, that’s British. Corner shops, essential workers, NHS heroes, delivery heroes, list of brave selfless people is endless. 
 

Most of all: WE KEPT CALM AND CARRIED ON. 
 

Oh and it is nine thousand steps to mow our lawn. 
 

Martin and Fiona, Justin, Boris, Monty and Boots. 
 

Kindest Regards from West Suffolk..... 
 

 

[Victoryv]

Well said Martin, I always thought we had a lot to be grateful for, this period has just reinforced that feeling.

[JennyMorgan]

2 hours ago, OldBerkshireBoy said:

but have the costs of moorings ever dropped during other times of trouble

I doubt it, it's all about supply and demand. At the moment there is a glut of private boats, all effectively held to ransom over .mooring charges, easy money. However, if the private fleet goes into decline then the boot might be on the other foot! 

On the other hand I can see an increase in the hirefleets as people realize that the agro of boat ownership is reduced by hiring. 

Syndication, I suspect will stay about static, might possibly even decline as people, like in this pandemic, are paying their full share but are unable to use their allocation and unable to pick and choose their preferred holiday dates, at least that is how I see it. 

A number of the very BIG boats are owned by works based syndicates and businesses, might we not see a reduction there as businesses seek to reduce their costs? Just a gut feeling at the moment but time will tell. 

What I would like to see is an increase in small boat ownership but the Broads is now geared up to big boats, maybe that will change, I hope so,

[eddybear]

41 minutes ago, JennyMorgan said:

What I would like to see is an increase in small boat ownership but the Broads is now geared up to big boats, maybe that will change, I hope so,

While we as private buyers can afford to buy the big boys leftovers after they have finished with them, I wonder how many of us will be able to afford The latest batch of 45 footers when they no longer have a use for them, personally I wouldn't give you a thank you for them even if I had the money, which I haven't, extremely satisfied Hampton owner and proud of it 

[webntweb]

3 hours ago, Malanka said:

Oh and it is nine thousand steps to mow our lawn. 

That's not a lawn . . . it's a park.

[MauriceMynah]

6 hours ago, chameleon said:

if you have facebook john try this

https://apps.facebook.com/backgammonking/?fb_source=bookmark&ref=bookmarks&count=0&fb_bmpos=_0

 

Not sure about that one Mike. I just gave it a go (3 games)  and in the last game my opponent threw 5 doubles on the trot. I don't see that as "random dice"! 

[Timbo]

Things I've learned in lock down have included in no particular order:
People at the age of sixty plus are as selfish and rude as any teenager.
I enjoy a beer as much as the next bloke but I wouldn't be bothered if the pubs stay shut permanently. 
TV producers and broadcasters who pull a TV series just as it's getting good need to be severely punished!
Idiots are like busses. You won't see one for hours and then three arrive all at the same time.
I am on occasion grumpy.
Nursery and junior school children are far more intelligent and polite than their parents.
The speed at which my grandkids learn is phenomenal. 
Put the timber in the planer smile down first.
Nothing in life is better than seeing your grandchildren running to hug you.
I really hate the noise of motorbikes and crappy cars with loud exhausts.
I'm bad tampered more often than not.
People who think they are DJ's and that there is any skill at all in pressing 'play' are a blight on society.
I'm quite impressed with the ability of Talk Sport presenters to find enough to fill the airwaves with no sporting events taking place.
You need to aerate the flour before you put it in the bread maker.
I'm a tad intolerant.
I really enjoy firkling in my shed.
An 'Engineer' is someone who takes five hours to do a job that should take ten minutes and will use any and every tool they can find with no regard to the care of the tools they use unless they own them.
Friends are important and often care more than family.
Did I mention I'm occasionally grumpy?
 

[FairTmiddlin]

What about being ocasionally grumpy

You didn't mention that.

[grendel]

7 hours ago, Timbo said:

I'm bad tampered more often than not.

Quote

tamp

/tamp/

verb

pack (a blast hole) full of clay or sand to concentrate the force of the explosion.

"when the hole was tamped to the top, gunpowder was inserted"

ram or pack (a substance) down or into something firmly.

"he tamped down the tobacco with his thumb"

whose thumb are you under Tim

[ChrisB]

I have known a long time that my three lawns are also in the region of 9K steps, but it is the high hedges that surround them that really test me in my ever advancing years.

Back in 2012 before Judith was diagnosed with cancer for the first time we holidayed in Sussex and Kent. We were looking to move to the South Coast, somewhere with easy access to Channel crossings as we intended to buy a "lock and leave" abode and spend the summers touring mainland Europe.

Judith had read an article about Derek Jarman's house and garden on Dungerness and she wanted to visit. After a few false starts ( other owners had copied the principle ) we found it.

What an absolute inspiration I found it to be. I am a lover of the somewhat bleak landscape and foreshore and would love to aquire a property or land where I could create a shingle garden.