A Week in the Life...

[CooWee]

Day 1, Saturday 17^th August, 2013.

 

Woke up, fall out of bed, dragged a comb across my head, found my way downstairs and drank a cup, and looking up I noticed I was late, found my coat and grabbed my hat, made the bus in seconds flat, found my way upstairs and had a smoke, somebody spoke and I went into a dream,  ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah ah, so on and so on. (Beatles – Sgt Pepper)

 

                Meanwhile back on planet Earth, arose at 0615, threw some clothes on and took the dog out for a walk on what was a pleasant August morning with a sort of early morning dappled sunlight flickering through the trees of the local wood.  When I had got back from the dog walking, Lisa was up drinking the inevitable mug of coffee.  We fed the dog, I did the three tasks beginning with S and Lisa also did her ablution and soon we ready for the off, with car loaded with, what appeared to be everything, including dog and several books for Bosworth.

 

               Initially we were heading for Bosworth to deliver some books to the Richard III Society of which I have been a member for some years now.  For my pains I am the non-fiction librarian for the Society.  We pick up the M6 at junction 27 and head south towards Birmingham.  The motorway is rather busy and slow in places but not too bad and we make steady progress and eventually take the M6 Toll towards the M42.  Made a bit of pig’s ear of it at the junction of the M6/M42, fortunately I used to live and work around there and I was able pick up the route at the junction on the A45 adjacent to the National Motorcycle Museum.  This maybe me, but I don’t actually remember seeing a sign for Tamworth until I was actually heading towards the place.  We continued towards Bosworth arriving just a tad after 1100.  I persuaded the man on the gate to let me get near to the arena to deliver the books, which I duly did.  We then had to find my niece Valerie along with her partner Shaun and their little son Sam, who were part of the re-enactment scene there.  We nearly walked into an arrow storm, but were ushered away by a rather pretty stewardess.  They are trying to make these re-enactments as real as possible, without people getting sliced up of course.  We found the right camp and managed to meet up, Lisa decided that Sam (4) looked cute in his little medieval outfit along with the other children.  I also met a lady called Annette Carson whom I had helped with some research when she lived in South Africa, she now lives in Norfolk.  Annette even gave me a credit in her book which was nice of her, I certainly wasn’t expecting it.  As we left I shouted to Shaun ‘kill a few for me’, I’m not sure my attempt at humour was entirely appreciated, since these re-enactors seem to take it all pretty seriously.

 

                Time to move on we’ve still got a way to go, so back to the A444 and head towards to Burton with eventually a right turn on the A42 towards junction 23 of the M1 up to junction 24 and past the area where the aircraft crashed on approach to East Midlands.  This was the last major aircraft accident investigation I was involved with.  Picked the A6 at junction 24 and headed towards and through Kegworth eventually turning left on the A6006 for Melton Mowbray.  Now we were on our usual route for Brundall and we arrived around 1530, just as it started raining, but it was only a sporadic couple of showers and we then got a bit of a shock, the key didn’t fit and we couldn’t get in the boat.  (We had a new ones cut and they had cut the barrel too large and Lisa hadn’t noticed)  Broom's to the rescue they had a spare and allowed us use that for the week.  When we get back they will take their key to the key cutters in Brundall, get a new one cut and post it back to us, pretty decent of them, so the Brownie points go to Broom’s for being so co-operative and helpful and thanks for your help also Chris (he’s the man that does the petrol and pump outs amongst other things).  We are fortunate with our mooring, it is in a prime spot at Broom, step off the stern and you are in the River Yare and we have a share for sale if anyone is interested.  I digress, we soon got unloaded.  Lisa sorted everything out on board, whilst I went to Budgen’s for some groceries and whisper it, alcohol.  I Brought all that back then went out again for some rather splendid fish and chips.  We had an extra large Haddock each with one portion of chips between us with three or four pickled onions, which seem to have aged very well!!  The Haddock was really nice though.  We then had a couple of beers and chilled out for the rest of the evening.  It had been a long day, what with driving for six and half hours and all the rest of it, the old fat git was tired and ready to hit the sack.

[Matt]

Keith-I hope this is the start of another good week onboard because I still feel guilty for putting the syndicate idea in yours and Lisa's head!

Every time I reverse past MS I always mutter to myself how much better your mooring spot is!

[ranworthbreeze]

Hi Keith,

Chris is one of the gems on the Broads and Broom's is lucky to have him working there.

He looks after a number of syndicate boats moored at Broom's and ours moored on Tingdene.

Regards

Alan

[Hockham Admiral]

Keith, Hi from us.

 

Where did the good fish and chips come from, please?   
 

[ranworthbreeze]

Hi John,

There is a fish and chip shop next to the garage and electrical shop at Brundall.

Just around the corner from Station Road.

Personally I have never seen it open but then our change over days are Tuesday.

Regards

Alan

[CooWee]

Well Matt we are big boys and girls, a bit too big in my case, and we are perfectly capable of making up our own minds and it is probably good you did suggest it, we got the share for a good price, so good we felt it would have been stupid not to take the opportunity.  Last week was a good week, one of the best I've spent on the Broads, but whether or not I can convey that through my writing, I seriously doubt.  I'll give it a go though.  And it is a good mooring and Broom and Brundall is a good place to be, in fact I cannot think of a better one.  We can use MS as a cottage and get around on a train as the Chris my friend from Birmingham has already found out.

 

Alan, yes you're right, Broom Chris is a gem, but I cannot understand why Broom don't put the Broom Cupboard close to the petrol pumps, unless it would make delivery a problem.  Chris was saying there is not much trade and he has had to stop selling perishables because of them going out of date, milk, butter and the like.  Just imagine as a cruiser pulls up for fuel and wifey says we could do with some of this that or the other, you know what they're like.    To me anyway the Broom Cupboard is out sight and out of mind to passing trade.  Just a thought.

[CooWee]

Hi John,

 

Alan has described it and it is where he states, I cannot remember the name of it though.

 

I have seriously thought of suggesting a Tuesday to Tuesday changeover at the syndicate AGM, because we could do any weekend events should our week concide and we can often swop if it doesn't.  I may throw some balls up in the air this air and see what sort of response I get.

[Hockham Admiral]

Hi John,

There is a fish and chip shop next to the garage and electrical shop at Brundall.

Just around the corner from Station Road.

Personally I have never seen it open but then our change over days are Tuesday.

Regards

Alan

Thanks, Alan. I'll check it when we're next onboard Friday Girl (in 10 days!) and let you know.

[Hockham Admiral]

Alan, yes you're right, Broom Chris is a gem, but I cannot understand why Broom don't put the Broom Cupboard close to the petrol pumps, unless it would make delivery a problem.  Chris was saying there is not much trade and he has had to stop selling perishables because of them going out of date, milk, butter and the like.  Just imagine as a cruiser pulls up for fuel and wifey says we could do with some of this that or the other, you know what they're like.    To me anyway the Broom Cupboard is out sight and out of mind to passing trade.  Just a thought.

 

And you're completely right, Keith! We've moored at bells next door on and off for over 30 years and we've never even heard of the Broom Cupboard....  

[ranworthbreeze]

Hi John,

 

We have now been moored at Tingdene for at least 5 years and it is only at the start of this season that I asked Chris to show me around the Broom Cupboard, as Keith said it is tucked away a short walk up into  the Broom's complex. He stocks basic chandlery items which can get you out of the mire and at times does have newspapers and grocery items. 

 

We tend to get our gas bottles from Broom's as well.

 

Regards

Alan

[CooWee]

This seems sort of appropriate somehow.

 

The last that ever she saw him.  Carried away by a moonlight shadow

He passed on worried and warning.  Carried away by a moonlight shadow

Lost in a riddle that Saturday night, far away on the other side

The trees that whisper in the evening.  Carried away by a moonlight shadow

Sing a song of sorrow and grieving.  Carried away by a moonlight shadow

I stay, I pray, see you in heaven far away

I stay, I pray, see you in heaven one day

Four A.M. in the morning, carried away by a moonlight shadow

I watched your vision forming.  Carried away by a moonlight shadow

Stars move slowly in a silvery night, far away on the other side

I stay, I pray, see you in heaven far away

I stay, I pray, see you in heaven one day...     (Mike Oldfield – Moonlight Shadow)

 

The day began very early for me and was shortly to become very strange indeed.  As stated previously I had gone to bed around 2200, but struggled to get to sleep, feeling pretty uncomfortable and beginning to cramp up and not wishing to disturb Lisa, as I did on Blue Diamond when I got dreadful cramps, in fact she said she thought I was having nightmares, well, it was in one sense.  The upshot was that I grabbed my sleeping bag and de-camped to the rear bedroom, this being around 0200.  I lay there stretching legs and rubbing muscles, reading a bit, then I tried to get to sleep, it was during this period that I became aware of a knocking sound and I wasn’t quite clear where it was coming from.  Originally I thought it was an internal door catching on something or something catching on it, but I didn’t really believe that.  The night was still, but something wasn’t apart from me.  I first looked at my watch and the time was just coming up to 0320 and this knocking would have been going on at a guestimate of fifteen minutes.  I listened for another ten minutes and the knocking had a sort of random pattern to it, i.e. knock knock, then knock knock-knock knock, then knock (fainter) knock knock.  I have to admit to feeling rather flaky now and I’d even shut a little curtain at the back of the boat in case a face appeared and with my ticker that would probably have been curtains (sorry couldn’t resist), same thought occurred if I went out onto the stern well, startled into to the river, same result.  Eventually around 0340 I started to get more curious and I turned the stern light on and opened the curtains, nothing there and the knocking stopped when I looked, went to the front bedroom to retrieve my glasses and looked out from the back of the saloon, nothing.  At this point I thought I would wake Lisa up, but to no avail, Krakatau couldn’t have done it.  I also looked at the dog she was also fast asleep, which is a surprise in itself.  I dare say most people have experienced a dog or cat that has been spooked by what it perceives as something in the room, when the hackles go up, gets under a table and snarls and stares at some fixed point in the room, quite disturbing at the time, but I haven’t seen that for a good number of years.  We are now getting up to around 0350 and I was starting to get the feeling that it would stop at 0400, and this isn’t being wise after the event, I really did start sense the knocking was soon to stop and suddenly it went with a sort of rhythm –dud, dud, dud, dud dud dud dud dud, dud, dud, almost as if whatever was doing the knocking finished off with an irritated flourish and the time when I looked at my watch it was a minute or two after 0400.  I have always smiled when people talk about strange things happening to them when moored up on the Broads, we’ve moored up at St Benet, Berney Arms and elsewhere and never a peep.  I am not smiling now and it certainly bothered me then and bothers me now, although after the actual event, quite strange really, I felt almost peaceful or at least calm.  Tonight I will sleep in the same room to see if happens again.

               

I lay there afterwards, still couldn’t sleep, read a bit, thought a bit and with the dawn starting to break I nodded off until 0700ish and then started to think about getting up.  I talked to Lisa about my night time adventure and she seems convinced that it was a swan, well if it was it was an invisible swan.  There was nothing on that boat, no birds scrabbling around, nobody actually on it, it is a mystery. 

 

Today we are going to do a long cruise all the way through to Geldeston, during this cruise I/we were contacting everyone I/we care about to see if they were okay, where we could at any rate, family, friends and so far so good, everyone is present and accounted for.  The day was pleasant and warm and the Norfolk Broads looked well with it.  People were cheery and talkative and we cruised in that vein until we reached Herringfleet where we stopped for brunch and of course a couple of Broads coffees (coffee, brown sugar {muscovado} preferably) and rum to taste). John(Maurice-Mynah) and his sister Frances introduced Lisa and me to the delights of this drink on Nyx at the Meet.  Now we get the dog walkers around on Saturday and Sunday mornings, weather permitting, to quaff a couple mugs of it.  We ate a homemade BLT and very tasty it was too.  After lunch we set off for Geldeston with plenty of traffic on the rivers, but not crowded, rather good cruising, with lots of waving and even chatting in passing.  We timed Beccles Bridge nicely passing where Blue Dolphin(Charlie) resides, going under the bridge with a comfortable amount of headroom.  When we reached Geldeston, we had to moor on the left bank by the bridge as we did pretty much twelve months ago in 2012 with the Malankans and Charlie, that was a lovely trip, but I suspect it will be a fading memory since it is unlikely to be repeated.  Back to the present, when we arrived there was a band playing at the Locks, pretty decent band too, but they stopped playing around 1800.  Lisa prepared sausages and corn on the cob, which was very good.  We then cleared away and settled down for the evening and with much chilling out going on.  Lisa started on some small bottles of Peroni, me a bottle of Wolf Blass Yellow Label, Cabernet Sauvignon, which I have a fondness for, silly drinking it if I didn’t!  Around 2030 started to watch ‘War Horse’, not a bad film, over hyped I think, but a lot of them are.  Bedtime arrived at 2330 and here is hoping for a good nights sleep tonight, goodness knows I need it.

[Hockham Admiral]

Keith, Hi.

 

What an enchanting tale of the nether hours! I could make quite a few 'punnies' on 'knocking' ... but won't!   

 

I used to have night cramps on Friday Girl 2 but found that eating a banana for supper would cure it.

 

"Bananas can help because leg cramps can be caused by low potassium levels. Eating a banana or even drinking a glass of milk will raise your potassium and lower your chance of having leg cramps"

 

Give it a go!   

[trambo]

Hi Keith, Glad the apparition spared you, so as to entertain us.

The biggest mystery however, I found in your tale is, how on earth do you stay up to 2330? I'm always knackered by 2200 if not before!

Fred

[CooWee]

AS I said on the other side so to speak, I was out Thursday night and watching a very good Lancashire cricket team put Hampshire to the sword on Friday.

 

Thanks for the tip about bananas John, I will certainly try it, I don't much like bananas, but I like the cramps even less and why it is worse on a boat of late, I really have no idea.

 

Hello Fred, if I go to bed too early I invariably wake up in the early hours and then can't get back to sleep, I don't sleep too well and I sometimes, often, well all the time really, find that a few large vodka and tonics help immeasurably.

 

Hopefully get page 3 done today, but as I said on the NBF I won't be enticing you with a topless young lady

[CooWee]

And today’s song is:-

 

 

 

Day 3, Monday, 19^th August, 2013.

 

Hooray, a good night’s sleep. 

Woke up to see many Swifts darting about, appearing to strafe Moonlight Shadow, it is a good while since I have seen so many Swifts in one place.  Today we are just going to continue to chill out at Geldeston and although the weather was cloudy at times, a pleasant day unfolded nonetheless.  We started with what is now becoming the usual Broads coffee with eggs and bacon for breakfast.  I at this point was marooned on the boat and could not get off, mainly due to health issues.  Last August I jumped off MS and collapsed in a heap at Charlie’s feet, which must have impressed her no doubt!  Lisa and I just read and chatted through the day until the lure of The Locks became overwhelming and after getting off MS with some difficulty in my case went over for something to eat and drink.  I had a ploughman’s and I cannot remember what Lisa had; she has a taste for the orange wheat beer they serve, I just had a couple of large G&Ts, and were they expensive or what, or I may have lost track of how expensive these things are these days.  We came back watched another film, Liam Neeson in ‘Unknown’ I think, Lisa is a fan of Mr Neeson.

 

Day 4, Tuesday, 20^th August, 2013.

 

We needed an early start to get under Beccles Bridge, so we got up at 0630 and departed for Beccles at 0700 with some difficulty.  We were stuck on the bank and tried to get off making as little noise as possible, but in the end I was using the bow thruster, revving the engine with Lisa turning purple using the boat hook to push us off at the stern.  All we needed to do was blare out ‘The Ride of the Valkeries’ to make sure we woke up everybody in the world!  We travelled steadily down the river towards Beccles, didn’t see any wildlife, I should think they were all deaf now!  Arrived at Beccles Bridge with a clearance of just a tad under eight and quarter feet, we squeaked through by about 3 inches, wouldn’t like to try it tighter with everything up as was the case here.  A point here is that Lisa was doing something back in the stern well and I forgot to give the heads up/down warning and if she had stood up she would have brained herself.  Note to self; give the crew/management a warning if cutting it that fine going under a bridge

                We moored up at Beccles Yacht Station and at first we were just going to top up the water, but it was so pleasant there we decided to stay and since we were both minging decided to have a shower and freshen up.  The costs as of this day are £8 for overnight stern-on mooring, £4.10 for the electric and £1.85 for the shower token, which gives you 12 minutes.  Having decided to stay we tried to plug in to one of the posts, but I had skilfully managed to bisect two electric posts and the lead, even with an extension lead was just short of both of them.  Fortunately the very nice couple on our starboard side offered to swop places with us so we could plug in.  That was quite a boat they had as well, with stern thrusters and bow thrusters.  Once we were plugged in and settled Lisa walked to Tesco and came back laden with four bottles of wine a bottle of rum, coffee and various and sundry groceries.  She must have been a pack-horse in a previous life!  We got to know the new Harbour Master, well new to us, Sarah, who wouldn’t let me call her the Harbour Mistress stating with some justification that it sounded like someone’s bit on the side.  Nice lady, in fact I haven’t come across any of the Harbour Masters who haven’t been anything less than friendly and helpful, including dear old Mike, Requiem in Pace, who went beyond the call of duty helping us on a couple of occasions.  People were very friendly this side of the river, undoubtedly the warm, pleasant sunshine helped the feel good factor.  Later in the day we met the couple moored two boats back from us at Geldeston and apologised for the noise we made in getting off the mooring, but the wife must sleep like Lisa and we didn’t wake her up, the husband was already awake so he heard obviously.  I am probably being a bit unfair here, because I learned to sleep ( when I can sleep ) through Jet engines running up at night at Watton, many years ago. The ice cream shop next to the information centre was doing a roaring trade, I know because I also queued up for some.  I also bought a very nice print of Beccles the following morning, probably overpriced, but a very nice picture or at least I thought so.  To paraphrase a joke made by John Cleese when referring to Michael Palin, you could tell where Lisa had been by all the donkeys’ hind legs lying around!  I am not talking behind her back by the way; I said that to her while we were there, I am close to making a full recovery!  We ate chilly for the evening meal, washed down with a bottle of red wine between us.  Time to walk the dog, so Lisa took the dog out while I washed up and raised the roof.  When Lisa returned from walking Leigh, she had seen on the way back a boat named ‘Norfolk Enchants’!  Say it quickly.  The facilities at Beccles Yacht Station are pretty good and everything is there, I realise that it is people that dirty them, but I wish the washrooms and toilets were cleaner, they did look a bit dirty.  I don’t know how often they are cleaned, but it would appear not very often.

[JimC]

I totally agree with you about the Beccles YS facilities, we found them smelly, the wash basin area scruffy and definitely in need of upgrading, and how they can justify £1-85 for a shower when you've just forked out £8 to stay the night  amazes me, we opted to use our boats facilities instead.

 

                              Jim

[Hockham Admiral]

Keith and Lisa, Hi.

 

What a super yarn... I don't know if it is intentionally funny but you've certainly entertained Mary-Jane and myself in the last ten minutes while I slowly read it out to her between fits of laughter!  

 

Jet engines at Watton! WOW, you are showing your age!  Even when I flew Hunters and Buccaneers out of Honington, RAF Watton was just the home of Eastern Radar.

 

Beccles YS, as I remember, the HM cleans out in the morning but there's little can be done until it's all renovated. It is now operated by Sentinel Leisure trust and it will help the Beccles HM if anyone can contact them and point out how old and decrepit the facilities are. Jim your exact comments above deserve their attention!

 

 

The Head Office for Sentinel Leisure Trust is Waterlane Leisure Centre, Lowestoft.

General enquiries about the Trust, in person or by post:

Waterlane Leisure Centre
Water Lane
Lowestoft
NR32 2NH

Tel: 01502 588444
Fax: 01502 563829
Email: info@sentinellt.co.uk

[CooWee]

Hi Fred, John & Mary-Jane,

 

On the other side (NBF) Dave(TerryTibbs) has stated that that toilets are going to be renovated this winter.  So maybe hold fire and see how that pans out.

 

John & Mary-Jane, I am glad you enjoyed the post, I try not take myself too seriously, I think it is a Brummie trait or was at least.

 

Yes, RAF Watton, I was there from January 1967 to January 1968, then to RAF Changi.  When I was there Canberras were the aircraft of choice, nice aircraft I liked them.  I think their role was surveillance at the time.  Unfortunately there was one fatal when I was there; a Canberra lost an engine on take off and the captain told the navigator to eject which he did, but hadn't strapped himself in, I don't think I need to add to that.  The irony is that the engine re-ignited and pilot missed number two(I think) hangar by not much and landed safely.  Tragic.

 

When you landed the Buccaneer, did the arrester hook scrape on the runway as they did at Changi when a Buccaneer.  John, I suppose you know this, "Where are my Buccaneers?"

"On your Buccan'ead!" :

 

Next installment of the holiday tale follows when I get a chance. It's written, but not typed

 

TTFN

 

All best wishes,

 

Keith

[littlesprite]

The toilets are open to all members of the public and for this reason see large numbers of people using them, over the winter the shower block is meant to be separated from the public side with a lockable door. The £1.85 shower cost is a lot more reasonable if you can share it with someone (no,no,no, not at the same time) 12 minutes is loads of time and 6 minutes should be plenty for a normal person, then 50p in the tumble and you have dry towels. 

[littlesprite]

Sorry Keith/Lisa,

I meant to say what an enjoyable tale but ended up getting side tracked as is normal for me.

[Hockham Admiral]

Hi Fred, John & Mary-Jane,

 

On the other side (NBF) Dave(TerryTibbs) has stated that that toilets are going to be renovated this winter.  So maybe hold fire and see how that pans out.

 

John & Mary-Jane, I am glad you enjoyed the post, I try not take myself too seriously, I think it is a Brummie trait or was at least.

 

 

When you landed the Buccaneer, did the arrester hook scrape on the runway as they did at Changi when a Buccaneer.  John, I suppose you know this, "Where are my Buccaneers?"

"On your Buccan'ead!" :

 

Next installment of the holiday tale follows when I get a chance. It's written, but not typed

 

TTFN

 

All best wishes,

 

Keith

Only if you lowered it Keith (and you wouldn't do that unless you intended to take the wire). But there was a steel skid or bumper under the tail and if you pulled back hard after touchdown (to aerodynamically brake) then a shower of sparks would come off the skid. You could usually wind Air Traffic Control up with that at night when visiting a non-Buccaneer aerodrome!     

[trambo]

 We ate chilly for the evening meal, washed down with a bottle of red wine between us.  Time to walk the dog, so Lisa took the dog out 

 

Stand by for more apparitions. 

 

Fred

[JimC]

. The £1.85 shower cost is a lot more reasonable if you can share it with someone

 

 

I was thinking of Cheryl Cole but then I'd have to look at that awful tattoo.  LOL

 

             Jim

[littlesprite]

Behave Jim,

Now you've got me all excited.

[ranworthbreeze]

And there's me thinking this may be a way saving costs on a future Forum Meet at Beccles.

Regards

Alan