Scrimping and saving, ranting and raving. Past retirement age.
I've nothing against the place itself, I've never actually been there.
Unfortunately my kindle is convinced that's where I am which means the weather forecasts are wildly incorrect.
I repeatedly enable location services and it works for about ten minutes but then after that it reverts to Bermondsey again.
Today Beano and I met up with DD2 and her dog Loulou for a socially distanced dog walk. Both dogs had a lovely time, chasing each other around and rootling in the undergrowth. Loulou is a good little hunter and was looking for rabbits. Beano was just enjoying her company.
Unfortunately we lost Loulou for a while and by the time we'd tracked her down and persuaded her to leave the rabbit hole we'd been out for an hour longer than intended. My back has put in an official complaint!
My kindle is still throwing the occasional hissy fit, the light level keeps changing and I cannot send or receive emails.
I need to get out my laptop, charge it up and get emails that way. Why is nothing ever simple?
That was this morning job, obviously I did it all wrong!
The correct way includes tearing a strip off your shirt and knotting it around your forehead and painting green stripes across your cheekbones (anyone else seen Rambo?) Then the sofa and bar stools all need to be thrown into the bank and the carpet rolled up and removed also. Then commences a couple of hours of hacking, swearing and screaming when the hacking hits fingers rather than ice.
My way is different, I unplug the freezer and take the drawers out, I fill two containers with hot water, place them in the freezer along with a small towel in the bottom of the freezer, another one in the floor in front of it and close the door. I empty the contents of the drawers, wipe the drawers over, list the contents in my notebook and then refill the drawers. I then make a cup of tea. Once the tea is drunk I remove the containers of now cold water and the towel, wipe the inside and outside of the freezer and replace the drawers.
My freezer is very small and not frost free.
So what is in my freezer?
Gammon steak x 2
Hot and spicy chicken wings 1 pack
Burgers x 2
Hotdogs 1 pack
Sausages 1 pack
Pork chops x 3
Chicken breast x 3
Minced beef x 3
Steak x 3
Sea bass x 3
Fish fingers 1 pack
Naan bread x 4
Peas
Cauliflower/broccoli
Spinach
Mushrooms
Injury peas (frozen peas not to be eaten but to apply to an injury) I pinched this phrase from someone else.
I have some led candles on my altar as I won't have real ones, I consider them too much of a fire risk. I'm dangerous enough at the gas hob with my layers of scarves without adding extra naked flames to the mix.
I used to have glass vases with fairy light in but there are no flat surfaces on the boat so I got rid of the vases and the lights.
There were butterfly fairy lights on the old boat but Steve didn't like them so I gave them to one of the dgd's
Next year's calender arrived today, paintings done by Dru Marland of life in the West end of the K & A. My delivery of felt and buttons has also arrived so some crafting lies ahead.
We went to l look at the Christmas decorations in the garden centre, they were very pretty.
I didn't buy anything as I don't decorate the boat. I may hang a cluster of mistletoe up but that is for Yule and I hang it against the wall so it is not for kissing under.
I used to love Christmas, not the money side of it. I loved the lights, the music and the sparkle. Steve has always hated Christmas and his continuous whinging eventually ruined my love of it and now I ignore the event as much as possible.
As Alison says today has definitely been a damp squib.
It's not a big birthday, I'm 69 but it would have been nice to see my kids.
Afternoon tea had been planned but cancelled due to lockdown.
Still first world problems.
Steve and I are planning a trip to the garden centre on Monday, weather permitting.
They may have their Christmas display up and it will be nice to see all the sparkly stuff.
My kindle fire has been playing up, it suddenly stopped downloading books, I had 10 outstanding. Every time I tried it said No Internet but I was able to download video.
I contacted amazon, followed their instructions but still nothing.
Steve decided to help and managed to delete all my existing books!
I eventually had to do a factory reset, my books have now downloaded but I don't think it's the end of the problem.
Weaver I'm so glad you are back. I found the gingerbread pattern on YouTube, I'm just starting a second one.
It's not very good but it will do for a first attempt, hopefully the next one will look neater..
Today I posted a birthday card, doesn't sound like much does it but it entailed a three mile walk. It was hard going as the towpath was very muddy and my wellies kept getting stuck.
There is probably a letterbox nearer, but getting to it would entail a walk along a road with no pavements. I avoid walking Beano along the roads as he always wants to walk down the middle of the road regardless of any traffic. At least in the towpath we just have to dodge the puddles.
Steve isn't a fan of leftovers but I refuse to waste food, after all I've paid for it.
We had roast beef yesterday, it was a bit tough but not too bad. I served it with roast potatoes, cabbage, peas, cauliflower and broccoli in a cheese sauce and gravy. The cabbage was fresh, the other veg were frozen as Steve's not keen on veg but I am.
This morning I sliced enough of the beef to put in a baguette for Steve's lunch for today and tomorrow. The rest I cut into chunks.
I softened some chopped onion in a little butter along with a couple of sliced mushroom and the last piece of a red pepper. I added yesterday's leftovers, a handful of peas, one piece of cauli, two roast potatoes, the last of the gravy and a dollop of cheese sauce. I added some water from the kettle, brought the whole lot to the boil in the hob and then transferred the pan to the top of the multifuel stove. It will sit there bubbling away until later. The leftovers will disintegrate so they will add flavour but not be seen. We can have a big bowl of beef stew with mashed potato and the leftovers are nowhere to be seen!
When I used the phrase bride's nighty, I was being polite, I nearly put whore's drawers.
Amazon has six Philippa Gregory ebooks reduced to 99p each so I've just had a spending spree.
It's still raining on and off, Beano and I are doing the dog walk hokey cokey, in and out between showers.
My dgd asked me to crochet her a gingerbread man, I've made a start but it currently looks more like a misshapen penis than anything else. I'm hoping that adding the arms and face will improve it's looks.
It's raining hard and has been all day.
The marina staff are doing regularly at patrols to check that all the boats are safe. If their ropes are too tight and The levels rise The boat can list. The staff will also be checking pram and cratch covers as they can sometimes fill with water.
The water levels are up and down like a bride's nighty on her honeymoon.
The rains is hammering down and the staff at the nearby mill are manning the sluices attempting to keep the water levels even.
When I get off the boat to walk Beano there can be anything from a six inch step down to a four inch step up.
Without the sluices being manned we'd be up on the grass by now.
Beano has made a new friend, a small, very bouncy dog on the marina. He's very friendly, very barky and has absolutely huge ears.
According to his owner he is a Dorky, a cross between a dashund and a Yorkshire terrier. He and Beano had a lovely play together this morning.
Yesterday around lunch time I bought a book from Amazon.
By the time I went to bed last night the book still hadn't downloaded, I restarted the kindle but still nothing.
Got up this morning, still no book, restarted the kindle yet again.
By now I was starting to panic, a life without books is not worth living!!
I took Beano out for his mid morning walk, when I returned I checked my kindle, whoopie do, there was a green bar snaking its way across the bottom of the pic of the book.
So my full blown hysteria was averted, phew.
I'm still working on my half granny square shawl, it's slow going as there is very little natural light in the boat and the colours are rather muted.
When I can't see to crochet I'm frogging a waistcoat I made and didn't like.
I've posted off a baby blanket to a pregnant boater who had her boat broken into and her baby clothes trashed.
I'm walking Beano a few times every day.
I'm disappointed because I had afternoon tea planned with my children and it's been cancelled because of the lockdown, we will reschedule but probably not until March. I miss my family.
I've ordered next year's calender and ten Yule cards from a boater who's work I love. I purchased and wear a very rude badge that she produced.
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/DruMarland?ref=shop_sugg
I've finished reading:-
Still Life by Val Mcdermid.
A Song for the Dark Times by Ian Rankin.
Dead Lies Dreaming by Charles Stross.
I've started but not finished an assortment of rubbish books.
I'm currently reading Brian Helsing, the world's most unlikely vampire Hunter by Gareth K Pengelly. As you'd expect with a name like Pengelly, the book is set in Cornwall.
My hearing aid has been delivered and I've arranged to meet DD1 in the local park to collect it.
Even better Three have sorted out Steve's phone, it's taken 12 weeks from the day he purchased it, I have no idea if it was all Three's fault or if it was Steve's. Either way it's sorted now.
Thank you, there is a park near where dd1 lives I may suggest meeting there when my hearing aid finally arrives.
I was walking Beano this afternoon, as we are now in lockdown again there were a lot of people walking and riding bikes along the towpath.
One guy was wobbling badly as he past by and I noticed he was sat on his bike strangely. Instead of sitting on the bike saddle he had the top of his leg on the saddle.
His was with another cyclist who may have been his wife.
She "Sit on the bike straight"
He "I can't the saddle keeps disappearing up the crack of my arse"
She "If you didn't have such a fat arse the saddle wouldn't get lost"
He "Oh fcuk off"
I couldn't help but laugh, the whole conversation was said with such good humour.
My hearing aid is being posted out, but until the post office starts delivering to addresses such as "The green boat next to the third poplar tree" by lock 25 I have to have stuff delivered to a house. I'm not sure if I can collect it because the household exceeds the rule of six and as my blog comments show the world is full of nasty spiteful people who's only joy in life is being an arsehole. I really don't wish to get my dd in trouble by visiting her and for someone to report her for breaking the rules.
Anyway it is a moot point as it hasn't been delivered yet.
Of course you are entitled to you opinion Carole and well done on getting through hard times. I find the anonymous comment about " people managed before food banks and children thrived" incredibly naive either that or like Keth said there is a difference between the deserving and the undeserving poor. There have always been hungry children and it's appalling that the situation continues.
So I say yet again, just feed the poor bloody kids who are hungry, never mind why they are hungry, just feed them.
I'm getting swamped with spam, adverts for hackers, herbal cures for aids and now adverts for vampires. It's taking me ages to delete them every day. Hence the moderation.
But first, on the subject of feeding children, someone has complained about people who have big cars and gadgets for their kids and yet still use a food bank.
Again, I don't care, just feed the bloody kids.
If someone is made redundant or loses their job for whatever reason this doesn't mean that all their bills are suddenly stopped. If they have sky tv, a mobile phone or whatever they are still under contract, the bills still have to be paid. Even if these payments are putting them in debt they still have to be paid. Bank accounts can be frozen leaving people with no access to money. I'll say it again, just feed the poor bloody kids.
And on to the title of this post, the motor is buggered on our satellite dish so we can't watch tv. The system is 11 years old and will cost at least £1000 to replace, I don't watch enough tv to make it worth paying that. A friend of Steve's tried to get our fire stick working but with limited success as the subtitles don't show up. So Steve bought some headphones and whilst trying to connect them (with the handle of a wooden spoon, don't ask) disconnected the DVD player!
Never mind, I have unlimited data on my phone so I can watch tv via the phone. Only no, I can't, as my phone is showing Emergency Calls Only. We seem to be in a black hole signal wise.
I was invited to a zoom catch up but was unable to join in because I had no signal, I was also asked if I would be interviewed about living on a boat but again I couldn't participate.
I am still waiting for my hearing aid to be repaired, but even if it turns up now I cannot collect it because of lockdown.
I shall post this blog and it will hopefully upload when I drive to the chemist tomorrow.
The canal side cafe near where we were moored was one of many local places that provided free meals for children during half term.
I don't care why the children are hungry, whether it's because their parents are struggling financially or whether their parents are feckless.
At the end of the day I just feel that if children are hungry they need to be fed.
I'm not interested in political hot air, people can talk bollocks about the why's and wherefores.
Just feed the kids!
