Catch'n Up.....

A couple of weekends ago we went to visit Fred & Ann who live in, "halfway house", situated halfway up/down the Tardebigge Flight of locks. That's where we met Ann who was out for her morning walk as we made our way up the flight.
Ann & Fred are off to NZ for a holiday in a camper van soon so we visited to catch up and offer some NZ knowledge for their trip.

It turned into a rough day weather wise and inside was the place to be.
The cottage is a couple of hundred years old but very cosy.




The stable door from the canal towpath.....

Opens into the kitchen with the coal / wood range going constantly warming everything and used for preparing the meals....

In the sitting room Fred had.....

Just fired up this burner... for the first time.... Not sure on the settings it got so hot the wall paper behind the fire started to peel....And the paint on the stove done the first time "Burn Off" bringing a slight stinging to the eyes...Worked Great.... After a couple of adjustments to the settings she was all good....

Leonie and Ann.....

Doing a touch of trip planning...

 

So I thought.....

 

I could help too... By getting rid of that Fosters from the fridge... And on the NZ map showing all the outlets where "Tui Beer" can be procured....
Ann Ate All the Chocolates......

Some photo's.....

Of Fred's racing days in the Legendry No, 228.....

Fred is also....

 

An expert on the "Radio Ham" stuff... Late nights talking to mates all over the world... A "Gun"on the morse code as well....   ..--.-...-.---.....-.-.-..---.-.-....- ..
"SOS, the Freak,n canals full to overflowing"......

A most enjoyable day was had... Have an  Ex, trip in NZ...


At the car sales it was time to replace some flags with new ones... They're up high poles...
Spencer said we haven't got a ladder so.....

 

Park the van next to the pole and call it a ladder.... Still to low... I suggested a small plastic stool, from the workshop, placed  on the roof would be ideal.... Really the theory was that being on a slope would see, once stood upon, the stool take off down the roof over the bonnet with Spence as well and a "Great Photo" could result. Even with my promise too hold the stool  "one handed", I needed the other to hold the camera for action, failed to convince him and some more manuvering of the van completed the job.... DDAAMMMM....

 

 

 

Back home in NZ I must say I was an Avid newspaper, of all sorts, reader. Even if I got home from work at 11.30pm I would still read the paper from front to back reading what I had already read in a different news paper during the day at morning and afternoon  tea break. But whilst being on the NB with such a frenetic lifestyle I've broken that habit, well the papers are full of Doom and Gloom anyway. STOP... Whoa  Up There.... That is  is all except One.. The Racing Post....

 

Published everyday but only on my shopping list on a Friday. Now it does cover the UK racing scene but I like it, as well, because it has a good coverage of sports like, Rugby, Golf, the all important  Darts, League and Footy, Cricket over seas etc.

 

Last Friday I was on my way back to the workshop after picking up a car that had been to the garage for a MOT so a slight detour to Sainsburys was the order. My Luck was in, got the last one on the paper stand, probably the last in the whole of Oxford, or even  England. It was a Sh- - of a day so as I left the warmth of the Super Store entry I stuffed the paper up my jacket. Five steps into the car park, huge one, and the bloody paper decided  to coincide with a gale force gust of wind and fall out of my jacket. Well, across the car park, actually along the entry lane in front of the Whole Freak.n store, it blows. Big wind, piss,n rain and I'm doing a steady sprint after it as it unravels. I'm feeling like Melannion  pik,n up Golden Apples the spend I'm moving and the Form I'm showing. Page 26/55, then 7/74, 37/44, I'm reeling them in cos, the puddles are slowing there progress but there's still some gathering speed and my hearts sinkin, remember it's probably the last one in the UK  plus I aint got another two quid. I've almost given up hope of retrieving pages 3/78, 1/80, Christ what's a paper without the Front page when, through the Gloom I see an Angel, well a Pensioner with her trolley full of Sainsbury specials and steadfast standing as still as the Rock of Gibralter, the storm not stopping her from here duty, there's 3/78 wrapped around the offside rear trolley wheel and her foot Firmly Planted on 1/80.... You Bloody Beauty I'm thinking. Then I remembered I'm feeling a little Stupid by all this cos she wasn't the only witness and I'm sort of out of breath because the chase and pillates stuff has covered all of 30 meters. All the pages I've got are in a screwed up pile so I reach down, untwine 3/78 then she lifts her foot to free 1/80. Complete recovery...

"Thanks" I say, then add, " that was a waste of two quid" hoping she wouldn't think I'm too Stupid...

"Shouda put it on a Bloody Horse" she says......

 

I drive back to the workshop......

 

 

 

And here's the paper ready to read... wet and not what you'd call in a "Good Read" format...



John, "Super Mechanic" says....

 

I'll help to dry it out....... Naaaaaa......

Now I know how those people who Restore and Bind  old books must feel....

 

Was a "Hell of a Days Work".......

Headed off to work in the Race Tuned Ford Focus bout 7.20am today, daylight now, and dropped Leonie off at 9.20am, 2 hours,  not moving and crawling along, some "Dick" rolled a van just by our exit off the M40 so it was a 3 mile backlog....
If only I'd taken the bloody "Racing Post" along......

 

Thats How.....

Accidents Happen..

About a week ago while parking in a supermarket car park the hand brake  cable on the car broke.
A new cable was promptly ordered but not fitted as Things got in the way...
So that meant whenever stopped on an incline, like stopping to open the security gates at the boat yard, it meant turning off the motor and leaving the car in gear to hold it from moving forward...

That's no hardship but after 20 - 25 times one looks for a better way or a shortcut.
And so last Friday night after arriving at the first gate at 11.30pm, been to cards, Texas Holdem tournament in Banbury, I went through the turn off the car routine, open the gate and drive through, turn off the car, get out shut the gate, get back in and drive forward to the next gate....

The ground approaching this gate has a lot less incline so using a bit of "Kiwi" logic the pot hole I spied would be perfect to place the RF wheel in to hold the car and I could leave the lights on, great to see the combination padlock, and leave the motor running, what a time saver...

So I'm standing at the gate and just released the padlock when "Whack" what the hells going on..
A crushing of the legs and I'm being pushed from behind into the still fastened gates.
My first thought was someone had attacked me from behind to steal my poker winnings.
If only they'd known the results they'd been better to have robbed a Brail collection box.

Looking down and behind I see this large bumper thing and two headlamps doing there best to get through the gate before me. I'd whacked my wrist on the hole surround where you reach through to lift the steel rod from the ground and luckily the padlock from the sliding bolt was released so when I lifted the rod the gate burst open and me and the car were free....

Geeezz it was cold as, Leonie was asleep with the phone turned off. Worst scenario I could have been there all night, got hypothermia say, and been stiff as and by the morning been no use to anyone.

Just goes to show how stupid accidents can happen with sometimes serious results.
The handbrake is now fixed.

A reenactment shows....

Position of attacking car.... steel bolt across gates which held padlock....



And having.......

To reach through and lift steel rod to release gate.... and car.....


Yesterday was a beauty frost, iced puddles, iced  cars,  and the ground was like a skating rink....
Today was a lesser frost followed by fog.....

At the car yard today....

 

 A transporter arrived with 10  0f the 19 cars brought at auctions last Thursday....

Unloading with the fog around....

Doesn't take long but a degree in Physics to operate the up, down positioning  of the decks to get the cars off would be helpful...

Last Sunday was a blue sky mild day.
I've worked out that every time a piece of wood is burnt on the fire it's one less we have in stock, it's gone, vvaaaammooosshhh, no coming back. So that  means more wood has to be sawn, cut, chopped, whatever.
We had a couple of logs left from when we travelled up from Thrupp, loaded them from the towpath, they'd dried out good.
Also I scrounge pallets from anywhere, theres so many laying around and they are good dry timber easily cut using my recently acquired skill saw. I used to saw them all by hand with a bow saw. Now a pallet is dismembered in about 4 minutes.

So Sunday was the day to...

Cut up the logs.....

And......

Add another pallet to the total.....
I know what you Hilarious people have already said to yourselves....
" wonder how long before he cuts through the power lead"??.....
Hey... I'm not that Stupid.....

The rains returned, good time to hit the sack.......

H2O..... H2O...... H2O......

The Thames river has as a result of recent rain decided to spread itself wider than the original planners had envisaged taking over hundreds of acres of farmland, a lot of roads, sports grounds allotments etc.

The rain having eased of late has seen the levels slowly dropping but a couple more days of rain will add to the drama.

We took a drive into Oxford and walk along the canal, you can't go far with blockages every where, on Saturday as it was a cloudless mild blue sky day.

Close to where I spend my work days loitering is....

On the Thames the Kings lock..... looking across to the lock keepers house beside the lock...


From the Oxford city approach to the lock.....

 

You can just see the landing bollards.... The  river bank is not visible.....


Next to the lock is the popular Kings Arms pub..... had a couple there ourselves.....

 

But the car park is now part of the Thames....... Water flowed through the pub too......

Into the city striking several road blocks but eventually parked and walked....

 

Along the river bank.... looking toward the Botley Rd bridge.....

Then  farther along......

Looking toward the Punter pub..... The water flow was very swift.....
Usually the above provides serene idyllic mooring for narrow boats.....


Standing on......

Osney lock looking down stream.....  The steel landing on the far side is well submerged.....

Back on the car and heading down.....

Botley Rd,... now open but still flooded in several places.....

Want to catch a bus??.....

Well don't arrive at the Seacourt park and ride with out flippers....

About 5 mile up the road the Thames river heads for Lechlade.....

Looking from.....

 

The Swinford Toll bridge.... yes they charge 5 pence per car both ways.....
The Eynsham lock is submerged in the top half of the photo near the uppermost plastic.....

 

And from the bridge looking...





Toward Lechlade in the west.... can't make out the original path of the Thames....

As I load this the rain has returned...... not for long one hopes.....

Local Talent.....

 

You never know when the day to day routine will change slightly and chuck in a couple of left hooks....

While working on a race car the other day I mentioned to my co - worker that a bit of Air Brushing would look okay on some panels....
"I've done a bit of that" says Mark...
"Oh really" I says, thinking to myself, Hmmmmm... the Pommie cricket team said they'd done a bit of batting...
"Have you got some photo's"?..
"I got a folder in the office with some of my work"...
"WOW" I says......
Never Judge a Spray painter on the size of his Gun..... Spray Gun......

All these have been done with a Spray Gun.....

 

 

The plastic covers in the folder were reflective but I didn't  want to take them all out to photograph....
You can still see the Class....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



 

 

Chief Sitting Bull......





No Prizes for guessing this Legend.....

 

For something completely different but a Classy effort no less.....

Leonie decided  that rainy dark nights on the NB can be used for.......

Completing a jig saw puzzle....
But what seemed to be an unsurpassable problem to me  to start with no picture of the finished puzzle, I couldn't find all the border pieces even...... Although I helpfully  did mention that those light blue pieces along the top border would probably be the sky.....

 

 A couple of nights later...... starting to take shape....

More nights later and showing a Bit of Leg....

And the finished picture...... About a week and a bit later.....

Off to get some flooding photos....

Another Heritage......

New Years day was a shocker weather wise. Heavy showers and strong blustery winds but we'd made a plan so on the car and off to visit the home of Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. Built in the Renaissance style this chateau is known as Waddesdon Manor.

The large Victorian garden is one of the best in Britain but we'll need to go back at a later date in better weather to view.

After parking the car in the large sealed car park the half mile journey up the drive way is on the free bus service.


The first view of the Chateau is...

Very Impressive.... one could be in Paris or anywhere in the French countryside....

There's another "wing" as big on the left....


In the entry hall.....

The awesome collection of vases, paintings, tapestries etc begins....


Through to.....

Other rooms with the Décor being very tasty....

A dining room setting......

The dress on display thought to have been a ball gown.....

When you have servants and maid who haven't had to pay for the crockery the odd article is going to get smashed.....

Chuck it out, in the Bin.....

 

Not Likely.... Get the broken bits made into the "coolest" chandelier ever.....


The table setting had......

The Napkins folded into Swans......

 

Also in the room.....

Adding to the "Tasteful" decorating were these vases with white flowers and white  "stickery" ......

 

Along a hallway was.....

This small portion of an "Arms" collection.... Rifles with "Inlaid Ivory".. everywhere......

 

Onto the Billiard Room.....

 

Large "Inlaid" wooden panels featured on the walls......


And the Table was covered......

 

By this "Hand Sewn"  intricate cover...

Those paper signs on the table say "Don't Touch" this cover has just been restored after a zillion hours work and is "Fragile"....
So a Couple enter the room with there 3 children, like 12 - 15 yr olds and one off the "Little Snots" proceeds to bang his arm along the cover witnessed by a parent but nothing said.. "Pathetic Parenting" I say.....


A short walk down the pathway takes one to the.....

 

 

 

Stables..... "Poor Horses".........

A good day out considering the elements........ probably return in the spring to check out the Vegetation I reckon......