Enough Women?

Aside from Mum and myself, he protests, Dad thinks this picture contains his three most favourite women - Clara Bow, Cambria and SB Greta! That should be enough women for any bloke!

Today he's mainly being Treasurer at the Hort Soc Rose and Sweet Pea Show but he's rescued by Mum at Lunchtime and taken to the China Village restaurant for some lunch and (tadaaaa!) turns out to have his painting overalls in his Treasurering bag, so sneaks off to the Cambria for a spot of bulkhead painting. The barge is a-buzz with workers, volunteers and the paid electrician and kitchen fitters all racing to get enough of the boat finished to enable it to sail away and become a charter boat on, apparently, the 3rd of July.

This will be the end of a very nice project for the volunteers who have come together as a very nice community during the painting phase, December 2010 to the present. They are going to be lost and bereft, wandering around the silent Quayside on weekend days, paint brushes in hand, wondering what to paint next, like lost sheep with no shepherd. If you have a boat that needs painting and you can get it to Faversham by July I should moor it up and paint the word "Cambria" on the back. You'll make a dozen wandering lost souls very happy!

Part way through today's painting stint there's a shout to come up on deck - the crew of SB Henry are winching their mast up for the first time in at least 3 years. It's not the newest and shiniest gear on the fleet, so they are taking it very gently. Midway through the task the most enormous black cloud looms over and it starts to bucket down, so Henry's crew and Dad's lot retreat below their various decks and carry on with the tasks in hand.

Deefs

Take Three

Three strong contestants for the role of 'Cute Barge Dog' here. You may recognise Alfie, a yorkie who is part of the furniture on the SB Greta and visible on any visit to the Greta website. Alfie has been around ages and was there to welcome Megan and Haggis aboard when they chartered her for a day's sailing.

Alfie's new young companion is Ludo, tricolour short haired JR, here challenging the cameraman from the deck of Greta, which was moored alongside SB Cambria. Finally another old chum, Kess, faithful chum of one of Dad's fellow volunteers on Cambria, Mark.

Meanwhile, in Project Erroll land, it's all gone a bit quiet. Our most recent viewer was perhaps the most hopeful-sounding, a single middle aged lady with no small child-shaped encumbrances, who seemed delighted with the garden and was talking about bringing her grown-up son back to see the place a 2nd time. Despite themselves, Mum and Dad allowed a glimmer of hope to start to glow, but it was not to be - word came back that she'd decided it was too small.

I love the pictures in the brochure taken by the professional lensman with a very wide angle lens (certainly wider than Dad's widest lens, which is 18mm focal length) as they show the rooms as if they were massive, but I guess when people then see the spaces in real life they might be forgiven for being disappointed. For "We could hold a party for 50 in there!" read "We might manage a small soirée for 6 or 8 guests". Ah well, it's early days yet - we've only been on the market a few weeks.

22 days to go, and counting

Deefs

Happy Christmas!

OK, this one's a bit of a swizz, as the snow round here has, in fact, almost all washed away but I thought you might like a quick picture of our old chum SB Greta all snugged down in her poly-tunnel under the snow, with a smudge of smoke coming from her chimney. Owner/Skipper has a superb heating system down in there paid for by his main sponsor in lieu of a corporate sailing weekend. Looking for all the world like an old fashionned Kitchen Range (even down to the dark green enamel), pull open any of the "oven doors" and you reveal a hi-tech display of buttons, lights, control dials and digital displays. The barge is as warm as toast inside, even when we are reading -11 degrees C up on the Thanet Way.

There's no 'white Christmas' this year, but we're all awake from about 06:30 and the humans are up to their usual silliness ripping presents open on the bed before they have drunk their first cups of coffee. Mum had been to Midnight Mass so we were all a bit surprised she woke up. She'll probably collapse this evening and sleep like a log.

Today we are off to Hastings to visit and feed the Pud Lady and the Stamp Man. I say 'we' - it's actually a joint effort this year. Dad's bro, Tom has got the party started by putting the enormous turkey in before we got there and set the bread/onion sauce going. Our part is to do veg's and the final cooking, serving, carving etc, so we come down armed with allotment spuds, carrots, parsnips, sprouts etc. It's a good drive down on clear roads with only occasional patches of ice. The meal goes well and everybody has a good time. Mum gets Pud Lady well tanked up on sherry and champagne (not both together). We come away with a mountain of goodies - as well as the presents we have half a turkey, a whole salt beef (still frozen), barm brack and a very pink Acacia. J-M Silverwood would love it.

We race back in time for Doctor Who and, with the car now parked up and no longer needed, Dad can also have a drink.

Hope you're enjoying your Christmas

Deefs

Greta Back in Town

The town had been looking a bit thin on the ground in the sailing barge department, but today we notice that our old friend SB Greta is back alongside, apparently taking shelter from a forecast Northerly Force 6.

Dad is involved today in the 'In Bloom' presentations ceremony, having to show up armed with wine, soft drinks and nibbles to feed the assembled masses, although the aforementioned Northerly 6 keeps most of them away and we end giving a lot of the stuff away in "doggie bags" and bringing some home. The house is full of doritos, macadamia nuts and Bombay mix. We get Diamond round to help us get through it all.

We head for the allotment for a weeding session and harvest a load of spuds. We are off to Hastings tomorrow to help out in the pud-lady's garden and we are going to contribute a fisherman's pie, for which we need mashed spuds.

This is the life

Deefs

Now they're both at it!

Now they're both at it, Mum and Dad both leaving us abandoned indoors while they go off and enjoy a day's sailing on board the barge SB Greta, based in Whitstable. Haggis has been out, in the days of Megan and before my time, both of them getting on famously with black and tan barge-dog Alfie, but the theory is I'm a bit too skittish and would launch myself over the side. I was also a bit nervous when allowed to walk the decks of SB Cambria a couple of weeks back, and she was aground and in her dry dock (also aground!).

In fact, thinks Dad now after the event, it might not be so bad, as Alfie has chilled a lot with age and would suit Haggis as a companion - the two could metaphorically smoke their pipes and chat about sailorman days of yore like 2 old salts, and I could be shown the ropes by fresh new, spirited, shout-at-all-other-boats Jack Russell, "Ludo". She's pretty good at chasing towards the rail at the edge of the deck and stopping just in time. I'd soon pick it up. Back when H+M went though, they were invited out of the blue by skipper-owner, Steve, and Dad doesn't like to press him, so unless we get another unprompted invite, we are doomed to wait on shore while the humans sail away.

The other pic here, by the way, is Cambria's dry dock from the "wet" side - the starb'd quarter as seen from Greta in the creek.

Shucks

Deefer

Sailing Orphans

When Mum was telling Diamond all about Dad going sailing on Friday, she referred to herself as a "Sailing Widow". On that basis we must be Sailing Orphans by now, as Dad is off sea-faring again. This time he blags his way on board SB Greta for her run from here round to Whitstable where she will (the Skipper hopes) be based right round to October enjoying a successful Summer of chartering.

Dad has to meet the barge at 09:00. They must shuffle ropes and un-bury themselves from behind SB Repertor before motoring gently down the creek to the Swale. It's a lovely warm sunny day with little breeze. That's OK with Dad because in these gentle conditions, Steve the owner-skipper trusts Dad with the helm as he and 1st Mate Rob hoist the topsail and drop a leeboard. Dad reckons he's about 8th Mate behind those two, various family members and the two dogs, Alfie and Ludo (who we've met).

Dad then gets to keep the helm all way down the Swale and Eastwards and then south (including a deliberate "dough-nut" allowing the topsail, which has to be on the starb'd side of the boat to be lowered, to get there with a southerly wind) till they are actually inside Whistable harbour mouth. With big solid walls looming and some jiggery pokery needed with an anchor dropped so that the barge can be swung round the anchor into the correct position for berthing port-side in (head to wind), Steve takes over, and Dad is only too happy to surrender the wheel!

All home safe and sound now - although Dad snuck off again to get some route directions for an upcoming 2CV convoy round Grove Ferry, Reculver and Sarre windmill.

It's all go round here (unless you're a dog!)

Deefski

Sheerness Docks

Ever unpredictable, this blog tries to keep the reader on their toes. This is presumably also the intention of the makers of Pringles. Mum likes a Pringle, and the flavour of coice is usually the green tub, sour cream and onion. She barely noticed but as she picked this one up in the local co-op it is actually a St Patrick's Day promotional pot. 2 months out of date maybe, but still in date-code, so we're guess they are trying to clear some stock.

We never see these on St Patrick's Day, and I suspect that as this town is not known for its Irish community (all be it there are some very significant Irish folk living here!) they are probably not shipped here in great numbers. Nice though.

I give you, too, a nice pic of Greta moored alongside Raybel. We think they may be waitingon the Medway barge sailing match which is coming up soon. Normally by now Greta would be resident in Whitstable and doing her chartering. She is also, we know, engaged in the 70th Anniversary celebrations of the Dunkirk evacuation. Skipper/owner Steve Norris takes the barge over with some WW2 Dunkirk veterans as passengers.

Finally, there is a picture for Mr S. This is a genuine sailing barge windlass, as used until 1970 for winding the big powerful winches on the SB Cambria's decks to haul up the masts, raise and lower sails, raise and lower leeboards, and drop and weigh anchor. Just to get you all nostalgic, Mr S.

Regards

Deefski

Happy Easter

A couple of vaguely barge-related pics just to keep your appetities whetted. The planky tarry one is SB Cambria from low down on the starb'd bow, somewhere near where the waterline will be when she is (re) launched at the end of this year.

The brushes are just brooms well lathered up with the sail dressing concoction, and the van is
just a good way to advertise the SB Greta

For Mum it's a few days off allegedly for Easter but she is nose to the grind stone trying to complete yet another Open Univ. essay which has run close to the deadline, Dad is having a comparitively easy time and enjoying a rare long Easter break. He took us down to the Hollow Shore where 2CV Llew has just taken ownership of a nice little 20 foot sailing cruiser.

The previous owner of this boat bought her and tried her out once but maybe frightened himself and promptly gave up, and she has been moored up for 2 years un-used. Her cabins is a bit damp from being closed up to condensation all that time, and her decks, sheets and sides are well greened up with algae. Today's job (in between sitting on Llew's "sundeck" (some old plywood boards by his caravan) and drinking coffee) was to give the girl a good scrubbing with soapy water, and to open all the hatches to let her dry out thoroughly.

She is called "Kestrel". 20 feet long, she is described as "very beamy" by those in the know - she must be about 7-8 feet wide at the widest point. She has a fibre-glass hull and aluminium mast and boom. All the sails and gear are intact and in working order (though we guess could use unfurling and airing). Dad is promised some sailing outings in return for his deck-scrubbing. We do not know if we are invited.

Haggis has been out with Megan on the SB Greta, and both of them as young dogs, spent some time on a river cruiser owner by one of Dad's chums (from which viewpoint they shouted at sheep on the river bank apparently). Plus we have all been narrowboating, of course, so we're all clued up on nautical affairs.

Have a great Easter.

Deefski

Scraping Greta's bottom

In the process of losing his mind, Dad gets chatting to the owner/skipper of SB Greta and volunteers to help scraping barnacles off her nether regions. He's at it for 3 hours this morning and comes back aching all over. The barge, in dry dock, is up on blocks only waist height to Dad, so he's working in a space where no-one can stand. There's a lot of kneeling, twisting, reaching and using unaccustomed muscles.

The wee beasties are scraped off first with a garden hoe, then for more detailed attention, with a little triangular paint scraper. Steve (owner/skipper) then follows on with the big industrial jet-wash. This all prior to the old girl getting new anti-fouling paint (which Steve jokes is a complete waste of time because as soon as she sits down on the mud again at low tide all the paint gets squidged off).

And here, as promised, the old transom (flat stern) of the SB Oak, looking like the guys in this container yard are actually looking to preserve the relic, rather than letting it moulder in the hedge along with the bits of her bottom.

It's all bottoms today

Deefer.

Tosca

With Dad still using up spare holiday days, we are getting some nice fuss and Quality Time, plus some good walks. Today's for example, in bright sunshine but a bitter wind all down through the boat yard and back through town and the Rec where we met superb brown and grey Spinone "Tosca" whom we have mentioned before. This time she seemed at first to be all on her own and mooching round the trees, very happy to see us, but eventually we saw her owner several hundred yards off chatting. Tosca had obviously gone for an explore.

The walk down through the boatyard turned out to be interesting from a barge-ish view point, when Dad spotted that what had seemed to be a pile of old wooden bits in a hedge, had an oddly familiar structure - like a short section of the bottom and sides of a flat bottomed boat? All the elements were there that Dad now knows from Cambria - chine-keelson, chine, frames, planking etc. Dad decided to ask in the local Chandlery and they guy thought it might be the remains of Sailing Barge "Oak" and could also remember seeing a chunk of transom (flat stern) sticking out of some brambles. This proved to be the case, so we doubled back on ourselves for Dad to take some pics (see future posts)

We also called by the Cambria where Dad stopped to chat to Cambria's Master shipwright, Tim, and to owner/skipper of SB Greta, Steve and , mad fool that he obviously is, volunteered to help tomorrow to scrape barnacles off the dry-docked Greta. Greater love hath no man.

Meanwhile Diamond is indeed home but exhausted and aching from some of the heavy duty medication. Take it easy Diamond, preserve your strength.

Deefski

Macra na Feirme

Looking, by her own admission, for all the world like a member of "Mna Macra na Feirme", the unofficial Ladies associated with the Irish "Young Farmers" (Macra na Feirme is official, it's just the ladies of a certain age and style who tag along - Irish Country gals, basically), Mum togs up to take Diamond to Mass. Diamond is actually a "prod", of course, but the RC Rev who came (to Mum's plea) and supported her when she was in the depths of Intensive Care hell a couple of months back, was so nice and kind, Diamond is keen to pay back the compliment now she's "out"

http://www.irishtimes.com/blogs/politics/category/macra-na-feirme/

Diamond is currently in remission and living at home, needing the hospital only for blood tests etc, pending a possible further chunk of treatment at Kings Hospital in the big smoke. She's even been round here to admire the work of the Panini Boys, and taken tea with us, and she has been invited by the Pud Lady to come down with us to Hastings on Christmas Day. This may not quite work, as she may be in Kings, but the thought was there, and she's delighted to have the invitation.

We get some good walking today, making our way down to the quayside where, it being a Sunday, the barge SB Cambria is open, and Dad's barge-chums Mark and Cathy are "on station". Kess is there, of course, doing what she does best - being strange. Long haired JR Kess, we know of course, has a thing about stones.

Having selected a suitable stone she will then obsess on it, moving it about by mouth and, where ever it sits, ripping to shreds any grass tussocks near to it and tearing at the ground till quite a sophisticated trench has been dug near the stone. She did this on our terrace once, totally confusing me so that I just sat on Dad's lap barking at her antics, and the nice round pebble has been preserved by Dad for next time she visits.

Returning home we come across new kid on the block, short haired JR, "Clifford". I try to entice him to play by flirting outrageously and running about, but he only has eyes for Haggis (much to Haggis's displeasure) and he's fixated on sniffing bits of the "H" that "H" would rather not have sniffed.

Keep on keepin' on

Deefski

Not home yet...

With exams looming, Mum is off "to school" today to find out all about what they entail, calling in on Diamond on the way home for a cup of tea. We stay home with Dad who's of a mind to blitz the garden of its shagginess and piles of fallen (Paulownia) leaves. He is leppin' around with secateurs pruning all 4 apple trees, the two plums, the quince, the damson, the cherry and the greengage, producing a mountain of prunings which need to go through the shredder.

He rakes up any amount of big, crisp, dry Paulownia leaves, also for the compost, and a good 2 rubbish bags worth of the sword-like, sharp edged "cabbage palm" (Corylinus australis) leaves, which are no good for the compost as they never ever break down. Next it's hands and knees for a bit of trowelling out ground elder and finally a rake around and tidy up.

Finally we can go for a walk (H and I again - Meg's still a bit delicate), down to the boat yard where Dad wants to see if his favourite barge, the SB Greta is "home" yet. Owner Steve Norris uses it for charters through the Summer, based in Whitstable fishing harbour, but in the winter she holes up here, de-rigged and safe under her poly-tunnel round till about Easter, while she gets re-fettled. We didn't get to go out in her this Summer, never quite getting round to it, but I expect he had a good season - he's definitely had the weather for it.

As I write this Mum is rebelling. Trying to be good and stick to the dietary fare since we all returned from narrow boating like bloaters, she pleads that she can't be bothered tonight to eke out yay grams of this and that, so she's nipped off in the car to buy something soul-food-ish, calorific, delicious and rebellious.

Go Mum!
Deefski

Woozle... oh and that car

Well, as predicted, with a gale in the Swale, SB Greta wasn't going anywhere, so Mum went back to work and Dad was free to give us an extra special, rabbit-rich walk all around the Abbey Fields "beyond" the allotments. We met the most gorgeous Weimeraner, going under the unlikely name of "Woozle". Not sure you can call a Weimer "Woozle", but apparently he's "a bit of a wuss". He's a re-home, rescued from a house in Birmingham, and is the people's 4th one.

Tired out, from chasing bunnies through bramble thickets (mmm the blackberries are just about perfect just now, says Dad) we are parked up and Dad takes off to see 2CV Llew and then JJ, who is taking their project car, Mademoiselle, in for it's MOT today. She passes. Dad is now insured to drive her and it's his job to whizz (hah!) her from Deal, where she's MOT'd, to Andy's Mum's farm (where we do our 2CV camping, and where she's to be stored short term).

Whizz? Mademoiselle is 47 years old and only 475cc, so she rattles, groans, grinds and lurches, not accelerating where you'd expect her to, and has to keep visiting road-side parking laybyes to allow the inevitable tail-back of impatient motorists to pass. Fun, but not anything you'd want to take for a long journey!

Deefski

Marjorie and Repertor

Well, the forecast is giving 40 kmph winds so, sensibly, Steve (skipper / owner) is not going anywhere with SB Greta. Dad and Steve chat away, and in passing, Dad asks how he got on with the Swale Barge Match at the weekend. It seems that dramas and excursions were the order of the day.

2 barges collided, SB Repertor, who we know well, and has a steel hull, hit the side of SB Marjorie, making a 4 foot wide gash, and causing her to have to beach on the island to avoid sinking - see the following report in the Whitstable Lifeboat website news - the pictures look like something out of "Master and Commander"

http://myweb.tiscali.co.uk/whitslb/2008/9aug2008.htm

Greta withdrew from the match to assist, but already had a small boat in tow, and the lifeboat was there by the time they got to Marjorie.

Anyway, it all ended without injury (to people anyway) and both these barges are safe back in Faversham Creek.

So.... no sailing for Dad tomorrow - we'll try again later in the year. Good news for us - we should stand to get a good walk in!

Deefer