Well after having being thoroughly examined Alacrity passed her BSS examination……………..I didn’t think that she would fail but …..there could allways be something.

I had been wondering for a while why whenever I tried looking at Ten Bob Note’s website it returned a 404 page.

 I found this when I was reading the Canal World Forum.

Well, what an unexpected reaction. Many thanks to all of you for your kind comments re my web site.

Why did I take it down?? Well, probably the main reason was the amount of time it required to update and maintain it. My only form of internet access is my mobile phone and on occasions, the link can be worse than useless.

Also, I did feel that I was ‘under scrutiny’ in everything I did, I started to feel a bit ‘uncomfortable’ with it all in recent months.

I never ever expected the blog to become as popular is it became. As Cotswoldman thought, I started it initially so that friends and family could keep up with my adventures and whereabouts.

I have to say it will be a great loss to the canal blogging world as Ernies website was one of the best, It was the first that I would click on when I went online, the photographs were like being there with Ernie .

Blogging should be a pleasure and not a chore, so please Ernie still post but only when you want to, I won’t remove the link to your site just incase you change your mind

As I have changed around the battery connections to balance the heavy draw from the inverter I found that the lids covering the batteries don’t fit, yet another thing to do for the BSS.

So new lids have been made and a new box to house the two extra batteries. You need to be a contortionist to get at Alacrity’s batteries as when I have to top them up. I still haven’t modified the cupboard above them, that’s another job.

 So fitting the lids and extra battery box was to say the least a trial well that’s now done and all is ready for the BSS.

Well you’ve heard of the joke about the gynecologist who decorated his hallway through the letterbox, that’s just how I felt when I decided to repaint Alacrity’s gas locker.
Alacrity’s Boat Safety Examination is coming up soon and I noticed that one of the things they were looking at were rusty floors in gas lockers because there may be pinholes in the plating allowing LPG to get into the bilges with possible dire results.

The floor in the locker was sound and just needed the loose rust sweeping out. I painted the cleaned floor with Kurust then two coats of International primer and then the whole locker with two coats of Danboline.

I was lucky that it was a hot day the Kurust dried converting the rust and leaving a great base for the primer, but it was a killer trying to reach in and paint. I used two paint brushes taped onto lengths of dowell to reach the corners and with my head and one arm in squeezed in the hatch managed to get a great finish despite a headache due to the fumes.

I even managed to get in a bit of fishing (I didn’t catch anything) while I waited for the paint to dry !!! 

Im going to fit some Dri-Dek Tiles to stop the gas cylinders resting directly on the locker bottom so hopefully keeping it rust free for the future.

Its that time again, Waiting for me on the door mat when I got home was my licence renewal form from BW, always a welcome sight  Not.

Included was a notice telling me that I needed to renew my Boat Safety Certificate, minor panic ensued for a few moments while I located the last inspections paperwork. Since nothing has changed hopefully all I need to do is check that there are no obvious faults.

What I did notice was the warning that late payment now gets hit with a penalty of £150 OUCH !!!

I should apologise for the lack of posts over the past two months, although there has been much to post the pressure of work has left me so mentaly knackered something had to give.

I hope to resume posting very soon

As of 05.48 am it was officially the First Day of Spring.

Up at sparrow fart on Saturday with a quick stop for breakfast on the way. We were at Braunston for 9am. It was shaping up weather wise to be a great weekend.
I was a man on a mission. On our last visit we found that the water supply pipes from the Tank were weeping and as always the leak would be in an awkward place, beneath the cooker at the back of the kick space in the galley unit, it could  just be reached laying on ones back with one arm extended.
Well after removing the false floor in the cupboard and the wooden trim covering the pipes we cut away all the old pipework . That was the easy bit, Jo had to feed the pipes in and I had to try to get the pipe ends to align with the push fit connectors, not easy looking under the unit with one eye and trying to judge the distance  shouting at asking Jo kindly to push, pull and twist the B***** pipe.
After much cursing and one leak Job Done………Beer Time…….

Sunday.

Sunday dawned sunny and bright. I had a choice, start to fit the new Webasto heating boiler or have a couple of hours fishing, well it was no contest fishing it was. I was using wholemeal bread as bait (healthy ??) within twenty minutes I landed a five pound bream then a large roach not bad for me.

It was great to see NB Jubilee pass through the marina delivering coal.

and yes I did find time to fit the Webasto boiler I just now need time to plumb it in and remove the Alde !!! and remodel the wardrobe sounds like refit part two .

Friday the 13th is widely hailed as the most common superstition in the world. It’s the second one in two months this year, so I thought that I would explore the Phobia!!

The fear of Friday the 13th (known as paraskevidekatriaphobia) isn’t exactly grounded in scientific logic. But the really strange thing is that most of the people who believe the day is unlucky can offer no explanation at all, logical or illogical. As with most superstitions, people fear Friday the 13th for its own sake, without any need for background information.

It is the linking of Friday and the number 13 that make up the even more unlucky Friday 13th.

Facts or Myths.

• Never change your bed on Friday; it will bring bad dreams.
•  Don’t start a trip on Friday or you will have misfortune.
• If you cut your nails on Friday, you cut them for sorrow.
• Ships that set sail on a Friday will have bad luck – as in the tale of H.M.S. Friday … One hundred years ago, the British government sought to quell once and for all the widespread superstition among seamen that setting sail on Fridays was unlucky. A special ship was commissioned, named “H.M.S. Friday.” They laid her keel on a Friday, launched her on a Friday, selected her crew on a Friday and hired a man named Jim Friday to be her captain. To top it off, H.M.S. Friday embarked on her maiden voyage on a Friday, and was never seen or heard from again. ( I don’t believe a word of it) .
• It was on a Friday, supposedly, that Eve tempted Adam with the forbidden fruit.
• In pagan Rome, Friday was execution day (later Hangman’s Day in Britain)
• Thirteen is significant to Christians because it is the number of people who were present at the Last Supper (Jesus and his 12 apostles). Judas, the apostle who betrayed Jesus, was the 13th member of the party to arrive.
•  In 2006, a study by the RAC revealed that the number of personal injuries leading to hospital admissions because of road accidents had increased by as much as 52 per cent on Friday 13th.
•  Christian legend holds that 13 is unholy because it signifies the gathering of 12 witches and the devil to form a covern.
• Hindu and Norse people believe that If 13 people sit down to dinner together, all will die within the year.

So are you a sufferer of  paraskevidekatriaphobia or a skeptic? Will you be avoiding damaging mirrors, walking under ladders or looking for black cats…………………………Dare you ignore Friday the 13th!!!!!!

I was having my usual wander through the web when I spotted in BW’s Newsroom.
Bill Bryson, President of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) best-selling author of travel books has thrown his weight behind BW’s Towpath Tidy 2009.

Bill Bryson says in a press release from BW:

“Britain’s waterways are of vital importance, providing everyone with the opportunity to experience their cities, towns and countryside from a unique and tranquil perspective. It’s a disgrace that some people choose to treat their waterways as an open litter bin or as a place to dump their discarded waste. I urge everyone who wants to get this country clean to join in and tidy a towpath.”

And from Robin Evans, BW chief executive:

“Canals are enjoying a long overdue renaissance, they are now used and enjoyed more than at any other time in their 200-year history. Volunteers have become essential to the waterways ongoing success and Towpath Tidy is an enjoyable and rewarding occasion when we join forces with individuals and organisations to support wildlife and improve the appearance of the network for everyone.”

It’s a real pity that all users of the towpaths can’t live in harmony. The canal system is a haven of tranquility where most folk go to recharge their mental batteries and enjoy their surroundings. Our canal system is a very precious resource especially now with the financial constraints placed on BW. Why should a very small minority bring their “sod you pal ” attitudes with them and spoil it for others.

 We can only hope that in time that they also become converts to the wonderful world of our Inland Waterways and see the error of their ways……