Narrowboat Wrens-Nest

In my last posting I mentioned I had a date for my Prostate operation on 22nd June.

That event has come and gone, technically is was a Robotically Assisted Prostatectomy which completely removed the Prostate. Special surgical tools were inserted through six small cuts in my lower abdomen and a slightly bigger cut near my belly button, through which a camera was inserted and eventually the Prostate removed.

That’s probably more than enough detail for most of you but the curious can find all the detail they could possible want here.

I have to say that any vestige of dignity I may have once had disappeared as before discharge a young woman took me to the bathroom for a strip wash “You do the front, I’ll do the back” she said, bless her heart!

I was released to go home on the third day after surgery with Jer & Louise coming to collect me.

My recovery has gone very well, after about 10 days I had to go back to hospital to have the catheter removed (more matter-of-fact female intervention) and I am now at the stage of retraining my bladder to do as I want it to.

In a couple of weeks I have a meeting with my consultant when I trust he’ll confirm all went well.

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I almost fall in love with my Phlebotomist

I have registered with a local GP and was sent for blood tests. The Phlebotomist was so kind and funny, she checked my details verifying my address and said not that I’m coming to visit, but if I did what would you cook me? She settled on Lasagne but said she’d want roast potatoes & Yorkshire pudding with it (strange girl).

Within minutes she had found out I’d lost Joy and said she was far too young to be taken from me, then asked me what I was doing for the rest of the day. Why not go to the pictures tonight she said (if she had offered to take me I might have said yes!)

In truth I think she was just distracting me from the 4 tubes of blood she took, in which case she did a darn good job because from her putting the needle in my arm, at which point I always look away, I didn’t notice a thing until she was finished.

I didn’t even get her name but I would certainly recognise her again, striking I think would best describe her. Tall and slim, with short cropped hair dyed blonde on top (with her coffee coloured skin tone it was never going to be natural)
As I left I said goodbye & God bless you she replied God bless you too.

That night I was awoken by one of Joy’s pictures falling off the wall, perhaps she was telling me “Don’t you even think about it”

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Next weekend my Grandson Morley is getting wed to his Fiance Annice, they are just 20, but have been together for a couple of years and I wish them a long and happy marriage like Joy and me.

 

It’s had to believe that almost two weeks have gone by since I arrived here at Smethwick, and while the mooring doesn’t have the views of Stourport I have friendly neighbours & good facilities. There is a laundry room which is free to use for us residents and I almost understand how to use the machines.

We are in an industrial area and this screengrab from Google Maps gives some idea of the surroundings. The blue dot shows where Wrens-Nest is located.

 

One of my first adventures outside of the moorings was to walk out through the back gate and find Copes Potato Warehouse, which contains a cash & carry who were happy to serve me with a small selection of essentials and includes Amelia’s Kitchen (a takeaway bakery) who sold me a cheese & potato pie & a trifle to take back for my tea.

The first Sunday I was here a procession called the Nagar Kirtan passed the gates of the moorings which, I believe, celebrates the foundation of the Sikh religion. and was the first one to take place since before the pandemic. I wasn’t quick enough to see the leaders, but many thousands of followers came behind and I just caught a snatch of video to give a flavour of the sights and sound.

 

Another new boat has arrived to take the mooring behind me, a younger couple who buck the demographic of (shall I say) more mature residents.

Last Tuesday I  retrieved Jinty  from Stourport thanks to Jer & Louise and we enjoyed  lunch in The Black Star before I returned to Smethwick.

Jinty now has a parking spot just a few yards from the boat.

I have taken Jinty out into the surrounding area and was surprised to find that driving was far less scary than I had imagined. Drivers seem very tolerant and not at all aggressive, maybe it’s due to the cultural diversity of the area.

 

I have a little visitor from time to time which I believe is a pied wagtail.

On Friday I had a brief visit from Jer & Iona who had been shopping for a Prom Outfit.

I have discovered that Asda will deliver to the moorings, so that’s another plus.

I have finally been given a date for my prostate cancer op, it’s 22nd June and will be by robotic surgery at The Alexandra Hospital, Reditch so watch this space.

Tuesday 23rd May – 9½miles & 7 locks

I collected Sue & Quentin from their accommodation after breakfast and by 9:30 we were underway and at York Street lock soon after; being waved off by Barry & Julia .

All the locks were in our favour and we were in Kidderminster  by lunchtime where I stocked up with reduced price Avocados at Sainsburys while Sue produced sandwiches.

At Wolverley Lock we met Leigh & Malc for hugs & goodbyes.

S & Q walked between many of the locks leaving me just to do the steering.
We carried on to moor at Whittington Lock which was one of Joy’s favourite spots. Jer and Louise joined us about 5pm and we all shared pizza.

 

Wednesday 24th May – 13¾ miles & 20 locks

Yesterday was our first & last short day, We reckoned we could easily reach The Bratch Locks. We were told there was a new Sainsburys at  Wombourne so another short stop to get milk as our tea consumption was making it essential. S & Q came back with that, biscuits and a bottle of beer for me.

We easily reached The Bratch and thought it would be a shame to waste the daylight and so carried on through another 5 locks to Compton where we moored for the night.

A Steak and Ale pie was put in the oven while Quentin and myself were dispatched to Peps Plaice to purchase some of their famous ‘Orange Chips’ (chunky chips deep-fried in a thick orange-coloured batter) a Black Country delicacy said to date back to World War II and rationing. A time when out-of-the-box thinking was needed to make boring potatoes somewhat more palatable during those bleak times. [credit https://secretbirmingham.com/orange-chips-black-country/]

These were a complete revelation to my crew but they agreed that they were delicious, evens Sue’s no-potato diet was broken to sample a few.

Thursday 25th May –  15½miles & 22 locks

An 8:00 am start this morning and I had to dissuade my crew from walking the couple of miles to  Aldersley Junction as they would need all their energy to tackle the 21 locks which climb into Wolverhampton.

There were a few issues with low water levels on the way up but they were overcome and we developed a routine of entering one lock, and while rising Quentin would walk on to set the next lock, and as we were ready to exit I would hop off to close the offside paddle while Sue opened the gate. Sometimes there was a boat coming down and we could leave the gate open for them.

By midday we were at the top and a decision was made to press on to my new mooring, a 5 hour cruise but no locks at all so Quentin & I shared the steering while Sue kept us supplied with tea & sandwiches

There were a few issues with weed and other rubbish entangling itself about the propeller and I spent more time than I would have liked lying on my stomach to remove it, one job that made Quentin pleased that they no longer had their boat.

We rolled into Engine Arm soon after 5pm and were greeted by the residents.

Not content with a 9 hour day already Sue & Quentin had decided they would like to be home before the Bank Holiday Weekend so walked to Rolfe Street Station to catch a train into Birmingham & thence to Plymouth. Quentin is an ex-railwayman and so they  get free rail travel.

After that a combination of bus and ferry took them back to their home in Torpoint arriving about midnight. Understandably they didn’t rise never early the next day.

I am so blessed to have such good (and energetic) friends and I thank them with all my heart.

 

Today marks 13 years of living aboard Wrens-Nest as on 23rd May 2010 we loaded our worldly possessions onto our boat and began a new life as Liveaboard Boaters.

So as the 14th year begins so begins a new life for me.
As some of you will already know my beloved Joy passed away suddenly on 5th April while out on a trip in Jinty our camper van, the cause was Cardiac Arrest.
We had a lovely last couple of days together after 50 years of life well lived.
I shall miss her terribly, of course, but glad she didn’t suffer a lingering end and I have faith to know one day we will be reunited in heaven.

She was my Best Friend, Best Mate in boater speak and the light of my life.

We celebrated her life with a Service of Thanksgiving and Celebration, it was a Joyful occasion (pun intended!) it wasn’t formal and people were encouraged to wear bright colours and be ready to smile as they recalled what Joy meant to them.

My daughter Karen & Granddaughter Summer were able to travel from Australia to be with me.

You can watch the occasion on YouTube and I hope you will be uplifted.

By some happy chance a mooring became available where Jer, our son, moors his boat in Smethwick so I decided to move there so he could ‘Keep-an-eye-on me’ at least I think that’s  the right way round.

I’m going to miss that view at the top of the page and the friendships made with neighbours and staff here at Stourport, I’ve an open invitation to return and promises to visit me in Smethwick.

When our good friends Quentin & Sue (absolute heroes) heard what was to happen they offered to crew for me on the trip, all the arrangements fitted together beautifully, they are ex-boaters so ‘know the ropes’ and today is the day we begin the journey.

Saturday 25th March

I started the day with Smashed Avo & Bacon with some mushrooms, then we spent the morning watching the cooking programmes on TV.

Lunch was homemade vegetable soup with garlic bread and we enjoyed a sunny afternoon doing nothing in particular except watching quite a number of boats on the move including some of the Starline hire fleet on the start of their outward journey. Later we enjoyed a takeaway scone & clotted cream & a rocky road from The Lock Tea Room.

The weather forecast for tomorrow is rainy so we didn’t fancy boating in that and considered leaving early Monday morning for Kidderminster and getting a taxi to my opticians appointment, but in the end we decided to head for Stourport this evening and drive back to Kidderminster Monday morning.

We left soon after 4pm and there were still a good number of boats moving, we made Kidderminster in good time and I decided we could make The Bird in Hand moorings before dark.

Once we had gone through Falling Sands Lock, Joy retreated inside to make spaghetti bolognese and after was surprised to have been able to watch TV as we travelled along.

We tied up about 7pm,  enjoyed our tea and watched TV for the rest of the evening.

Sunday 26th March

Of course this morning started with an hour less in bed and a marathon of clock changing.

After breakfast we joined Riverside Church for their on-line service as is our custom.

We decided the weather forecast had been lying about the rain today, so we had a quick lunch and headed back for our mooring.

At York Street Lock the crew of  the following boat offered to lock us through (I really must be looking old!) We slotted back onto our pontoon without problem and within a few minutes our neighbours’ cat, Martha, visited to find out where we  had been.

Eye test tomorrow and a dentist’ appointment to look forward to on Wednesday.

Thursday 23rd March

We have passed the Spring Equinox and look forward (?) to the clocks going forward in a couple of days, so an escape from the mooring for a few days was in order.

We unplugged the mains electricity cable and stole away from our mooring at about 9:30, and a kind passer by helped us with York Street lock and we were away.

We had intended to stop at the Bird in Hand pub but we arrived there so early and the weather was fine we decided to press on and Falling Sands Viaduct gave Joy and opportunity for an arty Photo.

Volunteers were working on Caldwell Lock cutting back grass and weeds, and said painting and greasing were next. They took a short break to let us through and closed the gates after us.

We moored up a short distance further on, had lunch  and set things up ready for Joy’s on line art class.

 

Meanwhile I experimented with the Wi-Fi aerial and found it received a far better signal lying horizontal so bodged up  designed a mounting for it.

That achieved without losing Joy’s internet connection I concocted a Chilli for tea.

A number  of Starline hireboats passed by during the afternoon headed back to base and the evening was spent watching both terrestrial and on-demand TV .

Friday 24th March

This morning we were up and off before 9 as rain was forecast after lunch.

We were soon at Kidderminster Lock and were greeted by a guy who was working on resurfacing the towpath who introduced himself as ‘Brummy’ he has a boat moored at Otherton where we used to be based.

A quick shop-stop at Sainsbury’s for a few items scored us a ‘Taste don’t Waste’ box for £2 which amongst other useful things contained 4 Avocados which I shall enjoy my breakfasts (I blame them Aussies for introducing me to Smashed Avo & Bacon)

It was out of Kiddy to Wolverley Court Lock where we met a group of deaf people who did their best to communicate with us.

Kingfisher has had a repaint 

 

Onwards though the newly refurbished Wolverley Lock, thence we elected to go on and turn at Lea Lane Winding Hole before the rain came. As we returned to Wolverley Lock the rain did indeed start, but we managed to descend and moor up without getting too wet!

After a lunch of Roasted Mushrooms & Feta, Tomato & Courgette Parcels I had a phone call from my Diabetic Nurse with the news that she was very pleased with my HbA1c Levels and has rescinded the threat of insulin injections and will check my levels again in 3 months.

The afternoon threw all sorts of weather at us from heavy rain showers to bright sunshine which was good news as as our solar panels kept the batteries topped up.

Map Images courtesy of the Waterway Routes App https://www.waterwayroutes.co.uk/

I’ve had a busy few weeks, keeping myself occupied with various projects on the boat.

The Power Station

The meters which monitor battery charging had become unreliable, so when the chance came of buying a new Clipper BM2 monitor for less than a third of the retail price I grabbed it and set to work fitting it along with two digital “Hall Effect” ammeters which just need the sensor to be slipped over the relevant cable.

 

I now have a redesigned monitoring panel for the electrical system

 

Testing Testing

The Boat Safety Examination certification expires in November and as it is permitted to be tested up to two months early I contacted the examiner who did the first test in our ownership of the boat as he was not too far away. The purpose of the BSS is to help minimise risks to third parties rather than to advise on the “seaworthiness” of the boat and is valid for four years.

In preparation I resealed the stove’s flue pipe with high temperature silicone sealant, cleaned & resealed the glass and gave the whole thing a coat of paint.

 

The day came for the test and the examiner was very helpful, fixing minor issues as he went along, A couple of cables needed a protective sleeve to prevent chafing  (a small piece of water hose sufficed), a length of wood (a piece of decking board) to prevent the batteries moving inside their box, a label on the gas locker to say “Gas shut off under” and a clip to secure a gas pipe behind the cooker. The only further item was to secure the stove to it’s plinth (strangely a recent requirement) Our neighbour Barry came up trumps with two angle brackets which I duly modified and painted black to match the stove. The only expense incurred was the purchase of masonry bits to drill through the tiles on the hearth.
So now we are certified (certificated?) until November 2026!

Ding Dong! (in the immortal words of Leslie Phillips)

This bell has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, I first saw it at my grandparents’ home where I spent a lot of time as a small child, I inherited it when my mother died and it has been in our homes ever since both on land and water.

This week I decided it was time it was put it to practical use as a door bell.

 

 

Delving into my “come-in-handy-box” I found a Kensington laptop security cable, which is a plastic coated steel cable intended to secure a laptop to a desk. Following the route of the solar cables it was threaded through the workshop cupboards and through a redundant hole to the back deck of the boat.

 

Now all that was required was a nice brass knob to operate it, but a trawl around all the charity and antique shops in town failed to find one so a brass plated reproduction was found at B & Q.

To obtain the correct jangle the cable length was adjusted and a makeshift balancing weight added. I can see further investigation of car boot sales to find something more attractive will be required!

 

 

 

Tuesday July 12th – Whittington to Wolverley

A more civilised start time today of 9:30 as we had only 3½ miles to cover and 3 locks.

As we arrived at Wolverley Lock it started to rain so we tied up, but as soon as we did, it stopped and a boat came up the lock so we took advantage of that and went down to find a vacant mooring immediately.

Wolverley Lock is in a desperately poor condition with the top gate paddle having been out of action for a couple of years to my knowledge and today one of the bottom gate paddles was out of action too, making it a very slow job. The balance beams on  the  lower gates are rotting away but C&RT don’t seem to want to replace them or even do a decent repair with steel reinforcement plates.

We saw Leigh & Malc briefly in the afternoon and had a drink with them at The Lock Inn this evening after Joy had cooked a Spag Bog but were tempted to have a desert at the pub too!

Wednesday 13th July – Wolverley to Stourport

No rush to get away today, we had arranged a ‘Click & Collect’ grocery order from Tescos at Kidderminster but we still arrived too early so we visited Sainsburys and bought me some new T-Shirts and got a voucher for 5p/litre off diesel (for Jinty). I had an early lunch of a Scotch egg while Joy decided to wait for a bit.

Down through Kidderminster Lock, with the church bells ringing out, to moor outside Tesco and Joy cooked herself scrambled egg while I fetched the groceries. It wasn’t immediately clear how to ‘Click & Collect’ without a car, but I was advised to go to Customer Services and they kindly brought me our purchases there to load into our shopping trolley.

A couple more locks and we were entering Stourport stopping outside Lidl to get some Sea Bass, which Tesco didn’t have, needless to say I came out with more than that!

Down through York Street Lock and we swung easily onto our mooring as so many boats were out cruising. So at at a quarter to four we were greeted by our neighbour Leah who had been left on her lonesome and we settled back into familiar surroundings.

Joy had her Sea Bass for tea while I had Cheese & Onion Crispbakes. After watching a bit of early evening TV we had a game of Scrabble, the tidying, washing and hoovering can wait ’til tomorrow!

Sunday 10th July – Compton to Swindon

Yesterday afternoon we were joined on the mooring by nb Galene (Γαλήνη ) which unsurprisingly was owned by a Greek couple. [Wikipedia tells us “Γαλήνη Galênê means ‘calm weather’ or ‘calm, tranquillity’ in ancient Greek religion was a minor goddess personifying calm seas”] and Joy took this snap as we  set off as quietly as possible at quarter to seven to get our journey done in the coolest part of the day!

By 9:15 we arrived at Bratch Locks where mercifully there were volunteers on duty to direct traffic & assist with the locks.

At Wombourne there was a massive car boot sale going on in the distance, but we had no time for that.

Onwards through Bumblehole Lock and down the Botterham Staircase, through another fishing competition, to find ourselves a mooring with a bit of shade at Swindon by midday.

 

Almost immediately we were greeted by a friendly moorhen who tried to flap up onto our gunnel, almost coming in the kitchen window, but he fell back into the water, so we rewarded him with some snacks which he took back into the reeds to eat.

We caught up with our church service on YouTube during the afternoon and idled away the rest of the day, which was no more than we deserved after 14 locks!

Monday 11th July – Swindon to Whittington

Another uncharacteristically early start again, at 7:30, as today promised to be even hotter. Only seven locks today though, all but one needed filling as not many boats seemed to be headed north. Through the diminutive (25 yard) Dunsley Tunnel and by 11:00 we had achieved our goal of getting through Hyde Lock which is due to be closed for three days on Wednesday.

We topped up our water tank at Kinver Services allowing the boat which had been following us for the last few locks to pass. It was then though Kinver Lock and we encountered a large group of kids in canoes, I would like to see their organiser’s risk assessment because they had no idea they were supposed to keep to the right and there didn’t seem enough instructors to to keep them under supervision. Two of them even stopped right in front of us causing us to do an ‘Emergency Stop’. The consequences of hitting them doesn’t bear thinking about.

And relax! By noon we reached Whittington Horse Bridge and found a quiet mooring. During the afternoon a nap was in order and later I got my bike out and cycled back to the Co-op at Kinver for some shopping, unfortunately my phone fell out of my shorts pocket and damaged the screen, although it might have been worse if it wasn’t in a case.

After I returned, the tooting of a horn announced that our friends Leigh & Malc had caught us up. There was room here to set up table, chairs and sunshade later in the evening where we sat out and had our evening meal.