March, April and May, what a difference a month makes!  We arrived back from Goa to be greeted by cold and wet weather making us wish he hadn’t come home.  It didn’t last long, it’s good to be home and preparing the garden, getting ready for visitors and getting stuck into volunteering and socialising. 

Sadly, Doris our neighbour who lived opposite died and we had a funeral to go to.  She was 94 so she had, as they say, a good innings.  Mentally she was pretty sound but her body was very tired and she missed husband Alan so much that she really didn’t want to be alive.  She had an amazing life working in the music industry even shaking hands with Frank Sinatra.  The service was lovely and it was great to give her a good send off.

Marlpit Lane Supper Club was duly formed with a visit to Monsoon for a curry night.  The idea that we had was well received and it looks like we’ll be having a supper night once a month.  The only restriction is that we have to spend the money in Seaton which is good for the town and good for our legs but bad for our livers!

Cheryl had a girlie couple of nights at Champneys.  Anna is still in remission so she was floating on air and behaving very badly.

Neil has a new skill.  We had volunteered to serve drinks at a gala night in The Gateway and Dennis behind the bar asked Neil what he was doing Monday morning.  ‘Not too much, why’? said Neil.  ‘Ah, you could be here for 09.30 and I’ll teach you how to clean the pipes’.  So, after two sessions Neil is getting close to being able to do this important task every two weeks.  Another tick in the box at The Gateway and another skill for him.

One thing we had been so looking forward to was the visit of Chantal and Jean-Phillipe who hosted us last year when Seaton Twinning Association visited Thury Harcourt.  They gave us such a good time and their hospitality was wonderful. 

The group from Thury Harcourt arrived around midnight on the Friday so we quickly got them home and we chatted in Franglais over a glass or two of red before bed.  The following morning we had crumpets with marmite for breakfast. Cheryl & Chantal walked the Labyrinth in Cliff Field Gardens before we all headed to the promenade to show them the beach and the cliffs. 

We took a ride on The Tramway and enjoyed a lovely journey to Colyton.  Lunch in the Merchant Bistro was delicious and we took them to the church which is such a pretty one with incredible stained glass windows.  Once again, back on the tram for an early dinner at The Malthouse before meandering home for more wine before bed. 

Sunday started with a ‘full English’ for breakfast and then the entire group travelled by coach to visit some water gardens and lunch before moving on for a stroll around Weymouth, a beer outside a pub, and then we made our way to Lyme Regis Golf Club for the formal dinner.   Back home for some more wine and chat before bed.  Having given Chantal and Jean Phillipe the choice between crumpets and ‘full English’ they went for the big one which hopefully would see them though the day and the journey home. 

We really enjoyed having them come to stay, we hope they enjoyed it as much as us.

This blog entry couldn’t go without mentioning the Coronation of King Charles.  Neither of us watched all the pomp and ceremony on TV but we did help put up some bunting in Windsor Gardens to celebrate the event.  On Sunday, as part of our celebrations Bob ‘n Sheila hosted a lunch at which we had lots of fun, delicious food and a glass or two of something that you might fancy. 

Finally, big news.  We were both successful in our bid to be on the Town Council and have been to our first meeting.  It was, shall we say, extremely unexciting and even now, Neil is still trying to work out how he talked himself into going through this monthly self-inflicted agony. 

Around the middle of the month we set off for Bristol to see Neil’s son and his family.  It was tiring with endless games of football in the garden with an energetic almost 5 year old and then to cool off we had endless games of table football indoors.  On Saturday night we were taken to a Comedy Night at a local venue which was very good.  The weekend was made all the more fabulous as Paul cooked some delicious food on Saturday evening and Sunday lunch.

Whenever we leave Seaton we try to make best use of the long journey so on our way to Scarborough we stopped off to see Leanne and Neil.  ‘Dad, do you have a sledge hammer’? ‘Yes darling, I do’.  ‘Please can you bring it with you’?  On the journey up on Friday we stopped off at various places to shop for trousers, shoes and whatever.  Whilst we love living in Seaton the lack of shops can make buying clothes difficult.  Anyway, we arrived at Leanne’s to discover why we had to bring the sledge hammer.  They had a large and rotten garden shed that needed demolishing and burning, plus quite a lot of undergrowth, so that was Saturday and Sunday morning accounted for.  We did go out for a long walk on Sunday afternoon, had lunch out and then went to a fund raising quiz night in Macclesfield.   Neil messaged Leanne two days after we had left and the fire was still hot!

Next stop a brief overnight outside York to shop some more before heading up to Scarborough on Tuesday.  The reason for our visit was to celebrate Tony’s 70^th birthday.  We had booked a small B&B and once settled we set off to explore the town.  We discovered an Indian Restaurant which was BYO with the added bonus of a Tesco shop opposite.  Job done for dinner!

On Wednesday we met Tony and Brenda in The Wetherspoons which was to be the venue for the big party.  We also met with Annette and Keld who had flown in from Denmark.  We had a great evening with food and drink and a meeting with the pub manager to check he was OK with us trying to take over a part of the bar.  Whilst he couldn’t reserve any seating he was more than happy for us to ‘dominate’ an area.  The following day we walked along the coast to Filey which was about 10 miles.  It wasn’t the prettiest walk we’ve ever done but the exercise was good and the apple pie we had at a farm shop/café was enormous and quite delicious.  We had a walk around Filey and then took the bus back to Scarborough.  That night we all met again for a meal at the Indian and by this time Connie and friend Ann had arrived from Newcastle.  It was a really good night with lots of laughs over the size of the nan bread and the cabaret with which it was delivered to the table – the waiter dressed in a cape and mask and dry ice just to make more of the occasion.

The party was on Friday afternoon and evening.  By now almost 20 people had arrived in town for the 3pm start.  Annette and Keld had come the furthest, Denmark, followed by us and Sue with us both about 6hrs drive, there were some from the Midlands and others from Lancashire.  Sadly Sue had driven up to Sheffield to see Tim the night before only to have to drive back home to Kent because her cat had been run over.  Thankfully, the cat was OK.   The party was great, lots of food and drink, lots of reminiscing, lots of laughs and some fine presents for Tony to open.   We left the pub just after 11pm so it was a long evening and Neil did feel a little jaded the next morning. 

Saturday morning we drove down to Gloucester to see June and Roy and help with their tax returns and then Sunday we had a very bad Sunday lunch with Bill and Sue before driving back to Seaton to enjoy what had become a fabulous weather pattern.  Whilst Scarborough was cool, hey it’s on the North Sea, it was dry and sunny and that continued at home but a few degrees warmer.  So, May finished with warm sunshine and June was going to be the same, at least for the foreseeable future.  

December brought us around 2 weeks of bitterly cold weather with temperatures down to -6C and some days it didn’t rise above zero.  This is very unusual for Seaton as we are on the coast but it wasn’t as cold as some parts of the UK where it dropped to -15C.

It was now time to get into the spirit of Christmas.  The Gateway had asked us to help with a children’s seasonal activity day as well as promoting the pantomime which was scheduled the week before Christmas.  We teamed up with Liz and Graham from the gym and U3A to dress up as pantomime characters and, of course, Graham and Neil were ugly sisters, Liz played The Fairy Godmother and Cheryl was Principal Boy. 

Our initial job was to welcome the children to the entertainment, craft tables, and meeting Father Christmas before they sat down to watch a Christmas Film.  We encouraged a lot of silly photo opportunities for the kids and their families as well as having some ‘he’s behind you’ fun.   Then we set off for a wander through the town to hand out flyers for the panto.  We went into many of the businesses to jointly promote them and  The Gateway’s Pantomime  by getting them to take pictures of us and post the crazy pictures on their social media pages.  Of course we did find time to pop into a couple of hostelries for some well earned refreshments.  We definitely encouraged some additional ticket sales with our silly antics and it was a great way to spend an afternoon. 

Ever since we moved here, we have had at least one pheasant and sometimes two take up residence in the garden over the winter and spring.  Neil has been trying desperately hard to get them to be tame enough to feed from his hand.  Well, his patience paid off and Ringo finally took food from his hand and now each time he feeds him Neil takes just s few moments to keep him happy to feed from his palm.   

By now we were seriously into party mode.  Volunteering behind the bar at The Gateway for a matinee of The Nutcracker from The Royal Ballet, a Gateway volunteers beer and buffet evening, a Marlpit Lane Social Club Christmas Dinner at The Shed, dinner at our new Thai Restaurant with Eric Laila and a U3A wine circle Christmas lunch which got extended with Graham and Liz back at ours – and all this was in one week!  This was followed by a trip to Champneys for Cheryl and the girls whilst Neil had some time with his grandson. 

We had a brief visit back to Seaton when we managed a trip to The Gateway to see Dick Whittington, ‘oh yes we did’!  We love pantomime and it’s slapstick humour and the entire show of about 2hrs was put on by just 5 actors.  They worked really hard and made us laugh so much especially the Panto Dame who just happened to be a very tall Scotsman with fabulous outfits, drag queen make up and a booming voice.  As usual with panto the kids got really involved especially the little girl behind us who was frantically shouting ‘he’s behind you’, it was fantastic.    

We were soon back on the road to travel to June’s for Christmas.  Cheryl had started with a slight cough and cold a couple of days before we left but it didn’t bother her too much.  Neil, however, succumbed on Christmas Day of all days.  He was very unwell and spent most of the day in bed.  Still, it was great to see Anna looking so radiant and having such a good time.  Lisa was over from Oz with Callum and Jack so it was a very festive and loud Christmas Day which meant that whilst Neil was in bed feeling grotty he didn’t get much sleep. 

We drove back on Boxing Day and started back at the gym the following day.  By now we were on countdown for travelling to Goa and making sure that all the bins had been emptied, the fridge and freezer down to a minimum, the Christmas decorations packed away and the final batch of washing ready for packing. 

Just a few days before the end of year we booked a trip to cross off The Northern Lights or Aurora Borealis off both of our bucket lists.  We’re taking a 12 night cruise from Southampton with P&O later in the year and will spend Cheryl’s birthday in November 2023 taking in the Norwegian fjords.  It’s a long time off but as we will be crossing the North Sea during the winter we decided to go for it so that we could book a cabin with balcony midships to minimise the risk of Cheryl being sea sick. New Year’s Eve was spent with Marlpit Lane Social Club plus lots of friends from the gym at The Gateway.  We saw in the new year to a 12 piece big band who played two long sessions interspersed with disco and a buffet to get us in the mood.  It was a great night and by the end of the evening everyone was dancing and singing.  We even had a good old fashioned conga line lead by a Scottish friend with his kilt swinging. Neighbour Maureen wasn’t impressed with her Happy New Year kiss from Neil as he was a tad sweaty after all the dancing! 

New Year’s Day was Pat’s birthday and everyone was invited around for drinks and finger food in the afternoon.  It was a chance for us all to see her brand new kitchen and building alterations, wow, what a difference it made.  It was the usual jovial event with some fine food and wine. Monday brought us yet another social event, this time to Lisa and Sean’s house for drinks and food.  We know Lisa from the gym and also she works the check outs at Tesco one day a week for some extra money but also to help keep her brain in gear.   

Finally with all the partying done it’s time for us to set off for Goa.  As usual our trip to London is messed up with train strikes again so we’ve had to resort to taking another expensive taxi to the outskirts of London to enable us to catch the tube to get to Alex & Freddy’s house.  This time we will be catching the newly fully opened Elizabeth Line for the first time to spend a couple of days cuddling Luke and catching up with the boys before our flight to sunshine, 30C, Kingfisher beer, lots of friends behaving badly and delicious food.   It’s been over 3 years and we are so looking forward to it.   More to follow when we’ve settled in Benaulim.  

It’s been an eventful couple of months including the appearance of creepy creatures,  family visits, a boat trip, fun and games in Yorkshire and Cheshire where we brought back more than we bargained for, more family and several nights out.

Regular readers will know that Neil is a Trustee at our local venue The Gateway Theatre.  Sales for a show hadn’t been going well which was very sad as this was to be the first professional live theatre here in so long.  ‘Dracula the Bloody Truth’ was giving many people the impression that it was a serious horrifically bloody tale.  This was a long way from the truth as it actually was a comedy not dissimilar to pantomime.  On the back of her recent success with dressing up to market Shipwreck Sam during the summer Cheryl had the idea that we should dress up and carry out some fun publicity with the local businesses by having our picture taken in various poses and have them posted on social media along with as many Dracula/horror related puns they could come up with.  It worked fangtastically well as ticket sales really picked up and local businesses such as the butchers, Post Office, the gym, bicycle shop, pubs and the fruit and veg shop posted silly pictures of us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  We went to the show on the Friday still in full costume and it was as described, mad slapstick humour!

It was our turn to host a neighbourly event and it will be no surprises to you dear readers that it was a BBQ.  We had 11 neighbours and friends around at 12.30pm for drinks followed by food and chat.  It went well with most people staying until around 6pm.  In fact it went so well that at around 8pm Neil asked the remaining people if they fancied some cheese and biscuits which was just about all we had left to offer them as we were running down to fridge before we went away.  The final stragglers finally left around 10pm….a huge success.

Just a few days later we travelled up to June’s for the big family party in Gloucester.  Around 30 members of the extended family gathered for the event with everyone bringing some food.  Neil did the BBQ and the weather was good apart from the one hour that Neil was busy cooking the sausages and burgers.  In typical UK Summer BBQ style, Cheryl stood by holding the umbrella whilst everyone else scuttled indoors for shelter.  After the food, it was silliness personified as Roy brought out an old buggy that he had made when the grandkids were young.  Now it was adults doing crazy things.

Our 3 weeks away was now full on, the family event over it was a drive to the midlands to pick up a narrow boat with Chris and Viv.  Our original route was scuppered by the drought as many of the canals were closed due to lack of water.  It wasn’t a problem, we had a Plan B and we headed through some beautiful countryside towards The Shropshire Union Canal.  As with most of our boat trips we completely under estimated the requirements for beer and wine so had to make an extra stop to buy supplies. We blame Chris and Viv……of course!

At the end of the boat trip we headed to Sheffield to meet with Tim who we know from our many stays in Goa.  A couple of beers followed by a Thai meal in Zaap, a restaurant replicating a Thai fast food court.  The ambience was good, the staff very cheerful and the food excellent.  Good choice Tim.   

Moving on once again, we continued on to Harrogate to meet up with Tony and Brenda.  They were dog sitting a lovely Japanese Akita, Luna.  It was the usual trip to Spoons, next day a long walk along the river at Knaresborough followed by a few beers at Happy Hour in our hotel.  On our last day Tim drove up from Sheffield for lunch as he hadn’t seen T&B for over a year.  Visas permitting we’ll all be having a drink together again in Goa.

No flies on us, we were on the road again with another drive back south to Wakefield to catch up with Donna and Rob.  It’s been a long while since we’ve seen them and the time we had in the Italian restaurant wasn’t enough so we decamped to our ‘interesting’ hotel which had seen better days.  However, our extended cosy chat over another beer didn’t happen as the night receptionist had just arrived, locked the front door and then launched into relentless ‘standup’ mode and kept us in stitches with mad stories about the hotel, it’s history, it’s staff and the events like weddings with obligatory punch ups and dramas that had taken place there.

Another step further south next day took us to Lyme, a National Trust property that was used as Pemberley in the TV drama of Pride and Prejudice for that unforgettable wet shirt scene with Colin Firth.  We had visited before and having spent so much time sitting in bars and restaurants a long walk around the gardens was the order of the day.  It’s a beautiful place, the house absolutely stunning, the gardens so pretty and the estate humungous.  Of course, this is National Trust and it would have been bad form not to visit the café.  With all our excesses over the previous 2 weeks we were restrained, we shared one cake.

Our final stop on our Northern sojourn was to visit Leanne and Neil.  We had a quiet night in on Friday before embarking on a 10 mile walk on Saturday with lunch thrown in.  Having done very little exercise it was just what we needed.  Leanne had bought tickets for the evening to go to Buxton Opera House for a night of Cabaret & Burlesque.   The theatre itself was beautiful and the show absolutely fabulous.  We even spotted Edwina Currie going into the theatre which was spooky for Cheryl who remembers seeing her back in the eighties when going to a play in the West End. What a night, the show was such fun and with great audience participation.

Sunday brought us a damp day so it was a 45 minute walk to the local pub for Sunday lunch before spending the afternoon drinking beer in front of the fire and timing time.  Timing time?  Yes, Leanne had an egg like timer in her living room so Neil decided to time it so see how long it took for the sand to run through.  Leanne very quickly got excited by the prospect and 2.5hrs later with 5 different timings we were none the wiser.  She even got another one from the top of the stairs but that didn’t work at all. 

Monday was the drive home which we hoped would be uneventful as it was the day of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral.  We heard the news of her passing whilst on the canal trip and although sad, we both felt that she had achieved so much and was so well loved that passing on at home surrounded by family was a fitting way to go.  We listened to the service on the radio as we drove along quiet roads.  The journey took about 4.5hrs, and we arrived home after almost 3 weeks quite exhausted and looking to give our livers a well-earned rest.

Tuesday brought us a bombshell.  Cheryl had complained of a tickly cough a few days ago and neither of us were feeling on top form when we woke up in the morning and we came to the conclusion that we had all the right symptoms for the dreaded lurgy.  At 5pm we tested, bugger, positive, we have Covid!

Neither of us had any energy to do very much for a week.  We got the odd job done that we had been putting off as long as it didn’t need much effort.  There was one other downside, the weather was absolutely stunning, the sort of weather we would like to have gone out walking and then sat in a pub garden having lunch.  Not to be. 

We posted in May that we had a new addition to the garden, Ringo, the aptly named pheasant who brought such beautiful colour to our garden.  However, he only stayed a few weeks before moving on.  Well, he’s back!  His ring of white feathers around his neck, hence calling him Ringo, have disappeared as when you get close it looks like he’s been plucked!  Apparently, according to a local wildlife photographer, he’s moulting in time for new winter plumage.  We’re pretty sure it’s him as he was very comfortable with Neil from day one, he comes for food at the same place and he’s roosting in exactly the same tree next door.  We’re really pleased and we hope that this time he’ll stay a bit longer.

Early October brought us a welcome visit from baby Luke and his Dads.  We were very excited to have cuddle time with him and he was an absolute delight as he is such a happy little soul.  We did laugh at the ability of one very small person to need so much luggage and to take up so much space.  He also managed a spectacular poonami which needed a serious clean up but luckily he kept the mess to his clothes and his high tech baby rocker chair.  Our sofa and carpet were spared!  Neil even found a great use for his juggling skills as it seemed to work wonders for those few times when he got fractious.

This entry brings Chapter 14 to an end, fourteen years since we took that first step to go travelling for 6 months and then we didn’t stop.  It’s kind of funny, we’ve just contracted Covid and Gary, who ran The Hat and then lost it through Covid, is now retracing the steps that we took in that very first trip, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and Malaysia. 

Chapter 15 will commence in a few weeks with something being crossed off Cheryl’s bucket list.  Watch this space.

It has been pretty much full on since we posted the last blog entry hence the delay in writing this one.

It all started with a trip to Bristol for our first grandson’s fourth birthday party which was great as we hadn’t seen him for a while.  Next was a Gala Film Night to see Top Gun Maverick.  We put on our posh outfits and were greeted with pre-film fizz and canapés.  It was an excellent night, lots of chat beforehand and a film that was a tad plotless but exciting nonetheless.  A week or so later it was time for Phantom of the Open.  This was a good old British comedy based on a true story of a shipyard worker from Barrow-in-Furness who, in 1976, blagged his way into the British Open Golf Championships despite never having previously played a round of golf.  Boy, did we laugh.

Then it was time for the Celebratory 40^th Anniversary Dinner at The Twinning.  It was a pretty low key event for everyone except us.  During the dinner our new grandson Luke was born in Canada.  Needless to say, Cheryl was extremely excited, with one eye on her phone for messages and couldn’t wait to tell people.  Neil is deputy Chair and had to say a few words to the gathering and started by explaining why Cheryl had been wiping the odd tear from her eyes – a round of applause followed!

Events were now coming on thick and fast with us volunteering at The Natural Seaton Event organised by The Tramway.  Cheryl, never missing an opportunity to ham things up, dressed as a pirate and wandered around the town with Eric to promote one of the events in The Gateway, a children’s performance called Shipwreck Sam. 

We could only help out at the event for the Saturday as the main event for the month was arriving on Sunday – the second annual visit of Barmouth South.  10 adults and 6 teenagers descended upon us for best part of a week for seaside stuff, good food and the odd drink. 

As several of them left towards the end of the week friends Chris and Viv arrived in readiness for the next event, an Abba Tribute Band.  This time we all dressed up to go and dance and sing to all our Abba favourites, wow what a night it was.

Chris and Viv stayed for 3 nights which included a tramway trip and a long walk to Branscombe. 

Almost immediately after they had left Alan and Heather arrived from Scotland.  Neil went to school with Alan, so has known him since he was 11, and was in the same Scout patrol, Panthers, with Alan as Patrol Leader and Neil as his second.  Sadly they could only stay 2 nights as they had a fully loaded trip planned but it was great to see them.  We must find time to get to Scotland!

Still on the go, Alan and Heather dropped us off at the station for us to travel to London to finally see baby Luke.  Alex & Freddy flew back from Canada a few days earlier as they had to organise a passport before he could travel. The surrogacy was amazing and we have so much love for Winter who carried Luke. Wow is he a cutie.  Hardly a peep from him when he’s sleeping, eating or being changed…..amazingly chilled little fella.  Well done boys for being such great Dads. Of course, Nana had great fun in feeding him and even Neil had a go! 

While we were in London we also attended an Indian Visa office to apply for Neil’s spouse OCI visa.  It all seemed to go well despite the inevitable wait time, they took his money, and now we await a video call just to make sure we are who we say we are.  We absolutely roasted on the train home as it was a heatwave and there was no air con.

Shortly after our return to Seaton it was Neil’s birthday.  We had planned a long walk with lunch out but the much needed rain finally arrived on the day.  We still managed lots of short walk in between showers between several of the town’s pubs.  Pub crawl over we headed to Monsoon for an Indian dinner. 

While we were there we had a message from Paul and Maureen to say they were away and that a parcel had been left on the doorstep – could we please take it around to the back of the house and put it in the shelter at the back?  We walked back to the house, well Neil staggered, and we settled into home.  At 5am the following morning Neil woke up, ‘Shit, the parcel’!  He rushed across the lane to rescue the parcel and make it safe.

Another guest arrived less than a week later.  A couchsurfer called Marie from Germany.  She had finished her studies and was spending 6 weeks exploring the UK.  We had put couchsurfing on hold because we had got so much going on but she only wanted 1 night and from her profile she did sound very interesting.  We were so glad we allowed he to stay – for a 20 year old she was very mature, spoke excellent English, she was enquiring and extremely funny.

This entry is a round-up of the various things we’ve been up to in the past six weeks.  Obviously it’s not as exciting as a long trip to Mexico but we’re upbeat as we’re starting to feel as if Covid has been beaten.  Now all we have to do is sort Putin out, and, maybe, just maybe, the world can return to normal.

What do you really crave after being away for eight weeks? – a curry fix of course!  We decided to treat our friends Diane and Glyn as a thankyou for dropping us off and picking us up from Axminster station.  Glyn wouldn’t accept any petrol money so a curry night was the least we could do.  Local curry house Ragini didn’t let us down and really hit the spot.

We were also back in time to see The Grizzly, Seaton’s very own coastal run where the name says it all.  The full race is 20 miles along the coast and there is a shorter 10 mile run called The Cub.  It’s tough, very tough indeed, firstly running along the pebble beach, then through the town, across the coastal path to Branscombe via Beer and beyond, returning back to Seaton Seafront for the finish line.  Living by the coast just about anywhere in the world means hills so the route has a number of steep climbs and drops but thankfully this year it was pretty dry so no serious injuries caused by the slippery paths and no lost running shoes stuck in the boggy parts!   The weather was perfect, cool and not too breezy so we cheered off the runners at both the start and finish.  We found out a few weeks later that the event had raised over £30,000 for local charities.

We then made a quick dash to Gloucester to visit June and Anna.  Whilst we were away we heard from June that her imminent back operation had been delayed and sadly her daughter Anna had been diagnosed with the Big C and was preparing to undergo her first treatment.  Life was pretty shitty for both of them but Anna was amazing in her outlook, so positive and so cheerful.  Neil drove her to Cheltenham Hospital one day for some tests which gave him some quality time to chat about how things were affecting her family.  Radiotherapy and Chemo are  on the horizon for her which she wasn’t looking forward to but she is determined to do what it takes to see her children grow up.

Back in Seaton it was time for our first post-Covid live music event at The Gateway with The Detroit Soul Collective, a 9 piece band playing Soul, Motown and general feel good party hits.  We went along with our neighbours and it didn’t take long for us all to be up and dancing, singing and just so, so pleased to be listening to live music again after what seems like an eternity. 

We hadn’t done much exercise whilst away apart from long walks around the various sights, towns and cities.  To compensate we tried not to indulge in too much food and drink and felt pretty smug when getting back on the scales at home to find we both had actually lost a little weight.  Keen to get back into our gym routine we both booked a session on the super duper body analyser machine so we could get a good benchmark to then monitor progress.  Aaaaaarghh! The pesky machine confirmed that both of us had lost a little weight but that it was due to losing lots of hard earned heavy muscle which we had then replaced with lots more fat – oh B*ll*cks!!  We both resolved to get our fitness back asap and not to let it slip again.  Let’s see in 3 months time when we get back on the analyser again.

We are big fans of the NHS and during Covid happily took as many jabs as they wanted to squirt into our arms.  It was also time for what Cheryl refers to as ‘squash & spread’.  The routine screening for breast cancer isn’t something to look forward to but the NHS organisation and staff made it almost a pleasure.  In Devon we don’t have the massive infrastructure we were used to in Bristol and instead of a hospital or clinic, Cheryl was asked to attend a mobile screening unit in Tesco’s car park in the nearby larger town of Honiton.  It was so slick she was in and out again in less than 15 minutes and was happy to get the all clear letter just a couple of weeks later.

Another health issue that we have been meaning to look into (ha) is sorting out another side effect of getting older – deteriorating vision.   Both are suffering with poor close up vision with Neil now needing different glasses for both close and distance vision.  That means he has 2 pairs in the car, 2 pairs in living room, 2 pairs in the bedroom and readers in the kitchen, workshop, various pairs of trousers and the study.  Bloody glasses everywhere!  With the aim to become glasses free we travelled to Exeter to visit Optical Express to be assessed for lens replacement surgery.  This is a solution which has been taken up successfully by a few of our close friends.  Neil was approved and will be sliced and diced at the end of May.  Cheryl’s vision was not so bad and she failed to make the cut….ha, another good pun!

Time also to deal with the house and at the end of the month we finally got our kitchen floor re-laid in the way we had always envisaged.  This was the third attempt at getting it right following a bad material selection on our part and poor fitting.  After another disastrous fitting ‘repair’ we insisted on a new fitter and better material and pattern.  We now have a more sympathetic herringbone in oak, with a bespoke border which looks stunning and the bonus was that we had enough left over to do the utility.  The house has finally become ‘our’ house and in the layout we want – it’s no longer feels like The Miller’s house, although we still have all the before photos on a pin board in the hallway just to remind us of the many happy hours spent sanding, painting and sanding and painting ………..and sanding and painting.

Easter was spent with Alex and Freddy.  The boys are well into their surrogacy in Canada and we had another great Facetime catch up with Winter and her family in Calgary.  Winter is doing a fantastic job carrying Baby M and we were astounded by the level of technical knowledge both she and the boys have.  On top of this the boys are getting to grips with the legal situation and the logistics of planning the birth and their first weeks with baby in Canada.  We also had plenty of time for long walks, cream teas, ice creams, a film night and a very posh lunch at The Pig – thanks boys!

Next was another quick trip to Gloucester to see Lisa.  Neil’s niece was over from Oz on a surprise visit to see her family especially her sister Anna who had just got through her first very tough round of radiotherapy.  What a day!  Everyone was on form with Lisa pulling out all the stops to do the cooking and save June from hobbling around the kitchen on her sticks.  We laughed and laughed so much, it was just a great day to see June surrounded by her three daughters and their children.  It was a lot of fun.

Our Social life was now getting into full swing.  We renamed our close neighbours The Marlpit Lane Social Club and the group has been to see screenings of Kenneth Branagh’s latest film Belfast and The Duke.  Everyone brings a picnic to enjoy around a large table  with a few beers/wine and a chat before watching the main event.  Both films were excellent with genuine laugh out loud moments.  Then another live music night with Rollin Stoned, who were fantastic.  The band really got into character with great banter, costumes and fabulous performances of the best loved songs.  By the end of the night, even the few young folk who were there had joined the wrinklies who had been dancing from the start.

Many places in the UK have portable defibrillators available for public use in an emergency but training has not been deemed essential to operate them which is a bit of a concern as they deliver a powerful electric shock.  A local volunteer organisation decided to run some free training and we went along for the excellent session.  The first half was a welcome refresher of CPR which we both learned many years ago.  The second half was all about the defibrillator which comes in many different forms and although they do emit simple verbal instructions, we both felt the training session was invaluable to give us the confidence to use them effectively if we are ever called upon for help.

As we write this its become apparent that world events are continuing to influence our daily lives with no end to the war in Ukraine, fuel price increases, gas and electricity price hikes and inflation predicted to exceed 10%.  We have reflected on health issues within the family and we have resolved to work hard at our own health & fitness.  We do have a lot to look forward to, especially the arrival of grandson number 2.  We have lots of visitors booked in and events to look forward to.  We also have a new friend in the garden, who we have called Ringo.  We’re not sure if he is one of the two we spotted last year, and maybe we will be lucky enough to have him stay throughout the summer.

December started with the big clean-up of Old Gummy, AKA the fallen Eucalyptus.  First Mark started with his chainsaw trimming off the smaller branches whilst Neil ferried them to the bonfire.  It was a very large fire that was destined to burn for several days which was the plan.  Mark did as much as he could but he’s only got a small one. 

What we needed was a tree feller with a whopper and Mark’s mate Steve came to the rescue with his 30 incher.  He finished off the main stump which had a diameter of up to 3ft.  Eucalyptus wood is incredibly hard and impossible to split with a splitting axe so it’s now up to Mark to cut the logs into fire size chunks ready for storage and drying.   With the bonfire still smouldering even after a couple of days Neil shovelled the red hot ashes into the hole left by the fallen tree to burn out the bottom of the stump in the hope that we can push the remaining trunk upright to form a bird table. 

Last year we bought a large reusable Advent Calendar with a little drawer for each day and this year Cheryl came up with a surprise for Neil.  In each drawer she wrote a little festive task for Neil to carry out. 

For instance, sing a Christmas carol, wrap a Christmas present, eat a mince pie and make a Christmas decoration.   Whilst Neil approves of her imagination in the use of the calendar he’s not sure that it’s right that he gets most of the chores!  In his desire to get the upper hand his task for December 8^th was to write a letter to Father Christmas.  So he did, signed Neil aged 68 and 1/3^rd and much to Cheryl’s astonishment without telling her he actually posted it to The North Pole.  His reply came back just before Christmas!

The weekend before Christmas saw us at The Twinning Christmas Dinner.  We went around in circles about being in confined spaces with Omicron on the rampage but then we decided that as our trip to Mexico was still in the balance we would go.  We had an excellent evening.

Later that week Neil got a cry for help from The Tramway.  The event is normally run with professional actors and entertainers, however due to illness they were in desperate need of a stand in Santa for The Polar Express. The events were now taking place every day in the run up to Christmas.  We were still worried as Omicron cases were climbing fast and Christmas was looming.  After some thought and chatting it through he decided to do it.  He had a great time and the crew were very grateful for him jumping in at the last minute.  While he was there he got wind that they were also desperately short of Elves for the week building up to Christmas.  So, without further ado Neil played Santa again and Cheryl was an Elf for 2 days with only 30 minutes training. We hope our enthusiasm made up for any mistakes made with the dance routines & performance.  It was hard work as we started at midday and didn’t finish until 9pm with little or no time for a toilet break let alone any decent food but it was great fun, a chance to unleash the inner luvvie and do our bit to help out. We couldn’t have been that bad as the reviews on Tripadvisor posted for the 2 days we covered were five stars and posted photos with us in them!

Then before Christmas Bob and Sheila Christmas got all the neighbours together for drinks, lunch and mirth!  Hey, it’s Christmas.  An immensely enjoyable get together where the laughter over the most ridiculous things never seemed to stop.  We are lucky indeed to have such a great set of neighbours.

Sadly the days are getting shorter as we move to the winter solstice and the garden is looking very sad.  We did however manage to get some pictures of the autumn colours before Storm Arwen stripped off the remaining leaves….some of the colours are stunning.  The climate here is remarkably mild and we still have geraniums flowering in pots although they seem to have changed from deep red to shocking pink. Looking on the bright side, once the 21^st has gone it’s all downhill to the summer……..yes, yes, yes! 

Having had a lonely Christmas for the last 2 years thanks to Covid, this year we were really excited.  Christmas Day was with Neil’s 2 children and family, the first time he’s had Christmas with his children in around 15 years owing to our travelling lifestyle.   This was our first Christmas with number one grandson so it was very special.  Regular readers will remember that Neil acquired an adult sized reindeer onesie in the summer and this made an appearance with a mini sized matching one for grandson – super cute! For Boxing Day there was a trip on a steam train which was a little disappointing but the upside was a trip down memory lane when we all got into an old fashioned compartment for 8 people……wow that’s going back a few years.  

After the train journey we set off to Gloucester to spend the remainder of Boxing Day with June and her family. On arrival we went directly into the garage, Neil put on the Santa suit and Cheryl got into Neil’s reindeer onesie.  Then we knocked on the front door and Secret Santa plus Rudolph set about dishing out the very silly presents to everyone.  The rest of the evening was spent eating, drinking, playing bingo and cards and generally having a lot of fun.

Back in Seaton we took a stroll around the town to admire the Christmas lights and were suitably impresssed with these residents who put us all to shame.

During the Christmas period we kept a constant watch on what was happening around the world with Covid, BA for flights and where we were with our plans.  One day we thought we’re going to go, next day we weren’t and so it went on.  Eventually we decided to take the plunge and decide to go and instead of flying on the 9^th to Mexico City we plumped for a flight on the 7^th to Cancun.  This made much better sense to fit in with our plans.  Panic was then on!!!   Not only were we flying 2 days earlier it also meant we would go to London to see Alex and Freddy before travelling to Gatwick for an overnight before flying in the morning on the Friday thus cutting our preparation days from 7 down to 4.  So much to do, so many things to book and so little time.

On top of all that we had another get together on New Year’s Day with the neighbours at Maureen and Paul’s.  Same format, drinks, food and mirth.

Back to the last minute packing and planning. After some serious overthinking on where to stay, we finally found some accommodation for the first few days in Cancun with a rough plan in place for onward travel. Entry requirements were researched and done. Daily Covid testing done. Packing light for 7 weeks travel – clothes & stuff to cover chilly days getting to Heathrow & return to UK, beachwear & shorts, practical clothes for sightseeing and casual for evenings, travel guide, Covid tests – all in the cabin sized suitcases with room to spare!

Panic over, Mexico here we come!

A packed month of socialising and surprises.

November began with an unexpected visit from Alex who needed a break from London to relax and rest as he was still suffering from post covid fatigue.  Cheryl enjoyed some quality time as they went on gentle walks and had lunch out together.  His visit also coincided with a rum tasting event at The Shed.  The evening consisted of 11 different rums paired with 11 different BBQ inspired dishes.  We really enjoyed playing with the different tots of rum and the mixers and had a lot of delicious food which we just couldn’t eat so we brought home our leftovers in a goodie bag.  It was a really good evening and we happened to be on the next table to the very entertaining Paris and Carl who we had met previously in our local micro pub The Hat.  Sadly this is one business which hasn’t made it through the pandemic.

The garden has gone completely mad.  Tomatoes and sweet peppers were always likely in November from the greenhouse but to pick strawberries from the garden is absolutely bonkers.  Harvesting the squash and pumpkins is expected at this time of year but something very weird happened whilst we were away in Bristol last month.  We had lots of pears on two trees plus a few Cox apples on one tree.  Now last year we did lose a few to the squirrels but this year we’ve lost the lot!  They are not on the ground half eaten as the squirrels would leave them, they have just totally disappeared. It’s a mystery.

As covid numbers appeared to stabilise we focused on socialising again.  We had a night with Eric and Laila, Eric being one of Cheryl’s fellow councillors.  He cooked us a delicious curry with lots of side dishes and we did drink far too much wine whilst putting the world to rights.  It was a late night so when we return the meal next month we’ll start earlier in the hope we finish earlier….yeah, right!

Doris, our lovely neighbour opposite is now 92 and following the death of her husband Allan a year ago she’s very lonely. So, armed with a bottle of fizzy and some chocolates we went a calling for an afternoon of chat and fun.  Physically she’s not great, using a Zimmer to move around, but she’s as sharp as a tack in her mind and made us laugh as she told us stories of when she was younger including the fact that she worked at Radio Luxembourg and knew Horace Bachelor, young folk you’ll need to put this name into Google and find out why it’s synonymous with Keynsham where Cheryl grew up.

Then it was time for some 007!  We headed off to The Gateway with 6 neighbours to watch No Time to Die.  Taking advantage of the picnic night we enjoyed our picnic food and drinks from the bar before the film started.  The evening was good, the film not so brilliant but, once again, it was great to be socialising again.

Then another surprise visit from Leanne this time who was on her way down to visit an old Uni. Friend in Brixham.  We had time to go out for a walk, have lunch at The Anchor in Beer, find a geo cache in the park and then wave her off.

Next night it was a quiz to raise funds for the Hospital League of Friends with Bob ‘n Sheila and  Matt and Tracy, who used to live in Lone Pine.  We came fourth but managed to have a lot more fun than any other table as we all sang along to the answers of the music section which contained lots of 80’s stuff.  We were very noisy.

The following day we decided on a day out by bus to Lyme Regis to enjoy a community lunch put on for members of the Good Food Club.  This is an initiative run by The Old Dairy Kitchen which provides meals of restaurant quality using local produce.  Week by week the amount of food delivered ready to eat reduces and more ingredients are added so participants learn new cooking techniques.  There was also a range of charges per month so that anyone, regardless of income could participate with some receiving the meals for free subsidised by the other members.  It’s been an interesting journey, some recipes easier to follow than others, and it’s certainly made us try things we wouldn’t normally eat.  The lunch was to bring together the members so we could meet and enjoy food provided by the organisers.  A great initiative and the food and company were excellent.  We ended the day with a walk around Lyme before catching the bus back.

A few days later and another fun packed night with neighbours Bob, Sheila, Paul & Maureen.  Early dinner in The Shed followed by The Polar Express.  As volunteers we were offered free tickets for a couple of guests each for the technical run through of the Tramway’s premier event.  This attracts thousands of visitors and is the equivalent of Panto in terms of the revenue it brings.  The whole evening is themed and follows the format of the film The Polar Express which starred Tom Hanks.  Professional actors are employed and the stations are transformed with Colyton becoming The North Pole.  The opening song and dance routine was spectacular and the Trams become The Polar Express itself.  A great evening, the kids were enthralled and we did our bit to participate in any singing and dancing required.

It was soon to be Cheryl’s birthday and we took a 3 night break at a country hotel between Bodmin and Padstow.  It was bed, breakfast, 3 course evening meal including a bottle of wine.  The price was great, the hotel staff and guests very friendly and it was all going swimmingly until we had a text from Karen next door just checking ‘that you two are OK after the huge tree fell down’.  It was definitely an ‘oh shit’ moment thinking that we would have to leave immediately to go home and fix whatever has been destroyed by Storm Arwen.  In a bit of a panic we tried to call Karen but she didn’t answer so we contacted Bob over the road.  He went to look at the damage and met Karen who had since called us back.  Fortunately, the 40ft Eucalyptus had politely fallen in the one place where it didn’t cause any damage – miracles do happen.

Not having to cut our trip short meant we could continue with our plan to visit Yvonne who lives near Bude, just a 40 minute drive away.  Before Covid we used to meet her and husband John in Goa at the same complex, Micon.  They were neighbours and we enjoyed lots of laughs and meals and, of course, party boats.  It was great to see her.

On the way home from Cornwall we stopped off at the vaccination centre outside Exeter to get our Covid booster.  All good with Neil OK and Cheryl having some minor after effects.

Neil has been desperate to get some proper travelling back on the agenda.  However, the prospect of us flying to Goa after Christmas was looking increasingly unlikely as although scheduled flights had been announced as starting mid month, India refused to issue long stay visas or allow the flights to resume.  Then BA, trying to rationalise their flights, ended the uncertainty for us by cancelling our outgoing flight. We could either reschedule or take a voucher to rebook flights to any destination without incurring any loss.  So, we took the voucher option and we are working on plan B, Mexico.  We were meant to be going a few years ago but covid put pay to that.  The planning is already underway during quiet times and wet days so we should have 7 weeks of exploring a totally new country.  We’ve updated our travel jabs, Diphtheria, tetanus et al in the hope that Covid permitting, we finally get somewhere, anywhere, please? 

As if Plan B Mexico wasn’t enough we’ve also booked something else for October 2022……a cruise.  Cheryl has had Egypt on her bucket list for years so we’re off for 4 nights in Cairo, 7 nights cruising the Nile and 10 nights wallowing on the Red Sea, 5* all inclusive.  Sorry to shock our regular readers – yes you did read that correctly, former cheapskates have booked a 5*, and you thought there couldn’t be any more surprises, ha ha.

It has been a strange and eventful month and it’s also the start of Chapter 14.  We start a new chapter in the story of our lives to coincide with the start of a new season’s travelling.  Regular readers will know that we originally set off for a six month trip of a lifetime back in October 2008 and that as our circumstances and outlook on life completely changed, we continued our nomadic alternative lifestyle for the next 12 years.  We spent the summer touring the UK in our caravan and set off for adventures overseas when the weather turned cold and the nights started to draw in. 

We knew that taking on the renovation project on the house would mean a disruption to the pattern we had become used to.  However, no one could predict the events of the last couple of years living through the pandemic.  This now feels like a tentative return to normal life whilst keeping an eye on the current high number of daily cases and slowly rising hospital admissions. 

We have certainly been busy and have had some good times but October has been a chaotic time of unexpected work, stress, long journeys and sadness.

The month started with our first volunteering for The Tramway on The Story Tram.  These are for children under 4 and involve story telling & nursery rhymes on the Tram ride and more stories, songs and activities at the station in Colyton.  It’s not our favourite event as most of the children are very young and tend to have an attention span shorter than Neil’s.  However, we’re doing our bit for the community and helping to keep up the profile of The Tramway which goes on to assist with the funding they get.

We’ve started to eat out a little more often now, perhaps getting a little bit blasé about Covid despite the soaring number of cases.  First up was Ragini with Diane and Glyn for a curry to celebrate Diane finally getting the proceeds of her inheritance after nearly a year of hard work.  The fizzy was on her!

Flu jabs followed a few days later at the same time that Bill & Sue arrived for the weekend.  It was great to have them back as they were our first visitors before all the renovations took place.  We ate out quite a bit, The Shed for one evening and several lunches out following visits to Seatown and Lyme Regis.  

We also had the welcome return of our favourite builder, Stacy. Readers may recall that in March he carried out some remedial work to the chimney stack which was causing the damp patch in bedroom 2. He planned to return to carry out the same work to the stack on the other side when he had a suitable gap between major jobs. However, his building firm is in great demand so we have had to be patient, and on the bright side this also gave us time to put together a small list of other jobs for him to do. Stacy started by going into the loft to check his previous repair was holding out……….there was silence…….followed by cursing and then a grim faced Stacy. ‘Right’ he said, ‘now it’s personal!’.

He was back up the long ladders which could be used to reach the chimney on the loggia side and back at work. Repairs to the other chimney required a scaffold tower in the drive and that was booked in for the following week. He also tiled the base of the fireplace in the study to cover over the mess of broken tile and concrete which was exposed when we replaced the old log burner with a smaller one last year. We will post some pics of the final result next month when the fire is refitted.

Bill & Sue left on Sunday morning and we were expecting the arrival that afternoon of Alison and Paul, friends we met one season in Goa.  They have spent most of the summer travelling the UK in their motorhome and we invited them to stay if they were planning to be nearby.  Setting up the date of the visit had been straightforward as they always answered emails quickly.  Our last exchanges were to ask what time they would arrive as it was on the day Bill & Sue were due to depart and suddenly there was no response.  Oh well we thought, they’ll contact us when they can, especially as they didn’t have our address!  No response and they didn’t show up.  We thought we must have upset them in our emails but really couldn’t see how.

Then it was back to hard graft for us decorating and managing the upgrade of one of the properties in Bristol.  We thought we’d finished with doing all this ourselves as we had used tradies for the last few refurbs on the rentals, but another outcome of Covid times is that with everyone wanting to improve their homes you can’t get a tradie for love nor money.  So we just had to roll up our sleeves and get on with it.  Like all tradies, plumbers were in short supply and with a bit of pleading Matt who did the plumbing in our house during lockdown agreed to make the 1.5hr journey from Exmouth and back to fit a new bathroom suite. 

Matt could only spare one day so we called on our old plumber in Bristol to spare an hour on the Friday  we arrived in the flat to take the shower off the wall, remove the sink & take out the toilet cistern.  Flushing with a bucket is no problem for a couple of days we thought. Our Carpet supplier arrived to measure and was booked to fit carpets and bathroom vinyl as soon as the plumbing was all complete. 

However, the precision planning on delivery of the new suite on Saturday was the first thing to go wrong. With no suite, there was no point Matt arriving on Monday.  A few calls later the Bathroom was set to arrive Wednesday, Carpets rescheduled to the following week and Matt was rescheduled for Thursday.  Luckily for us there have been a number of delivery issues which affected Matt’s other customers. 

We started the decorating, sanding, prepping & painting all whilst trying to maintain a clean space for the bed and our belongings in the tiny one bedroom flat.  Wednesday morning the suite arrived – yay! Then we howled with misery after Victoria Plumb delivered a smashed up bath and toilet pan…..arrrrgh!  More time wasted yelling at Vic Plumb and frantic calls to Matt.  Thursday morning and full undamaged suite arrived, old damaged stuff collected and Matt rebooked for Friday.  Phew! 

In the middle of all this we also travelled up to Sheffield to attend Sandra’s funeral.  We stopped off with Leanne and young Neil on the way up and then travelled to Sheffield next day.  If you can ever say you ‘enjoyed a funeral’ then this is one that we did.  There was standing room only by the time we arrived and the whole service, which was a celebration of her life was both emotional and uplifting.  We went to the wake afterwards and decided to stay on for the evening to have dinner with some people from Goa who were also staying overnight.  We had a lovely evening with what were really just acquaintances but now we consider them friends and look forward to seeing them again on the beach in Benaulim only this time without their clothes on!

It was then back to Bristol for the finishing touches to the flat before heading home for The Twinning Association cheese and wine evening.  There was a quiz and our quickly scrambled together team of 4 came a handsome second place.  It was a fun evening and a chance to relax after the stress of the previous two weeks.

The crazy year in the garden continues.  We picked tomatoes and peppers in the garden and greenhouse plus courgettes, apples, squash and pumpkins from the garden.  It’s mad to be so far into the year and still harvesting. 

Then it was a weekend of more volunteering on Saturday and Sunday, this time on The Halloween Tram.  Great fun after we dressed up, Cheryl as Countess Dracula and Neil as Uncle Fester.  The kids had a good time with craft items to make, colouring in and quizzes.  The parents and grandparents also gave us a few giggles with their reaction to two very strange looking people stalking them on the station platform.

Then we had some devastating news.  Neil was passing one of the many picture galleries that we have hung all over the house.  He noticed a picture of Alison and Paul who should have visited us on October 10^th.  Curiosity got him thinking so he went to the computer and put their names into google.  What he found shook him to the core.  They had been killed on September 7^th in a tragic accident with a motorcycle as they walked along a road in Herefordshire.  They had died 3hrs after their last email to us confirming their visit.

We are ‘glass half full’ people and have found a positive or two.  They came to visit us in Brecon a few years ago when we were in the caravan.  We had a really good day and that’s where we took the selfie of us all.  They too loved the lifestyle and were always getting away in their motorhome.  In fact, they loved it so much that they spent more time in it than they did in their house.  In a way they were lucky, if you can be in a situation like this, they died together, pretty much instantaneously and doing what they loved, walking with their dog and exploring new places.  RIP you two, you are on our picture wall along with the Welsh Love Spoon in the kitchen that you gave us in Brecon– and that’s where you will stay.

On the return journey from Newcastle we took the scenic route across The Peak District to Leanne’s house.  It was a beautiful drive.  We hadn’t seen her for some time so it was good to  catch up.  She was working in the daytime so we headed off to walk around Rudyard Lake stopping off at The ‘Spoons’ in Leek for lunch.  The long drive to Seaton was uneventful and after being away for a week it was good to be back home again. 

Events in the Town continued with the final Seaton Eats in Cliff Field Gardens the following evening.  We went with neighbours Maureen and Paul and Sheila and Bob.  It was again a popular event and the queues for the different food vendors were long but worth it.  As it got later it started to get chilly so we all headed off to Sheila and Bob’s for a few more drinks and chat.

Saturday evening brought us back to Cliff Field Gardens for the annual outdoor cinema event.  This year it was Bohemian Rhapsody.  We volunteered to act as marshalls and to help with the tidying up after the event.  We’d missed the last two outdoor cinema nights so this time we were determined to take part.  There was an unplanned drama during the set up when the inflated screen slowly started to collapse.  It was clear from the body language of the professional crew that this was clearly an ‘oh shit’ moment, however, the screen was soon back up with some hasty rewiring and diverting all the electric supply to it.  Numerous phone calls were made to track down any available generators, but as this was 5pm on a Saturday evening there were none to be had.  Eventually the supply for the catering vendors was obtained via a hook up into a friendly neighbours garden supply!  The audience started to arrive, set up their chairs and picnics, the sun went down and the performance began.  It was an excellent night and we’re looking forward to next year.

While we had been away, Maureen and Paul looked after the greenhouse and picked the excess courgettes, runner beans and raspberries.  The garden is now in full flow so we continue to feed them, give courgettes so Sheila and Bob and even give some items to the local food hub.  The freezer is filling up and we are experimenting with courgette soup.

We had a couple of days of catching up on garden, house and ‘admin’ before Neil’s sister June and husband Roy arrived to stay for a few days.  We had a lot of fun, plenty of walking and going to two attractions in nearby Beer.  First was Train themed Pecorama which showcases Peco model trains and has a miniature train providing rides around the meticulously kept gardens. 

This was followed with lunch at the Anchor in Beer overlooking the beach.  Next day we went to Beer Quarry Caves for a guided tour of the historical caves.  The Romans discovered the stone that is quite unique in that when freshly excavated it’s soft enough for stone masons carry out intricate cutting and carving in the cave.  Soon after it’s exposed to the atmosphere the stone goes rock hard.  It has been in demand for churches as it’s easy to shape for statues and gothic style windows.  Some of the stone has gone as far as the USA.

Our volunteering for the tram this month started with the Heritage Open Day.  This is a nationwide event where many attractions are asked to put on free heritage based events to encourage wider participation.  The tramway offered two sessions which gave a behind the scenes tour of the depot and a bird watching tram through the wetlands nature reserve.  Both sessions were fully booked and as we ushered the attendees around the depot it was an opportunity for us to listen to the operations manager Gareth’s talk about the conservation and restoration of the various tram carriages and associated structures.

The next session was The Memory Tram, where with an extended team of volunteers and event staff we hosted around 20 older folk with varying levels of dementia plus their carers.  The garden room at the station in Colyton was transformed into ‘All The Fun of The Fair’ as we manned a selection of six games that you would have found at an old fashioned fairground.  Refreshments included hot dogs and popcorn along with the tea & coffee and we had lots of laughs with the attendees.  We heard later that the feedback from the home that they live in was excellent so well done to the Tramway Team.

We then had a visit from Alex and Freddy for a couple of days before we headed up to Bristol.  They stayed on for a few days to escape from London and their own house rebuild for a while to enjoy the sea and their paddleboard.

This next trip for us started with spending the night in Keynsham before Cheryl headed off with Tricia and Miranda to join a group of family and friends for some pampering and relaxation at Champneys Health Spa.  While Cheryl was having fun with the girls, Neil stayed in Keynsham to spend time with Paul and to help out with grandson getting his breakfast, getting to pre-school and then trips to the park after school.

After a couple of days Neil drove to Champneys to pick up Cheryl and June to head for Manchester.  Earlier in the summer, June asked Neil if he would like to join her on a trip back to Manchester to look around the various houses the family lived in when they were little. We had a superb time, visiting the various streets where they lived and discovering the graves of grandparents, great grandparents and great uncle Bert who was a professional boxer.  We knew pretty much where to find the grandparents but the others were an amazing bonus discovered with the help of Derek The Grave Digger who was pleased to share his recently completed charts documenting the locations of all the graves in the cemetery. 

The day ended with a long walk around nearby Heaton Park which is absolutely stunning.  It has a tram line in the park run by a group of volunteers and, as we are now official Tram Geeks we got chatting and were swiftly invited for a private tour of their depot.  They have a much wider gauge and were in the process of restoring an old Blackpool Tram which seemed huge in comparison to the ones in Seaton. 

The next morning it was back to school for Neil.  Before the trip he contacted his old primary  school that he attended from the age of 5 in 1958.  He sent them pictures that he had of his class, pictures of The Harvest Festival Queen who was also June’s friend and Bridesmaid and pictures of Neil as a cute pageboy to the Queen and of him on Whit Walks.  The school has a ‘vintage’ page and they were so pleased to receive the photos that they invited him to visit the school for a tour and a Q&A with some of the children about life in Crab Lane in the 1950’s. 

At the end of the month we heard the very sad news of the sudden and unexpected death of one of our old Goa friends, Sandra.  Our thoughts are with Tim and the family.

Reasons to be Cheerful

1. We were very lucky to get to know Sandra and share so many laughs and good times along the way.
2. It’s been a great time for family this month, seeing all three children, grandson and quality time with June on our trip down memory lane.
3. We’re still picking strawberries and raspberries – amazing.

Sunday August 1^st brought us our first batch of summer guests, all 10 of them!   Neil’s sister June, her daughters Tracy and Anna, plus their children Ol, Fred and Heidi.  An old friend of Tracy’s, Emily, also arrived with Mae, Tom and Eve.  Bedlam ruled instantaneously and the vast consumption of cold beers and Prosecco began. 

They enjoyed the paddle board on the sea, eating out at The Ship and then it all ended just as quickly as it started.  On Tuesday Tom woke up complaining of a headache and a cough…….oh shit.  We were all tested and Tom proved to be Covid positive.  Ten minutes later Emily had bundled the three children into the car, said her tearful goodbyes and set off to drive back to Warwick.  

We had previously planned a surprise for everyone for the last night of their stay.  With the swift departure of family Dilley, spirits were low so we decided to put the plan into action.  The remaining guests were sent off to the quiet end of the beach with instructions not to return until 5pm. We quickly set about decorating the loggia with a Christmas theme.  Baubles, Christmas trees, a reindeer, crackers and Christmas Dinner including Christmas Pudding and Arctic Roll.  The family were greeted by a medley of Christmas music as they walked up the drive and the smell of Christmas dinner wafting from the kitchen.  The surprise was a great success and the finale was that Neil appeared dressed as Santa and proceeded to offer his sack of the usual low cost secret Santa presents.   It was such a good evening but so sad that Emily and children couldn’t be there.

We continued to test on a daily basis, and thankfully we all proved to be negative.    The remaining guests left on Thursday and the house seemed so empty and quiet.  With the help of neighbour Sheila who brought round some milk and our very first online shop we resigned ourselves to the 10 days isolation as per the guidelines.  We did have a laugh the following weekend when we put the enormous amount of recycling out.  The glass and tin containers have never been so full.  Thankfully, the silver lining, we stayed uninfected.

Having had to cancel our volunteering on the tram during our ten day self-isolation, once we were free we were eager to attend the second of our allotted sessions, The Dinosaur Tram.  We help out with the kids activities in the garden at the station in Colyton. The kids seemed to love it with a ‘dig’ in the giant sandpit to look for fossils and the arrival of an extremely large Tyrannosaurus Rex that roared loudly.  Most of the children took to it immediately, some took a little time to take it in but one boy who apparently is mad on dinosaurs was extremely frightened, hey you can’t win ‘em all!

August 12^th brought us our next visitors, Tony & Brenda.  We met them in Goa a few years ago and have remained friends ever since.  We had a number of walks planned including catching the bus to Lyme Regis and walking back along the coastal path.  It’s about 8 miles and took almost exactly 4 hours.  

Their visit also coincided with Neil’s birthday which needless to say took in a few celebratory drinks and the following day we took the twilight tram to Colyton for a meal and a few more drinks.  It was great see them again after almost 2 years.

Our next volunteering event was to be The Pirate Tram.  By now we’re really getting into the theme of each trip so we dressed the part.  The kids really got involved and the games were a big hit as they involved lots of water….say no more!   There were plenty of challenges for the kids to show bravery by walking the plank and team games involving water.  Luckily it  was a hot and sunny day as the ‘assisting’ we provided, aka cheating, resulted in us getting very wet.  On the second trip Neil was put in the stocks for ‘plotting a mutiny’ and as it was very hot he actually found the wet sponges very refreshing. 

No sooner were we finished with the tram we headed off to Newcastle to get to Connie’s delayed 70^th birthday party.  To break the journey we stopped off in Bromsgrove for the night and had a very good curry just around the corner from the Ibis.  The food was good and the added bonus was that it was a BYO meaning that the overall bill was very low.

Next day we travelled to York to stay with Colin and Jan who we know from our travels to Goa.  They gave us a couple of tours of the city which is much bigger than we remember.  So many little streets filled with eateries and independent shops, very pretty.  It was great to catch up and we’re looking forward to hosting them in Seaton and also in Goa as they too have flights booked to go out in November.

We decided to stop off in Sedgefield on the final leg of our journey so that we would arrive in Newcastle for the party fully refreshed.  Newcastle has a reputation for being full on party so we weren’t expecting the Travelodge to be quiet, hence the overnight in Sedgefield.  Right next door was an Indian restaurant which was very overpriced but the food was good. 

Final stop Newcastle Travelodge on The Quayside.  We managed to get one of the limited free underground parking spaces, big result, and the room was clean and comfortable.  Showered and ‘glad rags’ on it was off to the party later that afternoon.  It was great, lots of people from Goa, a bar delivering some superb cocktails and endless BBQ food, buffet food, cheese and deserts.  Dancing and silly games followed.  Well done Connie and her children for laying on a great bash – when are you coming to Seaton?

We decided to break the 7hr journey home with a couple of nights staying at Leanne’s. Despite a mix up on our arrival day we had a great time catching up with her. After a long day out walking around Rudyard lake we had an excellent meal out at a local pub.

Covid case numbers in Devon and Cornwall have shot up, largely due to being inundated with with staycation tourists. We’re used to being well below the national average but during August we had some of the highest cases per thousand in our region. Thankfully the hospital admissions have remained low so we are hopeful that this pandemic is becoming manageable. Sadly near the end of the month we heard that both Freddy & Alex tested positive in London. They have both been double vaccinated but at least their symptoms were mild and both have recovered.

Reasons to be cheerful

1. Despite having a positive case in the house we didn’t get Covid
2. We’ve had a lot of fun with friends and family
3. We have more visitors coming in September

Our social calendar is getting back to something like normal.  Don and Pat hosted a lunchtime get together where we met new neighbours from just up the road, Harriet and Steve.  We arrived at 12.30, had a drink followed by a delicious lunch.  The conversation flowed and then somebody announced that it was 7pm……wow, where did the afternoon go!

Our volunteering for the tramway began with Cheryl helping out with the story tram.  This is a special tram event aimed at under 4’s.  Lots of stories, songs and activities for the kids and for the yummy mummies a chance to get back to socialising.  Neil’s trip was for young folk with behavioural and learning issues.  Really nice kids and one in particular was highly intelligent and it seems such a shame that he has to attend a special school. 

Next up was a night out at The Kings Arms with Diane and Glyn for their Friday night steak night.  The food and wine were very good but as it was quite cool we weren’t able enjoy the lovely garden with stunning views over the River Axe….maybe next time.

A few days later we drove to Bristol to our grandson’s 3^rd birthday party.  It was a BBQ for family and his friends plus parents.  The weather wasn’t kind so due to covid restrictions on indoor contact most of us huddled under a very small gazebo.  The kids didn’t care, they just ran around in the drizzle and for those of us joining in the fun also got a tad damp……it was a good day!

Whilst all this is going on Cheryl has been a regular at the twice weekly outdoor Zumba classes in the gardens by the tennis courts and once a week Animal Flow Yoga, or as Neil calls it, Yoghurt.  It’s a challenging class but each week it gets a little easier and flexibility and muscle tone is definitely improving. 

Whilst not the preferred way to meet more neighbours we did meet Jerry and Carol at Mike’s wake.  They live on the other side of Mike & Karen’s house.  Due to number restrictions we weren’t originally invited but the rules changed and it felt good to raise a glass to Mike in Karen’s company rather than sitting in our own garden.  One nice touch, which Neil wants to adopt for when he gets the call, was that they had a projector showing photos of Mike over the years with friends and family.  When it first started you could hear a number of toasts and ‘RIP Mike’ from the crowd.  We think he would have approved.

The following day we hosted a BBQ for 12 neighbours.  The weather was set fair and forecast to be very hot so it was with confidence that we could invite so many people in the knowledge that we could all be outside.  It was a great day with us providing the BBQ and others bringing the pre-BBQ nibbles, salads and desserts. Of course we forgot to take any pictures!

This was quickly followed next evening by a trip to The Shed Steak House.  They advertised a very special evening of a 7 course taster menu accompanied by a wine flight comprising 5 natural wines from Italy.  It was meant to be hosted by the owner of the vineyard but due to Covid he couldn’t come over from Italy.  Instead, the importer of the wines took us through the wine flight whilst Andrea took us through the taster menu.  The new owners are trying to move away from being just a steak house and are keen to move into the ‘fine dining’ arena which we are fully supportive of.  You can get a steak anywhere but having the option of a special treat once in a while is very appealing.

You may remember that shortly after we bought the house, and whilst we were away in Goa, 30ms of wall collapsed at the front of the house.  This was fixed whilst we were away but on our return we carefully looked at other parts of our perimeter brickwork.  One area was identified as being quite dangerous, which we fixed, and some at the back of the garden was seen as less urgent.  Alistair, the guy who did our lovely patio area, called to say that he had a cancellation and that he had 3 days to demolish the leaning wall and erect a new fence.  Fab, something else off our ‘to do’ list.

We even got round to the final job – cleaning up the porch, repairing & cleaning the light fitting and painting the front door.  With everything done we invited another Alistair, the estate agent that sold us the house, to visit and see what changes we had made to the house.  We thought he would be interested and he definitely was, what we thought would be 30-45 minutes turned out to be 2hrs!   Like most people’s budget for renovation projects we broke ours but by just a few percent and we are extremely happy with the outcome. 

The revised valuation which Alistair gave us was beyond our expectations so now we’re even more happy!  We are in line with price rises that have occurred over the last 18 months, mainly due to more and more people working from home and realising that they don’t have to be in the city near to their office.  Now they can live by the seaside or in the country and this has seen prices escalate in East Devon.

The last day of the month saw us both back at the tramway to help out with the Fairy Special.  July 31^st brought us our first tram volunteering together, The Fairy Tram. The weather wasn’t kind and the kids on the first tram just had time to be greeted in Fairyland before the heavens opened and we were forced into the cafe inside. The sun came out for the afternoon session and we enjoyed being part of the fairy magic.

Reasons to be Cheerful

1. Olympic medals are flooding in
2. Covid case numbers in East Devon continue to decline
3. Next month we have lots of visitors coming to stay

FFFing good! – Freakish weather, First strawberry and Family Fun.

After possibly one of the wettest Mays in years the sun finally made an appearance at the end of the month just in time for Alex & Freddy to spend a few days with us before we set off for our annual trip on the canal boat. The boys stayed on to house sit and enjoy a break from London. The sunny weather continued and we had long sunny days with perfect temperatures in the early to mid 20’sC.  Cape Parrot was to be our boat, Gail was to be our usual shipmate and we started in Alvechurch. 

We cast off late afternoon from Alvechurch and cruised for just an hour or two as the first full day would be a toughie.  Tardbigge lock flight is a boaters right-of-passage as it’s the UK’s longest flight and when you add it to Stoke and Astwood flights which almost follow on, you are doing around 40 locks in a day…….that’s a lot.   We did it, surprisingly easily and the crew were rewarded with a generous G&T. 

Next day we visited the National Trust at Hanbury Park and after a couple of days we arrived in Worcester.  We had 2 nights in the town to do some sightseeing and for Cheryl and Gail to get some retail therapy……’yuck’ says Neil.  We have been to Worcester before but never really explored the city but we’ll probably be back as there is so much more to see.  Hopefully without the therapy! 

From Worcester we entered the River Severn and headed upstream to Stourport and onwards to our next National Trust, Kinver Edge and Rock Houses.  Absolutely fascinating, but in a nutshell, they were about a dozen houses hewn into the sandstone rock by troglodytes which continued to be homes for families until the early 1960’s.  If you are ever in that part of the country go and take a look.

The sun meant BBQ’s and more BBQ’s which were interspersed with a chilli night and a few cheese fests to break the monotony of grilled food.  Needless to say our livers took a bit of a hammering and as this year we had no set itinerary we availed ourselves of long alfresco lunches that stretched and stretched.  Cheryl and Gail would start the evening with a G&T and snacks before the main event with yet more wine. 

From Kinver the days had to be planned quite carefully as we were entering the Birmingham conurbation. Many places are OK to moor for the evening but some are not so safe and some of the ‘inmates’ look less than welcoming.  It was here that we broke a few mooring rules to stay in better surroundings.  Firstly, we moored in a picturesque spot which was screened by trees and hedges from the nearby sewage plant but we were upwind so no problem.  Next we moored close to a railway line but it wasn’t busy and we were sheltered by a bank of trees, again no issue.   The amount of graffiti along this part of our route is staggering and Neil in particular found this time quite depressing. 

Once through the Netherton Tunnel it’s plain cruising to the centre of Birmingham which is really pretty.  Many of the old warehouses have been turned into residential property and lots of bars and restaurants.  Once through the centre it’s then onto the Stratford on Avon Canal to head for the long flight of Lapworth Locks where we were to visit NT houses at Baddesley Clinton on the way down and Packwood House on the way back.

Two wonderful weeks, great company, lots of laughs, a few ‘oh shit’ moments, too much beer and wine and some lovely food.  Here’s to next year!

Covid has a lot to be blamed for not least of all closing all the pubs and restaurants.  With things getting better we met Glyn and Diane in a pub garden in Beer to celebrate his birthday.  It was a lovely evening and so we got carried away and went for a curry in Ragini just a few days later.  We went early to avoid it being too busy but the tables were well spaced and it was just a great feeling to be out and about again.

We are keeping in touch with friends in Goa and during one exchange Priti sent us a link to Amazon where we found that Aditya’s book, Quest, was on sale.  It’s all about his round the world trip on his Triumph Bonneville that he took a few years ago pre covid.  His route included the UK and we met him when he was in London and took him to The Red Lion near Downing Street, a pub once frequented by Charles Dickens.  We bought a copy of the book only to find that we had a mention and our photograph taken together in London was on page 170……we’re world famous!

The weather hasn’t been great since we got back from the boat trip not least of all on June 21^st, the Summer Solstice and apparently the first day of summer.  It was very cold, so much so that in the early evening Cheryl said ‘can we put the heating on’?  We did, just for an hour and just enough to take the chill off what was a very miserable day.  There is an upside, we had several cold and dull days so we got stuck into selecting the photos that we want in the gallery in the hall, stairs and landing.  12 years of photos to choose from so we inevitably went around and around in circles trying to decide.  We did it, got them printed and now they are in the frames.  You’ll have to visit to see what we’ve chosen!

The scheduled family party at June’s took place and was a great success.  The weather played ball, sunny intervals and not too hot.  We were 25 in total and it coincided with her birthday so June was blown away by the presents plus the huge cake that Leanne made.  What a fab day.

This time last year we were suffocating under a mountain of raspberries, redcurrants and gooseberries from the fruit cage we inherited in the garden.  This year we’re struggling, very few raspberries and those we have are minute, redcurrants still to come and gooseberries still weeks away.  The blackcurrants are coming, at their own speed, but not looking like we’re going to have too many. The one success story has been the strawberries. None at all last year as any promising young fruits were eaten by some critter before ripening. This year we planted some inside the fruit cage safely guarded from whatever beastie was feasting on them last year – hurrah!

Sadly, at the very end of the month we heard that our next door neighbour, Mike, suddenly passed away.  Due to covid we never got to know him other than chats over the fence.  We had invited both him and Karen round for lunch so we could get to know them better only to get a call from his son to say that his father had died the day before.  RIP Mike, we’ll get to know each other better one day.

Reasons to be Cheerful

1. We are now open for visitors – make your booking now!
2. Despite the Delta variant it’s looking good for all Covid restrictions to be removed next month.
3. Our social calendar is filling up fast with visitors, meals out, volunteering at the tramway and generally getting back to normal life.

We made the most of the new freedoms at the start of the month to start socialising with the neighbours. The road map out of lockdown allowed us to meet with 6 others outdoors so first call was across to Don and Pat’s to celebrate their 35^th wedding anniversary along with Bob ‘n Sheila.  Next day it was across the road again to Paul and Maureen’s also with Bob ‘n Sheila.  The weather wasn’t great so we kind of broke the rules by being partially inside with windows open.  We’ve all had at least one jab and we’ve all been very cautious throughout the pandemic so it wasn’t quite so naughty.  The freedom was short lived as the good old British weather decided that the really dry April would be followed by endless cold and rainy days…..pah!

Concrete & Clay  

It’s been an exciting month and we have managed to finish off some things.  Not everything, of course, but enough for us to feel like we are getting our lives back and devote time to things other than the renovation.  We didn’t include any landscaping work in our original plan but as soon as we installed the French Doors near the kitchen we saw the potential to remodel the ugly concrete no-man’s-land outside which we had totally overlooked when viewing the house. 

This scruffy neglected space between the greenhouse and the loggia was actually a perfect suntrap in the late afternoon.  These two areas were divided by a low wall and a screen of very dangerous plate glass.  You may remember that Neil in Destroyer mode removed the bricks and glass (without a single scratch….a miracle!).  This left us with the opened up space with a low step up to the loggia with a terracotta tiled floor and another area of mixed concrete surfaces with steps sideways to the garden which were way too high.  We spent a lot of time in the space over the summer with BBQs and entertaining so decided it deserved a revamp.

This was time we decided to get a man in and ‘Alistair the Miracle Worker’ arrived to give us a smart new extended patio where once a totally useless bit of space had been.  After almost 4 weeks Alistair had demolished, dug, barrowed and filled a 6 yard skip and laid a stunning new patio area and smart new steps. 

Remodelling the steps has given us about 30% more useful area, provides us a sunny afternoon and evening space to enjoy alfresco eating and looks superb as against the previous shite!.  Whilst this was not ‘in the budget’ it was money well spent…..thank you Alistair. 

Dave the spark followed on shortly afterwards to give us some outside lighting and sockets.  We put up zillions of fairy lights meaning that you now need sunglasses to sit outside at night.    (Neil blames Cheryl who got carried away and says you can never have too many fairy lights).  We put out the new teak furniture we bought from the man with the van and finally the Tibetan Prayer Flags went up (thanks Gail who brought them back from Nepal on the last flight out before they locked down last spring).

Magic Carpet Ride

Regular readers will recall the catastrophe we faced last month.  The local carpet supplier managed to get hold of a close match and at last arrived to fit the study carpet.  Hurrah! Another room with furniture back in, curtains up and a few homely touches added.  Ten days later the hall, stairs and landing were scheduled.  The day before we made a trip to the tip with the odd bits of old carpet we were using to keep the dust levels down in the hallway.  Goodbye swirly green carpet, farewell last bit of Red Axminster – we won’t miss you!

The fact that it’s not exactly the same carpet as the rest of the house isn’t so bad and it’s wonderful walking on nice soft carpet rather than noisy wooden stairs.   After Paul the fitter left Cheryl decided to celebrate by performing a carpet angel. 

Yup, it’s all over – apart from painting the outside of the front door and patching the odd blemish or two the renovation is just about complete and groundhog day finally came to an end………yeeeeeeehhaaaa!  Neil also took great delight in binning the shorts and t-shirt that have appeared in so many of our pictures over the last few months of the paintin’ ‘n sandin’. 

Whilst we are ‘living the dream’ in our beautiful house by the seaside we still keep in contact with friends in Goa.  We all know that India is really going through it as far as Covid is concerned and despite the government being in denial we know that the number of cases and deaths is probably at least 5 times the official statistics……..just read about the hundreds of bodies floating down The Ganges.  All of the people we know who live there don’t go out of their complex unless they really need to.  They did venture out to get ‘the jab’ but gave up because there was no queuing (yes, this is India), no social distancing (difficult when there are over a billion Indians) and no face masks.

Boris’s road map out of lockdown brought another bonus for Cheryl which in turn brought a bonus for Neil.  Cheryl went off to Champney’s with the girls in the extended family and friends.  Champney’s is meant to be a health farm and the girls have options to join exercise classes (maybe),  swimming & spa (possibly) and pampering sessions (definitely).  It was a great opportunity to catch up and laugh, gossip and consume multiple bottles of Prosecco.  The bonus for Neil is that he got quality time for a few days with son and grandson. 

Ticket to Ride

We’ve volunteered at Seaton Tramway which is a top tourist attraction in the town.  Our friend  Diane we know from the French Twinning Association is an employee in the office.  She called to tell us they were looking for volunteers to help out with the many events that are held throughout the year.  ‘Why not?’ we said, ‘renovations just about done it’s time to do something useful in the community’.  We started with an afternoon of training with her boss which was a gentle introduction to the way the tram runs and an outline of what the events entail.  The following week we were back again to meet the 4 other new volunteers and rode the tram to Colyton to get to know layout of the group spaces used for events, the café, shops and the location of toilets etc.  Then a quick behind the scenes tour of the engineering workshops and it was done.  We are now awaiting our first assignment. 

Reasons to be cheerful

1. We’ve now both had our second jabs……..jabber jabber two!
2. We love silly jokes and Tony Blackburn on Radio 2 has more than his fair share of pretty bad ones, however, this one stood out –

‘The Devon and Cornwall Music festival has been cancelled as the organisers couldn’t agree whether to put The Jam or Cream on first’.  Boom boom!!  (For our overseas readers, unaware of our regional rivalries and the importance placed on baked tea time treats, look up ‘Cream Teas’ on google

3. Our annual 2 weeks on the narrow boat are looming……aye aye Captain!  ….…it’s also stopped raining and the sun has got it’s hat on……..yay!!!

It’s definitely a good news month. We’re jabbed up, bathrooms & cloakroom complete, hall stairs and landing nearly there, the last room is underway, the garden really starts to come alive and we had the first taste of freedom. Woo Hoo! 

Got to get you into my arm……

OK we hear you say, enough of the terrible song puns, but we’re afraid its nonsense like this that has kept us going, so that means brace your self for more! My vaccination? WHO said that? tee hee. Neil kicked the month off, as he is in his own words, an old fart. He got the call from our community hospital and had his armful of finest Oxford with no side effects at all. Two weeks later and Cheryl was jabbed, again at our wonderful local centre and again with no side effects.  We do know some people that have felt really grotty for a couple of days so we count ourselves very lucky.  Hopefully, we’ll finish the process in time to go on our planned narrow boat trip in June.

Mirror in the bathroom

We finally managed to get the bathroom finished (well, apart from the blind). Matt the plumb came back to refit the sink, and to final fix the new sink & toilet in the cloakroom. Dave the spark returned to install the lights over the sinks and to help Neil fit the beautiful old mirrors that we found stored in the loft.

We also got creative with the window treatment for the hallway. We never draw the curtains here, and the window is an awkward size which doesn’t fit with standard curtain lengths. A bit of internet inspiration and we made our own window scarf using three voile panels. We can’t get the carpet down until we finish the last bit of decorating which should be complete in April. Then we can get started on putting up the pictures on those bare walls.

We’ve also been on the lookout for some interesting bits of furniture and decorative touches and came up trumps with this little beauty. We just need to find an old fashioned jug & bowl to finish it off.

Regular readers may recall that as former cheapskates, having to invest what seemed like an eye watering sum on some large sofas last Autumn was a big step for us to take and we spent months dithering over the various options. We were concerned that if we got it wrong, it would be a really expensive mistake to make. We opted for a bold colour choice and placed the order last August and waited as the sofas arrived in stages from December through to February.

Well, it didn’t go smoothly. The corner sofa arrived and it had a couple of issues which couldn’t be fixed by the supplier, so we negotiated a refund of 40%, not bad.  Within a couple of hours Neil had fixed the problem.  Then the large sofa arrived weeks later but this also had a problem, the seat foam was of a different texture making the sofa extremely firm and nothing like the corner sofa.  The supplier sent their technician to inspect, and he agreed they were different. We waited another 4 weeks to get replacement cushions – but these were exactly the same. After many phone calls and emails we seemed to reach an impasse and the discovery that the factory had changed foam supplier between making our sofas.  We really wanted comfy sofas and this new stuff was like sitting on a brick.

We were given options by the supplier, who was very sympathetic and desperately wanted to make us happy. We could have a full refund – but that would mean starting the whole process of finding new sofas all over again. At this stage we were in full lockdown without even a date for reopening of non essential shops so that wasn’t going to happen. It was time to get creative and see if we could resolve the problem ourselves. Neil went to see a local upholsterer and she confirmed that she could get some different foam but suggested we try taking out one of the thin layers of foam to see if it improved.  It did and so we hassled with Next and got another settlement of 40% off that sofa too.  Result! Great looking sofas which are comfy and a refund which would top up the renovation funds.

Paint it green

With spring in the air we took time off decorating inside and gave the garden some attention. Neil replaced the trellis at the front which was in a poor state of repair utilising a mix of the original support posts and some new ones  Whilst it was good to re use what we could, the end result was not overly pretty despite the brand new trellis panels. Cheryl took on the task of staining the whole lot, a tricky and time consuming task as anyone who has ever painted trellis will understand, and definitely not something that Neil has the patience for. Part way through, despite the stain being sage green, the air was blue as Cheryl initially regretted what she had taken on, but she was committed and saw it through.

In the end it was all worth it and it looked superb. We just hope the jasmine which had to be unpeeled from the old trellis will recover from its shock and grow back. Then she was on a mission and turned her attention to the tired looking Veg Trug – a giant raised planter which was left behind by the previous owners and was looking very sad. Neil emptied it out, put in a new plastic liner to protect the wood sides from more decay, and Cheryl set to with the stain. Another result it now looks smart and has a lot more years of use to come. Finally, the covered bench seat under the Cedar tree got a much needed makeover. What looked like a gloomy & grubby bench now really stands out as a welcoming spot to sit and enjoy the garden.

Neil meanwhile gave the grass a good trim ready for feeding.  He also cleared the pond of zillions of dead leaves and weed that had collected.  We didn’t touch it last year and as we didn’t see any life in it assumed that all we had was plants.  How wrong we were.  As the heaps of pond debris were stacked at the edges of the pond, we watched as various critters emerged and made their way back into the water. We discovered that we have lots of newts and dragon fly larvae.  Last year we had lots of very large dragonfly in the garden, and in the house, so we were hoping they came from the pond.  Apparently these little blighters have huge appetites and this would explain why we don’t have any frogs or toads.

Please release us, let us go……

The best news this month was the roadmap to freedom. This lockdown has been the hardest to endure for many, but we at last could see the light at the end of the tunnel. We waited patiently for the official Covid numbers each day, and started to get excited as the graphs began to show that downward curve at last. Dealing with a pandemic has not been easy and with the benefit of hindsight we could have done things differently. That said, our vaccination programme has been truly outstanding, and we are beginning to reap the rewards.

Writing this blog it seems incredulous that an entire year has passed since we wrote the entry describing how we went into the first lockdown on March 23rd 2020. We’ve been thinking about the events back then and how they completely changed our lives. For us, the immediate impact was a halt to our renovations leaving us with gaping holes where walls had been taken down and not having a kitchen for 3 months. We have been extremely lucky that all we suffered was really inconvenience and delay. Others have had to cope with losing loved ones, illness and losing their livelihoods. We have certainly realised that being with people we love is the most important thing in our lives, and will never take the simple pleasures of life for granted again.

Reasons To Be Cheerful

1 – Freedom is coming, we can meet in groups of six out doors and the social calendar is already filling up with invites from the neighbours.

2 – We’ve started work on the final room of the house – yay!

3 – We still have one pheasant in the garden – sadly, we haven’t seen our favourite Piotr Pheasant for several weeks now.  It looks like he’s moved on to avoid Rufus who occasionally shows his face.  He’s incredibly touchy so not sure we’ll ever get him tame enough to feed. We are content just to watch him strut around the garden looking beautiful.

Stay safe

Cheryl & Neil

We’ve gone stair crazy! We couldn’t put it off any longer so it was time to tackle the big one.  The problem was we didn’t have a specialist ladder for the stairs but we had a cunning plan.

Most of the hallway had vinyl striped wallpaper but the largest wall up the stairs was covered in a loud flower pattern.  This was of course teamed with a red patterned Axminster on the stairs and a green plain carpet on the top landing…..nice.   We’ve had to re-plaster almost every other wall in the house owing to damaged patches from alterations and removal of fixtures, but we decided we’d had enough of the expense and the mess of plastering.  On top of all that we would have had to strip all the paper off first and given the height of the hallway over the stairs it just wasn’t going to happen.  Fingers crossed that we could get a reasonable finish we ripped out the remaining carpet and started work on painting the wallpaper.

It took several coats of emulsion but eventually the flowers disappeared.  Strange greasy spots appeared in various places, mainly on the half landing and these were eventually dealt with using a can of spray stain block.  There are some strange lumps and bumps on the walls which the paint just can’t hide but we have another cunning plan up our sleeves to hide this…..you will have to wait and see.

We didn’t have time to get started on the woodwork before we had visits from various members of the Dack family.  Jake came back to fit skirting in the cloakroom, rehang the doors and fit new locks.  Of course we hit the inevitable snag as the door to tiny toilet was as you would expect, just that little bit narrower and the locks which fit perfectly in the ensuite and bathroom were too big.   Ho hum, back to internet trawling for a smaller lock and yet another room unfinished.   Jason returned to get the tiling done in the cloakroom while Jake completed the boxing of pipes in the utility. 

The toilet problem last month was resolved by getting the only pan connector sold by the supplier – not the sleek design we wanted, but it did stay on the waste pipe so it had to do.  Matt the plumb returned to finish off the plumbing and install the sink and WC in the bathroom so all we needed to finish off the en-suite and bathrooms now were the wall lights for over the sinks then we can put in the mirrors.  However, the lights we chose won’t arrive until March so we couldn’t get those rooms finished off either.  One other thing we hadn’t realised until the WC had been fitted – when you are seated you not only get a wonderful view of the garden, you can also see a window in the house opposite which had previously been beautifully screened by that cherry tree we had cut down last month!

Regular readers will recall we spent a lot of money on scaffolding towers, repointing and weatherproof coatings for both chimneys last year.  We thought that had done the trick until Neil’s discovery last month of an ominous and growing damp patch in bedroom 2.  Stacy had a closer look and confirmed that due to the design, water had been collecting in the gully between the roof and the chimney.  This meant that the felt was knackered and the battens rotten.  He quickly stripped off the tiles and fixed both sides of the chimney so, hopefully, we’ll have no more problems and then when the wall is dry we can re-decorate…….deep joy.

It was very windy when he did it but fortunately he was on the sheltered side of the house.  We asked him to look at the chimney on the other side of the house but as it’s much higher we suggested that he use a tower rather than a ladder.  He decided to put it off until we have  calmer weather but then our suspicions were confirmed before he could get up there – we spotted the staining starting to appear in our bedroom which showed us that we had the same problem.

The end of the month was spent ordering the sanitary ware for the cloakroom and getting it decorated ready for Matt to return in March for a final fix.  The window frames in both tiny toilet and the bathroom got a final clean off with all the final traces of the old badly done paintwork painstakingly scraped off and the edges neatly painted.  Did you know that the special long handled brush with slanted bristles that Cheryl’s been using actually has a name – it’s an angled fitch?  Not a lot of people know that. 

The remaining woodwork in the hallway was sanded, primed and painted, including the inside of the front door which we had been putting off for some time.  While sanding the skirting on the stairs Cheryl had a try at taking off the flaking varnish from the wooden handrail.  It’s dark stained, shiny varnish and has considerable grimy patches on the edges which ordinary cleaning just wouldn’t shift.  No problem for the power sander!  Wow – what a result, the wood is probably oak and looks so much better stripped back.  The weird wrought iron & wood may actually look quite good when it’s finished.  Messy work but worth it.

Reasons to be Cheerful

1. We have a road map out of lockdown which looks good for our boat trip in May and the arrival of June’s family in August
2. The days are getting longer, the sun has been shining and the spring flowers are starting to show – summer is on the way!
3. It’s a Sunday and the end of the month so we’re having it off……….that’s time off from decorating and a long walk you smutty lot!