Go North

Overcast this morning with the usual cold wind, more noticeable with my new haircut. The weather forecasters say the wind is from "the continent" but my guess it is from the North. My weathervane remains in the shed. I can only put it up when I discover which way is North. According to maps Old John is North but that could cover several degrees. I need to find a boy scout ( to borrow his compass, not for any Jimmy Saville moments !). It rained all afternoon. We have yet another lead on the blind trail, having been recommended to a shop in Rugby. If I never see another blind it will be too soon.Health-wise not a good day resulting in me sleeping all afternoon. The old fuzzy head syndrome. Blood sugar was high again this morning for some unknown reason. Life is like a juggling act at the moment but the circling plates keep falling off the poles.I have an appointment with our local surgery diabetic nurse for the first time in the morning, which should prove interesting. Not sure if we'll make another visit to the boat tomorrow, having seen it Monday. Don't want to overstate our interest or give the impression of constantly watching them, poor dears.

Back to basics

Overcast today so far. Forecast not good. Cutting grass for a friend today by way of thanks for his help with mattress transport yesterday. Haircut planned for later ( which one? Lynne always asks) Other than that a bit of book writing will not go amiss. It sounds easy but takes up a lot of time and brain memory space. Even converting my blog to a book is time consuming as it has to be changed to past text and book-e-fide. (Just made that word up but hopefully you'll know what I mean .) Boat insurance arranged (not with the naval company). TARDIS TWO has a 3 month warranty after which we'll join the boat equivalent of the AA. Boat registration and licensing still to be arranged,then we're all set for cruising into the sunset. On the subject of cruising we have reconsidered our recent plans to visit Crick and Henley. Our original commitment was to cruise continually at our own pace without deadlines so two visits close together we considered alien to our aspirations. Maybe future years, one at a time? The 2 weddings in July fit with our plans to visit London so remain in our diary.

Hernia alert

Warmish sunny day following a night frost. Completed yet another new walk route this morning. I now consider myself a wealth of walking route knowledge around Anstey. I am fast becoming a Leicestershirian as I now have the habit of saying "good morning" or "Hi" to other walkers before they have the chance to get in first. This form of friendliness came as a shock when I first arrived here, but I'm getting used to it now. Whether I have inherited a Leicestershire accent is for others to judge, but I now call rolls cobs. Our supa-dupa mattress made it to Stenson this afternoon. (courtesy of our friends and their giant French people-carrier). It now has pride of place in the MCC chandlery shop, together with our folding dining table and chairs (in a box). Sod's law states that the next customer will require something from the shelves behind the mattress. Surprisingly no hernia's were suffered during these manoeuvres'. We were unable to get the mattress and table onto the boat as the outside topcoat was wet and the wooden floor was being laid. Both look absolutely stunning. Health good today.

Bermuda shorts and parka's

Sunny (Bermuda shorts) with cold wind (parka). Rhino is bellowing over village again. Reason unknown......Removal of our supa-dupa mattress has been moved to tomorrow afternoon as the vehicle allocated will be in France before Friday (our preferred day). Not too sure where MCC will store it as Tardis Two bedroom is not yet 100% complete. If they cannot accept it we are stuffed because, as previously mentioned, the mattress is of significant bulk and weight, requiring Stobart-like transport. We shall see. After what seems like years of hanging around everything is coming to fruition at once creating stress I could do without. Licencing, insurance, BSS and RCDD conformity certification required, all at the same time and interlinked. One is not available until one or more of the others are in place. The chicken and egg scenario, but I'm sure all will be resolved in due course.(?) After hours of thought we have sussed-out the reasons for my health blip a few days ago. My dizzy spells(fits?)coincide with high blood sugar levels, requiring higher insulin doses to bring them down to acceptable levels. It is almost certain my relatively low insulin requirement over the past 60 years is down to my pancreas producing a small amount of natural insulin. The "new" drug regime has wiped-out the remains of any natural insulin production, hence the increased dosage required. Lower blood sugar seems to indicate less dizzy spells. All that remains is to ascertain my new insulin requirements which unfortunately has to be via trial and error. After almost two months the letter from my consultant at St. Georges hospital has arrived which should assist me getting counselling from my GP for my depression. Hopefully Bye Bye happy pills.

Blind headaches

Warm, sunny and spring-like. Lynne had a sleepless night thinking of boat blinds again. I slept well. The front bedroom window is causing problems due to its sloping sides and position of bedside lights. Curtains are a no no for Lynne and roman blinds are an impossibility. After much head-banging and hand-wrangling a possible solution was agreed on. Simply an upside down roller blind. Pulled from the wider window base up to the narrower window top, secured by clips. A tapered blind basically. Back to the linen shop yet again. Now on first-name terms with the Manager. They don't make roller blinds but know a firm that does, price to be confirmed early next week. Problem solved? Whilst out we did a scenic tour and found a Norman Monastery on top of a huge hill in the middle of nowhere ( St Bernard's ) together with a great pub/restaurant in an absolutely stunning village called Belton which we both fell immediately in love with. The meal was great and good value. The Queens Head is another for our list. We checked house prices on our return and discovered they could be within our reach if cruising ever loses its appeal. Nothing like planning ahead. No doubt we will find other likely candidates on our travels. By sheer coincidence Tracey Thorn's Bedsit Disco Queen features on Radio Four this week, all week. Presumably she will include musical interludes to illustrate the story, which should make it well worth listening to. I believe it is on around 12.45am daily, but check the relevant listings to be sure. Healthwise another good day. I'm off to watch Spurs versus Arsenal, courtesy of Sky, so my health may be boosted further or take a downfall.

Mushrooms

Sunny day and blistering temperatures. The rhino has closed his mouth so everything back to normal. Margaret saw Tardis Two for the first time since she was a sheet of steel on the welding shed floor ( Tardis Two not Margaret). We spent some time alone on board again which gives ample opportunity to peer into nooks and crevices ( of the boat, not us !). Note chrome mushroom. The large slanted bedroom window caused lengthy discussions regarding blinds or curtains or an old sheet and drawing pins. A revised blind arrangement eventually arrived at, so back to the drawing board yet again.

Light at tunnel end

Overcast but pleasantly warm. No boat photo's today as one cupboard looks much the same as another. More bits and pieces added internally, chrome mushrooms (vents) fitted on roof , some diesel in tank (but nowhere near being full to 250 litre capacity), lubricating oil added , radiator full and engine ready for use. Undercoats completed and topcoats started. Boat scheduled to be completed in two to three weeks. Due to the ever decreasing timescale Lynne has ordered the three bedroom blinds ( 1 large, 2 small) from a nearby manufacturer so at least we will be able to sleep in peace. The lounge blinds can be completed anytime. Both the shower and toilet will have obscure glass so no problems there. I need to finalize arrangements for insurance and licensing. Our bed-settee will be delivered to MCC sometime within the next two weeks. We have agreed to deposit our super-duper two tonne mattress at MCC next Friday, which should prove interesting.............."Final invoice" promised asap. (Gulp)............ On the way to Stenson we pass a very large roundabout on the main road with some trees and hundreds of molehills. Bearing in mind moles are not fast on their pins (above ground at least) how did they get there? Was the road built round them? Do they have lollipop moles in high-viz jackets at certain times of the day? Health-wise another good day so far. When I have a cold, flu or any other illness my blood sugar rises, as it has done over recent "dizzy" days. I have tweaked my insulin to remedy this with great success. My blood sugar is now OK which in turn seems to have improved my head problems. Why I do not know, but don't try this at home if you're diabetic unless under very close medical supervision or you have sixty years experience like me.