12th December 2014

Since Nan fell and broke her arm, a variety of ‘things’ have joined her in sympathy. The central heating boiler ‘poltergeist’ was due to be fixed on the 17th of November, but despite acting up every day, it mysteriously stopped on the morning of the engineer’s visit! Once again, we had to explain to a sceptical engineer what was happening. However, on this occasion, the boiler was stripped down, thoroughly cleaned, and tested. Since then, it’s behaved itself, but I predict that the ‘spirit’ will return on December 24th.

The spook had vacated his warm, cosy nook in the boiler and moved into my car. Soon after, I began to hear and feel a clunking noise when I first turned the steering wheel, though it disappeared after a few miles. I discussed this with Mick Edwards (the family mechanic), and the next day he rang to inform me it was a known fault on Fiestas and that Ford had issued a TSB notice to all its garages. The culprit was an inferior bolt in the steering rack, not dangerous, just irritating. He advised me to take it to the Ford garage in Harborough. I did, and after a half-hour wait, two cups of excellent ‘proper’ coffee, several top-notch biscuits, and £40 lighter, my poltergeist was exorcised.

Annoyed, the ‘spook’ took revenge by moving into my ‘system,’ and for a couple of days, I acquired the shivers and aches. Made of sterner stuff than the parts Glow-worm or Ford use in their machinery, I stoically managed to shake him off within 48 hours, only for him to relocate to the bottom bracket of my bike. Halfway through my first morning ride after the illness, at the very top of Farndon Hill, the offending part gave up the ghost and snapped. Thankfully, I could free-wheel most of the way home, but as luck would have it, the bike shop took five days to source a replacement.

The next bit of machinery to be ‘spooked’ was my mobile. First, the camera app refused to take photos. After some fiddling and a bit of Bible reading, I managed to persuade it to take a photo, only to find later that it hadn’t saved them. Downloading a different camera app seemed to solve the issue until I discovered the files were corrupted when I tried to view them! Then, my O2 Moments app decided to update itself into an unfamiliar and illogical bit of software. Why do ‘they’ do this? As soon as you get used to a way of doing things, they have to change it, never for the better.

On the 22nd of November, Charlotte and Suraj enjoyed a pampering spa day at the Hilton in Northampton. Sue and I looked after Lucas and Ellis; we took them to the Harborough Museum, which they surprisingly enjoyed, especially splatting creatures on the interactive floor in the adjoining library. From there, we visited the new ice cream parlour on Church Street, then popped by the newly renovated Old Grammar School on stilts. After a slightly longer visit to St Dionysius Church, we did some shopping before heading home through Welland Park. Mum and Dad may have had a lovely time, but I bet we had more fun!

The following day, we were scheduled to visit our new neighbours for drinks, but Claire caught a bug, and I wasn’t feeling too well myself, so it was cancelled in the interests of health and safety.

I’d been searching for a rug to fit under my study chair for nearly two months, and on the 25th, Sue and I drove to Corby in search of one. We were successful, and I now have a smart rectangle of matting that allows me to move my chair around my desk with ease, without needing to place cups under the wheels to protect the bamboo floor.

December began cautiously with a visit to Kettering Hospital with Nan for another attempt at an endoscopy. This time, I managed to get the car parked and Nan to the correct department without mishap. After ensuring she remembered to “smile for the camera,” we departed the hospital in less than two hours (much better than the 8.5 hours last time). The diagnosis was diverticulitis.

As mentioned in the previous blog, Sue and I have been attending Silver Screen at Kettering Cinema on Wednesdays, joining a gathering of ‘old wrinklies’ for matinee screenings. On a few occasions, when the film has been a bit ‘sloppy’ or ‘historic,’ Sue has taken Charlotte instead, and on a couple of occasions, all three of us have gone when the plot seemed suitably engaging.

On the 6th of December, Sue, Charlotte, and I joined the Council Walking Group for a short but informative walk from Great Glen to Burton Overy to see the Christmas Tree Festival at the local church. Sue and Charlotte thoroughly enjoyed the festival, and I thoroughly enjoyed the steak and ale pie at The Yews afterwards.

The following day, Sue and I headed south to meet up with Philippa to exchange Christmas presents. We had decided to book a stay at the Tortworth Court Four Pillars Hotel, which was roughly halfway between Harborough and Buckfastleigh, and take the opportunity to explore the area. We all arrived around 11 am, and after a quick look around the hotel, enjoyed a delightful lunch in one of its restaurants. During the meal, we decided to visit the nearby Christmas fayre in Wotton-under-Edge. After a short drive, we luckily found a parking spot in this small, packed medieval town. The three of us wandered up the High Street, taking in the stalls and attractions, which seemed like something out of a time well before our childhood memories.

Afterwards, we returned to the hotel, exchanged presents, and checked in. We then all enjoyed coffee in our room before saying goodbye to Philippa as she set off on her journey home. On the way back from the car park, surprise, surprise, we bumped into David Staples (Sue’s first boss at Ridgeway Primary). Like us, he was staying at the hotel for a Christmas gift exchange. We chatted for about 10 minutes before going our separate ways.

We spent the rest of the afternoon relaxing in our room before eventually heading back to Wotton-under-Edge for an evening meal at the Pear Tree Inn, via a closed Royal Oak and a Railway Arms that didn’t serve food on Sunday evenings. Incredibly, upon entering the bar, I spotted rugby being shown on a large screen in the corner, Leicester Tigers v Toulon, ‘live’! Having assumed all day that I wouldn’t get a chance to watch what I (wrongly) thought was a 3 pm kick-off, I was delighted to find myself in a cosy pub, enjoying some rather good grub, while watching the Tigers give the French team a good drubbing. Like much of Leicestershire, I’d thought we were in for a hammering, but as they say, it’s a funny old game.

The following morning, we enjoyed a sumptuous breakfast before checking out and putting on our hiking boots for a walk around the extensive grounds of the Tortworth Estate. It was very enjoyable, though toward the end we had to detour as the return path along the lake was only open on the first Sunday of each month, from October to April, and then only between 10 am and 4 pm. Very inconvenient!

On our return, we set the SatNav for Slimbridge and the Wildfowl Trust that Sir Peter Scott made so famous during our youth. Although it was a rather blustery, chilly day, the sun was shining, and the abundance of ducks and other wildlife meant we hardly noticed the cold (most of the time). Naturally, there were plenty of birdwatchers with cameras and binoculars, and the numerous information boards kept Sue thoroughly entertained. We topped off the afternoon with a warming coffee in the café. The two-hour drive back to Harborough thankfully proved uneventful.

Poor Ellis came down with a rather nasty second bout of scarlet fever and tonsillitis, requiring another visit to the emergency doctor in Kettering. He was still unwell on Lucas’s 9th birthday on 10th December and had to wait until Friday for his celebration, which took the form of an ice-skating party set up at a nearby garden centre.

Sarah and Lee have made another offer on a house in Leicester, and while it’s been accepted by the vendors, it looks like they’ll have to wait until after Christmas for the bank to approve the mortgage. In the meantime, they’ve been busy planning the furnishings for whichever property they end up moving into. Our former next-door neighbour, Doreen, has generously donated quite a few items: a fridge, freezer, washing machine, and microwave, as she’s having a new kitchen fitted with updated appliances. These now reside in our garage alongside the two cars. I wonder what they chat about at night?

Jamie is extremely busy with work, even more so as Christmas approaches. Harley has made another appearance, and the two of them have been out for several meals together. One evening, we had the pleasure of a visit from both of them.

Nan is starting to look noticeably older and is becoming quite unsteady on her feet. This Monday, her arm cast is due to come off, and fingers crossed that as she regains mobility, her overall health will improve.

A few weeks ago, I bottled this year’s vintage. I fermented it into a rather nice sweet white wine, and so far, the bottles we’ve opened have been quite palatable. I’ve given Philippa a bottle to sample over Christmas,  I hope a good report comes back, though I’m happy to live with a little white lie if needed!

On my bike ride this morning (12th), I cycled through a light dusting of the first snow of winter atop Farndon Hill. Could this be an omen of what’s to come? Perhaps a white Christmas? Fortunately, I have plenty of wood cut and ready, mostly from friends who, over the summer, generously donated their old kitchens and sheds. It burns beautifully.