Cumbria

We had a smashing time, breaking up the bulkhead that separated the rear bedroom from the engine room, taking it in turns with the big hammer! It makes for a lovely open space but at the moment it's full of stacked wood and drawers and STUFF from cupboards and drawers that aren't there any more and I just can't bear to photograph it.

We went up to Cumbria for a few days and stayed with some of Simon's friends in a beautiful hilltop cottage with views across the fells. We explored the valley and village in very fine weather and heard a really good ceilidh band playing in a pub. Moving down to the Cumbrian coast, we also had a memorably lovely trip on a little steam-train that Simon may blog about at some point, knowing it so well :-)



I've come home to the chaos of my boat now and must just wade in and sort it.
I may be some time...

Upheaval

My original plan was to shorten the interior living space in favour of a larger well-deck garden and workshop space. I've decided to put that plan on hold for now as I'm not 100% sure it's the right thing to do and it's not something I could rectify once the cabin had been cut away!
Meanwhile, I really want the workshop space so have opted for a less radical change but one I still find exciting :-) What used to be my bedroom at the back of the boat, will be a sort of studio, with long workbench, storage space for tools etc and a small stove.
First, I dismantled the bed. Here it is, with the top and drawers removed. It was very solidly built and there's a certain amount of guilt in ripping apart someone's craftmanship. I'm saving the drawers though; they were a useless size for clothes but will be perfect for sketchbooks etc.

In the top left hand corner, there's the storage tank for the toilet, that goes through into the bathroom, the other side of the bulkhead. Luckily I had long since scrubbed it out (if only the memory of that day could be equally cleansed!) when I made my compost loo, so it hadn't been used in years. Now, the rest of the bed is cleared out and Simon managed to get the tank out for me (- thank you!) So now I have a wonderfully empty room to plan my workshop layout in.
The photo below shows the bulkhead that leads into the engine room. I'd already planned to shift the door from the left side side into the middle, to accommodate a stove in that left corner, but chatting to Simon, he suggested getting rid of the partition altogether to make a bigger room. I agree and think it would make it a lovely light space, especially with the back doors open.
Next job is taking out this partition to open into the engine room.

I like the word upheaval as it does what it says (up - heave - all!)

p.s If anyone is fitting out a boat and wants a free waste storage tank, you are welcome to it. It has a foot wide circular hole cut out of it but that can have a plate welded over it and it's on the top side.

L.I.L.O boaters' gathering

There's a Spring gathering of boaters coming up (like daffodils). It's on the Kennet and Avon, from the 13th to the 15th April. Why not come along!



Here's some info about it, from the LILO website.
(By the way LILO stands for Low Impact Life On board and is just a loose collection of boaters across the country, who try to live as sustainably as possible on their boats.)
I've been to a couple of LILO gatherings before and met some of the most interesting, friendly and supportive people! The skillshare workshops are all about the generous sharing of knowledge and experience, not about making money.
It's worth having a quick read of the LILO principles on the site's first page to check it's for you, but the more the merrier :-)

Hope to see you there!

strange landscape

There's a spot along the Slough arm I love to moor at if I'm passing this way. It's at what must have been an old wharf, on the non-towpath side, nestling among bramble bushes, ash and elder trees and the few remains of some crumbling building. Once moored up, the only way to the towpath is across a couple of acres of strangely churned up ground, all little hills and valleys and through a small wood to a bridge.
The last time I stopped by, it was all green and lovely. There's a river running along one side.


Now of course, it's winter and bare but other, bigger changes have come. The land has been raked over and all the tufty trees pulled up as though preparing it to be flattened and built on or something
.
Survivors are these strange spiky teasel-like plants.



What's exposed is something we caught glimpses of before - that the land was once a huge rubbish dump, from pre-plastic days. The place is stuffed with old glass bottles; some are milk, lemonade, beer bottles, others are old medecine, scent and poison bottles.


There is also masses of broken china, earthenware dishes, storage jugs and teapots. And my favourite - rusting metal pots, pans and kettles

Whatever's coming for this patch of land, it probably doesn't bode well for the wildlife.
I was lucky enough to see a lovely muntjac deer snuffling among branches, just near the boat. I also saw rabbits and heard foxes and owls at night. There are badger sets in the bankside and squirrels leaping about in the woods. I suppose the kind of rubbish dumped here many years ago, wasn't so much the kind that leached chemicals and plastics into the land and rivers?
I imagine animals already have a precarious existence between the nearby motorway and local industries which seem to include a quarry, rubbish tip and incinerator. Everywhere, our wild creatures are being squeezed out. Wish I could buy the land and just leave it alone but then I'd be wanting to do that everywhere.
After all the grey winter pics, thought I'd include a cheery, colourful one to remind me that spring is almost here! Thanks to a dear boaty friend for her gift of daffodils :-)

Remembering Haditha

So, after seven years, a single U.S marine has been tried for the murder of 24 unarmed iraqis in three houses in Haditha, 2005. They were mostly women and children, one old man in a wheelchair. I wrote a post about it in 2006 I think (in the old blog) and included this beautiful image, 'Haditha', by Emily Johns, an artist whose work I love.

And what sentence did the marine receive? Three months. I could cry for the shame of it.

Voting

Blimey, never thought I'd be encouraging anyone to vote but I read Tony's blog about the IWA possibly monopolising the 4 available seats on the Council of the new Canal and River Trust. I agree that that wouldn't be properly representative of the diversity of boaters in the UK. When voicing his concerns among the London Boaters, Tony found himself nominated as a candidate, which doesn't surprise me in the least!

It's quite clear from first meeting Tony, what a warm, genuine and caring person he is and his dynamic, intelligent input in the London Boaters group has earnt the respect of many fellow boaters. He worked tirelessly to win rights and concessions for that group and could use this experience and his ideas in other areas. I'm fortunate to also know him as a friend and although I know he is far too modest to be happy about me shouting his virtues from the treetops, I've seen his selfless and personal commitment to those facing hardship and injustice.


Anyway, I've taken the liberty of re-posting his obligatory election address here.


"I am a 51-year-old CC liveaboard and have been an active member of London Boaters for the past year or so.

London Boaters is becoming a pioneer of community-based provision of services and facilities for boaters (e.g. moorings, boaters' credit union). I believe that this could serve as a template for use in other areas, and fits in well with the local partnership model embodied in the CaRT structure.

There is a view that the canal network is a scarce commodity with competition for resources between leisure and residential users. Our research showed this not to be the case, and that a vibrant residential community actually encourages leisure users to make better use of the canals. I will work to promote the use of the waterways to maximise the benefit for all users.

I am independent of all organisations representing boaters.


Any questions, please leave a comment, or email me at election at floatinguniverse dot org dot uk.

Tony"

Possible light for a boat?

I came across this you-tube clip about making light from plastic bottles. I wondered if this could be tried on a narrowboat, in place of a mushroom vent? Obviously, adequate ventilation would need to be ensured for stove safety.
It's HERE.