Saturday 22nd December saw the completion of the sale of my Deauville. The surprise was not that it sold but that when I went to the shed to reveal a cleaned and waxed, shiny example of the breed what I found was a dripping wet example. The shed roof was leaking and badly.
So when Sunday morning dawned bright, clear, breezy and dry I was off like a shot down to B&Q for a couple of rolls of roofing felt and some tacks to hold it down. What followed was a race against time and mother nature as I laid down 2 layers of felt, one running up and down, north to south and the other across from east to west, each dutifully overlapping to make further ingress of water more difficult and less likely.
And that has worked nicely. However, a foray into said shed today revealed that while that piece of DIY has had the desired effect, the south side of the shed which gets the worst of any blast that is going as it faces the prevailing winds - well that is now letting in water in a way that is just not conducive with protecting the contents from the elements. So it appears that further DIY is called for, but it'll not get done while this rain persists.
Damn and blast!
Monday 31 December 2012
Goodbye 2012
Yet another year is ticked off and like those that preceded it the year had its high points and its low points but few exceptionally notable points. Somehow we have all managed to retain full time employment which means that we have been able to buy those things we have wanted, socialise with our friends and take the holidays that enticed us to places we'd not visited before. We have managed to save for the future and clear most of the debt that we had taken on in previous years.
Both our boys - now young men - have been fortunate in their career choices. Mark survived the purchase of BMI and secured a job within British Airways which saw him having to fly out to Tokyo as part of a small team consulting with Japan Airways on a collaboration piece. Andy was rewarded for his decision to take up an apprenticeship with Rolls Royce in Derby by being selected for a role in the Maintenance Division which he absolutely loves, and being recognised as a craftsman without having to complete the full 3 year term of the apprenticeship.
But 2012 has definitely been the year where Suzie and I have given up ever larger chunks of our time to others. Getting away on holiday together has really been the only time when we have had time to ourselves and while we have continued to function well as a team we need more time for us.
So what for 2013? Well it starts with father's cremation service on 2nd January, and with that out of the way John and I will have to cover off the legalities that are his stipulated by his Last Will & Testament as British law dictates. After that there is the on-going caring for mother but 2013 will be a year where we do more for us and less for others. My Deauville has been sold and I will be buying a newer motorbike to fill that gap in my life (not sure what it will be right now). Suzie will be 50 in March and we will be marking that with a trip (with friends) to China. Mark plans to buy his first house with his girlfriend while Andy's girlfriend starts the 2013 by collecting a Mini she has put a deposit onto replace her failing Ka.
So we have plans, they represent a change in direction, and we can say Goodbye 2012 as we welcome in 2013. Happy New Year everyone! I hope 2013 brings new light and more than a glimmer of hope into your lives.
Both our boys - now young men - have been fortunate in their career choices. Mark survived the purchase of BMI and secured a job within British Airways which saw him having to fly out to Tokyo as part of a small team consulting with Japan Airways on a collaboration piece. Andy was rewarded for his decision to take up an apprenticeship with Rolls Royce in Derby by being selected for a role in the Maintenance Division which he absolutely loves, and being recognised as a craftsman without having to complete the full 3 year term of the apprenticeship.
But 2012 has definitely been the year where Suzie and I have given up ever larger chunks of our time to others. Getting away on holiday together has really been the only time when we have had time to ourselves and while we have continued to function well as a team we need more time for us.
So what for 2013? Well it starts with father's cremation service on 2nd January, and with that out of the way John and I will have to cover off the legalities that are his stipulated by his Last Will & Testament as British law dictates. After that there is the on-going caring for mother but 2013 will be a year where we do more for us and less for others. My Deauville has been sold and I will be buying a newer motorbike to fill that gap in my life (not sure what it will be right now). Suzie will be 50 in March and we will be marking that with a trip (with friends) to China. Mark plans to buy his first house with his girlfriend while Andy's girlfriend starts the 2013 by collecting a Mini she has put a deposit onto replace her failing Ka.
So we have plans, they represent a change in direction, and we can say Goodbye 2012 as we welcome in 2013. Happy New Year everyone! I hope 2013 brings new light and more than a glimmer of hope into your lives.
Wednesday 19 December 2012
End of journey
This morning I had an early phone call to advise me that my father had passed away peacefully at 04:55. The day has been spent ringing round to family advising them of the final release of father from the grips of multiple sclerosis. His body was taken to surgery at the QMC to meet his request that his body be used for medical research into MS. He is now laid at rest in the funeral director's parlour. Death certificate has been procured and will be registered tomorrow. His room at the home has been cleared ready for the next resident. Utility companies have been contacted. Ditto banks. Cremation service date/time agreed and booked for 13:00 2/1/13. Phone calls made advising family. And the wonders of probate start on Friday.
Thursday 13 December 2012
Stuff
Because the focus has been on father, I haven't had much time to post updates on other things that have come and gone over the last month, so here is a brief run down.
I visited the Motorcycle Live event at the NEC in Birmingham, taking a Thursday off work and meeting up with some friends off the DeauvilleUK forum. A great day out that allowed me to get away from the pressures of life and just be me. Found and bought a new helmet which Suzie is going to give me as a Christmas present. And some winter gloves. Loved the 2013 Aprilia Caponord - it looks brill but doesn't have shaft drive that is so important in the adventure bike market so it won't out sell the BMW R1200GS or Triumph Explorer. The old version didn't sell well outside Italy and this could go the same way.
Mark has made a business flight to Tokyo for British Airways - time will tell if he has to go again. Meantime his car has failed it's MoT so that now needs sorting. Nothing serious but a pain right on Christmas - more expense.
Andy has now taken possession (shared with some mates) of a lock-up from which he can start working on his project car and do the servicing of family members cars.
Suzie is very busy at work and has been told that her job is not at risk of redundancy - others have not been so lucky. He little car continues to do well. She and I spent a weekend with Mark & Eleanor at their place near Staines, visiting Oxford Street in London and the Winter Fair in Hyde Park in a packed 2 day visit. Good to see them doing so well for themselves and obviously comfortable in their relationship.
Meantime, I have sold the VW Passat and now have a Volvo S40 1.8 in metallic black (the trip to Staines was it's first long trip). I love it, nice little car. Why did I sell the Passat? Simply because my employer has changed the expenses policy and now any journey over 100 miles (return) has to be done using a hire car, so the Passat would continue to cost me in repayments on the loan and depreciation while earning no income. Solution - sell Passat, clear loan, buy a smaller car with the money left over. Why a Volvo? Because of all the cars I checked out it was the nicest on the day.
And I have put the Honda Deauville up for sale - it is time for a change as I have had it for over 7 years. At the moment the primary candidate for replacing it is a 2004 Aprilia Caponord I have located for sale in West Sussex, but I have to sell the Deauville first....
I visited the Motorcycle Live event at the NEC in Birmingham, taking a Thursday off work and meeting up with some friends off the DeauvilleUK forum. A great day out that allowed me to get away from the pressures of life and just be me. Found and bought a new helmet which Suzie is going to give me as a Christmas present. And some winter gloves. Loved the 2013 Aprilia Caponord - it looks brill but doesn't have shaft drive that is so important in the adventure bike market so it won't out sell the BMW R1200GS or Triumph Explorer. The old version didn't sell well outside Italy and this could go the same way.
Mark has made a business flight to Tokyo for British Airways - time will tell if he has to go again. Meantime his car has failed it's MoT so that now needs sorting. Nothing serious but a pain right on Christmas - more expense.
Andy has now taken possession (shared with some mates) of a lock-up from which he can start working on his project car and do the servicing of family members cars.
Suzie is very busy at work and has been told that her job is not at risk of redundancy - others have not been so lucky. He little car continues to do well. She and I spent a weekend with Mark & Eleanor at their place near Staines, visiting Oxford Street in London and the Winter Fair in Hyde Park in a packed 2 day visit. Good to see them doing so well for themselves and obviously comfortable in their relationship.
Meantime, I have sold the VW Passat and now have a Volvo S40 1.8 in metallic black (the trip to Staines was it's first long trip). I love it, nice little car. Why did I sell the Passat? Simply because my employer has changed the expenses policy and now any journey over 100 miles (return) has to be done using a hire car, so the Passat would continue to cost me in repayments on the loan and depreciation while earning no income. Solution - sell Passat, clear loan, buy a smaller car with the money left over. Why a Volvo? Because of all the cars I checked out it was the nicest on the day.
And I have put the Honda Deauville up for sale - it is time for a change as I have had it for over 7 years. At the moment the primary candidate for replacing it is a 2004 Aprilia Caponord I have located for sale in West Sussex, but I have to sell the Deauville first....
The cycle of life
It's not good , but, that's life. Dad is going down hill and it looks very much as if he is coming to the end of his journey through Multiple Sclerosis. From diagnosis we were told the best he could expect was 30 years assuming that it ran it's course and wasn't accelerated in any way. And that is where he's at.
Recently he has had a trip into A&E because of a chest problem, but was sent back to the nursing home after a few days. Since then he has been moved onto liquid medication because his mouth is constantly sore and painful, making the tablet form hard to take. These last few days he has been on liquid foods as well, and liquid food supplements but he is starting to refuse to take them because he doesn't like the taste.
Visiting him is painful. Much of the time he no longer recognises us when we visit. Rarely acknowledges that we are there and his talking is stinted and muted, a whisper at best and rarely coherent.
And it is affecting us all. Andy was especially close to his granddad and he is taking it the hardest. Mother has had no other man in her life since she was 16. He is still (and always will be) my father. But he is not the man we all know/knew and love/loved. A shadow of his former self it is pitying to see him just lying there in his bed. We try and ensure that classical music is playing for as much of the time as possible, he has always enjoyed it and we have to assume he still does.
The nursing home are doing as much as they can with their limited resources to make him comfortable. Some of the young staff are going out of their way to give him their time. He started his time there as such a happy, forever smiling, person and they have watched his condition deteriorate. It affects them too. He is not their father or relative but they feel for him and us.
Then somebody has to tell the rest of the family - give them an update on how father is and what is / is not happening. So that'll be me then. Last night I phoned his younger brother and elder sister (but not his eldest sister, as she is away with the birds too). Let me just say that I have had nicer calls to make. I try and stay detatched, realistic and matter of fact about it (it helps me to cope) but it isn't easy - he is my dad.
None of us know how long our time will be here on earth. We still don't know how long Arthur will be with us. But what we do know is that his time is drawing to a closure. His journey is ending. He will be missed.
But life goes on....
Recently he has had a trip into A&E because of a chest problem, but was sent back to the nursing home after a few days. Since then he has been moved onto liquid medication because his mouth is constantly sore and painful, making the tablet form hard to take. These last few days he has been on liquid foods as well, and liquid food supplements but he is starting to refuse to take them because he doesn't like the taste.
Visiting him is painful. Much of the time he no longer recognises us when we visit. Rarely acknowledges that we are there and his talking is stinted and muted, a whisper at best and rarely coherent.
And it is affecting us all. Andy was especially close to his granddad and he is taking it the hardest. Mother has had no other man in her life since she was 16. He is still (and always will be) my father. But he is not the man we all know/knew and love/loved. A shadow of his former self it is pitying to see him just lying there in his bed. We try and ensure that classical music is playing for as much of the time as possible, he has always enjoyed it and we have to assume he still does.
The nursing home are doing as much as they can with their limited resources to make him comfortable. Some of the young staff are going out of their way to give him their time. He started his time there as such a happy, forever smiling, person and they have watched his condition deteriorate. It affects them too. He is not their father or relative but they feel for him and us.
Then somebody has to tell the rest of the family - give them an update on how father is and what is / is not happening. So that'll be me then. Last night I phoned his younger brother and elder sister (but not his eldest sister, as she is away with the birds too). Let me just say that I have had nicer calls to make. I try and stay detatched, realistic and matter of fact about it (it helps me to cope) but it isn't easy - he is my dad.
None of us know how long our time will be here on earth. We still don't know how long Arthur will be with us. But what we do know is that his time is drawing to a closure. His journey is ending. He will be missed.
But life goes on....
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