hollowaydiary

July 28

It has been a very long time since this website was updated. The biggest change is that from now on it will be written by Liz with Mike looking over her shoulder, rather than the other way around. The reason for this change of editor is that while Mike loved writing about our life on Snecklifter he doesn’t feel the same impetus to write about life on dry land. He’s very happy in the house, but feels our lives are not so interesting to other people. Time will tell — so if anybody out there is still reading us, let us know what you think.

We have been in the house for just over five months, and while we are fairly well sorted out, we still can’t find a lot of things. The latest to go missing is the wallet with the log book for the car together with the MOT certificate, service history etc. And as it is being part exchanged for something smaller, the loss assumed the proportions of a major drama. But the DVLA are replacing the log book (£25) and a copy MOT certificate is on its way (£10), so it hasn’t been a cheap exercise but the crisis is passed.

A lot more has happened that has been good. In May I spent five days in Norwich looking after Sienna and Camille while Jonathan and Jenny ran the Norfolk & Norwich Festival. The weather was hot and sunny which made life a bit easier. It’s a nightmare trying to manage a toddler and a baby in a pushchair plus an umbrella! On one of the days I carried Camille (in a harness thingy) across town to the festival office for Jenny to feed her — about a mile and a half. I had to sit down three times on the way there, and get a taxi back. Thought I was going to have a heart attack. Camille is a beautiful, happy, bouncing baby — but she’s very heavy. And I had forgotten that the last time I did this I was 37 years younger. But I had a great time and the festival was an enormous success.

In early June we visited our friend Mike Hecken (late of n.b.Ronarosa) in Romsey for a few days. On the left is a picture of Mike and me beside the river Itchen in Winchester

He had gone with Mike (Holloway that is) on the week-long trip to take Snecklifter to Whilton marina and brokerage. They met up at Barton Turns to pick up the boat and load about a month’s supply of food and drink on board. While they were away I put the dogs into kennels because I was working and couldn’t get home during the day to take them out. The two Mikes had an excellent trip — they even got good weather — and when I picked them up they’d eaten/drunk almost everything (but not quite) and looked very fit.

The dogs were back in kennels while we visited Mike He. The drive — almost 200 miles — was uneventful and relatively quick, and our host showed us the sights of Hampshire and its environs. Romsey is a pretty town with an abbey, and we had lovely meals out at country pubs with Mike and his son Lee. Sadly the weather wasn’t brilliant, but it didn’t stop us getting out and about.

One of our trips was on the Swanage Railway which runs the six miles of track between Swanage and Norden, through the beautiful Isle of Purbeck, passing the magnificent ruins of Corfe Castle. The weather was perfect that day and we walked along the sea front at Swanage. On the way back we got off at Corfe Castle and looked around the village before catching the last train back. The two Mikes took lots of photographs, some of which are here. Many of the shots were the same ones — I’d never seen competitive photography before … the one on the right was taken by Mike He on the train.

We are looking forward to welcoming Mike to Matlock later in the year.

Another planned visit is in the middle of next month when Chris and Dave Owen-Roberts (n.b.Aeshna) will be coming to stay for the weekend. We met them recently at the Miners Arms at Adlington for lunch. It’s been great to keep in touch with so many of the friends we made on the Cut.

Apart from friends coming (notably our old friend John Thorpe who comes to see Mike regularly while they discuss the pros and cons of various sound systems), our family paid a flying visit about three weeks ago. They had originally planned to arrive on the Friday night and stay until late Sunday, but Jonathan had to be in London for part of the weekend so they got to us at 11.30 Saturday night and stayed until after breakfast on the Monday. They’ll be back to see us in the autumn — hopefully for a longer stay.

As some of you know, one of my reasons for coming back to dry land was to continue my singing. I have rejoined the Bakewell Choral Society — now in the alto section - and we have just put on a concert which included six Elizabethan madrigals and Purcell’s “Dido & Aeneas”. Absolutely gorgeous music and a dream to sing. I saw it performed at the Hippodrome in Yarmouth as part of the Norfolk & Norwich festival in May. If you haven’t heard it I would urge you to do so. It is Purcell’s only opera and lasts just 56 minutes.

There are no rehearsals in the summer but we go back in September when we will be doing Schubert’s Mass in G.

I am hoping to update every week or so, the next one in about a week to ten days, but much shorter!

p.s. I have posted another batch of photographs on Sienna's page of Jonathan, Jenny and the girls.

August 9

First of all thank you to the people who emailed to say they’d seen the updated website. I really didn’t expect anyone to still be looking, but there you are — so thanks to Sarah and Andy (nb Arcadia + greyhounds), Dot and Derek (nb Gypsy Rover ), John and Pat (from Derbyshire). Tony and Jenny (nb Jenny Rose) mentioned it during a phone call and then we had an email from Mike and Jo Edwards saying they'd seen the update. They also said how pleased they are with the new paintwork on n.b. Sarah Kate - and they have had some traditional painting done on the internal cupboards at the back of the boat. "Very stunning" says Jo.

So with this encouragement, I continue the saga of the Holloways ashore.

A couple of weekends ago I’d offered to house-sit for our friends Brent and Carol (who have a share in nb Black Watch) in Braunston when they went on an overnight trip to Jersey. I duly presented myself for duty at 9.45 Saturday morning and they duly presented me with the keys to the house, two cats, one dog and Carol’s mum, Edna.

After lunch Edna and I drove over to Whilton marina to see how the boat sale was going. All I can say is there’s been an offer and we’re awaiting further developments. It should have been a fairly straightforward trip from Braunston to Whilton but seven miles and 20 minutes turned into several miles and almost an hour’s journey. The route on the map looked easy but I obviously took a very wrong turn (whatever I did I’ve done it before). Still, it was a nice hot sunny day and Edna was happy to be driven around the borders of Northamptonshire and (I think) Warwickshire. It took us about fifteen minutes to get back home.

Walking Frank (the dog) down to the towpath early on Sunday morning brought back many happy memories. I even bumped into Jenny who runs the “Gongoozlers’ Rest” café. Mike and I started our very first narrowboat trip from Braunston back in the mists of time. And when Brent and Carol arrived home we all went to the bistro at Hillmorton locks — again, nostalgia in full force watching the boats go up and down the locks while we had lunch.

Going to work on Monday was uneventful except my boss was back after two weeks holiday so it was a “Manchester” day. Got back to Chesterfield in time to pick up the SAAB and take it to the car dealer and hand it, the keys, new log book and MOT certificate over. End of an era — I loved that car. Even called it “Bjorn” …

Molly started limping on Monday evening so I arranged to take her to the vet who said it was a type of dermatitis, probably brought on by a grass seed in the pad. £62, a fortnight’s supply of antibiotics and a “Buster” collar later, we now have a dog who looks ridiculous and keeps bumping into the furniture. And she’s still limping but I hope she’ll be better soon.

One of our oldest friends, Sue Bower, came to Matlock last Saturday for lunch. She hasn’t been well so I collected her from Sheffield then took her back mid afternoon. While she was here our friend Joy Thrower from Bakewell called in with granddaughter Danielle for Mike to sign Danielle’s passport application.

Sunday was my day for staying in bed — until 9 o’clock!! Didn’t even go to the car boot sale at Tansley.

Incidentally, if anyone is on Skype can you let us know. Now we have broadband, we’ve signed up so can talk to people anywhere in the world and they can even see us as the microphone is also a webcam. Had 45 minutes with the family in Majorca on Sunday — marvellous!

*STOP PRESS* Just had a long email from Vicki Harley on Pem No 6 - here are edited highlights:

“Well thank heavens a woman has taken over a man's work! I have kept looking & looking to see if the website has been updated but no such luck for ages until lately. I have tried to latch on to other people's blogs but it is not the same. You people don't seem to understand the need a girl has to get information from the outside world. It's no good you two just living & enjoying your own lives without a backward thought for us floating voyeurs!

“We are enjoying the Shroppie very much. We are moored a little way along from the 48hrs mooring at Hurleston, at the bottom of the Llangollen. The views are to die for. The Cheshire countryside is wonderful & the Northern Pennines are on the horizon.

“I keep catching the bus into Chester, I love it so much. We have a good mooring where the "Shroppie Shelf" is not a problem with the wheels out & Ian has been able to paint the gunwales & above the water line. It looks lovely.”