The boat 'MISS BAUDET' is a garden, party venue, writers' retreat and HQ for serious meetings with my publisher David

Thursday 28 March 2013

Window Of Opportunity

When will this blinkin' cold weather ease up? It just isn't conducive to practical and artistic boat-related thoughts.

Especially on the Boat For My Potplants, where I'm eager to get going on developing the radio studio using authentic '70's equipment.

Of course I also have to re-fit the motor after its service has been carried out.

And clean the canopy - I can't help notice a spot or two of green mildew having developed over the seasons.

But what I really want to do is find some way of utilising a left-over from the old pre-renovation days - my pair of leaded light windows.

They are too naff to get rid of, I'm sure you'll agree.

There must be somewhere I can put them. 

Monday 25 March 2013

Way Down The Swanny River

What a difference a few days makes. Not long ago I was painting the exterior wall from an apartment's balcony overlooking the River Colne. It was so warm I was down to my t-shirt and nearly went further!

As I looked over I noticed our local family from whom I had saved some blushes - two swans and their adopted goose. Wivenhoe is for sure slightly quirky - we can't even manage a normal cygnet to grace our mud-banks.

Although I was enjoying the view and the sunshine, I was also eager to finish my work and get down to the Boat For My Potplants so that I could give the loo-library a little spring-clean.



Tuesday 19 March 2013

Busy Busy Busy

At last! Some time to myself!

What better way to spend it than preparing the boat for my special guests coming up from The Big Smoke in April? The Editor and Features Editor of a very well-known boating magazine are coming to prepare for an article for their July issue all about The Boat For My Potplants and its delightful host village (or is it town?) of Wivenhoe.

What I thought would be a simple repaint of the windscreen turned out to be a much bigger job when I discovered the amount of moisture in the wood. Never mind - just get on with it Neil, I thought to myself. I'll stop for lunch soon.

So when my hunger couldn't be put off any longer, I pulled out the saucepan from the kitchen cupboard - sorry, galley locker, and was just about to pour the tinned curry in to it when at the last second I just happened to glance .

It was a stroke of luck that I did. I nearly ended up having curried slug.

Mmmm. Yummy. I wonder if I'd have noticed.


Monday 4 March 2013

Motors and Bunting

I was very excited on Saturday when I found some new 'Union Jack' bunting for the boat. I'm technically competent to remove the old and fit the new. That's about as far as my ability stretches.

So on Sunday morning I went to the boat to complete my task. But before I had the time to even get the scissors out, Martin arrived.

He was coming over for the very important removal-of-the-motor that I thought I'd better leave well in the hands of his superior competency and ability.

We - or rather, he - detached whatever bits and bobs were necessary to be detached - and we carefully lifted the 9.9hp motor over the top of the boat, across the gangplank, and into my van, ready for delivery to the Suzuki dealer for its first service.

The 12th April is now focused in my brain as the date I have to have everything ship-shape by. For that's when I will be receiving some very special guests from the boat-publication world so they can complete their special feature about my Boat For My Potplants.

The motor needs to be back in place, of course.
The windscreen could do with a repaint.
The radio studio should be functioning.
The new geraniums have to be planted.

And, to be sure, the British flag bunting will be majestically flapping in the breeze along the side of the potplanters.

Friday 1 March 2013

Notes to Self: ONE and TWO

It's coming up to the time to get the ol' new Suzuki mota serviced. What a pullava! My brother-in-law Martin is coming all the way over from Braintree on Sunday morning to help me get it off the back of the Boat For My Potplants, so that I can take it to the dealer in Brightlingsea (the excellent Boat Park And Ride) people in my trusty old Fiat van.
Inspired by Radio Essex' pirate station at Harwich

Note to self ONE: I must get a trailer one day so that the boat can be transported more easily for times like this. The dealer doesn't have a spare trailer, and I don't have one at all.

Note to self TWO: Get things ready for setting up the radio studio on board BEFORE April the 12th, which is when I have some VIP guests arriving from a top boating magazine to write a feature about my boat and Wivenhoe, for publication in their July issue.

How jolly exciting.