A lovely day today - bright sun and a few clouds scudding across the sky. The morning started when Jasper dragged the Gorse Fox from bed at 06:15. This wasn't too much a problem as he was already awake.
The Gorse Fox did some research and was filling in some new family tree details when the software crashed.
He restarted it. It crashed.
He restored his full backup. It crashed.
He restarted the computer.
He restarted the software. It crashed.
Not a good start. The Gorse Fox contacted the developers using their Live Chat service. Thirty seconds later he was explaining the problem to Linda. A minute or so later, she had a solution. It took the Gorse Fox about ten minutes to follow through and voila, the problem was solved.
The rest of them morning was spent catching up on a few bits of housekeeping, then this afternoon he returned to his research. This was slow but successful. He has driven another part of the Silver Vixen's family back to her 9th great parents. In doing this he found another researcher had driven the same family back beyond 1303!!! The Gorse Fox does not accept this as fact - but will certainly examine what sources are available to see how far he can get.
Monday, July 31, 2017
Sunday, July 30, 2017
Hornet's Nest
The Gorse Fox followed up on some of his blog comments regarding genealogical research. He put a post onto Facebook:
First observation is that there are some very miserable and angry small-minded people out there. The Gorse Fox's advice to them is to crawl back into a hole and fester by yourselves.
Secondly he thought he'd repeat some of the anecdotes that made him smile:
Insert Tongue in cheek
Is it possible to erase other people's trees from Ancestry? I am finding so many bits of research that have no sources or don't pass basic sense checks. As I said in answer to a post the other day I found one woman in my wife's line who was so sturdy she had 10 children after she died. Today I have found, according to another researcher, that her 6th Gt grandfather was born in 1692 and died in 1950. Now, I know she is from sturdy stock - but 258 years seems a good age to die. Is there some way to nuke these trees?
Remove tongue from cheekWell this stirred up a hornet's nest with 193 comments so far. These vary from serious responses (which he didn't really need), indignant and angry comments, and some humorous anecdotes (which is what he was expecting).
First observation is that there are some very miserable and angry small-minded people out there. The Gorse Fox's advice to them is to crawl back into a hole and fester by yourselves.
Secondly he thought he'd repeat some of the anecdotes that made him smile:
- I love the trees where the mother has 32-34 kids....starting when she was 11-12 y.o. all the way to her 160th birthday !!!!
- My favorite is the 4yo who gave birth, the tree owner adamantly insisted (sprinkled with cuss words) there was no mistake!
- One humongous tree I saw went back all the way to God. This "faithful" genealogist was nearly giggling with glee over his extensive research. I tried to avoid being rude and did so with the exception of commenting on his ancestor, the famed Helen of Troy. I learned from his tree that she was born in British Columbia, Canada.
- I know exactly who my parents are, and when they were married. I have them on my tree, along with a copy of their marriage certificate. Someone copied them from my tree to hers, but has my father married to a different woman entirely, getting married in a different state entirely, and she even attached a marriage certificate that has different names on it as her "source" and "proof." I sent a message to her via the Ancestry message and she wrote back that she has the name Bruno in her family and when she saw Bruno on my tree she thought they belonged to her. She even said (and I quote) " I had no idea there were two sets of Bruno." REALLY? Only one Bruno family in all of Italy?!?
- Mine involved a nun who never left the convent - they had married her into their family and given her a lot of children.
- I have found my own grandmother listed on someone else's tree, because apparently her father, James Anderson, was the only James Anderson the tree owner could find.
- I've seen children's births after both parents deaths among other mistake
- I had one that insisted my great uncle had a child 2 years after died and no amount of proof would change her mind.
- I had a DNA match with hint that liked to an ancestor but when I looked at their tree the kids were born before the father.
Saturday, July 29, 2017
All quiet
Bright start but the weather deteriorated and now it's pouring with rain.
This is the sort of day that means you don't really need to make excuses to sit in front of the computer working on the family tree. The Gorse Fox has made lots of progress - and whilst he has only added a few new people to the tree he has found a significant amount of corroborative data.
Two Hats knocked on the door. We had taken in a delivery for them. The Gorse Fox challenged hime "Was that a router humming away last weekend?" He had to admit it was. The package we had taken in was a router table. The Gorse Fox suspects that Tinkerbell will not be too happy with him... evidently he's a bad influence! Two Hats admitted that he can't understand how he's got through without a router in the past.
This is the sort of day that means you don't really need to make excuses to sit in front of the computer working on the family tree. The Gorse Fox has made lots of progress - and whilst he has only added a few new people to the tree he has found a significant amount of corroborative data.
Two Hats knocked on the door. We had taken in a delivery for them. The Gorse Fox challenged hime "Was that a router humming away last weekend?" He had to admit it was. The package we had taken in was a router table. The Gorse Fox suspects that Tinkerbell will not be too happy with him... evidently he's a bad influence! Two Hats admitted that he can't understand how he's got through without a router in the past.
Friday, July 28, 2017
For goodness sake
It is getting near time to hand out some hefty slaps.
The Gorse Fox has just found a researcher who has recorded for one of the Silver Vixen's 6th Gt grandfathers that he was for in 1692 and died in 1950. Now, one can acknowledge that she is from sturdy stock - but a 258 year lifespan should raise a few warning bells!
The Gorse Fox wonders if it is possible to go onto Ancestry.com and erase the trees that have been submitted by people who are evidently too stupid do genealogy.
The Gorse Fox has just found a researcher who has recorded for one of the Silver Vixen's 6th Gt grandfathers that he was for in 1692 and died in 1950. Now, one can acknowledge that she is from sturdy stock - but a 258 year lifespan should raise a few warning bells!
The Gorse Fox wonders if it is possible to go onto Ancestry.com and erase the trees that have been submitted by people who are evidently too stupid do genealogy.
Post
There was post that needed to be sorted. The Gorse Fox has decided to get his DNA tested and filed in with the Family Tree. The sample package arrived on Tuesday and it was time to take the sample, stabilise it, package it up and get it sent away.
On the subject of post, Cousteau-cub had ordered some special leads for he dogs. Again, these arrived on Tuesday. The Gorse Fox got them wrapped and took them to the Post Office to send off. Hopefully, they won't take too long to get to Phi Phi.
Much of the rest of the day has been spent in the metaphorically dusty old Parish Registers (though one suspect that digital images give off very little dust). Finally, the Gorse Fox seems to be making some progress in the verification of the Silver Vixen's "Boult" line... though one or two names are still proving elusive or unreadable.
On the subject of post, Cousteau-cub had ordered some special leads for he dogs. Again, these arrived on Tuesday. The Gorse Fox got them wrapped and took them to the Post Office to send off. Hopefully, they won't take too long to get to Phi Phi.
Much of the rest of the day has been spent in the metaphorically dusty old Parish Registers (though one suspect that digital images give off very little dust). Finally, the Gorse Fox seems to be making some progress in the verification of the Silver Vixen's "Boult" line... though one or two names are still proving elusive or unreadable.
Thursday, July 27, 2017
G-signal
Urban-Cub wasn't feeling well so the G-signal flashed across the sky. The Gorse Fox got into the Silver Vixen's broom-mobile and went across to pick up baby Ellie. (The Silver Vixen's broom-mobile is the only car with the car seat fixture).
The G-force took over and Ellie was a joy for the rest of the day - while Urban-Cub stayed at home to rest.
The Gorse Fox had to pop in to the shops. There is a lesson here. Don't shop on Thursday morning... it's the time that they let all of the Zombies out as they shuffle pointlessly up and down the aisles blocking access for everyone else.
The G-force took over and Ellie was a joy for the rest of the day - while Urban-Cub stayed at home to rest.
The Gorse Fox had to pop in to the shops. There is a lesson here. Don't shop on Thursday morning... it's the time that they let all of the Zombies out as they shuffle pointlessly up and down the aisles blocking access for everyone else.
Wednesday, July 26, 2017
Correct
Well the forecast was correct. The rain started about an hour before the Gorse Fox left for football and it continued until about an hour after he finished. He was soaked. In fact it was so wet he didn't even try to wear his protective glasses - they'd have been a positive handicap today.
As it happens he was asked to play up front as two of our "yellow" players were nursing injuries. He gets a bit light headed when he crosses the halfway line, but decided to risk it. The game played out well. The Gorse Fox scored his first goal within a couple of minutes of the start and we managed to get a 2-1 lead by half time. In the second half, the Gorse Fox scored again and had a handful of shots stopped by the goalkeeper. In the end we rolled out 7-1 winners. A good, though wet, morning!
Back home the afternoon was spent reading through the Parish Registers for Colaton Raleigh in Devon for the years 1718 onwards. At this point the Gorse Fox has read through about 100 pages and extracted about 90 events that could feature members of the Silver Vixen's family. Now he needs to go back and cross reference them with his files. A further 40 pages of the register are available, but he's going boss-eyed at the moment.
The Silver Vixen had her usual Pilates session this morning but stopped off at Urban-Cub's on the way back. The intention was to mind Ellie while Urban-Cub went swimming, but in the end Urban-Cub wasn't feeling well so retired to bed once the Silver Vixen was there to take charge.
As it happens he was asked to play up front as two of our "yellow" players were nursing injuries. He gets a bit light headed when he crosses the halfway line, but decided to risk it. The game played out well. The Gorse Fox scored his first goal within a couple of minutes of the start and we managed to get a 2-1 lead by half time. In the second half, the Gorse Fox scored again and had a handful of shots stopped by the goalkeeper. In the end we rolled out 7-1 winners. A good, though wet, morning!
Back home the afternoon was spent reading through the Parish Registers for Colaton Raleigh in Devon for the years 1718 onwards. At this point the Gorse Fox has read through about 100 pages and extracted about 90 events that could feature members of the Silver Vixen's family. Now he needs to go back and cross reference them with his files. A further 40 pages of the register are available, but he's going boss-eyed at the moment.
The Silver Vixen had her usual Pilates session this morning but stopped off at Urban-Cub's on the way back. The intention was to mind Ellie while Urban-Cub went swimming, but in the end Urban-Cub wasn't feeling well so retired to bed once the Silver Vixen was there to take charge.
Tuesday, July 25, 2017
Making the most
The weather is forecast to to turn very wet over night, so the Gorse Fox was eager to make the most of the fine day and enjoy his football. This particularly so having missed a game on Sunday, when we didn't have sufficient players.
There was a good turn out and in the first hour the Gorse Fox played for the green bibs. This was not a resounding success as we drew the first game but lost the next two. The Gorse Fox did redeem things with a fine goal in the last game, but it wasn't enough to snatch a win.
In the second hour he played for the blue bibs. This was more successful with a 3-0 win, a 1-1 draw and a 2-1 loss. The Gorse Fox did however score another fine goal, so went away feeling quite satisfied. It looks likely that he will get very wet playing tomorrow.
The afternoon was spent back in the branches of the family tree. He has decided that the only way to sort out the anomaly in the Silver Vixen's part of the tree is tree surgery. He is now, carefully, unpicking details and deleting people. The idea is that he will then rebuild that part of the tree so that he can be confident in its accuracy.
Urban-Cub popped round for a while. She an Pistol Pete are looking to buy a house and came to show us the details and explain the deal they hope to strike as first time buyers, using the Government's "Help to Buy" scheme. It looks like a good deal and the house that they are focussed on, looks really nice (and is a mile or so closer to us than their current rental house).
Talking of houses, Cousteau-Cub is packing up her house on Koh Lanta ready to move over to Koh Phi Phi. As the Coventry Hobbit is working, the packing up is left to Cousteau-Cub. She hopes to have a little "sale" later in the week at a friend's hotel. This will get rid some unnecessary stuff and make her a little extra money.
There was a good turn out and in the first hour the Gorse Fox played for the green bibs. This was not a resounding success as we drew the first game but lost the next two. The Gorse Fox did redeem things with a fine goal in the last game, but it wasn't enough to snatch a win.
In the second hour he played for the blue bibs. This was more successful with a 3-0 win, a 1-1 draw and a 2-1 loss. The Gorse Fox did however score another fine goal, so went away feeling quite satisfied. It looks likely that he will get very wet playing tomorrow.
The afternoon was spent back in the branches of the family tree. He has decided that the only way to sort out the anomaly in the Silver Vixen's part of the tree is tree surgery. He is now, carefully, unpicking details and deleting people. The idea is that he will then rebuild that part of the tree so that he can be confident in its accuracy.
Urban-Cub popped round for a while. She an Pistol Pete are looking to buy a house and came to show us the details and explain the deal they hope to strike as first time buyers, using the Government's "Help to Buy" scheme. It looks like a good deal and the house that they are focussed on, looks really nice (and is a mile or so closer to us than their current rental house).
Talking of houses, Cousteau-Cub is packing up her house on Koh Lanta ready to move over to Koh Phi Phi. As the Coventry Hobbit is working, the packing up is left to Cousteau-Cub. She hopes to have a little "sale" later in the week at a friend's hotel. This will get rid some unnecessary stuff and make her a little extra money.
Monday, July 24, 2017
Nice start
It was a nice start to the week. Jasper left the Gorse Fox alone until about 6:30-ish. This was a treat. Once we were up and about the Gorse Fox headed for the study. There was more research required on the Silver Vixen's part of the family tree. He thought he's make a start before Urban-Cub and baby Ellie arrived.
Urban-Cub turned up mid-morning and we had a nice few hours with her and our lovely granddaughter.
Her car-induced doze didn't last for too long and the Silver Vixen took control of the feed that was due. Once we were ready for our own food, the Gorse Fox took control whilst the girls finished their lunch. This meant that the Gorse Fox had an hour or so of one-on-one as she chirped, chuckled, and eventually slept.
They left mid-afternoon and the Gorse Fox returned to the family tree. He has an anomaly somewhere and he needs to resolve it. He suspects part of the problem lies with brother and sister marrying brother and sister but that doesn't explain it all away. He's wondering if he needs to delete a chunk of the tree and rebuild it.
Her car-induced doze didn't last for too long and the Silver Vixen took control of the feed that was due. Once we were ready for our own food, the Gorse Fox took control whilst the girls finished their lunch. This meant that the Gorse Fox had an hour or so of one-on-one as she chirped, chuckled, and eventually slept.
They left mid-afternoon and the Gorse Fox returned to the family tree. He has an anomaly somewhere and he needs to resolve it. He suspects part of the problem lies with brother and sister marrying brother and sister but that doesn't explain it all away. He's wondering if he needs to delete a chunk of the tree and rebuild it.
Sunday, July 23, 2017
Amateurs
The Gorse Fox has spent another day working on the Family Tree and verifying some of the older, dustier information. This has revealed that he had an error and one of the Silver Vixen's nth great grandmothers - Mary Ewings - was in fact the wrong Mary Ewings. Both were in the tree, but he had made the connection wrongly. That is now sorted out.
The other thing he noticed was more clear evidence of the slapdash ways in which people have recorded their data. One example was Richard Ewings. One contributor shows his birth date as 1750... but then supports further information with data from the 1851 census. By then he would be 101. The census record clearly shows the Richard to which they refer as being 79. Dreadful research.
We then look at the twins John and George Hurved. George had a well documented life but the documents researchers propose for John are inconsistent. On examination of the registers, John only survived for two weeks. However, if you believe the researchers he then went on to live a long life after his death.
Another classic is Mary Levermore. She was probably born about 1670. Again one researcher shows her death in 1694... then goes on to record the births of 10 further children subsequent to her death. Don't you just want to hand out some good slaps?
Incidentally the Gorse Fox has not recorded any dates for either of these people. Until he has incontrovertible corroboration it does not get recorded. When it does, then the data sources are provided.
The other thing he noticed was more clear evidence of the slapdash ways in which people have recorded their data. One example was Richard Ewings. One contributor shows his birth date as 1750... but then supports further information with data from the 1851 census. By then he would be 101. The census record clearly shows the Richard to which they refer as being 79. Dreadful research.
We then look at the twins John and George Hurved. George had a well documented life but the documents researchers propose for John are inconsistent. On examination of the registers, John only survived for two weeks. However, if you believe the researchers he then went on to live a long life after his death.
Another classic is Mary Levermore. She was probably born about 1670. Again one researcher shows her death in 1694... then goes on to record the births of 10 further children subsequent to her death. Don't you just want to hand out some good slaps?
Incidentally the Gorse Fox has not recorded any dates for either of these people. Until he has incontrovertible corroboration it does not get recorded. When it does, then the data sources are provided.
Saturday, July 22, 2017
Delivery
The text message had said the delivery would arrive between 07:00 and 10:00. The Gorse Fox made sure he was up and dressed in plenty of time. As it happened, there was no panic. They didn't arrive until about 09:00. No problem, however. The delivery chaps were very nice and very helpful and we now have some nice new chairs in the family room.
Next task was get rid of the old chairs. Four of the six were useless. They had wobbly legs that just couldn't be fixed. Those four found their way to the local recycling centre. The other two will be stored away somewhere (probably in the roof space of the garage) in case they are needed.
The rest of the day was spent buried in family tree research. This was very successful as he managed to push one branch of the Silver Vixen's family back as far as her 9 times great grandfather. He was a William Tucker born in about 1720. The Gorse Fox is certain that he can probably get further back but needs to get to the Parish registers at some point.
Next task was get rid of the old chairs. Four of the six were useless. They had wobbly legs that just couldn't be fixed. Those four found their way to the local recycling centre. The other two will be stored away somewhere (probably in the roof space of the garage) in case they are needed.
The rest of the day was spent buried in family tree research. This was very successful as he managed to push one branch of the Silver Vixen's family back as far as her 9 times great grandfather. He was a William Tucker born in about 1720. The Gorse Fox is certain that he can probably get further back but needs to get to the Parish registers at some point.
Friday, July 21, 2017
Wilts
Friday - it was time to meet up with some old friends. We had arranged to meet earlier in the year, but they were unwell and had to postpone. We headed out onto the Queen's highway - only to spend the first twenty minutes of the journey negotiating the traffic between home and the western side of Chichester. (The sooner they decide on the solution for the road improvements, the better). Once clear of Chichester the roads opened up and we had a very good run until we got to the outskirts of Salisbury. There, everything ground to a halt again. The delays did give us a chance to catch up with the Gorse Fox's little sister. We spent the last hour of the journey on the phone to her, hearing all about her recent trip to see Beloved Aunt in Canada.
Despite the delays we arrived at the Victoria & Albert in Netherhampton about 5 minutes before Mrs Tiggywinkle and Badger.
We had a lovely couple of hours catching up on the latest news from each family and discussing our joint interest in genealogy. The Gorse Fox did get an opportunity to get onto his hobby-horse regarding backups and strategies for protecting data.
The pub features in The Good Pub Guide. Obviously, as we had the car, the Gorse Fox didn't get a chance to try the beer, the food was good. The menu was quite varied and the food was mostly locally sourced (perhaps with the exception of the haddock - which he had).
All too soon we had to part company and head our separate ways. It had been a good place to meet as it worked out about 90 minutes drive for both couples. We had a very quick run back and a quiet end to the day.
Despite the delays we arrived at the Victoria & Albert in Netherhampton about 5 minutes before Mrs Tiggywinkle and Badger.
We had a lovely couple of hours catching up on the latest news from each family and discussing our joint interest in genealogy. The Gorse Fox did get an opportunity to get onto his hobby-horse regarding backups and strategies for protecting data.
The pub features in The Good Pub Guide. Obviously, as we had the car, the Gorse Fox didn't get a chance to try the beer, the food was good. The menu was quite varied and the food was mostly locally sourced (perhaps with the exception of the haddock - which he had).
All too soon we had to part company and head our separate ways. It had been a good place to meet as it worked out about 90 minutes drive for both couples. We had a very quick run back and a quiet end to the day.
Thursday, July 20, 2017
G-Force
G-Force (Grandparents - the fifth emergency service) are on duty today along with Urban-Cub who is enjoying a day with us.
The morning was taken up with the usual admin but once that was over we sat together and chatted for the rest of the day. (The Gorse Fox was working on the family tree in the background).
We heard from Cousteau-Cub with the latest update from Phi Phi. She and the Coventry Hobbit have found accommodation that will accept the dogs, so she is moving over more permanently. He is able to get a work permit and she can get a married person permit that will allow her to stay. This means that they can do another high season out there and accumulate some savings that will allow them to make some more permanent decisions.
The morning was taken up with the usual admin but once that was over we sat together and chatted for the rest of the day. (The Gorse Fox was working on the family tree in the background).
We heard from Cousteau-Cub with the latest update from Phi Phi. She and the Coventry Hobbit have found accommodation that will accept the dogs, so she is moving over more permanently. He is able to get a work permit and she can get a married person permit that will allow her to stay. This means that they can do another high season out there and accumulate some savings that will allow them to make some more permanent decisions.
Wednesday, July 19, 2017
More of the same
After a very loud storm last night, we woke to a fresher and slightly overcast day. The Silver Vixen headed out for Pilates and the Gorse Fox for football.
Football was quite well balanced and a lot easier with a referee to watch over us. (Usually we ref by consent!) The first half was very tight, ending 2-1 to the orange bibs. The second half stretched things a bit further with a 4-2 to the oranges... as the Gorse Fox was playing in orange it was a successful outcome.
The Silver Vixen had a hair appointment this afternoon, so the Gorse Fox spent the afternoon wandering around the oldest branches of the family tree. He suspect a visit to the Family History Centre in Wiltshire may be the only way to dig up more information. He is taking the opportunity, however, to fill in some of the gaps as he finds additional details of siblings or children of siblings.
Football was quite well balanced and a lot easier with a referee to watch over us. (Usually we ref by consent!) The first half was very tight, ending 2-1 to the orange bibs. The second half stretched things a bit further with a 4-2 to the oranges... as the Gorse Fox was playing in orange it was a successful outcome.
The Silver Vixen had a hair appointment this afternoon, so the Gorse Fox spent the afternoon wandering around the oldest branches of the family tree. He suspect a visit to the Family History Centre in Wiltshire may be the only way to dig up more information. He is taking the opportunity, however, to fill in some of the gaps as he finds additional details of siblings or children of siblings.
Tuesday, July 18, 2017
Arborealist
A scorcher today ( for England). Temperature was 29C as the Gorse Fox set off for football. Water would be needed at every opportunity (and sunscreen had been liberally applied).
The teams were picked for the first hour. The Gorse Fox was playing in red and the teams looked a bit skewed against us. Despite this, we were well organised in defence and only lost one goal over the three games... winning each game as we went. The Gorse Fox is a great believer in the conservation of energy and allowed the ball to do the work today - rarely venturing beyond the halfway line.
The second hour saw a change or personnel. Again, three games - and again, despite the odds being against us, we managed to draw two and win one. Overall a very satisfactory morning.
The Silver Vixen was out at a workshop so the Gorse Fox spent the afternoon climbing around among the branches of the family tree. Slowly he is unpicking the story of Pistol Pete's family and he has now discovered that Pistol Pete has some first cousins. What was so intriguing however was to find a family that had essentially lived in one village for over two hundred and fifty years. This made the research a lot easier but did raise some confusion here and there where names were reused.
It's clouded over and is getting quite muggy. Rain is forecast along with some thunder. The Gorse Fox wouldn't be at all surprised if we have a bit of a firecracker of a storm this evening.
The teams were picked for the first hour. The Gorse Fox was playing in red and the teams looked a bit skewed against us. Despite this, we were well organised in defence and only lost one goal over the three games... winning each game as we went. The Gorse Fox is a great believer in the conservation of energy and allowed the ball to do the work today - rarely venturing beyond the halfway line.
The second hour saw a change or personnel. Again, three games - and again, despite the odds being against us, we managed to draw two and win one. Overall a very satisfactory morning.
The Silver Vixen was out at a workshop so the Gorse Fox spent the afternoon climbing around among the branches of the family tree. Slowly he is unpicking the story of Pistol Pete's family and he has now discovered that Pistol Pete has some first cousins. What was so intriguing however was to find a family that had essentially lived in one village for over two hundred and fifty years. This made the research a lot easier but did raise some confusion here and there where names were reused.
It's clouded over and is getting quite muggy. Rain is forecast along with some thunder. The Gorse Fox wouldn't be at all surprised if we have a bit of a firecracker of a storm this evening.
Monday, July 17, 2017
Screen gems
Fabulous weather again today, but the Gorse Fox has been glued to the computer all day. The Silver Vixen went in to Chichester for a regular dental checkup, but the Gorse Fox stayed put.
All the computer time was spent working on the family tree, specifically Pistol Pete's ancestral line. This made a little more complex by a link that the Gorse Fox broke and then isolated a chunk of tree without realising. Thinking he had deleted these people by accident, he had to put them all back... then found they were there as duplicates and had to go through cleaning that up. Eventually, everything was crisp and clear, and the Gorse Fox concentrated on getting some fresh research. Several new people were identified, several generations added to the tree and Pistol Pete's earliest recorded person is now at about 1700.
All the computer time was spent working on the family tree, specifically Pistol Pete's ancestral line. This made a little more complex by a link that the Gorse Fox broke and then isolated a chunk of tree without realising. Thinking he had deleted these people by accident, he had to put them all back... then found they were there as duplicates and had to go through cleaning that up. Eventually, everything was crisp and clear, and the Gorse Fox concentrated on getting some fresh research. Several new people were identified, several generations added to the tree and Pistol Pete's earliest recorded person is now at about 1700.
Sunday, July 16, 2017
New Release
A car alarm split the silence of the night. By the time the Gorse Fox was conscious enough to check it - it stopped. Some time later it shrieked again. This time the Gorse Fox got up and made his way to the side window to see if it was one of our cars. As he opened the blinds the alarm stopped. Again he was unable to pinpoint the source. He went back to bed an waited for the next alarm. There was none, but he was awake and that's how it stayed for the rest of the night.
Football was fun this morning. Despite being on the wrong end of a big score, the Gorse Fox enjoyed himself as he covered every inch of the pitch attacking and defending. Very warm and very sweaty by the end of the game.
By the time he got home an email was waiting for him. It was inviting him to download the new release of the Family Tree Maker software. This was something he had been awaiting. He followed the instructions and was soon running the new release without any significant issues. The software is now installed on both laptop and desktop and the synchronisation of the information appears to be working without incident. Now he can get back to researching Pistol Pete's ancestors.
Football was fun this morning. Despite being on the wrong end of a big score, the Gorse Fox enjoyed himself as he covered every inch of the pitch attacking and defending. Very warm and very sweaty by the end of the game.
By the time he got home an email was waiting for him. It was inviting him to download the new release of the Family Tree Maker software. This was something he had been awaiting. He followed the instructions and was soon running the new release without any significant issues. The software is now installed on both laptop and desktop and the synchronisation of the information appears to be working without incident. Now he can get back to researching Pistol Pete's ancestors.
Saturday, July 15, 2017
Wood and Trees
The morning started with a lie in! The Silver Vixen got up with Jasper and the Gorse Fox made the most of an extra 90 minutes in bed.
The morning was spent on hobbies. The Silver Vixen on her sewing projects and the Gorse Fox out in the workshop. The table top now has nicely rounded edges as does the under frame. A new pile of sawdust bears witness to the effectiveness of the router -vs- wood contest. Everything is now ready to test fit against the existing table's saddle... but is all a bit too heavy to do this without some help. Workshop was tidied up and locked up for the day.
The afternoon was spent deep in the branches of the family tree. For the first time in ages some progress has been made with the Silver Vixen's enigmatic (and dead) grandmother. The Gorse Fox has found her in the 1901 census, confirming much of what he knew. However, it still does not lead him to birth certificate, nor incontrovertible evidence of her parents' names. It was progress though.
The morning was spent on hobbies. The Silver Vixen on her sewing projects and the Gorse Fox out in the workshop. The table top now has nicely rounded edges as does the under frame. A new pile of sawdust bears witness to the effectiveness of the router -vs- wood contest. Everything is now ready to test fit against the existing table's saddle... but is all a bit too heavy to do this without some help. Workshop was tidied up and locked up for the day.
The afternoon was spent deep in the branches of the family tree. For the first time in ages some progress has been made with the Silver Vixen's enigmatic (and dead) grandmother. The Gorse Fox has found her in the 1901 census, confirming much of what he knew. However, it still does not lead him to birth certificate, nor incontrovertible evidence of her parents' names. It was progress though.
Friday, July 14, 2017
Joints
Friday saw nothing in the schedule. The Gorse Fox decided he would retire to the workshop. He had to master the dovetail jig once and for all. It's not that it wasn't cutting the dovetails - it was more about how to ensure everything lined up correctly. After a number of test cuts, he decided that a small spacer was needed. This would ensure the correct offset from the guide pins. Sure enough once the spacer was brought into play, the tails and pins lined up beautifully and the joints were right every time.
The Gorse Fox returned to making the under frame for the table prototype. Now he could fashion the joints he wanted he could get on with the jon in hand. It didn't take long to get the tails and pins cut and then he had to measure up for the central supports. This took a little fiddling. He had originally thought of a sliding dovetail that only went halfway... but in the end made do with a half lapped mortise and tenon. This latter joint isn't as tight as it could be, but as the whole thing will be disassembled once tried, it doesn't really matter.
Next up will be to try the under frame on the saddle of the existing table.
The Gorse Fox returned to making the under frame for the table prototype. Now he could fashion the joints he wanted he could get on with the jon in hand. It didn't take long to get the tails and pins cut and then he had to measure up for the central supports. This took a little fiddling. He had originally thought of a sliding dovetail that only went halfway... but in the end made do with a half lapped mortise and tenon. This latter joint isn't as tight as it could be, but as the whole thing will be disassembled once tried, it doesn't really matter.
Next up will be to try the under frame on the saddle of the existing table.
Thursday, July 13, 2017
People who lunch
Thursday started with the usual admin and household chores. Nothing particularly exciting to mention. Once the nice driver from Ocado had delivered the week's shopping we got ready to pop out. Urban-Cub had suggested we meet for lunch. That seemed like a very genteel idea.
We pulled up at The Old Stables in Fontwell just as Urban-Cub was getting baby Ellie out of her car. Exquisite timing.
The restaurant was quiet so we were able to pick a spot where the baby buggy would not get in anyone's way and we had a bit of room to spread out. We had lovely lunch and Ellie was very well behaved - only crying for a few moments as her bottle was being prepared.
We sat and chatted for a couple of hours the Urban-Cub headed home and the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox pottered on to one of the garden centres. The objective here was not to do with the garden, but rather to get the car cleaned. They do an excellent hand wash, dry, and wax for £6.
We left them to it for 15 minutes and wandered through the plant displays. It all looks very lush at the moment and the colours were really striking. However, we weren't really in the market for bedding plants. We did, however, pick up a lovely rose that will take pride of place in one of our pots (that held an Acer which never really took).
News from Thailand is that Cousteau-Cub's dog Bruno is unwell and will have to have daily insulin. This is a great shame as he's a handsome beast, but evidently in decline. Lots of positive thoughts going across to Cousteau-Cub right now.
We pulled up at The Old Stables in Fontwell just as Urban-Cub was getting baby Ellie out of her car. Exquisite timing.
We sat and chatted for a couple of hours the Urban-Cub headed home and the Silver Vixen and Gorse Fox pottered on to one of the garden centres. The objective here was not to do with the garden, but rather to get the car cleaned. They do an excellent hand wash, dry, and wax for £6.
We left them to it for 15 minutes and wandered through the plant displays. It all looks very lush at the moment and the colours were really striking. However, we weren't really in the market for bedding plants. We did, however, pick up a lovely rose that will take pride of place in one of our pots (that held an Acer which never really took).
News from Thailand is that Cousteau-Cub's dog Bruno is unwell and will have to have daily insulin. This is a great shame as he's a handsome beast, but evidently in decline. Lots of positive thoughts going across to Cousteau-Cub right now.
Wednesday, July 12, 2017
Evens
Still grey this morning, but the rain had stopped and the paths were drying up.
The Silver Vixen had her Pilates and the Gorse Fox had his football. We managed to split the teams quite evenly today. The game started and it soon became clear that it was going to be very close and very tight. A flukey goal from the yellow team saw them take the lead, but our orange team struck back within minutes. The Gorse Fox was in his usual defensive position, but having intercepted a pass, he pushed the ball through to his midfield and followed up with an overlap along the right wing. The ball was pinged back to him and fired it across the goalkeeper into the far corner of the net. It was 2-1, and that's how it stayed for a while before the yellows hauled things level. The second half was very much a case of cat and mouse... but there were no further goals.
Honours even.
Afternoon was spent on the family tree. Lots of general progress, though no further generations detected. The Gorse Fox's research was interrupted by a FaceTime call from Beloved Aunt (with help from his Sis). Sis comes home overnight, but it was nice to chat with BA before she left.
The Silver Vixen had her Pilates and the Gorse Fox had his football. We managed to split the teams quite evenly today. The game started and it soon became clear that it was going to be very close and very tight. A flukey goal from the yellow team saw them take the lead, but our orange team struck back within minutes. The Gorse Fox was in his usual defensive position, but having intercepted a pass, he pushed the ball through to his midfield and followed up with an overlap along the right wing. The ball was pinged back to him and fired it across the goalkeeper into the far corner of the net. It was 2-1, and that's how it stayed for a while before the yellows hauled things level. The second half was very much a case of cat and mouse... but there were no further goals.
Honours even.
Afternoon was spent on the family tree. Lots of general progress, though no further generations detected. The Gorse Fox's research was interrupted by a FaceTime call from Beloved Aunt (with help from his Sis). Sis comes home overnight, but it was nice to chat with BA before she left.
Tuesday, July 11, 2017
Snap
A grey start to the day, though no rain to start with.
The Gorse Fox started the day with a wander through the deals available on Amazon Prime Day. Lots of deals, but nothing of interest.
Being Tuesday, the Gorse Fox had football. There was a good turn out. In fact we had a full house of 32 players so we ended up with 8 a-side. The Gorse Fox was lucky, he was in team of very good ball players and we played some very nice football. Our "yellow" team won the first game 1-0, the second 2-0 and drew the last game 2-2. The middle game was somewhat foreshortened when a mighty yell floated across the from the next pitch. Big John had crashed to the ground and all the nearby players had heard the load snap as his ankle broke. First aiders were soon there and he was eventually rolled away in a wheel chair and taken to A&E.
The second hour was a different bunch of lads. This time the Gorse Fox was playing in red. Again, the team was made up of good ball players and we won the first game 4-0, the second 1-0, but lost the last game 2-1. The Gorse Fox was very happy with his game today. He was very focussed and his timing was spot on. No goals for him today, but certainly some very good football all round.
As he writes this, the rain has set in. A Thai-style red curry is simmering on the stove.
The Gorse Fox started the day with a wander through the deals available on Amazon Prime Day. Lots of deals, but nothing of interest.
Being Tuesday, the Gorse Fox had football. There was a good turn out. In fact we had a full house of 32 players so we ended up with 8 a-side. The Gorse Fox was lucky, he was in team of very good ball players and we played some very nice football. Our "yellow" team won the first game 1-0, the second 2-0 and drew the last game 2-2. The middle game was somewhat foreshortened when a mighty yell floated across the from the next pitch. Big John had crashed to the ground and all the nearby players had heard the load snap as his ankle broke. First aiders were soon there and he was eventually rolled away in a wheel chair and taken to A&E.
The second hour was a different bunch of lads. This time the Gorse Fox was playing in red. Again, the team was made up of good ball players and we won the first game 4-0, the second 1-0, but lost the last game 2-1. The Gorse Fox was very happy with his game today. He was very focussed and his timing was spot on. No goals for him today, but certainly some very good football all round.
As he writes this, the rain has set in. A Thai-style red curry is simmering on the stove.
Monday, July 10, 2017
Jigged
Another early start, courtesy of Jasper. It's the Gorse Fox's own fault for not looking at the time, however. He 'felt' it was around seven-ish so got up when Jasper started wandering over the bed. In fact it was only just after six. Oh well, must learn to check the time (or teach Jasper to check the clock).
The Silver Vixen is out for the day with her friend Kathie. They are making the most of their membership of West Dean gardens. This gives them free entry and an opportunity to wander round taking photos, chatting, and stopping to drink tea.
The Gorse Fox used the time to play in the garage. He read the instructions (yes really) for the dovetail jig and finished putting it together and mounting it on a base. Then he tried the profile follower in his old router. This fitted, but the screws - though in the right place - were the wrong size and he didn't have any alternatives. This meant detaching the new router from the router table. He knew this would fit as it was made by the same company as the jig and mentioned in the instructions.
There were several interrupts as neighbours dropped by for a chat - but he was able to potter on once they had gone. It became clear that the jig is a little fiddly and will obviously become easier with practice.
Firstly you have to align the horizontal piece of wood through the top clamp. Then the vertical piece of wood through the front clamp. The latter has to align with the top of the horizontal wood... but needs to be offset from the left hand side. There are some guides to get the offset right - but they are only ok if the wood is the right size and exactly covers a fixed number of slots in the comb. The comb, which sits atop the two pieces of wood, acts a template which the router will follow. This too needs adjusting so the depth of the cut is exactly right. It felt a bit like patting your head and rubbing your tummy.
Fortunately, the Gorse Fox had several pieces of scrap wood. It was the fourth attempt before he got the process right. He suspects that this will be something that always needs practise and several attempts before trying on a project component itself.
The Silver Vixen is out for the day with her friend Kathie. They are making the most of their membership of West Dean gardens. This gives them free entry and an opportunity to wander round taking photos, chatting, and stopping to drink tea.
The Gorse Fox used the time to play in the garage. He read the instructions (yes really) for the dovetail jig and finished putting it together and mounting it on a base. Then he tried the profile follower in his old router. This fitted, but the screws - though in the right place - were the wrong size and he didn't have any alternatives. This meant detaching the new router from the router table. He knew this would fit as it was made by the same company as the jig and mentioned in the instructions.
Firstly you have to align the horizontal piece of wood through the top clamp. Then the vertical piece of wood through the front clamp. The latter has to align with the top of the horizontal wood... but needs to be offset from the left hand side. There are some guides to get the offset right - but they are only ok if the wood is the right size and exactly covers a fixed number of slots in the comb. The comb, which sits atop the two pieces of wood, acts a template which the router will follow. This too needs adjusting so the depth of the cut is exactly right. It felt a bit like patting your head and rubbing your tummy.
Fortunately, the Gorse Fox had several pieces of scrap wood. It was the fourth attempt before he got the process right. He suspects that this will be something that always needs practise and several attempts before trying on a project component itself.
Sunday, July 09, 2017
Lazy day
Weather is gorgeous again today - clear blue skies and mid 20s. Perfect. Again, Jasper was keen to make the most of it, so the Gorse Fox was up before 06:30.
There was no football today. We could not get sufficient players for two teams so decided to have a Sunday off. As it happens, that was convenient as Pistol Pete was working and so Urban-Cub came round with Ellie to spend much of the day with us. This meant that much of the day revolved around feeds, nappy changes, cuddles and naps.
The Gorse Fox had decided early on that there would be no woodworking today, so he was able to sit and enjoy the family time. Mind you, he did spend much of that using his laptop to do further research on Pistol Pete's family tree. It was quite fruitful as he was able to push back a further generation in several families and was also able to fill in more gaps in the overall story. Very satisfying. (He also managed to put his dovetailing jig together, but resisted playing with it).
As an aside, the Gorse Fox's sister is currently visiting Beloved Aunt in Canada. She has been particularly poorly and Sis thought a visit was in order. It seems she has done well as Agent Mulder managed to get her an upgraded suite at the hotel where she is staying... though she'll spend most of the week with Beloved Aunt.
There was no football today. We could not get sufficient players for two teams so decided to have a Sunday off. As it happens, that was convenient as Pistol Pete was working and so Urban-Cub came round with Ellie to spend much of the day with us. This meant that much of the day revolved around feeds, nappy changes, cuddles and naps.
The Gorse Fox had decided early on that there would be no woodworking today, so he was able to sit and enjoy the family time. Mind you, he did spend much of that using his laptop to do further research on Pistol Pete's family tree. It was quite fruitful as he was able to push back a further generation in several families and was also able to fill in more gaps in the overall story. Very satisfying. (He also managed to put his dovetailing jig together, but resisted playing with it).
As an aside, the Gorse Fox's sister is currently visiting Beloved Aunt in Canada. She has been particularly poorly and Sis thought a visit was in order. It seems she has done well as Agent Mulder managed to get her an upgraded suite at the hotel where she is staying... though she'll spend most of the week with Beloved Aunt.
Saturday, July 08, 2017
Breadboard
Another lovely day. Jasper was determined to make the most of it, dragging the Gorse Fox from bed at 06:00. Never mind, there were YouTube videos to watch - the Gorse Fox was planning to build the table prototype. He wanted to look at examples of making a breadboard edge - that was the objective for the day.
The Gorse Fox headed for the garage.
The breadboards were cut. The mortise was milled into the edge, then slowly the tenons were formed in the boards that had been joined yesterday. Unfortunately the boards were somewhat bowed as the Gorse Fox no long has a planer/thicknesser but as this is only a prototype, he wasn't too worried. Slowly the breadboards were sized and fitted. This was a slow process, but it finally went together.
The Gorse Fox learnt several things. The first was that the tenons were a fraction too long and this left a tiny gap at the edge of the board. More importantly he learnt that the mortise was too wide and tenon too thick. This meant that the pressure of the bowed table top was enough to crack the side of the mortise. A useful lesson.
A text arrived mid-morning. Screwfix had his dovetail jig in store. He wandered round and as he walked in, Jenny (the manager) shouted to the back for Jo to go and get the Gorse Fox's order. Obviously he has been there so often she now knows him by name. The dovetail jig will come into its own tomorrow (he hopes).
Meanwhile, Urban-Cub and baby Ellie popped round. She left Ellie with us while she went and did her weekly shop. This is usually delivered, but ASDA at Ferring had an IT problem and couldn't make any deliveries today.
The Gorse Fox headed for the garage.
The breadboards were cut. The mortise was milled into the edge, then slowly the tenons were formed in the boards that had been joined yesterday. Unfortunately the boards were somewhat bowed as the Gorse Fox no long has a planer/thicknesser but as this is only a prototype, he wasn't too worried. Slowly the breadboards were sized and fitted. This was a slow process, but it finally went together.
The Gorse Fox learnt several things. The first was that the tenons were a fraction too long and this left a tiny gap at the edge of the board. More importantly he learnt that the mortise was too wide and tenon too thick. This meant that the pressure of the bowed table top was enough to crack the side of the mortise. A useful lesson.
A text arrived mid-morning. Screwfix had his dovetail jig in store. He wandered round and as he walked in, Jenny (the manager) shouted to the back for Jo to go and get the Gorse Fox's order. Obviously he has been there so often she now knows him by name. The dovetail jig will come into its own tomorrow (he hopes).
Meanwhile, Urban-Cub and baby Ellie popped round. She left Ellie with us while she went and did her weekly shop. This is usually delivered, but ASDA at Ferring had an IT problem and couldn't make any deliveries today.
Friday, July 07, 2017
I see a blue floor...
and I want it painted white (to sort of paraphrase the Rolling Stones).
The Silver Vixen left early to go to see Urban-Cub and accompany her and Ellie to the surgery for her next set of immunisations. The Gorse Fox and Jasper were left to their own devices.
The Gorse Fox headed straight off to B&Q (leaving Jasper in charge). There was wood to acquire ready to build the prototype of the new dining table. Back home he got started and marked up the boards that would make the table top. Then he cut 90 biscuit slots into the boards and cut pocket holes with his jig. Slowly the boards were joined. The biscuit held them in place and level, the pocket screws held them together. No glue was involved as he want to be able to disassemble the whole thing when finished.
As he finished assembling the tabletop, Two Hats and Tinkerbell got back from their morning out. He enquired what the latest project was, and when we were going to fit the lateral joist in his garage. We agreed to do it immediately.
Moving tools and ladders into his garage we got started, having learnt our lessons last week. The first brace was up in no time and the joist was already quite firm. We started on the joist brace for the wall that separates our garages. The first hole was drilled without incident. The second was drilled without apparent incident. The third coincided exactly with the hole and bolts we had fitted last week - so needed to be moved. Soon everything was up and we started to clear away. It was then that we realised that as the drill penetrated the adjoining wall it had knocked some paint pots off a shelf. All but one survived. Unfortunately the one that didn't was almost full. Two litres of white paint spread themselves down the wall, across the floor and over some of the Gorse Fox's tools.
Not a good result. We cleaned up as best we could, but decided that the best bet was to allow it to set and then skim it off the floor.
The Silver Vixen left early to go to see Urban-Cub and accompany her and Ellie to the surgery for her next set of immunisations. The Gorse Fox and Jasper were left to their own devices.
The Gorse Fox headed straight off to B&Q (leaving Jasper in charge). There was wood to acquire ready to build the prototype of the new dining table. Back home he got started and marked up the boards that would make the table top. Then he cut 90 biscuit slots into the boards and cut pocket holes with his jig. Slowly the boards were joined. The biscuit held them in place and level, the pocket screws held them together. No glue was involved as he want to be able to disassemble the whole thing when finished.
As he finished assembling the tabletop, Two Hats and Tinkerbell got back from their morning out. He enquired what the latest project was, and when we were going to fit the lateral joist in his garage. We agreed to do it immediately.
Moving tools and ladders into his garage we got started, having learnt our lessons last week. The first brace was up in no time and the joist was already quite firm. We started on the joist brace for the wall that separates our garages. The first hole was drilled without incident. The second was drilled without apparent incident. The third coincided exactly with the hole and bolts we had fitted last week - so needed to be moved. Soon everything was up and we started to clear away. It was then that we realised that as the drill penetrated the adjoining wall it had knocked some paint pots off a shelf. All but one survived. Unfortunately the one that didn't was almost full. Two litres of white paint spread themselves down the wall, across the floor and over some of the Gorse Fox's tools.
Not a good result. We cleaned up as best we could, but decided that the best bet was to allow it to set and then skim it off the floor.
Thursday, July 06, 2017
YOLO
Another fabulous day with temperatures in the high 20s. The Gorse Fox is really enjoying this. Not so much because of the bright sunshine and hot weather (which he loves) but more so the clear blue skies. He finds this so much more uplifting than the grey and overcast weather we can get.
After the morning admin, the Gorse Fox adopted the view of YOLO (he believes the youth of today use this anagram for "you only live once" - though suspects that many Buddhists would argue this at length). The Gorse Fox was not looking at this from a philosophical point of view... but more a case of pushing life's boundaries. To this end he downloaded the latest software updates for Family Tree Maker (FTM) with utter abandon. Seeing that everything worked without any apparent hitch he decided that he should continue to live life on the edge.
With that in mind he swept the Silver Vixen up and took her to John Lewis's for a cup of coffee, and ice cream, and to replace some broken plates. (Yes, the Gorse Fox is known for his romantic gestures).
With that box ticked, he then swept her round to the new Aldi store in Chichester. This was the climax of the morning. It was unlikely that either of us could stand much more excitement. In truth Aldi was a disappointment. The prices may have been marginally lower and there were some interesting offers, but not enough to drag us back with any regularity. As an aside, it also seemed to be filled with zombies.
Back home the Gorse Fox returned to the family tree and the Silver Vixen went to potter in the garden. The new version of FTM has a slightly different licensing structure. This means that he can have a copy of the software on his main MAC and on his MacBook - with both linked to the same tree. This is a vast improvement as it gives him better portability when doing research. The software is now installed on the MacBook and everything appears to be hunky dory.
After the morning admin, the Gorse Fox adopted the view of YOLO (he believes the youth of today use this anagram for "you only live once" - though suspects that many Buddhists would argue this at length). The Gorse Fox was not looking at this from a philosophical point of view... but more a case of pushing life's boundaries. To this end he downloaded the latest software updates for Family Tree Maker (FTM) with utter abandon. Seeing that everything worked without any apparent hitch he decided that he should continue to live life on the edge.
With that in mind he swept the Silver Vixen up and took her to John Lewis's for a cup of coffee, and ice cream, and to replace some broken plates. (Yes, the Gorse Fox is known for his romantic gestures).
With that box ticked, he then swept her round to the new Aldi store in Chichester. This was the climax of the morning. It was unlikely that either of us could stand much more excitement. In truth Aldi was a disappointment. The prices may have been marginally lower and there were some interesting offers, but not enough to drag us back with any regularity. As an aside, it also seemed to be filled with zombies.
Back home the Gorse Fox returned to the family tree and the Silver Vixen went to potter in the garden. The new version of FTM has a slightly different licensing structure. This means that he can have a copy of the software on his main MAC and on his MacBook - with both linked to the same tree. This is a vast improvement as it gives him better portability when doing research. The software is now installed on the MacBook and everything appears to be hunky dory.
Wednesday, July 05, 2017
Unbalanced
Another scorching day with temperatures up in the hight 20s. The Gorse Fox can put up with this!
Football was hard work today. The sides were a little unbalanced - at least that's how it turned out. The problem was that some of our players really couldn't move around in the heat. If the ball was more than two feet from their two feet, they just left it. At half time it was still pretty even, but in the second half (when we actually had astatue man advantage) things rather collapsed and we lost heavily.
Back home the Gorse Fox spent most of the afternoon working on the family tree. This proved to be very fruitful and several additional generations were identified in various branches of Pistol Pete's tree.
The early evening saw a summer hog roast for the residents. The is was held by Berkeley Homes and made good use of the Italian Gardens (which we overlook) in the centre of the development. It was a lovely relaxed affair and an opportunity to mix with neighbours from all over the estate. The Gorse Fox wonders how many developers run these sorts of events... Berkeley have held Christmas and summer events every year since we moved in.
The Coventry Hobbit and Cousteau-Cub moved over to Koh Phi Phi today. Cousteau-Cub will be shuttling back and forth, but the Coventry Hobbit is staying put for now in order to make the most of his new job there.
Football was hard work today. The sides were a little unbalanced - at least that's how it turned out. The problem was that some of our players really couldn't move around in the heat. If the ball was more than two feet from their two feet, they just left it. At half time it was still pretty even, but in the second half (when we actually had a
Back home the Gorse Fox spent most of the afternoon working on the family tree. This proved to be very fruitful and several additional generations were identified in various branches of Pistol Pete's tree.
The early evening saw a summer hog roast for the residents. The is was held by Berkeley Homes and made good use of the Italian Gardens (which we overlook) in the centre of the development. It was a lovely relaxed affair and an opportunity to mix with neighbours from all over the estate. The Gorse Fox wonders how many developers run these sorts of events... Berkeley have held Christmas and summer events every year since we moved in.
The Coventry Hobbit and Cousteau-Cub moved over to Koh Phi Phi today. Cousteau-Cub will be shuttling back and forth, but the Coventry Hobbit is staying put for now in order to make the most of his new job there.
Tuesday, July 04, 2017
Balance
It was another fabulous summer's day on the South Coast. Jasper was eager to make the most of it and was dragging the Gorse Fox down the stairs at 06:30. The Gorse Fox is naturally an early riser, so wasn't too troubled by this.
By eight Jasper was fed and watered and out patrolling the grounds. The Gorse Fox had bacon cooking in the pan and was about ready for the eggs to join in. The kettle was boiling ready for the Silver Vixen.
There was no queueing at the station to trouble the day, no standing on the train, no fighting to get on to the tube, no traffic jams. Today is the third anniversary of the Gorse Fox retiring from Starfleet... and he still thanks the heavens every day for his good fortune.
There were no reports to submit. There were no teleconferences. There were no objectionable (or nice) clients.
There was, however, football. The Gorse Fox headed across to Worthing and joined in the weekly shenanigans. Today had a degree of balance to it. The Gorse Fox played for the yellow-bibs and lost the first three games (though we had played very well). Then, in the second hour, he played in yellow again, and won all three games. As he said, balanced.
By eight Jasper was fed and watered and out patrolling the grounds. The Gorse Fox had bacon cooking in the pan and was about ready for the eggs to join in. The kettle was boiling ready for the Silver Vixen.
There was no queueing at the station to trouble the day, no standing on the train, no fighting to get on to the tube, no traffic jams. Today is the third anniversary of the Gorse Fox retiring from Starfleet... and he still thanks the heavens every day for his good fortune.
There were no reports to submit. There were no teleconferences. There were no objectionable (or nice) clients.
There was, however, football. The Gorse Fox headed across to Worthing and joined in the weekly shenanigans. Today had a degree of balance to it. The Gorse Fox played for the yellow-bibs and lost the first three games (though we had played very well). Then, in the second hour, he played in yellow again, and won all three games. As he said, balanced.
Monday, July 03, 2017
Tidy up
After the work in the garage on Saturday, today was dedicated to a bit of a tidy up. Nothing too radical, you understand. After all, there's more work planned and it would be silly to stow everything away just as the Gorse Fox needs it. It was important, however, to get the shelves back up and move all of the items back off the floor. The Gorse Fox took the opportunity to rearrange a few things on the way (so no doubt he won't be able to find them when he needs them).
The Silver Vixen was out with one of her friends, so the Gorse Fox was left to his own devices. It was a shame she was out because we got a call from Cousteau-Cub and the Gorse Fox was able to have a good long chat with both her and the Coventry Hobbit. It looks as if he is starting a new job on Koh Phi Phi and Cousteau-Cub will shuttle back and forth as required. Plans aren't set in concrete but the suspicion is that they will stay in Thailand until October or next March.
The Silver Vixen was out with one of her friends, so the Gorse Fox was left to his own devices. It was a shame she was out because we got a call from Cousteau-Cub and the Gorse Fox was able to have a good long chat with both her and the Coventry Hobbit. It looks as if he is starting a new job on Koh Phi Phi and Cousteau-Cub will shuttle back and forth as required. Plans aren't set in concrete but the suspicion is that they will stay in Thailand until October or next March.
Sunday, July 02, 2017
Spellbinding
It was a glorious day again. Just a few iffy clouds to punctuate the blue sky. Temperatures were very comfortable in the mid-20s.
There was a tournament being played at the Arun Sports Arena and almost every pitch was in use. There were people everywhere. We managed to get our usual game in, though it did start 30 minutes later than usual. The Gorse Fox had used this delay to do some more family tree research on Pistol Pete's family. He's making good progress but suspects there's lots more to find.
Football was difficult as the sides were uneven, made more so by our striker deciding he wished to play in goal during the second half. He's not a great striker - but he's a worse goalie. Our half-time 3-2 winning position became about a 12-4 deficit by the end of the game. The Gorse Fox did manage to score a couple along the way, but found the whole thing rather irritating.
The afternoon saw us heading across to Brighton to meet up with the Silver Vixen's cousin, Trevor (Rick Wakeman) and his wife Sue. They have been doing some renovations in the kitchen, but despite the fact they are not finished, invited us for dinner. As ever, their hospitality was warm and the dinner was lovely. This, however, was just the prelude. We had tickets, you see.
We headed down into the town and parked behind the art college (free after 6pm). We strolled across to sit in one of the squares, soaking up the sunshine and enjoying a coffee before wandering along to the Theatre Royal. The Gorse Fox first saw Ellie Brookes when she sang with Robert Palmer in Vinegar Joe at a pub called The Salisbury, in Barnet. This must have been 1970-ish. He has little or no recollection of the event, but knows that he he was hooked on her voice ever since. Vinegar Joe broke up and Ellie Brookes now performs with her own backing band, and even at the age of 72 looks and sounds fantastic.
The show was simply spellbinding. The performed many of her past hits and blended in some new songs and covers.
We had tracks such as: Pearl's a Singer, Don't Cry Out Loud, Fool if You Think It's Over, Nights in White Satin, Lilac Wine, Roadhouse Blues, Night Moves, Purple Rain, Gasoline Alley, and many more.
The Gorse Fox knew he would enjoy the concert. What he wasn't expecting was a concert that turned out to be one of the very best he has ever been to. Simply stupendous.
There was a tournament being played at the Arun Sports Arena and almost every pitch was in use. There were people everywhere. We managed to get our usual game in, though it did start 30 minutes later than usual. The Gorse Fox had used this delay to do some more family tree research on Pistol Pete's family. He's making good progress but suspects there's lots more to find.
Football was difficult as the sides were uneven, made more so by our striker deciding he wished to play in goal during the second half. He's not a great striker - but he's a worse goalie. Our half-time 3-2 winning position became about a 12-4 deficit by the end of the game. The Gorse Fox did manage to score a couple along the way, but found the whole thing rather irritating.
The afternoon saw us heading across to Brighton to meet up with the Silver Vixen's cousin, Trevor (Rick Wakeman) and his wife Sue. They have been doing some renovations in the kitchen, but despite the fact they are not finished, invited us for dinner. As ever, their hospitality was warm and the dinner was lovely. This, however, was just the prelude. We had tickets, you see.
We had tracks such as: Pearl's a Singer, Don't Cry Out Loud, Fool if You Think It's Over, Nights in White Satin, Lilac Wine, Roadhouse Blues, Night Moves, Purple Rain, Gasoline Alley, and many more.
The Gorse Fox knew he would enjoy the concert. What he wasn't expecting was a concert that turned out to be one of the very best he has ever been to. Simply stupendous.
Saturday, July 01, 2017
Workshop
The Gorse Fox has been working in the workshop/garage all day. He has had the chance to work with Two Hats. We had come up with the idea of installing an additional joist across the garage. This would provide additional support in the middle of the existing (longitudinal) joists. These existing joists are so long that they are actually spliced to provide extra length. The additional lateral joist would lift and support these - and will give the Gorse Fox a fixing point for his pulley.
Yes, the Gorse Fox hadn't forgotten about the pulley. In fact, in order to do all this work, we had to fold away the workbench that Gorse Fox had built... for the first time.
It was nice to see that the whole thing worked as originally planned and the whole thing folded in to the 4 inches that had been allowed.
Actually we spent the whole day solving the problems and installing the lateral joist for the Gorse Fox. We ran out of time to install a similar joist for Two Hats, but we have now solved the problems and know what we need to do to repeat the process next week.
We did discover how hard the walls were... and finished off two drill bits in the process. Needless to say the whole thing took longer than expected, but these things always do!
It was nice to see that the whole thing worked as originally planned and the whole thing folded in to the 4 inches that had been allowed.
Actually we spent the whole day solving the problems and installing the lateral joist for the Gorse Fox. We ran out of time to install a similar joist for Two Hats, but we have now solved the problems and know what we need to do to repeat the process next week.
We did discover how hard the walls were... and finished off two drill bits in the process. Needless to say the whole thing took longer than expected, but these things always do!
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