Experiences

The real enemy?

2012-02-04T20:48:00.004Z

Wot no otter

No wonder the otter are looking elsewhere!

New pub sign ?

2012-02-04T12:19:00.005Z

And very good it is too !

Off the menu: The pump plate for Top Totty beer, which was banned from Parliament's bars after a complaint from Labour shadow minister Kate Green

Despite never having even seen the pump in question – and the bar not receiving a single complaint – Miss Green yesterday stood up in the Commons chamber to demand it be removed from sale.

Last night, however, her stance provoked a backlash from men and women alike who branded her 'humourless' and criticised her 'knee-jerk puritanism'. Slater's Ales, meanwhile, the ale's family-run Staffordshire brewery, said the outcry had seen its orders double.

The £2.70-a-pint beer was banned from the Strangers' Bar, where MPs can take guests, within an hour of Miss Green's complaint. Leader of the House Sir George Young intervened to rid Parliament of what he called 'offensive pictures'.

Miss Green, MP for Stretford and Urmston in Greater Manchester, brought up the issue at business questions in the Commons, where she called for a debate in the House on 'dignity at work in Parliament'.

Getting there!

2012-01-25T11:11:00.002Z

Anglers win battle in 3 year war for water industry transparency

The Angling Trust's legal arm Fish Legal has won an important victory in its campaign to make England and Wales' biggest polluters come clean about what they put into our rivers, lakes and seas, as well as what they pump out.

Following a 3 year battle and concerted attempts by water companies to prevent an appeal, Fish Legal has finally managed to get the case referred to the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU). The Judge at the Upper Tribunal (UT) in London has prepared some legal questions to ask the CJEU to help decide whether water companies are "public authorities" under European legislation, and therefore subject to public scrutiny.
Fish Legal acting on its own behalf and as the legal wing of the Angling Trust with its 350,000-strong membership of angling clubs and individuals, has been battling to challenge a series of decisions, firstly by the Information Commissioner, and then the Upper Tribunal in an earlier case which held that water companies are not public authorities and therefore not covered by European Legislation and UK law - which meant their filing cabinets could remain shut.
As long ago as 2009, Fish Legal asked water companies for information on sewage discharges and clean-up operations at the thousands of combined sewer overflows (CSOs) in England and Wales. Two companies - United Utilities and Yorkshire Water - said they were not "public authorities" and therefore did not need to provide the information by law. United Utilities took about 2 years to get the complete information to Fish Legal, whose lawyers believe the information should be available by right and not just at the whim of the water companies.

The Judge's decision to refer the case to the European courts is exactly what Fish Legal wanted and is the next step in getting the companies to open up to inspection by anyone who wants to know what their local company is doing to their watercourses or beaches.
The Judge will ask the Court of Justice of the European Union to answer questions which help to understand what a "public authority" is in European legislation and whether bodies like water companies are included.
Justin Neal, Head Solicitor for Fish Legal said: "it has taken 3 years to get to this position and we may have to wait another two years for the European Courts to provide answers to these questions. Nevertheless, we hope that common sense will prevail and that they will conclude that the privatisation of the water industry didn't take information out of the hands of the general public."
Leading barrister, David Wolfe, who provided the legal advice and representation for FL, commented, "I have been pleased to assist Fish Legal in getting the case the CJEU. I am optimistic that the CJEU will give an answer which will help everyone wanting information from water companies and other privatised utilities."
Mark Lloyd, Chief Executive of the Angling Trust and Fish Legal said: "Water Companies should not be able to hide what they are getting up to. Water quality and quantity affect us all, and our legal team are committed to doing all they can to get access to this vital information not just for anglers, but for everyone who cares about the state of our rivers and coasts. This case could take five years for us to win, but it will be of benefit to generations of anglers and environmental campaigners."
Notes to Editors
1.Fish Legal and Emily Shirley v ICO and United Utilities, Yorkshire Water and Southern Water, was heard at the Upper Tribunal (UT) in London on 10th January 2012.
2.Fish Legal is the legal arm of the Angling Trust and takes legal action throughout the UK on behalf of its membership of angling clubs, riparian owners and fisheries. More information at www.fishlegal.net

Media Contacts
Mark Lloyd 07973 468198 or mark.lloyd@anglingtrust.net

Dave Mason

2012-01-16T10:41:00.001Z

Get well soon

Just to let those of you who haven't heard, angling friend of many Dave Mason was taken into hospital late last week after suffering a severe stroke /brain bleed.
He will be in hospital for a long time and is currently in a critical care unit.

Please don't contact Dave's 'phone or email.

This and that

2012-01-15T19:54:00.001Z

Clearout

As expected, a little difficulty with Santander, hopefully to be sorted by the end of the coming week. Good job I have direct access anyway, bills to pay.

Anyway whilst looking through and clearing out the old photo's and "rubbish" I found an old sale agreement.
On the day of the house clearance by the charity St Francis Hospice I was getting reports from the driver as he made 3 trips back to the warehouse, that his boss was quite excited by what was coming in on the van.

Particularly she was interested in the furniture. This consisted of 2 wardrobes and a dressing table and a sideboard, all in walnut. Apparently it's all the rage in the Brentwood area!!
They were in surprisingly good condition I have to say, because with 5 kids clambering over it for may years and once in particular I recall, swinging on the door of one of the wardrobes pulled it over and trapped one of my brothers underneath, they did take some knocking about.
We used to have a matching dining table, but after years of taking the top off to put our slate bottomed snooker table on the frame it became the worse for wear, particularly also from the butt end of many cues, in a just about big enough dining room, denting and cracking the veneered top.

Anyway back to the agreement which was between the Times Furnishing Company Kingsway LondonWC2 and my Mum, dated 21st November 1950 , the bedroom suite had a price of £56 and the dining room suite £46.10shillings, also a full 4 foot 6 bed at £16.17 shillings
All payable at £1.9 shillings a month for a total of £124.11 shillings, including a service charge which I assume was for delivery to our first house on Harold Hill.
8 years plus on the never never!

No sign of what my dad working as a glazier at that time, was earning though.

At the gate at 18months

First Harold Hill house 45 Stratton Road

My first bike! at No1

Otter

Nah, I'll leave that to others, but some only repeat hearsay and no hard facts, so I'll let them get on with it.
One thing for certain, they won't get anywhere with their approach, but, I'm enjoying the bites!!

Chapter closes

2012-01-10T06:02:00.001Z

The end

It would have been Mum's 89th birthday today, so I shall be raising a glass or two during the day.

It also brings the end to 59 years of the Boney family home in Harold Hill.
Last night I handed the keys over to Havering Council and said goodbye to the house that had seen very many happy times for my 3 brothers and myself, some of which I have written about in this blog.

For this, one of the most disrupted years of my life, time wise that is, and which gave me a chance to enjoy my Mum's company far more than I would have done being a 3 hour drive away, I'm pleased to say it's ended. Time now to move on.

Loads of things for Pauline and myself to do, particularly our world travel exploits, just booked a European river cruise to start it off.
I certainly need to get out on the banks a lot more too, so we shall see what the year brings.

Only Santander to sort out first tomorrow.

Barbel Society News

2012-01-04T09:42:00.003Z

Press release 3rd January 2012

The Barbel Society is delighted to announce that the 2011 online auction in aid of the Research and Conservation projects undertaken by the Society, raised almost six thousand pounds, with generous donations from tackle companies and fishing days with noted anglers such as Bob Roberts, Martin James, Chris Ponsford and Ian Welch.

"This funding enables us to carry on with the valuable conservation work we are wholly or partly funding on many of the UKs barbel rivers, as well as some ground breaking research into barbel and barbel fisheries"said Pete Reading, BS Research and Conservation Officer
"We raised almost nine thousand pounds this last year, combined with the annual Barbel Society and Roach Club Fundraiser on the Hampshire Avon last autumn"

The Society would like to thank the following donors of lots to the auction

Andy Sliwa Rods
Billy Clarke Tackle, Sheffield
Bob Roberts
Coarse Angling Today
Chris Ponsford
Stephen Harper of Harper Fine Angling Books
Christchurch Angling Club
Climax Tackle, Sheffield
Dave Brown
Dave Mason
Dave Steuart
Don Caliendo
Dynamite baits
Fishing Magic
Fred Crouch
Gary Mills Mills Tackle
Gerry Higham
Glyn Gomersall, Three Rivers Baits
Graham Marsden
Ian Welch
International Centre for Birds of Prey
Kevin Clifford
Martin James
Nutrabaits
Pete Reading
Phil Buckingham
Phil Smith
Predator Publications
Rich Frampton
Richard Hewitt Fish & Fly
Ringwood and District AA
Rob Burt
Steve Derby
Steve Pope
Wickersley Angling Centre

Research and Conservation projects: Where the money goes

In the last five years, the Barbel Society has funded, or part-funded, the following projects, supporting both habitat work of real conservation value, and positive research into barbel and barbel fishery management;

Stocking of the River Dane; following pollution of the river, the BS made a grant to a local club to help establish barbel populations.

Stocking of the River Aire; the BS made a grant to a small club to help improve barbel populations on the river.

Dorset Stour Barbel Project; in partnership with local clubs and the EA, the Society raised over five thousand pounds towards habitat improvement works on the river, involving the reintroduction of gravels, and construction of fry bays.
Work on a weir at Throop was recently completed, and further works are planned.
The EA and the BS placed 9000 small barbel into the middle reaches of the river in the last three years as part of the project.

Arborfield Weir Project; the Society provided several thousand pounds worth of gravel and materials to support this EA led Award winning project on the River Loddon.

Bransford Project; The Society worked in partnership with the EA and consultants to skylight a stretch of the Teme near Worcester, bringing life-giving light to the river, as well as providing improved bank stability. Unstable willows were pollarded and coppiced, and woody debris placed in the river, along with planting of fresh willow pollards to retain bank collapse.

St Patricks Steam Project; the Society paid for a fish survey and report on this Thames tributary, and will support the resulting habitat works.

Bournemouth University Research Project; the Society has funded a major piece of research work, which involves a review of all current barbel research work and tank experiments into competition between barbel and other species, both of which have now been published.
The University is also carrying out a scale reading study, using scales provided by the EA and BS members. This study will be the largest of its kind, and will provide information on growth rates and population structure for many UK rivers.
A database of all available barbel-related research is to be compiled over time by the University.

Barbel and gravels; the Society is helping to fund a PhD student researching the effects of barbel on gravel mobility and structure.

River Cherwell Project; the Society is working in partnership with the EA and The Wild Trout Trust, providing funding to provide in stream cover for fish on this Thames tributary, in the form of large tree trunks, woody debris and live hanging willows.

Hampshire Avon habitat works; using funds raised in conjunction with the Avon Roach Project, the Society has removed redundant iron pilings from the river, and has several thousand pounds earmarked for further habitat improvements.

Barbel Society Handling Code; with help from film maker Hugh Miles, the Society will be producing a DVD and downloadable resources to help educate anglers in the safe handling of barbel, which will be provided free to clubs, tackle shops and other outlets
.
All these activities require funding, which has been provided by the generosity of major tackle manufacturers, tackle shops, fishing clubs, Barbel Society members and the angling community.

Happy new year

2012-01-01T13:38:00.000Z

Didn't get out to fish, half expected that though.

Had a few in the White Hart last night, but stuck to one brew rather than going along the row.

I've found that some mixes of real ale affect the bowels when you have 4 or more different brews!!

Having our Christmas goose in a couple of hours along with all the trimmings, wine's open ready, Christmas pudding steaming away, glass of beer in hand.

Getting myself ready for a fight with Santander, their reputation goes before them,and not getting an appointment to close my Mum's account until 9th January, isn't starting off my preconceived (weekend paper complaints) thoughts about them too well!

Cheers, I'll be back

This year

2011-12-28T10:05:00.001Z

River record

Well done to Jerry Gleeson on his 14lb 8oz barbel from the Goyt on the 23rd December.

In Yorkshire

But may be too expensive for them !

The Yorkshire branch of the Institute of Fisheries Management (IFM) are organising a one-day seminar, with the EA's support, to examine the issues of predators in greater depth.
The IFM is a non-profit organisation controlled by members sharing a common interest in the modern management of recreational and commercial fisheries.
Topics for the day will be broadly organised into fish-eating birds, seals, otters and less acknowledged predators such as signal crayfish.
After each session there will be time for you to question the panel of presenters.
The venue is the conference centre at Goole Leisure Centre on Saturday 18 February 2012, between 09:00 and 17:00.
The IFM will be charging attendees a small fee (£10). Tea. coffee and a buffet lunch will be provided.
For more information contact the event organiser, Mike Lee careers@ifm.org.uk

Fishing

Just a bit to sort out still, but if the weather continues for the foreseeable future, I shall have some catching up to do on the river, maybe the Thames when I make my last trip to Harold Hill.
I'll try and squeeze at least one trip to the Trent before year end.

Game over
Last mention of the little man............ ever!
I see a certain obnoxious little Yorkshireman claims to have been given early retirement.
Rumour on the grapevine is, that it's not for the reason he gives!!

Last for the year

Unless I am able to get out for a fish, this will be my last blog for 2011.
Lots of memories to store for me and piles of old family photo's to organise, including this the first time I think I've seen it. My Mum & Dad, 3rd May 1947.

Together again!

So to everybody, have a great 2012, may it be a fit and healthy one for you all, with plenty of fish to fill your net.
My 2012 is going to be the very best for a while I'm sure.

Another chapter closes

2011-12-24T09:50:00.014Z

23/12/11

Mum's funeral yesterday at 11:00 and it all went very well, plenty of family in attendance and a very good service not too religious and a bit of music.
She came into the chapel with Nat King Cole's Unforgettable.

Her favourite song was played whilst we were having the "quiet" few minutes of reflection, I say quiet, it was Jennifer Rush's Power of love.

I just about got through reading the following poem from the pulpit early on in the ceremony

She's gone: David Harkins

You can shed tears that she is gone
or you can smile because she has lived.

You can close your eyes and pray that she’ll come back
or you can open your eyes and see all she’s left.

Your heart can be empty because you can’t see her
or you can be full of the love you shared.

You can turn your back on tomorrow and live yesterday
or you can be happy for tomorrow because of yesterday.

You can remember her and only that she’s gone
or you can cherish her memory and let it live on.

You can cry and close your mind,
be empty and turn your back
or you can do what she’d want:
smile, open your eyes, love and go on.

Finally Glen Miller's Moonlight serenade. Rest in Peace Mum

Waiting over

2011-12-12T09:13:00.001Z

Mum

Kathleen Ella Boney
10 January 1923 - 11 December 2011

Winter on the way?

2011-12-04T10:49:00.012Z

Nah!
Wide awake at 5:30 this morning very tempted to have a trip down to the Trent, in the end I lie there listening to the tawny owls calling and couldn't be arsed to stir myself for the 1 hour journey.
I think I'll write off the rest of this season, and hope my enthusiasm returns next season.
Need to keep an eye out in the tackle store though, another mouse trapped!

President Fred's bit

I have to say reading Fred Crouch's piece a few times, what he has to say has some real merit, it would be good to see if anybody has a counter view.

In the garden
A rather neglected garden this year, although we had a good crop of lettuces, tomatoes, carrots, courgettes, radish and spuds. Some of the lettuces, and radish as big as golf balls are still in the ground, and a few peppers being slowly eaten by the insect life.The "orchard" was wiped out just after the fruit had set by a very sharp wind blown frost.
Bird life is beginning to return including a good few male pheasants but not our regular Chinese one.....yet!
A rare visitor to the garden spotted this morning on a couple occasions already, a female bullfinch, and a great tit inspecting a nest box, probably for spiders rather than for next years nest I'm sure. Four female blackbirds doing the territorial thing only one male to be seen.

Last Friday

Had a very good session with the International Drinking Society" boys" in a Fullers pub, The Telegraph, off Moorgate in the City of London.
Stuck to the "Pride" so I was good, had a very good lunch too, recommend their confit of duck leg.
All ol'boys relatively fit probably see at least most of them during next year!Got my first Christmas present too.

DIY

After some trepidation as I'm not on ounce of a handy man and after 37 years of home ownership took the leap into the unknown and changed for the first time a leaking washer in the bathroom hot tap, the furthest tap from the water cut off.!!
Total cost £11.12.
Good job I took the whole piece along to Travis Perkins, it wasn't just a rubber washer as it was ceramic! Phew no leaks to report.

Something for the weekend

A man and his wife were awoken at 3:00 am by a loud pounding on the door.
The man gets up and goes to the door where a drunken stranger, standing in the pouring rain, is asking for a push.
"Not a chance," says the husband, "it is 3:00 in the morning!"
He slams the door and returns to bed.
"Who was that?" asked his wife..
"Just some drunk guy asking for a push," he answers.
"Did you help him?" she asks.
"No, I did not, it is 3:00 in the morning and it is pouring rain out there!"
"Well, you have a short memory," says his wife. "Can't you remember about three months ago when we broke down, and those two guys helped us?
I think you should help him, and you should be ashamed of yourself!"
The man does as he is told, gets dressed, and goes out into the pouring rain.
He calls out into the dark, "Hello, are you still there?"
"Yes," comes back the answer.
"Do you still need a push?" calls out the husband.
"Yes, please!" comes the reply from the dark.
"Where are you?" asks the husband.

"Over here on the swing," replied the drunk.

A view from The President

2011-12-03T09:31:00.000Z

What do you think?

http://barbelsociety.blogspot.com/

Ah well!

2011-11-23T13:16:00.001Z

Mum

"It won't be this week or in the next fortnight, it may not be until next year" the words of mum's consultant !!

Mum doesn't know the facts yet, not certain if she should be told, I'll wait for guidance.
The hint to her that she will have to move out of Whipps Cross to a "nursing home" got usual her stubborn reaction.
"I'm not going into one of them places, you know what they do to the oldun's in those places, and anyway I don't want to be stuck with a lot of old'uns!
Bloody newspapers have a lot to answer for, frightening the lives out of our older folk with their sensationalist reporting of one off occasional misdemeanours!
So the next move, a family meeting to discuss what's in mum's best interests.
We shall see!
So Harold Hill bound again, fishing takes a big back seat, glad I got the magazine finished though one less hassle.

Some light relief

Meeting up with the old boys of the International Drinking Society in a Fullers pub in the City on Friday starting at 11:30am for our pre Christmas do.I like a pint of Fullers, should I really let my hair down with ESB, or take it gently with Pride, choices..choices, I'll see how the mood takes me!!

Barbel Society and Angling Trust

2011-11-20T21:14:00.006Z

Angling Trust Celebrates its 1,500th Member Organisation

http://barbelsociety.blogspot.com/

The Barbel Society: Research and Conservation Auction 2011

2011-11-16T23:57:00.000Z

Auction Lots

Bidding will start tomorrow 17th November

Two weeks later!

2011-11-13T13:44:00.009Z

Mum
I've been back and forwards twice since my last report and apart from a promise of a full body scan and a doctor who hasn't the decency to return calls I have nothing to report.
Mum's comfortable, not certain if the break has started healing or if the cancer is spreading, so another trip this week to bend some ears at Whipps Cross.

Your nicked
Received my first ever speeding notice coming back from Mum's, 79mph on the A1 at around Grantham, I know the camera is there, I think my mind was on other matters!!

Fishing

Did I tell you I had a day on a muddy puddle with youngest brother?
Not a brilliant day one bloody goldfish, if I wanted to catch non natural fish I'd sit next my garden pond!!
No plans for an outing yet,still finalising Barbel Fisher with the layout guys.

Doppelgängers
Had this one passed to me, so it 's here for you to share

For today

The European Union made it possible

Some years ago, a small rural town in Spain twinned with a similar town in Greece.
The Mayor of the Greek town visited the Spanish town. When he saw the palatial mansion belonging to the Spanish mayor he wondered how he could afford such a house. The Spaniard said; "You see that bridge over there? The EU gave us a grant to build a four-lane bridge, but by building a single lane bridge with traffic lights at either end this house could be built".
The following year the Spaniard visited the Greek town. He was simply amazed at the Greek Mayor's house, gold taps, marble floors, it was marvellous. When he asked how this could be afforded the Greek said; "You see that bridge over there?"
The Spaniard replied; "No."

Phew!

2011-10-23T12:26:00.001+01:00

Mum

Well, after returning home a week last Friday, I get a call from Mum to tell me that she was having trouble getting about, her arthritic left leg was "collapsing"!
Having just returned from a lunchtime pint or two in the White Hart, I didn't fancy the 3 hour journey down so said we'll be down tomorrow.
That was last Saturday, we arrived to find her unable or unwilling, to get out of her armchair to get herself a cup of tea so spent the weekend looking after her hand and foot,so to speak.
Come Monday we decided to get out of the house,primarily to top up the larder,but to have a look for a knee support bandage.Her community nurse being due any minute and effectively making her move from the chair
So we got one, like the rugby players seem to wear,the idea to give her confidence.
Anyway on arrival home we were greeted with an ambulance and the nurse, "your Mum has broken her arm"!!!
Apparently as the nurse was changing her bandage, Mum dropped her arm and it bashed the edge of the table and broke.Simple as that!
So we're still here, she's in Whipps Cross hospital because Queens A&EU was closed for emergencies.
We must now await a relocation to a Rehabilitation Unit, in Hornchurch, so that they can assess her for future care. Possibly, but more likely probably not at home.

Typing this out on my newly acquired Dell laptop and a wireless "dongle". Much needed as I'm in the middle of editing articles for Barbel Fisher.

Fishing

Likely to be fishing an estate lake this week with my youngest brother, visiting time permitting etc!
So, c**p and b***m on the horizon although I'm told there are some nice perch in the lake.

Rugby

Just managed to see the last 32 minutes of the match, if all that went before was as good, it was a terrific spectacle,well done to France for turning up and making a game of it.

Fishing Magic

My latest piece on the Barbel Society Research & Conservation day I had with with Steve Pope

http://www.fishingmagic.com/features/coarse_fishing/general_fishing/15450-barbel-fishing-a-guided-experience.html

Winter drawers on!

2011-10-15T07:40:00.004+01:00

Frost

Sun just starting to show, and I've woken to the first frost of the autumn this morning.

Skoda 1.9tdi

Just flew through it's MOT . At 130,000 miles it looks like this motor has a year before the need to spend money.
Cam belt replacement will be due at the mileage rate I doing, 18,000 this year, brakes are on their final adjustment, and the offside front suspension arm rubber bush is deteriorating....apparently!

Share buying

For the first time I've actively sought out and bought shares, through my bank, of a company I have been following for some time.I've had the give away's that the building Society's did when they became loss making banks and didn't keep them long.
1000 shares in an AiM quoted company based in Manchester dealing with Construction & Materials.
This should be fun to watch and who knows may lead to another "hobby", not for dabbling with though, more long term pension investment, I think.

Fishing

On hold for the time being !!

Busy Week

2011-10-09T13:58:00.000+01:00

Not a lot to report

We went down to Mum's Saturday, to be close by following the sudden death of her sister on Friday.
So matter of fact, almost as if death is acceptable when you get old! I suppose it is ,but not to me ....yet!
She's now suffering the symptoms of a new pain killer drug Tramadol, this one makes her heave, better than "lost control of legs" or "coloured barbed wire moving across the floor, I suppose"!!
At least they are dealing with the pain, the other drugs weren't.
Stayed with her until Wednesday,as we had to get back for our 38th wedding anniversary night out and Pauline's 60th birthday on the 6th.
On arrival home a telephone message to say the funeral was on Friday.
Already !!
We had the Thursday night at the Forest Pines Hotel, near Brigg and just off the M180 and dinner in their 1857 restaurant
http://www.qhotels.co.uk/pdf/1857%20summer%2014%206%202011.pdf
.We were very well looked after and an excellent meal. Highly recommended, but not for tight Yorkies or Yellow Bellies!
Up early next morning for the trip down to Hendon Crematorium close to the North Circular, for an 11:30 funeral.
Mum wasn't fit enough, but her elder sister Maggie, her with the broken leg, was determined to go.
So she spent the ceremony and the tea and sandwiches after, supported on both sides by two strapping lads!
Met up with some of the family, all of whom are getting old, we like most families only now seem to meet at weddings and funerals, so ageing is noticeable!

Anyway back to Mum's via the chippy to take home skate and chips.
Up early to watch rugby, great game with the Irish & Welsh, the early morning spoilt only by watching the next performance by the English!!
Off home again straight after the match, Mum seems Ok.........for the moment.

Just bits'n' pieces

2011-09-30T16:50:00.065+01:00

From Martin James

Good day everyone this Thursday evening 29th September at 7-o'clock there is a programme on BBC Radio Lancashire recorded at Redmire Pool. The programme can be heard for 7 days via the internet.

This is the link.Kind regards Martin

http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/programmes/genres/sport/player click on listen again, then click on the day of the programme on the on screen calendar then scroll through to At The Water's Edge

Would you believe it?

Wandered into Staples the other day to find a replacement for my old friend the office chair, hydraulics packed up a while a go and now the wheels keep falling off. Found one Ok so off to the checkout.

Lady in front has just bought herself a shredder.
Checkout Girl "Would you like our sooper dooper special guarantee ?"
Customer. "No thanks"
Checkout Girl " Would you like some sheets?"

Customer "Sorry"
Checkout Girl "Would you like some paper?"
Customer " What for a shredder ?"
Floor manager holding my boxed chair "No she wouldn't"
Checkout Girl sarky like "Ah, he said you don't"

I suppose she can read the script at least !!

Self assembly chair self assembled, no parts left!!

Not wishing to copy a feature

But!

Ben ?

Monty?

Phil!

Fished today

Up at 4am and took a trip over to Droitwich today to meet up with 14 others( there should have been 22) for an Cannon versus Fodder fish-in at a muddy puddle complex.
This is an annual event that started with the guys on Fishing Magic, but is now arranged by a private website ( set up to keep the multi name riffraff out).
After breakfast of the works, we had the draw and a fiver in the pot and started fishing at 10am
Well, we let the Fodder (younguns) win this time, they have never won before.
They weighed in something like 170lbs to the Cannon (olduns) 140 odd lbs.
Christ it was hot, so I managed to top the tan up and caught a mixed bag of fish too.

A great day out meeting old and new friends for a 5 hour match, looking forward to next years already

How?

2011-09-30T16:06:00.001+01:00

Rest in peace Auntie Betty

I had a few things lined up for here, and just a couple of words for one or two of the usual suspects, but decided to have a lunchtime drink in the White Hart.

Arriving back after a quick few pints, I was quickly sobered up by a telephone message from my cousin Stephen. Not somebody I speak to on a regular basis, at best at weddings and funerals, so my thoughts were the worst.

I called him back, and he was at the Registry of Births Deaths and Marriages in Camden, and he had to tell me that his Mum, and my Aunt Betty, Mum's youngest sister at 84, had died suddenly this morning.

This on the eldest sister Maggies 91st birthday, and the need to tell Mum.

So I took the bull by the horns and called Mum.
At 62, this is the first time I have had to spread bad family tidings. My Dad's news was passed on by my youngest brother
It was hard, I have to say it appeared to affect me more than my mum, apart from saying "that's the start, everything comes in 3's in my family", she then went on to ask how my next door neighbour was, and me and Pauline.
She was sorry I had to tell her !
What can you say ?
I had to get off the'phone quick while I was still almost sensible.
Anyway a bit composed, I called my brother who is local to mum,to tell him the news. He'll be the watching eyes.
A short time later call from Maggies daughter Joyce, confirmed that the news was doing the rounds and as long as both mum's, the remaining sisters, had been advised at least they could talk to each other.

Betty on the left, Maggie & Mum

Down for a some fishing in Droitwich tomorrow, but can't make up my mind whether to head there or Harold Hill !
I'll wait and see.
Just another family get together to come!!

All quiet on the eastern front

2011-09-21T22:55:00.004+01:00

New Book
Received my personal copy of Phil Smith's book in the post today Targets set and Achieved, looks quite good production wise, although I'll ignore that there is a duff reproduction of the colour photo in "grey & white" of Phil and his Teme barbel on the end sheet

Some cracking photo's, particularly his BIG tench picture which I first saw when Phil showed it to me at the Barbel Show, and I guessed at 12lb. He was justifiably proud of what I personally think is his best fish, at my first glance through the book.

Time to find some peace and quiet to try and read the almost 180 pages in one go.

You can buy the book direct from Phil see http://www.philsmithangler.co.uk/

Chelsea - Fulham

After a cracking game at the weekend to draw against Man City, I'm sort of half glad that Fulham lost on penalties tonight in the League Cup. Too many games to play otherwise, so perhaps a chance for another adventure in Europe!

Well done

2011-09-20T06:24:00.009+01:00

ABF

How remiss of me, congratulations on yet another charity fish-in which has raised over £900.
Funds going to the Barnsley Hospice, the type of set up close to my own heart at this time.

Just one personal question for you ABF officials though.
How on earth can you expect to gain any credibility, when you rely on one certain individuals whims to such an extent ?
Having just looked at your site, it appears as a result of his backing (HPS/HK), you accept his spreading of clueless innuendo and lies,and allow his blog link on your front page.
Surely an embarrassing situation to allow yourselves to get into!

Autumn is upon us

2011-09-17T14:51:00.001+01:00

Didn't finish my last entry!

Birds

The swallows and martins now appear to have left the Lincolnshire Wolds.
I was surprised to still see so many about, only last week.
They now have headed off on their way down to Africa.

The pheasants are now appearing in the garden after a few months missing off wandering the fields, and decorating the roads! Perhaps they are after sanctuary?
Do I hear shotguns!
Sitting on the banks of the Kennet earlier in the week, apart from the constant flight and cheeee cheeee of the kingfishers up and down the river, and the grumpy wren in the snowberry bush next to me. .

The chattering in the surrounding bushes and trees was endless, the tits are flocking up, mainly long tailed, but plenty of the great,coal and blue varieties have joined them.
Oh yes, I was still accompanied by my friendly "rail", but it wasn't at all happy to have a brown rat feeding on its the spilled hempseed.

Fishing..at last!

2011-09-15T16:20:00.008+01:00

A proper guiding experience !

Wednesday last week, 'phone call to Peter of Casterline Tackle Louth, can you do me a gallon of casters by next Monday.....silence..........err....err..... it'll be a struggle, won't have enough older white maggots,but I'll have a go. Never mind Peter whatever you can do, I'll be in Monday.
Come Monday at 9am a call, " it's Peter Casterline, your casters, it's going to be a struggle, not enough damp in the air, I will struggle to do a gallon" That's ok Peter, I'll call in later, "make it late, but before 5:30"
Anyway, I turn up just after 5, he's looking glum outside the shop, I'm the only customer he's seen since lunchtime, "only done about 6 pints!" Ok mate that'll be alright, my guide will have plenty.
"It's about six and a half Fred, how do you want them packed. Two bags will do I say, what's the damage.
"£16 "
Blimey,that won't pay the rent will it I said "knowhere near he say's"
At this point I make a mental note, must spend more money with Casterline, because with out this little tackle,model and wickerware shop, I'm stuffed with a journey to Lincoln or Grimsby to get maggots/casters.

9pm time for bed, need to get up about 4am to drive about 4 hours down to the Kennet.
I'm 62 , and do you think I could get to sleep?
No! I still get that anticipation on occasions!
Eventually I do, and then at one o'clock I'm awake, think maybe 3/4 hours sleep, must need a pee. Probably not, a dribble later and I'm back in the folds!
That's it, drift off, wake up drift off, wake up.
Sod it, I'll wake her up in a minute tossing and turning, I'm up.
Leave the house at 3.22am.
7am arrive at destination, a car already in the parking area, so I 'phone Steve my guide, I'm here.
" Great, ok I'll come and meet you"
You stay there,your getting old, I'll get my stuff together and see you down there.

My guide is Steve Pope, I bought a day with him via the Barbel Society Research & Conservation Auction, not the last one but the one before! (The next one will start on the 17th November.)
I just haven't been able to tie up a date since then, with all that's been going on.
Which reminds me, I still have a day with Martin James to sort out.
This trip is for two days, one of which is guided, the other me fishing on my own.

The Swim

To cut a long story short, Steve acted in much the same way as the old boy's must have done, in the Victorian day for their masters, he continuously bait droppered all day long, even baited my hook.
My bunch of banana's are not built to glue 4 casters to a fine hair without everything getting stuck!! But, I got there with practice!!
Steve worked like a Trojan, and this is what he always does for his paying customers.
Far exceeding my only other experience of "guiding".
The result?

My first

... Five barbel, my very first from the Kennet at 6lb3ozs, two around the 4/5lb mark, an 8lb 4oz and the best at 9lb6ozs

I did hope to beat my pb, as the fishery is well capable of doing this,but it was not be this time around.

Maybe another time.

This truly was a different experience, and can be highly recommended by me to anybody who wants to gain that little edge on a small river. http://www.stevepopebarbelfishing.co.uk/?page_id=7

I also met Fred Crouch, he drove down for a chat, we chatted for a while, he tells me he is planning an article for me for Barbel Fisher.
He will be giving his, probably controversial, but logically thought view, on why there are a good few years of young barbel missing in some of our rivers.
It relates to the consequences of the method some anglers have used to attract their fish, but I'm saying no more!

Mum
Stopped off at Mum's last night on my way back, for B&B, she's good at the moment, but suffering the funny colours with Ibuprofen as well!
I told her keep taking the tablets, it probably the old stuff still in the system!

Visitor to the garden

Noted to feed on fuscia, but I needed my book to identify not one but two larvae, they were of the elephant hawk moth

Elephant hawk moth in the making

Update

2011-09-07T18:35:00.004+01:00

Mum
I've not been out fishing, had some days with mum and a visit to her Oncologist.
He laid it on the line in a very good way, I have to say I'm very much impressed with this side of the Romford NHS.
Despite her near deafness, my mum, I think, as I do, fully understands the position.
The back pain she has been suffering from over the last few months, is likely to be the spread of cancer to the bones.
They could put her through a bone scan, but if the cancer has spread, it can only be treated by radio therapy, and they agree with my thoughts, that would not serve her well at this time of her life and general health.
So with nothing more they can do, the oncologist has kept her on his list but doesn't need her to visit the hospital unless she wants to.
After some experiences on the pain killers she has been taking in various forms, (paracetamol, fentoyl and percocet )" bright colours and funny shapes" in her eyes,she's now going onto something potentially less of a problem to her eyes, but potentially to her kidneys, but less of a problem for her, iboprofen at the Oncologists off the record approval
The Oncologist has recommended more palliative care, either at home or preferably in a home/hospice.
She doesn't like the idea of the later, but is happier that they are not looked at as places to go to die, but places for care and comfort.
She "celebrated" with a gin and tonic that evening
We shall see, an appointment with specialist nurses is being made through her doctor as I write.
In the meantime, I have some thinking to do on how much time I need to spend with her, not for her benefit but for mine!

Neighbours
My next door neighbour June, after 20 odd weeks in hospital, has an operation lined up for this Friday.
Jim the wasp dodger, finally saw his oncologist, and has been put on call back in 4 months, so he's happier now.
And Al, has had his new hip fitted, he was out of hospital nearly as fast as he went in, and looking forward to his regular pub visit.
So all could be well in St Peter's Close.....for the moment!

Fishing
I'm not in the right frame of mind for fishing and haven't been for sometime, but I have a two day trip booked next week to try my hand at pb improvement...... again.

Hexed!!

2011-08-31T17:38:00.009+01:00

Fishing

Well that put the kibosh on it, didn't it ?

The daft look of a pb triumph!!

A long journey taking me four hours before I wet my line, half expecting to up my pb on a river stretch noted for a run of good fish, and even hinting at it in my last blog, put me down for a 12 hour blanking session!!
I wasn't the only one blanking mind you, but there you go, no excuses.
I'll just have to wait a couple of weeks for another go.
Stopped for B&B at mum's place to help shorten what was already a very long day.
In the meantime maybe an evening trip to the middle Trent is needed. Tomorrow sounds good.

Is this a Water rail?

Accompanying me for part of my 12 hour stint was this little bird.
I've never seen one before, but I think it is a water rail. Too much of a beak for a moorhen ? Olive coloured feet, but the rest of the colouring doesn't look quite right from my books, so it could be in moult, or a juvenile.
Or....a juvenile moorhen!
Any views?

Daft Joke
An American fighter plane was flying over Afghanistan when the pilot noticed a flying carpet on each side of his plane, both armed with a machine gunner on board.
Sensing danger he shot them down.
Back at base he got a right bollocking.

Apparently they were Allied Carpets.

There are more but I keep them for my next blank.

Nothing like a water rail!!!

A proper one

Apologies

2011-08-25T09:13:00.003+01:00

Sorry for no updates things going on locally with aged neighbours,that needed a little input and time.
One of the old boys has been in agony with a need for a new hip, and at 80plus needs a little confidence boost as he expects "not to come out of a NHS hospital"
The other one in his mid 70's, he who I looked after when he broke his leg the other year, being chased around the garden by an angry swarm.Currently having radio therapy for the prostate problem and keeps putting off further tests because he wants to attend the Christening next month of his first grand child.
And poor old June from next door, now "celebrating" 20 weeks in hospital following operations around her stomach which have left her with festering wounds internally which just don't seem to want to heal.
Visited her yesterday in Nottingham, having been moved there after 17 weeks in Lincoln. Looking brighter and probably a better menu has helped.
No wonder my culdesac has a local name in the pub of St Peter's Close. Gods waiting room!!

Fishing
Not been out but I have got myself something really special lined up for early next week.
I won't comment too much, but topping up a pb could be on the cards.

T... ...... nah!
Not really worth the effort, but he's even trying to taunt on his way down to Spain.
Laugh at his latest efforts?...We all are. Poor, poor man even on holiday he can't get away from it all!!

The other bloke still looks in on a twice daily basis too, I could almost set my watch by his visits, except I have no need for one!

Out again

2011-08-12T23:01:00.004+01:00

Down South
A few days down to Harold Hill to see Mum and the ol'boys of the International Drinking Society.

Mum

No obvious change, though she was complaining most of the time about this that and the other.
So she's reasonably well!
Apparently jokingly(I think) she asked the visiting nurse if she could have euthanasia, too which the nurse said no, but wrote on the notes " Kathleen seems a little depressed at the moment"
Obviously doesn't know her well enough yet!!

Four of us
The meeting this time was to celebrate Brian's 70th later in the month, a few couldn't make it holidays etc.
Anyway, our port of call was the Captain Kidd in Wapping, a Samuel Smith pub by the side of the Thames.
Quite a busy pub eventually, although we were knocking on the door at noon to be let in.
A really grey wet day, and I have to say the Thames doesn't look its best in such conditions.

The only beers available are Sam Smith's own, the Old Brewery cask bitter was my choice, and whilst not a bad pint, it's not that exciting.
It went down well during our 5 hour visit though, and at the fixed national price of £2.10 a pint, was probably. the cheapest beer I've had for a while, so, mustn't grumble.

A standard bar menu which wasn't bad for choice and quality. I recommend the risotto.
We finished the afternoon in the "beer garden" after the rain stopped and the second seat along dried out.
Our next meeting is in October, when Dave also celebrates his 70th.

Getting old

2011-08-07T14:49:00.004+01:00

Wye Lea

Had a pretty fitful night, it was either anticipation of meeting up with some new folk, or the home made rhubarb crumble I had after dinner on top of my 3 pints!!
Anyway got up a 4:30 made myself egg and bacon, and set of just after 5am
Arrived after a 3 hour drive, to find what looked like a silver haired gnome in a dressing gown, pointing a gnarled finger to the way the way down to the fishery. Well it wasn't it was the Trolley Dolly!
I waggled a thumb to my nose, and met Ray Thorpe, who the first to arrive.

Can't tell you much about the fishing, as it could spoil it for the website and chances of a future visit. Apparently the gnome has a very good relationship with the owner.

Save as to say, I didn't catch anything fishing the deeper area. Others did, fishing the shallow pacey stretch of the fishery.
I did get one decent good take and felt a good tug back, but it must have been an eel or a pike as it bit through just above the hook

Had an overnight in a pub with very cheap rooms and a good breakfast, about 15 minutes away from Ross on Wye.
I drank 4 pints of a well kept Wye Valley Butty Batch( niiiiice) to wash down a chilli.
Followed by another fitful night.
I think I have to start to be careful what I eat before I go to bed now!!

So I decided to come home early for fear of falling asleep at the wheel later in the day. Nearly did too, that Red Bull stuff does nothing for me...well apart from repeating ever since.

Time to move west , methinks!!

Early doors

2011-08-05T18:34:00.007+01:00

Lunch Session

Off to Ross on Wye tomorrow at sparra's fart to spend the weekend on the Wye Lea fishery with a group from an angling website. Will report after.

Anyway, as a result of needing to get up at around 4am tomorrow, I decided to have a Friday beer session in the White Hart, our village real ale pub, at lunchtime.
No wanting to be driving for 3 hours plus under the influence of course.
What should I come across but an ale I have been expecting, as Mick the landlord, lists his forthcoming brews.
I have to say that the Wold Top Brewery are very consistent with their ales, and I always look out for them. Anyway, if they are not on, I run along the 4 choices on offer to find the one that suits.
Sometimes, if one of the four goes "off" during my taste adventure, I have to try five, although once it did reach six, before settling for the favoured flavour!!

The one I was expecting was Anglers Reward, and it is exactly as it states on the brewers blurb.
A fine quafable ale and at £2:50 a pint
I had a few pints, and thought that as I enjoyed them so much, that I would let my Blog friends have a hint of what to look for if they have decent real ale establishment close by, or are in the surrounding areas of Driffield Yorkshire. http://www.woldtopbrewery.co.uk/

Anglers Reward - August

One of our Winter Beers. The ultimate catch, a refreshing golden pale ale with a fruity bitterness & lingering aftertaste. Certainly a beer to help create those "one that got away" stories!

Brewed with Wold grown malts and hopped with the fruity Cascade and Goldings hops.

*Please note, Angler's Reward is only available April to October.

It should be noted that Wold Top do sell their beers by the bottle

The Wine Taster (Whilst on the subject)

At a wine merchant's, the regular taster died and the boss started looking for a new one to hire.

A drunkard with a ragged, dirty look came to apply for the position.

The boss of the warehouse wondered how to send him away.

So he gave him a glass of wine to drink.
He tried it and said, "It's a muscat, three years old, grown on a north

slope, matured in large old barrels. Low grade but acceptable."
"That's correct", said the boss.
Another glass....
"It's a cabernet, eight years old, a south-western slope, new oak barrels,
matured at 8 degrees. Requires three more years for finest results".
"Correct."
A third glass...
''It's a non-vintage pinot champagne, high grade and exclusive'' calmly said the drunk.

The boss was astonished. He winked at his secretary to suggest something.

She left the room and came back in with a glass of urine.
The alcoholic tried it.
"It's a blonde, 26 years old, three months pregnant and if you don't give me
the job, I'll name the father."

Had a dabble!

2011-08-02T22:35:00.001+01:00

Fishing

Thought I would have a few hours on the middle Trent, it is very low and clear!
Left home at about 4pm
Started fishing close at to 6pm with plenty of hemp and casters and decided to use my cane rod acquired a year or so ago, but not used in anger.
Matched it with my Rolling Pin and found myself a swim with a bramble hedge down to the water edge and running down stream from the peg for about 20 feet.
Looked spot on, but shallow, baited up with all the hemp and caster and waited.

Lots of knocks from chublets and hooked a good sized perch. I had decided to have a go with lobworm
At about 8o'clock ,by this time touch ledgering with the worm I had my first real tug and struck into the fish. It jigged jagged across river and then left the water entirely in it's mad haste to escape.
A nice barbel of about 5lb.
That's only happened to me once before, at Adams Mill just under the weir sill, when a similar sized fish did the same thing but shook the hook!

A short while later another good take, this time a short stubborn fight by a chub of about 4lb.

Then all went dead. I fished on until the sun just edged below the horizon and decided that that was probably it for the evening, and as we have to be off this water at dusk and two sets of padlocks to negotiate, I decided to leave for home about an hour and a half away.
Thought I would write this whilst supping a pint of Pedigree, now ready for the next one.
Rod & reel Christened

Cheers

That was hot!!

2011-07-28T18:27:00.007+01:00

Fishing

Had a morning tide session today at Sutton on Trent, fishing just off a big bend.

Met a BS member who had fished the night tide with some success with a couple of doubles.
So I thought, worth a go though it is very bright and hot.
Plenty of fish movement on the surface all day, and loads of boats up and down, on a very clear and low river. In fact it's the first time I've seen strong weed growth on the bottom in 7 years, so it been a long drought....so far.

I put two rods out amongst a good carpet of hempseed spread over small area whilst the tide was stopped.
Despite various changes of bait, not a touch !
Loads of rubbish and weed coming down, including one dead belly up barbel, probably from Cromwell upstream!!

At about 2pm popped to the car to get a drink, just behind me up from the rock embankment. Some c.. captain in a pleasure boat came steaming off the bend and sliced through both my lines, any closer and he would have been on the rocks.
Good job the baitrunners were on, as both rods and the pod headed for the wet stuff.
I hope he finds a nice tangle around his props and two of Ary's feeders caught up in the works.

But, guess what? I've been lightening the bag load of late, and now take a box of feeders with me in the back of the motor. Not this time, they are on the shelf in the garage.
So picked up 'addock and chips, on the way home for an early bath.

Few pints of the real stuff in the White Hart tonight, and a quiz to put the brain to use.

The Young!

Little Billy and Lucy are only 12 years old,

But they know they are in love.

One day they decide that they want to get married,

So Billy goes to Lucy's father to ask him for her hand.

Billy bravely walks up to him and says,

"Mr. Smith, me and Lucy are in love

And I want to ask you for her hand in marriage."
Thinking that this was just the cutest thing,

Mr. Smith replies,

"Well Billy, you're only 12..

Where will you two live?"

Without even taking a moment to think about it,

Billy replies,

"In Lucy's room.

It's bigger than mine

And we can both fit there nicely."Still thinking this is just adorable,

Mr. Smith says with a huge grin,

"Okay, then how will you live?

You're not old enough to get a job.

You'll need to support Lucy."

Again, Billy instantly replies, "Our pocket money,

Lucy gets five pounds a week

And I get 8 pounds' that's about 52 pounds a month

So that should do us just fine."

Mr. Smith is impressed

Billy has put so much thought into this.

"Well Billy,

It seems like you have everything worked out.

I just have one more question.

What will you do if the two of you should have

Little children of your own?"
Billy just shrugs his shoulders and says,

"Well, we've been lucky so far."

Mr. Smith no longer thinks the little shit is adorable

River Kennet 20th & 21st August

2011-07-24T22:40:00.003+01:00

Barbel Society Fish-in update

The fish-in will be on Reading & District AA's Upper Benyons A section stretch (carpark bank)

There will not be a formal school just a fish-in open to all. with advice to hand for those wishing to improve or just gain knowledge of the water

Register for either day or for both days by email to barbelfisher@btinternet.com

The inevitable

2011-07-24T09:09:00.004+01:00

Amy Winehouse

The first of the inevitable's is the sad death of Amy Winehouse.
I think we all saw it coming, but it still a shock that such young raw talent should be wasted to what is no doubt drink and drugs.
Rest in Peace Amy, the best was yet to come

Fishing

The next almost inevitable,...a blank!
I spent a few hours with Pete Reading, after another very productive and promising meeting of the Barbel Society committee. We were looking over, and fishing a part of the Warwickshire Avon.

We fished for about 3 hours until just after 7pm, but after a long day and 2 hours plus travelling back home for both of us, we decided that we'd had enough.
A slow moving river with 12 foot of water in the margins, tempted me to lay down a big mixture of hemp and dead maggots and fish under the rod tip.
We probably left far too early really, not a touch for me, and perhaps a liner for Pete!
Maybe a visit in the autumn

Will of Notts

Can't get in mate !!!

Off and running

2011-07-22T00:15:00.002+01:00

Middle Trent

Managed a few hours this afternoon for my first proper barbel session, overnight water level rise quickly running off.
Quite a turnout on a short stretch of river. And to think I don't fish weekends, so the workers can have a go!

Lots of knocks and nibbles on pellet & boilie, but nothing to be connected with.
So for the last half hour or so, before chucking off time, I had a go at touch ledgering lobworm down the inside and got myself 2 barbel of 4:6 and 4:10, both fighting fit and gave me a cracking tug through the ranunculus!
2 chub one about 2lb and the other 4: 2. Thought I would weigh the fish to get myself back in touch with size/weights.
I don't like using barbed hooks but needs must when the weed pays such a big part in the successful landing of the fish.

Cracking piece of river, I didn't take the camera, so no pictures.
A swan family of 7, cygnets probably a day or two old. Kingfishers were very active along the stretch.
Maybe fishing the Teme on Saturday/ Sunday

PS ABF

Well done to the members of the ABF a tidy sum raised for a fine charity.

The Barbel Society: Barbel School

2011-07-20T09:28:00.003+01:00

River Kennet Fish - In

Unlikely, to be a formal Barbel School like the Teme weekend, but there will be experts available for advice/tips.

The Pope's River Diaries

All welcome.

Anybody interested in joining on Saturday/Sunday 20th/21st August, it will cost £10 for a day ticket (each day)
RDAA members free but must register.

email to register at barbelfisher@btinternet.com if you would like to attend, first come first served.

Further details to follow after this weekend:

The Barbel Society: Barbel School

2011-07-11T07:42:00.002+01:00

Just back from a very successful Barbel Society weekend of fishing and tuition on the River Teme.
20 booked to be given advice and instruction, and 20 turned up.
A well organised and run school, this, the very first, was on Dave Mason's Top Barn stretch. He, Rob Swindells and their Teme Severn team looked after everything.
http://www.temesevern.co.uk/anglers.htm
One lad caught his first ever barbel, in not so perfect conditions, so a well chuffed individual and hopefully a new member of the Society.
Not seeing a great deal of point in going fishing and sleeping, for the first time I actually slept in the car and didn't suffer too much, even though I'm all for the creature comforts.May try it again to get the best of an early morning or the early evening without the worry of a few hours drive after!

Been away again

2011-07-08T18:32:00.002+01:00

Mum

Just back from a rush trip down to Mum.We returned from holiday to find she is suffering some severe pain in her back. Doctor says it's her spine, Locum prior to that said a water infection!!!! So we await an XRay.

Mum says(once again)I don't want all this, never thought I would live this long.

Off to the River Teme tomorrow for the weekend, I may move straight on to Romford afterwards to at least cook her some hot food, any excuse at the moment not to eat, well other than a bit of of toast !!

It's that man again!

July issue Coarse Angling Today and two pages on Summer barbelling

Back again

2011-07-04T00:11:00.007+01:00

Obsessive and selfish abandonment ?

We're just back from a week in Limone on the shores of Lake Garda.
Lake Garda is apparently typical of a moraine valley, having been formed under the action of a Paleolithic glacier. It is Italy's largest lake at 51.6 kilometers long with an average depth of 135 metres. 346 metres at it's deepest point!
Anyway, I thought I would put that bit in because I think it's relevant to what follows.
As is usual for me on holidays where I have a chance to do nothing most of the time, I take books along to read.
One book in particular which I picked up to read whilst sitting on the hotel veranda over looking the lake,in the company a bottle of Chianti, was Jon Berry's 190 page Beneath the black water.

The room's view!

I say picked up, what I really mean is, I couldn't put it down!
It took me about three and a half hours to read, my location probably helped.
The Chianti was quite warm by the time the bottle needed to be emptied!

Basically it's about Jon's, initially obsessive hunt, trolling for salmo ferox, over perhaps a serious three year period in the glacial created lochs of the Scottish highlands.

From sometime in 1997, he abandons friends, girl friends and a wife,he also mounts up substantial debts to hunt down ferox trout.
He also writes about his on and off quest over 12 years, including fishing the lakes of Cumbria and the loughs of Ireland for ferox.

Sitting by Garda it set me wondering, and this is where the relevance comes in, if such creatures exist within it's waters, it's certainly known for it's charr and trout, so maybe?
Jon certainly describes the Scottish lochs in much the same way, except this one, apart from it's beauty, is far from the desolate highlands described, it is choc a block with tourists.
Even so my mind did wander a little whether people fished Garda for ferox

I picked the book again a couple of days later, and for the first time since reading Johann Wyss's, Swiss Family Robinson in my youth, I read a book again.Three hours from start to finish non stop.
So as you can imagine I found the book highly readable, perhaps for me mostly thought provoking!
Whatever happened to Martin? I asked myself after both reads.A very close friend of Jon's who started on the quest with him, and suddenly, "I never saw Martin again".
It takes all sorts, and none of this is a knock against Jon personally, he admits it himself.
I tried to see myself in his shoes and to be honest I couldn't, my temperament is perhaps far from selfish, I certainly have never been obsessed enough with anything to abandon people/family.
Certainly not fishing!
Fishing for me, is not about one species, or even really worrying about catching fish, it's not life changing, well it shouldn't be.Should it?
Get hold of a copy, whatever your views on catching fish may be, it is a very good read

I didn't take my travel rods with me by the way, sitting on a lake in temperatures well into the mid 30's, although tempting,didn't appeal. Plenty of chub about, awaiting the tourist crust!

Update

2011-06-24T22:49:00.006+01:00

2450 odd page views this last month!

I wonder why ?

You wouldn't believe it

Some of the stuff I've received,shakes head in disbelief.
I think I've made a decision, having read the juvenile crap that's come my way over the last couple of days from Roca, and his cohorts all of whom used the Anonymous setting. Probably can't spell their names!!.

I've decided to ignore the tossers and Eliot, and let them play in their own playground.
Thanks to all those who said " ignore them now" advice taken.

Fishing Thursday/ Friday

Two crack of dawn sessions. The first on the tidal Trent, for seven hours.Followed by six hours on my mate Rik's pond today.

Fished the run off, but no barbel to report on my first river trip of the season to the Trent.
A great day to be out and to be serenaded by skylarks almost all morning.
Dodged the rain and sat watching the world go by, spoilt only by dog walkers shouting at their bloody pooches!!

Onto Rik's place this morning, fished his small pond with the aim to crack the big perch and tench supposed to be in residence!
Still no sign of them, but the carp( definitely 20's) were doing the love dance under my feet, so I moved to his match lake for a bit of fun and fish catching practice.
Loads of pristine crucian and commons to about 4lb, great fun on light tackle.No sign of the 3lb roach though!!
3 families of mallard on this fishery all with 7 youngsters of varying ages. A pair of belligerent coot with 3 youngsters,and two juvenile heron which didn't like my crack of dawn entrance.
I'm seriously going to have to take my binoculars next time I'm down, loads of bird sounds which despite my years of interest in British birds, I still haven't learnt to identify the song of some of them.

I have a free ticket for life, as the two of us put in all the made, from scratch, pegs/stands.
It was hard work knocking in those pegs, through sand and shells.But the fishery looks great and the stock fish are now growing too big for what he intended.
The low water table has the pegs high and dry at the moment!!

I'm not certain if I will be going down there again to fish.Well certainly not the match pond. Rik's planning, if he gets the go ahead, to take out the bigger carp and put in barbel.
Wouldn't be right, would it!

Steve Pope

My mate Steve is going to have a regular diary article on Fishing Magic, look out for some great writing.

http://www.fishingmagic.com/index.php?news=15231

That's the one Roca's been banned from.

Done enough!

2011-06-24T13:43:00.006+01:00

Withdrawn yesterday's blog for the time being.
Because some nameless twat on the ain't site linked the blog, and a short sharp shock is all it needed!!

Down to you Graeme, more if you ask for it!

Ah yes, and Roca you really don't expect me to accept you as an expert on libel,when you can't even spell it!!
There's no mention of libel from me, do you think if I was that concerned, I'd have put his mugshot up?

Just look up Defamation though, you fool!

Whilst I'm looking in

2011-06-21T22:32:00.023+01:00

2000 plus page views in the last month

A manky silver fox!

Our garden birds
great tit

coal tit
blue tit
dunnock
pheasant
blackbird
house sparrow
wood pigeon
collar dove
chaffinch
robin
greenfinch
starling

goldfinch

wren

song thrush
sparrowhawk
barn owl

3 blackbirds nests, all fledged 10 (4,3,3) infants, all nests in the front garden shrubs.
7 great tits from our box . At least 30 fledgling house sparrow eating my broccoli!! Half a dozen starling young bullying the parent birds off the fat balls...and everything else! A pair of robin young looking after themselves and few supplementary feeds from the redbreast!

Sparrowhawk returned, one blackbird fledgling less, well just the one witnessed!!

Barn owl quartering over the garden and the adjacent field for the last 2 weeks

Texting for Seniors

The kids have all their little SMS codes...like BFF, WTF, LOL etc.

So here are some codes for the seniors:

ATD - At the Doctor's

BFF - Best Friends Funeral

BTW - Bring the Wheelchair

CBB - Covered by BUPA

CUATSC - See You at the Senior Center

DWI - Driving While Incontinent

FWBB - Friend with Beta Blockers

FWIW - Forgot Where I Was

FYI - Found Your Insulin

GGPBL - Gotta Go, Pacemaker Battery Low

GHA - Got Heartburn Again

HGBM - Had Good Bowel Movement

IMHO - Is My Hearing-Aid On?

LMDO - Laughing My Dentures Out

OMMR - On My Massage Recliner

OMSG - Oh My! Sorry, Gas

ROFL...CGU - Rolling on the Floor Laughing...Can't get Up!

TTYL - Talk to You Louder

WAITT - Who Am I Talking To?

WTFA - Wet the Furniture Again

WTP - Where's the Prunes

WWNO - Walker Wheels Need Oil

GGLKI - Gotta Go, Laxative Kickin in!

News

2011-06-19T08:47:00.009+01:00

Alex Nelson- record holder

Back in March http://www.blogger.com/post-edit.g?blogID=1249368603862907959&postID=5378526961314519639 I reported that my Great Nephew had got himself in the records books down under for catching a wahoo, it has been officially confirmed he has in fact been awarded two class records for the fish and mum & dad are justifiably proud

(Little brother)Grandad's proud too!

http://www.gfaa.asn.au/html/1aus_01.htm?sp_id=46&state=all&category=all&line=all&type=Saltwater&section=Search+Records

Now available to order

Maurice Pledger WHILE MY FLOAT'S STILL COCKED: THE RAMBLINGS OF AN ARTIST-ANGLER.

I don't think I have seen better paintings of fish by anybody else!

http://www.douggy.com/maurice-pledger-my-dad/

RIP Clarence Clemons

Larf? I almost wet myself!!

2011-06-17T22:08:00.007+01:00

Up his own arse and put in his place

http://www.barbel.co.uk/site/vbulletin/forum/showthread.php?t=3728
and his last comment
"But you are going on and on with pointless twaddle and its dull and Im not interested."
Should have thought of that before you twaddled on Roca!!

Better still

Hot out of the studio
http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/12225391/historical-figurez-movie?listid=24076310

Weekend

2011-06-13T13:28:00.003+01:00

Wabbit!

young 'uns through the window.

We've lived up here 8 and a bit years, and for the very first time, although there are many around the area, we have rabbits in the garden.
Also for the first time for many years a hedgehog. Pauline wasn't quick enough with the camera to catch "him"
The removal of the 6 foot fence and replacement with a natural hedge has started to make a difference.
She was quite exited about the newcomers,so much so that I got short shrift from her for not telephoning to advise I had arrived at Barry Norris's house for the evening before the PAAS day.

We have a habit of making sure we let each other know when we've arrived following a long journey, my excuse didn't wear very well.

Prince Albert Angling Society

The Barbel Society had an invitation via Martin James to set up a table at the PAAS show this Sunday by the side of the Ribble at Ribchester..
Once again no real chance of seeing anything, too busy talking BS and signing up a good few new Lancashire/Cheshire members, young and old.
A good turnout alround, would have been more I'm sure, but the heavens opened up at about lunchtime, and it didn't stop raining all afternoon.
Very impressed.
I took up Alan Roe's offer to learn to Wallis cast, almost got the hang of it in the brain, but I do need to polish up a bit more on the moves. Back garden calling, for practice, if I can get through the wildlife!!.

Fishing

I was going along to a middle Trent Fishery on opening day, but I find there is a swim lottery at 5am in the car park...I think I'll leave it for a bit.

Poacher revisited

Not going to say too much as it doesn't need embroidery.
Just be aware, that if a certain individual( he gets mention on here) takes an interest in your club and it's waters, you could find that he may sneak in and pinch a fishery of yours from under your noses.
It'll probably only be out of spite though, and short lived.

Latest

2011-06-10T20:31:00.001+01:00

Mum

Had a few days down south, primarily to take my Mum along for a checkup with the specialist consultant.
Arrived at the hospital, let them know we were in the waiting room. A short while later a young attractive lady from the Indian sub- continent mumbled something on long the lines of boneykathleen..twice I didn't understand the name ,my mum didn't hear it at all because she's almost deaf, and Pauline said I think she just called mum.
Anyway she disappeared around the back so I walked around to find her. Met her half way and she said sorry wrong name Kathleen Boney. So I went back picked mum up and took her around to the room.
No sign of the consultant, but this young lady turned out to be a Doctor. So behind the curtains she 's speaking to my mum.....silence... mumble mumble...... silence.... Me," my mother is a bit deaf you will have to speak louder and clearly."..mumble mumble.
By this time I'm starting to get a bit wound up, so I go up to the curtain and say, she's deaf
and I haven't a clue what you are saying either.
Anyway we manage to communicate about the operation wound and she say's, I'll have to bring in the consultant. (An African, I have mentioned before)
Well he turns up goes behind the curtain, usual pleasantry's to my mum, and then "well what wrong with you" to which I retorted from behind the curtain, there's nothing wrong she's come in for a 3 month checkup.
(Starting to get a bit more wound up!)
Anyway to cut a long story short,he looks her over and asks me to go with him to another room, where he tells me the cancer has returned/never gone, and there is nothing further he can do.
But, bring you mother back in 3 months time.
So I say, do you tell her that, to which he replies. I think it's better coming from the family...and I think,me too,because she would need to fully concentrating to understand what you are saying.
Anyway back to the room to get the appointment booking form from the Doctor. She gives me a bit of paper what she has signed and say's see you in 3 months time.
So I walk mum out, thrust the bit of paper in Pauline's hand and ask her to book the appointment at the desk.
She come towards me a minute or two later saying booked for November that's the earliest we can get to see the consultant, 3 months it should be 3 months I bark still fuming within!!.
I take the appointment letter off her and march back around to the doctor, looking at the letter to find it's addressed to somebody else!!
The bloody doctor had given me somebody elses papers!!! Apologies once twice 3 times, she comes with me back to the appointments desk, and get's the appointment sorted...still 6 months.
Got to get out of this place,before they need the security to come for me !!!
Anyway Mum's taken it all ok after we had a chat over a cup of tea, totally unaware of what was going on at the time.
God help any little old lady who doesn't have somebody to hold her hand ........

A letter is winging it's way to the Consultant, now I've calmed down.......a bit!

Blind Beggar

http://www.theblindbeggar.com/index.php/history
That was wednesday, so thursday is a day trip to east London with the ol'boys I worked with in Mitre Square from the mid-60's.
It's Ivan's birthday so he's chosen the venue The Blind Beggar (The Kray's pub), it turns out he just wanted to show us how the area had changed since our pub crawling days of the 60's/70's.
There was not a white face in sight in the Whitechapel Road, not that worries any of us despite what you may have assumed from my tale above.
.

We have all worked with people from all nations over the years,and have friends and collegues from Asia, but Christ 40 years has certainly changed this area of London.
Anyway, the Blind Beggar was alright, hardly a customer for the 2 hours we lasted, but at £3.80 a pint for Old Speckled Hen it's no wonder I suppose, well that and the local clientèle probably not drinking alchohol. Must be to fleece the Kray's tourists.We gave up that pub after 4 pints.
We then crossed Cambridge Heath Road 20 yards away in The White Hart, and drank at £2.80 a pint, for a better pint, or was it 3?
We stayed an hour or so, before deciding we needed food.
What else could we have but a curry. Ivan say's there's place behind London Hospital, no booze but it's a very good curry.

Tayyabs, Whitechapel, London

A Pakistani restaurant on a Whitechapel back street behind the East London Mosque. The hoards of people that stand and wait outside to get a table on a daily basis are testament to the fact that this is one of the best curry houses in London. The prices are cheap, the food excellent, from grilled meats to curries and there's an excellent sweet counter for after-dinner treats.
Robert English

· Tayyabs, 83-89, Fieldgate St, London E1;

Well it was very good,highly recommended by me and the bloke above, and full of our Pakistani friends enjoying the food at a very good price £15 a head two courses including lassi's, no booze, I'm glad to say.

We had a wander around seeing the sites, how it changes within a couple of hundred yards, said our goodbyes and go our separate ways.

I woke up at Romford station..just in time!

Choked on my boiled eggs!!

2011-06-07T17:13:00.009+01:00

Who needs publicity with stuff like this, me a barbel ace ? I can catch barbel in the Hazelford aquarium but ace is stretching it a bit!!!

So before the snidey comments.
All round ace good bloke maybe, but I shall be there selling the Barbel Society,and learning to Wallis cast with Alan Roe, and that's about it!

Maidenhead man

2011-06-06T10:24:00.000+01:00

Heard even more stories about the man at The Show, some tales to tell in the future as he still has his sly digs.

What a weaver of lies the man is!

Success!

2011-06-02T06:46:00.009+01:00

Great tits

29th April 5 or 6 eggs quickly counted.

I knew they were close, so got up early this morning to watch our box.
7 fledged all within less than 5 minutes of each other, all done by 6:43!

Dad

Parents and young all safe in our hawthorn hedge.

Mum

1of 7!

Typical

2011-06-01T19:43:00.007+01:00

My last blog entry

Those of you who are that interested, and there was at least one, will see that I am a Known As.
This was due to that fact at 11 years old I got fed up with kids saying things like, "you don't look very boney to me"and on and on and on.
So I added an extra n, rather than giving them a thump, not ever being a violent type.

Tony Rocca

Anyway, guess who has joined those 11 year olds, as expected I might say, yes none other than the little fuhrer himself.
He's also shown once again what a liar he is when it suits his purpose, surely not the actions of an official of a so called "democratic" association!

An occasional excerpt from my life

2011-05-28T22:29:00.013+01:00

Never say never: Chapter one

^{We don’t know what forms our life pattern will take. I personally believe we form our own pattern by choices we make throughout life.}

^{That is of course apart from your birth, and perhaps until you reach the age of say, 11.}

^{I say 11 in my case, because that is when I recall making my very first independent decision.}

^{I’ll come back to that experience later.}

^{My first non choice, but the pattern was being formed, was my birth to Frederick Robert Boney and Kathleen Ella Boney (Metcalfe) at around 6am on 24thMarch 1949 at St George’s Hospital Hammersmith London W6.}

^{My dad at that time was a glazier with a company called James Clark & Eaton. He joined them after the war and worked on the same gang as his father.}
^{They were carrying out new glazing to big properties, glass roofs at breweries, and shop fronts in the big stores of London.}

^{My mum was until my birth working in the West End of London making blinds. She met my dad by way of an introduction from two of his aunts Elsie & Dollie, who worked in the same workshop.}
They married in May 1947.

^{My dad was born in November 1921 the only son of Frederick Harry and Florence Caroline Honor Boney. He had just one sibling, a sister Florence Beatrice May. Their home was 53 Hayles Street Southwark SE11 (The Elphant & Castle)}

^{My mum was born in January 1923 and was part of a huge family of 14 children to John and Clara Metcalfe. He owned a cycle repair shop trading as J Metcalfe’s Son! It was also the family home, in Broadley Street, London NW3. (Edgware Road)}

^{Both of my great grandmothers were Irish}

^{My first home was with my mum’s eldest brother Ted, and was in Crondace Road Fulham, we lived there until my brother Bill arrived in May 1950.}

^{My parents then took the opportunity, because of housing shortages in London, to move out to one of the new London County Council housing estates being built in the countryside.}

^{The one chosen was close to Romford Essex, although I did learn later in life that my mum would have preferred the other option of Crawley Sussex.}

^{So at 18months old with 4 month old brother Bill, we moved to the Harold Hill Estate, still within a journey of half an hour, on a good day, back to the metropolis and the greater family.}

^{Our terraced house in Stratton Road was to be home for about another 18 months, which included the arrival of my second brother Ted, in July 1951.}

^{I don’t remember that house at all!}

^{My mum had the four of us between March 1949 and September 1952, each 14 months apart.}

^{My sister Pat was the first to be born in what was to be the permanent family home for us, and still is for my mum.}

^{A brand new semi detached house, the first house in the cul-de-sac, it has good sized gardens, back and front. As well as an inside bathroom it also has an outside loo and coal shed in a separate breezeblock building under a corrugated roof!}

^{Very close by to us, in fact behind the houses in Hailsham Road, were open fields which were to form for my brothers and I a playground, and awareness for me certainly, of the natural world around us from a very early age, maybe I was 8 or 9 years old.}

^{The fields were effectively flower meadows , bordered on each side by the Payne’s Brook, the houses of Hailsham Road , by Noak Hill Road and the fourth went further onto Straight Road.}

^{Within the fields was one shallow water filled dip which contained all of the newts, common and rare to the English country side, and a fair quota of frogs and toads. Many of which took the opportunity to visit our home as the contents of jam jars , before it sunk in, that they either escaped, perhaps with a little assistance from mum, or... died.}

^{In another field was a proper pond, this pond was the basis for my first attempts at fishing.}

^{Firstly for the newts and then sticklebacks with the cotton and worm approach, moving on to tiny perch and bent pins and then onto small crucian and common carp, rudd and tench.}

^{The tench and carp, not of any great size, perhaps a pound or so, maybe stunted because of the abundance of fish in such a small space. It wasn’t until the thawing out of the winter of 1963 that we became aware of bit bigger fishthe mums and dads, as they were all dead, frozen in the deep ice.}
^{I can’t recall if it had any recovery after that , because my angling wings had grown with the aid of a bike by that time.}

^{We had became aware of the smaller animal and insects within the pond by the use of a “dragnet”, well it was a big wicker basket, the type green grocers used to leave behind their shops.}

^{Attached to rope acquired from the building sites that surrounded us, we would drag that pond pulling in all inhabitants for close inspection and decanting to the jam jar.}

^{The fields around and beyond, as I said became a playground, for my natural curiosity of flora and fauna, this extended to what was common with schoolboys of that time, bird nesting!}

^{Mostly just me and brother Ted, Bill was always a bit wimpish.}

^{We quickly became aware of the habitat requirements of all British wildlife.}

^{Ted was always the tree climber, and still has the scars to show it from the regular slide down the straight scots pine that were in a local parkland woods.}
^{They always had a nest at the very top!}

^{As a result of learning of the birds habitat, we also became aware of the trees shrubs and flowers.}

^{The Observer books were for me, the must never be without books of the time.}

^{The fields closest to Hailsham Road also became our "gang" encampment.}

^{The gang may have been around 20 all very close in age, say a four year spread.}

^{When we weren’t playing cricket and football in the road, there were very few cars, we were playing the usual games of knock down ginger, or walking the country roads singing at the tops of our voices, what may now be called rugby songs, but were soldiers songs .}

^{They were about, three german officers, or something about we were on the bridge at midnight, and renditions of Hitler only had one ball!}

^{Anyway the encampment was a step up from the camp erected inside a big bush. These were dug out squares, probably ten or fifteen feet long and wide. You could stand up in them so they were I suppose six feet deep. Steps down and a fire place.The roof construction was tree branches, and the occasional scaffold plank topped with corrugated iron “found” on the building sites, and then topped off with turf. The flooring was old lino and carpet.}

^{Our encampment was probably 5 or 6 of these dugouts.}

^{There were also “larders” in each dugout containing the usual tinned stuff, and spuds usually acquired from a local crop, always streaky bacon that almost disappeared when cooked, and occasionally eggs which were probably bought, or from our mum’s stock, but more likely from the little shop in Noak Hill Road.}

^{They were smoking dens ,Weights, Woodbines or Domino's acquired through our paper boy jobs, sometimes just grass, or hollowed out conkers and acorns filled with Old Holborn or Golden Virginia.}
^{We very soon found out that plastic play pipes lined with silver paper were unsuitable!!}

^{I often wonder what may have been thought of the dugouts in later years when the buried and overgrown wreckage was come across.}

^{Because wrecked they were, occasionally by internal gang wars which found them collapsed by shear weight of numbers on the roof.}
^{Never ever by other gangs, we were too big a gang for opposition. Any group of lads seen within catty range were soon put on the run. There were never gang wars.}

^{In the end they were all destroyed, mostly water filled , abandoned and overgrown.}

^{There are vague memories of going to Bosworth infants’ school, moving onto the junior’s at the same location in Hilldene Avenue.}

^{I can recall some of the teachers names and those of classmates, but had no further contact with many of them after leaving for Senior School in 1960 at the age of eleven.}

^{Our house came within the boundary of Quarles Secondary modern school, a mile away on the other side of the estate.}
^{The next phase of my life begins.}

One year old

2011-05-28T17:09:00.011+01:00

That's it, already a year has flown by since I started this Blog.
My original reason for starting remains sound.
The internet trolls have been driven off the forums and are having a go at blogs, but from reading most of them it's only their sycophant entourages comments that encourage them to carry on.
For me the year hasn't been brilliant, not been fishing as much as I would have liked to but family and friends will always come first in my book.So not much to say.

Dealing with two publications this last couple of months has taken it's toll on my right arm and wrist,so the rest from here and elsewhere will do me good for a while.
It's either tennis elbow or a trapped nerve that's giving me gip, or that other thing, repetitive strain injury!
Too much pain to hold a rod in fact, so even if I felt inclined to I couldn't.
Next weekend is the Barbel Show followed by a Romford hospital trip, and the weekend after a table at the Prince Albert show at Ribchester will be the nearest to fishing I'll get.
In fact a week on lake Garda, booked this last week will mean my fishing may only start in July with a Teme weekend at Dave Mason's fishery, followed by a Marsh Farm trip with the guys from Fishing Magic.
We shall see.
In the meantime thanks to all those of have viewed this Blog.

Too the daily viewer from Maidenhead...watch this space, it's coming soon.

Football

Only one team on the park, Manchester Utd totally outclassed.

I hope the managers of this country looked closely at the football played by Barcelona, the ball hardly left the playing surface and they were in control.The long hopefull ball won't work against this level of opposition

The Barbel Society: Research and Conservation Report

2011-05-17T12:00:00.001+01:00

Just to let you know how the funds get spent

Firstly, I must give thanks all who have donated in one way or another to the Fund, and this includes many members who just add on an extra bit of cash to their subscriptions, not just major contributors to the fundraising events.
Without this income, we could not have the effect we certainly do have in research and conservation of barbel and barbel rivers.
A heartfelt thank you to you all, it is very much appreciated, not least, I hope by the barbel!

We raised over seven thousand pounds in all, with a tremendous result from both the online auction and the Avon Fundraiser in partnership with the Roach Club; take a look at Trevor and Budgies website, by the way! AVON ROACH PROJECT

The first part of the report is an historic announcement in many ways, because we are involved in a major piece of research work that we are funding in partnership with Bournemouth University.
It will involve three main aspects; firstly, the development of the first archive of all barbel-related research work in the UK, which will pull together all current published work on barbel and barbel rivers, and the result will be a database of national importance.
Secondly, our current scale collection project will be extended, and the existing scale archive from the Hampshire Avon will be extended to as many other rivers as we can manage.
The EA are currently reading and analysing the scales, but the University has the expertise to continue with this and will contribute to a data set that is again unique, and of tremendous value to the pool of knowledge about barbel ages and growth rates.
Finally, the University will be carrying out some tank experiments to compare growth rates with temperature and food supply, to get a better picture of growth rates.
It is expected that the project will continue over time, but our contribution of four thousand pounds will ensure the first two years is funded.
More details in the Press and on the website in due course.

Teme at BransfordWe have planned a programme of works to make further small scale improvements to some of the thick willow trees by the Railway Bridge, and the coppicing of some dying or diseased alders which will be brought back to life. The cuttings from the willows will be used to further reinforce the bank, when planted at water level, and strategic planting of willows will produce the valuable low level cover that both provides cover for fish and prevents undue erosion.
There are many smaller willows that are to be felled, but will remain alive as in stream cover.
This work has been consented by the landowner, the EA, and Natural England, who have been so impressed with the work that the fishery is used by them to show trainees examples of “good practice”
The extra light that the pollarding of the larger willows allowed to reach the water has increased low level bankside growth, and will be increasing the productivity of the stretch.
The further work at Bransford this year was paid for by the Severn Rivers Trust ( from original BS funding) who are backing similar work elsewhere on the Teme, and also use Bransford as an example of “good practice"

Dorset Stour ProjectThe first stocking of small barbel, three years ago, and the most recent stocking has been a success, in that fish of the right sizes have been spotted and caught in small numbers close to the stocking points.
The bigger fish are now three of four pounds, and although they have been seen, none have been positively identified as stockies yet, but it is early days.
The recent turmoil in the EA, facing 30% staff cuts and 25% funding cuts, means that slow progress has been made on the habitat works, but we retain the committed funding and maintain contact with local clubs and fisheries officers.
Fry bays, trees dropped into the river and other repairs to the recovering Stour are all on the cards.

Arborfield on the LoddonBy the time you read this, the extra gravel that the Society is paying for to enhance this project should have gone into the river as part of the reinstatement project, and I am sure Ian Watson will deliver a detailed article in the next issue of Barbel Fisher.

St Patricks Stream, TwyfordWe have agreed to contribute a significant sum to the habitat improvement work suggested in the survey that we paid for on this distributary of the Thames, and would expect work to take place shortly.
The work will involve excavation of shallow fry bays, proven to be used by baby barbel as well as other species, and some gravel reinstatement.

The sort of work that can be carried out on our smaller rivers can be done relatively cheaply and can have tremendous benefits, and although the pruning of large old trees, and digging out of material can look rather drastic and unsightly at first, the eventual plus points far outweigh the apparent destruction!
Placing trees in the water deliberately, rather than relying on good luck to drop one in the right place, is a positive boon to a fishery, and avoids action by flood defence operatives more concerned with allowing water to flow away, and preventing erosion.

Scale surveyThe results of the scale readings on the samples we provided to the EA are in the process of being analysed, and a sample of fifty odd fish gave data that was extremely valuable, and showed that some fish are much older than we think.
The bigger fish were, as expected, over twenty years old, but some smaller fish of only six pounds were found to be as old as fifteen. They grow fast in the Hampshire Avon, but not all will reach double figures.
87% of the fish were over ten years old, but there was evidence of strong year classes that should provide a sustainable population for the future.
I would like to extend the survey next season to the Teme, Trent and Swale, so those of you that are interested need to contact me in order to receive training and advice on how to remove and send in the scales.
The removal of scales is of no harm to the fish, and is less than will occur naturally.
Similarly, all permit holders will be asked to send in catch returns using the standard form as supplied in this newsletter and permit, and available soon on the website. This information tells us how well our fisheries are doing, and provides crucial information on trends over time.

Spawning surveyWe will continue with this spring, and hope that all anglers, not just members, will contribute. The information received last year was welcomed by the EA on one stretch of the Cherwell, and helped with planning habitat improvements, but also alerts them to spawning areas and affords them some protection.

Pete Reading, Research and Conservation Chair

Some of this and some of that!

2011-05-15T12:04:00.014+01:00

Fishing

I didn't get the opportunity to fish the Lincoln estate lake, needs pre-booking and staff holiday stopped me in my tracks.

So off to Clattercote yesterday with the Fishing Magic crew, all 21 of us.
Most of us met up in the Brasenose Arms in Cropredy village for a 7:30 a fry up before moving on to the fishery for the draw.

We fished from 10:15 until 16:15.
I decided because of reputation I would float fish for roach, as did one or two others, most fished for the carp, with the method,bagging waggler,and something to do with a helicopter rig???

Top weights as expected from those fishing for carp, with Graham Marsden fishing the Method winning it with about 35lb of carp.
I drew next to Mark Wintle and saw him land just over 25lb of very fine roach to over a l lb, waggler fishing and catching on the drop.
The male roach were in full breeding turbercules which made them have the feel of perch instead of their usual slimy feel.
A small net of roach ,bream and hybrids for me.
Back to the pub for a pint of Pedigree and sausage and chips.
A great day out with great company as usual.

Another great day out
Looking forward very much to The Barbel Show on June 6th at Hinckley, great guest speakers lined up and a good trade hall arranged http://barbelsociety.blogspot.com/

If you're down by the river

The Barbel Society is spearheading a national survey of barbel spawning sites on UK rivers. The purpose of the survey is to gather data on the dates and times of barbel spawning activity, and to build a central national register of barbel spawning sites in order to improve our understanding of barbel recruitment factors, as well as to enable better protection of those sites.
The survey will continue in the long term, and provide data to indicate any patterns or changes in spawning behaviour.
Historical and anecdotal information is also valuable, as long as a reliable estimate of date can be supplied.
Please click here and provide us with the following information in the e-mail, or fill in the form below.
Angling clubs, riparian owners and individual anglers are invited to contribute to the survey. Anglers should ensure they have permission from controlling clubs/landowners to be present on the river bank.

The information received will remain confidential to the BS and EA, especially specific locations, but the general conclusions will eventually be shared as much as possible.

Please ensure your observations of spawning fish do not disturb them in anyway.

Sparra's and tits

First fledgeling sparrows of the year being fed in the garden and great tit feeding young in the box a fortnight earlier than last year..

For the "Cardinal "

Beware poachers, those that were entrusted, and the one I know we couldn't trust!!

Say no more!!

Guess who?

http://youtu.be/uSbh2MsxdNs

A clue a lifetime ban on FM

Onward and upward

2011-05-09T09:19:00.000+01:00

What a week!!

One job out the way, a six hour round trip to Worcester for a very constructive meeting.

Also had a look for the first time at our fishery at Bransford.What a great looking stretch of the Teme and it looks like the giant weed has received some treatment!

Time to concentrate on the magazine.

Still no time for fishing, although I am awaiting an approval to fish an estate lake near Lincoln tomorrow.
I'm going somewhere anyway whatever a first light session.The local song thrush wakes me earlier enough!!

Harold Hill trip later in the week for a few days.

Knucker

Thank you Sir Alan Sugar, for a new word he uses to describe those that are always bitching but do nothing themselves. I have met a few of those Knucker's, no names no pack drill!!

Frosty garden

A big wack from the frost early this week has set the garden back.
The great deal of growth on the grape vines...gone! The maples showing brilliant colour from their new leaf growth gone, well now all tinged with brown edges. The beech hedge planted last year also had all the new leaves singed
Cast not a clout until May is out is about right. That north easterly wind was bitter and cutting and deflected around my garden hitting most plants at well above ground level.

The great tit's are active, looking back to my first ever blog (it's almost a year), it appears that the young were hatched somewhere near the end of the month, they may be a bit earlier this year.
Two blackbirds seen building new nests in the front and back gardens yesterday, leads me to think that earlier nests may have failed as a result of the cold snap.

Two water butts refilled, salad seeds sown, grass needs cutting and the field next door has once again a great crop of cow parsley and stinging nettle.

A date for your diary

2011-05-06T00:44:00.001+01:00

For anybody who knows....

Wildlife artist and eccentric barbel-fisher Maurice ‘Mole’ Pledger has at last completed his long-awaited angling autobiography.

While My Float’s Still Cocked: the ramblings of an artist-angler is a beautifully illustrated volume and will be available in a signed hardbound Collector’s Edition as well as a Standard Edition, a high-quality paperback with flaps. There will also be a very limited De Luxe Edition, but details of this are being kept secret until closer to the launch-date!

It is being published by Paul Morgan of Coch-y-Bonddu Books and will be launched at the CLA Game Fair at Blenheim Palace on 22^nd July. Maurice will be setting up his easel on Paul’s stand for all three days of the fair, and will be found there, painting fish, signing books, drinking tea and telling lies about big barbel.

Our 'Enry

2011-05-03T15:41:00.001+01:00

Lost broadband on Sunday,so unable to put this up until today!

At a time when boxing seemed to mean quite a bit to me I had two heroes, Billy Walker who I had watched since his amateur days, and Londoner Henry Cooper.

Today the death of Our ’Enry has been reported at the age of 76, to me he is the last legend of British boxing, no other has come anywhere near his ability since his day.

He lost, all be it controversially, after his delivering his left hook ‘ammer against the all time greatest Cassius Clay in the 1963 non-title fight. 3 years later loosing again as he was beginning to go past his peak.

A lightweight heavyweight, who typically English, didn’t quite make the greatest as was expected, but was truly respected and much loved by the nation.

Rest in Peace Sir Henry.

What about me?

2011-04-30T18:18:00.007+01:00

Not a lot!

It's been a very busy couple of weeks or so for me, visits to mum, and in particular there's the summer issue of Barbel Fisher to put out, preparing for a committee meeting in Worcester next week, and also being involved with organising the annual Barbel Show on the 5th June.The things we do for love!!
Having been inundated with articles, I have a view I may have to save a couple at least, for the Winter issue.
It has also become more obvious, that many fishing related companies are not finding it too good at the moment, so trying to book advertising is a bit too much like hard work.
No matter what was said about Fish 'n' Tips it's tough out there!
Looking on the bright side, which I always do, this leaves more space for members articles. Although there is temptation to go down the sponsored article route, with all it's associated product placement, (have a look at this month's Coarse Angling Today letters page)
I can't see that ever happening, after all, it would make Barbel Fisher just like all the rest.

Fishing

I've not had a chance to fish for a while, mind you as I get older, sitting into a cold north easterly wind, which we've had for the last few days, doesn't make fishing come high on my list of priorities, but it makes an easy excuse.
Anyway the close season on rivers gives all of us a chance to replenish our minds for the season to come.
After all you can have too much of a good thing...so I'm told.

My pb tench of 6lb13ozs 2001

I had never fished for tench until June 16th before the changes to the close season, so plenty to do for the next 6 weeks or so, without worrying myself like so many do, about what they get for their measly £27 donation to governments coffers!!
I do have trip to Clattercote lined up with the Fishing Magic crew on the 14th May to look forward to though.
A great day out with a good bunch.

Garden

Having demolished and disposed of all of the climbers damaged in the winter, I did leave the roots in place, let them rot I thought, too much like hard work digging them out...that age thing again!
Anyway, signs of life from two areas and a buddleja, sees the purse only being stretched by the beer wine and spirit stock replenishment at the moment.
I do like the look at that dandelion remover thingy though, our gardens are inundated with them this year as are the roadside verges.They must like the cold!
Started my veggie plots with spuds in bags,courgettes, tomatoes and peppers. Pulled up the lettuces that survived the winter freeze, the pigeons had found them anyway, they will be replaced when the soil warms up just a tad more, and any chance of a frost has gone.

Bird life

The Chinese pheasant is once again a visitor to the garden, he obviously has dodged the shoot, and has a drab mate in tow.He's a big bird and may not survive until the next shoot!
Blackbird ,wood pigeon and collared dove are nesting in the hedge on the roadside of the house, and our great tits have returned to the same box as last year. Checked yesterday five or six eggs, I didn't hang about to get a true count just in case, and won't look again.
Swallows over the house on the 21st April and still around, although I've not seen the martins, or heard the cuckoo yet.

Football

What a season in the Premier league, not a great deal between any of the teams.
A few wobbly moments with Fulham, have been relieved by a couple of superb 3-0 wins, one of which, today's, was only the second away win this season.
Another year of edge of seat football for the supporters.
Fingers crossed for QPR, looks like one in and one out, still it'll mean Tottenham will have the Olympic Stadium to themselves.
Well done Roy Hodgson for rescuing WBA, he never stood a chance at the 'pool!

The Barbel Society: National spawning survey 2011

2011-04-21T17:35:00.004+01:00

Year Three

The Barbel Society is spearheading a national survey of barbel spawning sites on UK rivers. The purpose of the survey is to gather data on the dates and times of barbel spawning activity, and to build a central national register of barbel spawning sites in order to improve our understanding of barbel recruitment factors, as well as to enable better protection of those sites.

The survey will continue in the long term, and provide data to indicate any patterns or changes in spawning behaviour.

Historical and anecdotal information is also valuable, as long as a reliable estimate of date can be supplied.

Your contact details; name/ tel/ address (CONFIDENTIAL)
Name of river
Name of stretch/nearest town
Brief description of site; eg 100 metres upstream of weir, left bank
Grid reference
Controlling club/riparian owner
Date
Time
Temperature
River conditions, high/low/clear/coloured etc.
Sizes and numbers of fish observed
Duration of activity
Any other comments

Angling clubs, riparian owners and individual anglers are invited to contribute to the survey. Anglers should ensure they have permission from controlling clubs/landowners to be present on the river bank.

The information received will remain confidential to the BS and EA, especially specific locations, but the general conclusions will eventually be shared as much as possible.

Please ensure your observations of spawning fish do not disturb them in anyway.

This form is available on-line to complete at http://www.barbelsociety.co.uk/Spawn.htm

Or, please send it by post in a sealed envelope marked SURVEY to :

The Barbel Society 8 Bain Rise Market Rasen LN8 6LF

Good ol' close season

2011-04-21T14:44:00.002+01:00

Last May

Garden revisited

Whilst it hasn't mattered too much to me with my fishing expeditions somewhat curtailed this past year or so.
I have been reminded of why the close season was an opportune time to take a break from fishing, before the rules were relaxed for still waters. Loads of of work to do.

This winter had quite a devastating effect on my garden as alluded too previously.
We lost well established shrubs, from the mahonia, some of our clematis and various honeysuckle plants, through to our 3 butterfly bushes(buddleja).
I have to say I won't miss the buddleja too much, because they were a high maintenance shrub, but I will miss the hoards of butterflies that took advantage of their nectar. So I shall replace them, but they will not flower enough this year if at all.Plenty of seedlings growing in the path cracks.

Today

The climbing shrubs will also be replaced as they did make effective barriers between our separate sections of the garden, bare trellis is not a favourite of mine.
Anyway, as a result of this substantial green waste was accumulated and we only get one bin a fortnight which didn't start until a fortnight ago regular trips were needed to the tip.I'm not a fan of burning it, and I'm sure my neighbours would rather I didn't too.

Just now

One very good affect was that the grapes survived and are currently bursting into leaf, maybe a freezing winter will help our harvest to improve on last year, well it will if we beat the birds to it!!
Talking of birds, another knock on effect is that the garden is bereft of nesting sites,with the exception of one of our boxes which a pair of great tits have built a nest.The hawthorn and elder hedge on the rear boundary is also now thickening up so perhaps that will get more use than usual. The woodies and collared doves appear to be almost resident in there at the moment, along with hoards of house sparrow..
We still have many visitors as a result of a constant supply of seed and peanuts, but the disappearance of the greenfiches from dozens of pairs down to just a single pair is very noticeable. What it may have done though is encouraged the goldfinch to the garden, a very welcome new sight and sound..

We lost all of our rudd out of the pond and our resident frog,all were found after the ice had melted, the frog despite easy access to and from the pond didn't move fast enough in our registered minus 20 on a couple of days. The pond is also very low at the moment, due to long term lack of rain, so another job to do tidying that up..the Canadian pond weed and lily have thrived!

That's my lot, jobs done for today, so off out to that waiting chair, with a bottle or two of Marston's Pedigree to warm me up for quiz night at the local, and his row of 4 micro brewery ales for me to try.
Happy birthday Maj!

Is it a week already?

2011-04-11T22:39:00.014+01:00

Fishing

Another chance to fish the pond today, I was intending to do a late afternoon session, but decided it was better to remove myself from the house!!

Packed the kit in the front seat of the car, the boot was full with dead shrubbery, and the back seat had one of my water butts,ruptured during the freeze, and also filled with the shrubbery.
So a call into the council tip at Louth on my way to North Somercotes and the pond, was the first priority.

Job done and on my way to Pigeon Cottage, http://www.pigeoncottage.co.uk/da/46406
in my hunt for the elusive "BIG" perch and roach.
arrived at about 11am my baits red maggots, worms and prawns.
The last time I fished here the successful bait was prawns, the worms didn't get a nudge.
Set myself up in a swim with a reed bed to the right side reaching two thirds of the way to the island a north west wind in my face.
Decided to fish prawn within a rod length, in about 7 foot of water, and set up about a foot overdepth.
Nothing for the first hour after droppering about a pint of red maggots and some chopped lobs,so I switched to lobworm head and immediately was into a tench of about 2lb quickly followed by a mirror carp of about 4lb, similar in colouration to the last visits fish.
Maintained a constant stream of droppered baits throughout the day, switching between prawn and worm regularly, and ended up with 10 tench of no more than 2lb a piece and 3 more mirror carp, that did in fact mirror each other in colouration, the biggest being 7lb. A bonus rudd of about a pound took some liking to a lob tail.
All in all a fun day's fishing, but that north westerly became chillier and chillier as the afternoon wore on so it was good to get back to the motor and back to the chilled house!

Duz tha speak Yorkshire ? (two)

A Yorkshireman’s wife dies and the widower decides that her headstone should have the words
"She were thine" engraved on it.
He calls the stone mason, who assures him that the headstone will be ready a few days after the funeral.
True to his word the stone mason calls the widower to say that the headstone is ready and would he like to come and have a look.
When the widower gets there he takes one look at the stone to see that it's been engraved
"She were thin".
He explodes: "'ells bells man, you've left the bloody "e" out, you've left the blood y"e" out!"

The stone mason apologises profusely and assures the poor widower that it will be rectified the following morning.
Next day comes and the widower returns to the stone mason: "There you go sir, I've put the "e" on the stone for you".
The widower looks at the stone and then reads out aloud: "E, she were thin".

Bloke from Barnsley with piles asks chemist "Nah then lad, does tha sell arse cream?"
Chemist replies "Aye, Magnum or Cornetto"?

Talking of Yorkshiremen

Well short ones........seems to be going out of his way to try and affect the Society's business!

My IP address by the way is 192.168.1.*** !!

Another day

2011-03-30T12:29:00.004+01:00

Fishing

Had a few hours until dusk last night at the pond where reports of perch and roach over 3lb are said to exist.

Nobody at the fishery, so I settled in a spot that looked as though it had been fished earlier.
I did this in the hope of having small fish in front of me attracted by the bait, some of which, pellets, was still on the bankside having not been got to by the mallards.

My decision was to go for perch, as there was substantial small fish activity in front of me, but no sign of panic leaps away from marauders. There wasn't to be for the whole two hours either.
The first hour I fished with a big lob worm and plenty of chopped worm
and maggots bait droppered around the swim.
The swim was about 10 -12 feet in width with reed and dead grass type vegetation stretching out eitherside to around two rod lengths, depth around 7 feet.

Not a touch on the worm, so I switched to a big prawn and within seconds I got a take from a stubborn bottom hugging fish, felt pretty good too. So, all sorts of things came to mind including, getting the camera ready and scales etc etc.

I eventually got it to the surface and it was a really dark mirror carp,a good mid- double
and thought I've got the beating of this, but after one pass with the landing net and another short struggle my line parted at the shot!!
Serves me right, bullying a fish, taking it for granted that it was mine. Counting chickens ....

Fished on with prawn and landed a few more peas in a pod mirrors, it must have been their mum I lost.They were about the 4/5 lb mark.
Anyway glad to be out, and I'll be back to have another go at catching mum whilst perch hunting!

Series
A while ago I ran a series of one subject "jokes" another set has come to me, so here goes for the next few entries. Probably old but new to me.

Duz tha speak Yorkshire ? (one)

A Yorkshire man takes his cat to the vet.
Yorkshire man: "Ayup, lad, I need to talk to thee about me cat."
Vet: "Is it a tom?"
Yorkshire man: "Nay, I've browt it with us."

A Yorkshire man's dog dies and as it was a favourite pet he decides to have a gold statue made by a jeweller to remember the dog by.
Yorkshire man: "Can tha mek us a gold statue of yon dog?"
Jeweller: "Do you want it 18 carat?"
Yorkshire man: "No I want it chewin' a bone yer daft bugger

Stressed?

Barbel Society News

2011-03-28T22:41:00.000+01:00

Press release 28th March 2011

The Barbel Society is delighted to announce today a programme of collaborative research with Bournemouth University.
Describing the work, Pete Reading, Barbel Society Research and Conservation Officer, said
“This project is a major development in our barbel-related research, and represents an exciting opportunity to ensure our research and conservation measures are based on contemporary and objective scientific knowledge. We are delighted to be able to work with the University in providing the opportunity to increase our knowledge about such an iconic species”.

The work will initially focus on deriving an increased understanding on the growth and recruitment of barbel in rivers and lakes in the UK, the importance of growth and recruitment in providing sustainable angling opportunities, and developing a knowledge baseline on the ecology of barbel from across their range to identify potential threats and opportunities to the sustainability of their populations.
Work will include age and growth analysis of scale collections and review of scientific literature.
Dr. Rob Britton, project manager at Bournemouth University, commented

"In completing this work, we aim to provide constructive and objective information on barbel ecology that will help the Barbel Society identify their research and conservation priorities in years to come”.
Contacts: Pete Reading pete.reading@lineone.net

Dr Rob Britton: rbritton@bournemouth.ac.uk

Exmouth Update

2011-03-27T21:05:00.004+01:00

Alex wins

Presentation night was the night we were waiting for... Alex collected the prize we were hoping he hadn't been beaten on the last day. Alex took out the 10kg line class section winning a Shimano T-Curve rod and a Tyrnos 16 with some tackle and lures and 1000m of 10kg line and some vouchers.
What a fantastic prize to add to his growing collection.

Big thanks to all my crew AIBT..Cliff and Baz thank you very much and GAMEX a big thanks to My uncle Simmo and Alex my main man..

Jeff (Dad)

Celebration

2011-03-26T23:49:00.001Z

This week.

This week on the 24th I celebrated my 62nd birthday, and exactly 10 years away from paid employment.

We went for a nice meal at a country house hotel the other side of Lincoln to us.
To ensure we took complete advantage of the celebration, we had an overnighter.
Our chosen venue was http://www.branstonhall.com/ , it's set up in 80 odd acres of parkland, so location wise it was very good and the grounds are excellent. All within spitting distance of central Lincoln.

The only problem was that you couldn't get a decent beer, they only do that smooth stuff,so I resorted to Guinness.

Our evening meal, whilst on paper looking pretty good, really didn't live up to expectations, it was alright, but we've had better in similar style hotels. Staff were good and attentive though.
I suppose having eaten in some of the best restaurants in London, and around the country, we know that to get excellent food it costs just a bit more.
It's just that when you eat out, and you know you could have done a better job yourself, it's just a bit disappointing.
Breakfast was just about alright, but as much as I like Lincolnshire sausages, they are just a bit too herby for breakfast.

Holiday

My birthday tiger

Having been in India last year at this time, tiger spotting and celebrating my birthday with the close up sight of a tiger, it was spoken about with fond memories of that trip and our South African train trip for Paulines birthday the year before.

The Train

The ol'girl's 60 this October, and we can't make up our minds what to do, or where to go. It's also our 38th wedding anniversary
I keep thinking of Canada, and maybe some fishing. Pauline likes the idea of a river trip through Europe to Moscow, but it may be that the US, up and around Boston, will win the day, we shall see.

My Car :Skoda Octavia 1.9tdi

Having had this car since almost new, I have to say that I have sung nothing but it's praises since.
MPG still good, despite just hitting 120000 on the clock. A 175 mile trip from Romford to home gave me 60. 4mpg, so that's A12,M25,M11,A14, A1 and A46. Top speed within speed limits.
Driving a good bit faster where able, on the same route will get me 46mpg.
Bought in the first instance for fitting in all my fishing gear,shifts a bit up the box too when I feel like gunning it.
Would recommend a Skoda to anybody wanting a good alround vehicle

Wahooooooooo!!

2011-03-23T16:41:00.003Z

Meanwhile in Exmouth Western Australia

From a proud Mum

Hello I thought you might all like to see these photos...
Alex( My great Nephew) and Jeff (his Dad) are in GAMEX at the moment which is our big game fishing event.
Today Alex caught a 13kg wahoo which was caught on 10kg line.
This is a pending state record for juniors and small fry.
We have to wait for results from the game fishing association to verify that all the line and leaders are the right lengths and stuff and then he will be on the records page.
All very exciting stuff!!
So fingers crossed in the next couple of weeks we will get all the results and have a nice certificate to show you all .
Enjoy ..xxx
Love to you all..

The Nelsons
http://www.egfc.com.au/about/

Here's one he caught earlier!

Dad

Life!

2011-03-22T07:16:00.009Z

Old Friends

Another get together with the old boy workmates from the late 60's, last Friday, this time to celebrate my birthday to come.
I found us a pub just off Cornhill in the City called the Jamaican Wine House, none of us could remember if we had been there before, but I suppose we could be forgiven for that, bearing in mind we are 40 years plus later!!
Anyway, I arrived at 11:30, after over compensating for roadworks on the way to Romford station,so I was early.

No harm in that, so I settled into my first pint of Bishops Finger in this Shepherd Neame pub.
As it turned out, this proved to be a very popular drinking house with the locals, so was heaving all afternoon, certainly until we left at 7:30 having decided we had probably had enough.
Food wasn't bad either, usual pub grub, but we ate in the basement bar at about 3o'clock, rather than amongst the elbows in the bar.
Another great fun filled reminiscing 7 hour(ish) chat over beer, and then too many bottles of red.
I nearly overslept the Romford stop, awaking just in time for the first time on a Liverpool Street train .......stopping all stations!!

Can't remember walking home from the bus, but I do remember needing to get up for an Alka Seltza at about 3am for a pillow thumping head.

How many times do I tell myself beer and wine shouldn't be mixed??

Pie & mash

I was recently reminded that whilst I was on one of my sorties down to Harold Hill, I found that F Cooke's had opened up a pie, mash and eel shop.

This brought back more memories of my enjoyable years working in Baker Street for the Abbey National and the things we used to do of a lunchtime.
Well, apart from sitting outside the pub for a couple of hours in George Street watching the Marks & Spencer office ladies on their way to the staff canteen,sorry restaurant.

Anyway, I digress on occasions we used to drive out to Chapel Market via a Youngs pub, one of my co workers was an "invalid" and he parked his car just around the corner from the office, there was always a surveyors company car in the car park around the back too. So always a good size group.

After having a pint or two of Young's Special, we would retreat to the Manzes pie & mash shop in the market. Most of us had a couple of pies and the wodge of spud(eyes & all) with lashings of the green liquor, and plenty of proper vinegar.

Some of the gents had eels. I'm not a fan of jellied or stewed eels, so I had the pies.
My taste in eels goes no further than the smoked variety, delicious by the way, if you've never tried them.
So back to 'arold 'ill and the pie and mash. It didn't seem to be as good, but perhaps that was the lack of a pint of Special, and the great company!

For those whingeingYorkshiremen,(yes I know you read this) this is proper food and beer, it certainly beats batter pudding and gravy, and Tetley bitter served like an icecream in a cone!!

PADDY DIED
His will provided £40,000 for an elaborate funeral.
As the last guests departed the affair, his wife Colleen turned to her oldest and dearest friend.
"Ah well, to be sure Paddy would be pleased," she said.
"To be sure you're right," replied Mary, who lowered her voice and leaned in close.
"So go on, how much did this really cost?"
"All of it," said Colleen. "Forty thousand."
"Aw No!" Mary exclaimed. "I mean, it was very grand, but £40,000?!!!"
Colleen answered, "The funeral was £6,500, I donated £500 to church. The whiskey, wine and snacks were another £500.
The rest went for the Memorial Stone."
Mary computed quickly. "For the love of God Colleen, £32,500 for a Memorial Stone? How big is it?"

Tried and tested

2011-03-16T23:55:00.002Z

Cooking

I don't think I've let on, that for my sins I do all the cooking in our house, out of choice as well, because I enjoy it.
As long as somebody else does the prepping and the washing up !!

I have let on that we have been disappointed with local curry houses since moving up,well apart from the Taal which closed down.

Well I've started cooking my own and if I say so myself, it's better than the Taal's, so for those of you who fancy a dabble, here's the recipe for

Lamb Pathia

Ingredients:

800g kneck of lamb fillet

300ml water or stock

1 medium onion finely chopped

1inch piece of ginger

2 cloves of garlic

200g butter, gee or groundnut oil

2 teaspoons turmeric powder

4 teaspoons of curry powder (make your own)

1 teaspoon chilli powder (or more)

2 teaspoons garam masala (make your own)

1 teaspoon whole toasting seeds (black onion, coriander,fennel, cumin,cardoman)

100ml tamarind extract (or use block tamarind as directed)

1 tin tomatoes

2 tablespoons tomato puree

Serves 4

Heat a large pan or wok on a high heat. Once it is hot add the whole seeds and toast them until they sizzle and crackle. Now add the oil and then add the chopped onions and reduce the heat to low.
You can add 1 or 2 whole star anise which help bring out the sweetness of the onions and give a subtle aniseed flavour, remove them once the onions are cooked.
Cook the onions gently and slowly until they turn a golden brown colour.
Make a paste of the ginger, garlic, curry and chilli powder, turmeric , with a little water, add to saucepan and stir in well and fry for a couple of minutes.
Now add your lamb stir in well.
Add the tamarind
Mix chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, together in a jug with the water or stock and pour into the saucepan and mix in well.
Turn up the heat until the sauce begins to simmer and leave to simmer for an hour or so. Stir occasionally.
Finally sprinkle in the garam masala and stir in well for the final 2 minutes of cooking.

Try it, and let me know what you think, it works well with chicken too, but it doesn't need an hour 20 minutes will be fine

That's it!

2011-03-14T18:40:00.019Z

Fishing
The season
That's the river season over, and I have to say i'm glad it's over with, because this last season it's been too easy for me to make an excuse to not make the hours car journey to the river.
Couldn't even be bothered to fill in a journal, so what I've reported on here, is about it.
From memory only 1 barbel.
I've four trips to take up next river season, which again were too easy to stall in my frame of mind.
The Kennet with Martin James, the Severn with Steve Pope and two on the Hampshire Avon with a couple of guys off Fishing Magic. All four charity auction bids that I won.
Hopefully if nothing occurs that needs my urgent attention, I shall be taking advantage of the stillwaters in the close. Finishing off the winter with an attempt at the good roach and perch said to exist in a nearby pair of ponds.Then tench hunting.

Final fling
I decided that a final fling on the Trent was needed.
At 6pm last night as we moved into darkness, there was already a thick frost on the motor. So my trip to the middle, became a trip to the tidal. Don't know why the frost should have changed my plan, even though the pond was frozen over.

I should have gone to the middle,because I hit the tidal at what appeared to be a low tide. If it was the runoff, it didn't run off much, and stayed level for the whole 5 hours!

Not a touch.

Reviews

I've been reading quite a bit, and buying music for the first time for a while,here are just the first impression of my current interest.

We bought this cd off the back of two very good previous albums.
I regret to say after first listen, there is not one track that catches my ear. The earlier albums certainly did that at first listen.
It's in the car, if something grows on me, I will comment further.

Dave Stueart From Minnows to Marlin

If you have the chance to get along to the launch of Dave's book, it may be your only opportunity to get a copy of this fine tome. I'm only up to Chapter 20, so half way through. It really is a good read. A man after my own heart!

Saturday 16th April 2011

The Lands End - Lands End Lane - Twyford - Reading - RG10 0UE

Oh well!

2011-03-08T23:21:00.002Z

Mum

The visit to the Oncologist took place yesterday to talk about radio therapy.
We got some unexpected news.
We were told originally that the cancer would not kill my mum, that it was not an invasive type.
She, not wanting to to be messed around anymore,went for the drugs option. This option after 6 months appeared to be working, but by 12 months it had stopped working,and as a result my mum made the decision to have her right breast removed.
The operation that was carried out at the end of January, also involved the removal of the lymph glands under the right arm.
The oncologist advised that the cancer after the tests of the removed tissues, was in fact vigorous.
There is a chance that the removal has cleared up the problem,but there was equally a chance it hadn't, and that the cancer may have moved elsewhere or, may show again the area already affected and "cleared"

My mum had already decided she didn't want to go through the radio therapy treatment, and all that involved. The specialist advised that if she did there was a chance it wouldn't prove to be a benefit,and the treatment would only be into the operation area anyway. She is too old at 88 for chemotherapy.
Her mind was made up even more as a result of this latest report

So now we just hope that it was all removed, before it had a chance to move around her body.
Another type of drug prescribed and now .......we just have to wait, and wonder what may have happened if she had the mastectomy a year ago..

Fishing

None planned !
6 days of the river season left.

Fishing again......again!!

2011-03-03T17:16:00.007Z

Roach

Had a another session roach fishing the lake, they didn't want to know today, not a knock!
4 hours into a cold north easterly got the better of me in the end........getting a wimp in my old age.

Talking of old age

Jacob, age 92, and Henrietta, age 89, are excited about their decision to get married.
They go for a stroll to discuss the wedding and on the way they pass a chemist. Jacob suggests they go in.
Jacob addresses the man behind the counter: "Are you the owner?"
The pharmacist answers "Yes".
Jacob: "We're about to get married. Do you sell heart medication?"
Pharmacist: "Of course we do."
Jacob: "How about medicine for circulation?"
Pharmacist: "All kinds."
Jacob: "Medicine for rheumatism, scoliosis?"
Pharmacist: "Definitely."
Jacob:" Medicine for memory problems, arthritis, jaundices?"
Pharmacist: "Yes, a large variety..... the works!"
Jacob: "What about vitamins, sleeping pills, antidotes for Parkinson's Disease?" Pharmacist: "Absolutely."
Jacob:" You sell wheelchairs and walkers?"
Pharmacist: "All speeds and sizes. Why do you ask? Is there something
I can help you with?"

Jacob says to the pharmacist:
"We'd like to nominate your store as our Bridal Gift Shop."

Fishing again!!

2011-03-02T19:01:00.000Z

Stillwater

Had an afternoon at the fishery, didn't find any of the big perch, found a good net of roach, but not the bigguns, so maybe back tomorrow, if I can get away with it, with a different strategy!

Quite cold out this evening, maybe a frost?

Fishing

2011-03-01T17:24:00.005Z

Tidal Trent

had a 4 hour session today on the tidal.The river was on the top of the boulder bank and there wasn't a great deal of run off.

My first river gudgeon for many years was all I had to show for the trip out.
Tomorrow a lake and an attempt to get a decent roach and maybe a perch too!

Do what you want to do!

I was reminded of this Thin Lizzie track the other day and it brought back some memories of raucous times.
It about sums up a philosophy of life which has served me well over the years.

The words

There are people that will investigate you
They'll insinuate, intimidate and complicate you
Don't ever wait or hesitate to state the fate that awaits those who
Try to shake or take you

Don't let them break you

People that despise you will analyse then criticise you
They'll scandalise and tell lies until they realize
You are someone they should have apologised to
Don't let these people compromise you

Be wise too

Hey you you're not their puppet on a string
You can do everything
It's true if you really want to
You can do anything you want

Just like I do

So I thought I would put it on here.

Bahrain Grande Prix

Back on!

FOR SALE

2011-02-26T13:28:00.005Z

Too many rods!

Just leave a comment if interested.

DRENNAN - Power Barbel - 2 lbs Test

"Light , well balanced and a perfect power play shock absorber, this excellent blank is equally at home on small rivers or big waters like the Trent or Severn. designed to fish the increasingly popular and successful modified carp style, the Drennan Power Barbel will handle big leads or feeders and has exceptional reserves of power for extracting big fish from snaggy swims. the large diameter guides improve distance casting and reduce the problem of weed and debris build up in floodwater conditions.
26" EVA handle - Fuji DPS reel seat - Full SiC Guides and a powerful isotope ."

Supplied with a padded ready rod sleeve
RRP £129.99

Yours for £115 including courier, £100 collect unused fully labelled..

J.W YOUNG: Ray Walton Barbel 1.3lbs Test

"Designed by Ray Walton, for his innovative style of rolling baits. This 1.3 tc version rod is slim and lightweight enabling it to be held for long periods without fatigue- essential when using Ray’s deadly method. "

Supplied in it's original hard case

YRW11013 11ft 2 piece RRP £99.95

Yours for £75 including courier £60 collect, unused fully labelled and shrink wrapped handle.

FOX: Barbel Duo Floodwater rod 12foot 2.75lb Test

ARD008
NOT THE DUO LITE
Paid around £140 about 5 years ago still has shrink wrap handle hardly used

"Probably the first barbel rod to be specifically designed for floodwater fishing, on both large and small rivers.

The powerful test curve makes it the perfect tool for hit and hold snag fishing!

This model has a solid 2.75lb top section and lighter quiver top which comes complete with 4 interchangeable tips. Features exclusive FOX-DS16

Lined Fox Sliks, ceramic lined guides highly durable even when used with braids.
FOX-DS16 16mm reel seat."

Yours for £90 including courier or £75 collect

Fishing

2011-02-25T22:42:00.006Z

Itchen

Managed a day out yesterday by joining the guys I cancelled earlier.
Biggest problem with the location is that it's 4 hours away and 4 hours back so a 4am start.
Anyway the fishing was on the £20 a day Lower Itchen Fishery at Gaters Mill, West End, Southampton .
We arrived at the fishery after meeting up at Winchester services on the M3 for breakfast.
The river had quite a bit of colour in it, but was fining down almost before my eyes!
We drove to the top end of the fishery parked up, and moved upstream, or down stream from the area where no coarse fishing is permitted.

The group which was arranged by Geoff Maynard was, Martin James and Barry (who's surname I've forgotten, who drove Martin), Rick Humphreys (Thai giant stingray guide) Steven Buss (Spanish cat and carp guide) Ian Gemson ( Smartcarping carp coach) Billy O(fishing website builder) and Ed Adcock (a relative newbie to fishing) who had over 50 grayling just 200 yards downstream of my first swim, almost one a chuck when the river had fined down.
A couple of Geoff's friends had the only chub of the day the best of 3 on a pike bait, at 4lb8ozs.

I chose to walk down stream and was rewarded with two new species for me, a brown trout and a salmon parr, trotting maggots. Many fish were caught between the eleven of us with plenty of grayling ,some sea trout and at my last count one salmon of about 4lb!

A great days fishing on a new beautiful meandering chalk stream of a river to me, with a group of guys without any edge to any of them.None from Yorkshire!
Not far off a hundred fish between us, mostly on trotted maggot, and mostly grayling.
Sky Sports were filming Martin Porter fishing the pin close to the entrance to the fishery , something to look out for in the future.

Fortunately I had tied in with mum for a Friday visit to the hospital, so the 4 hours return was reduced to only three hours(usually two), the M25 from the M3 to Romford is almost all roadworks!

Next week
I'll be out on the "local" rivers as often as I can get away with it, also the lakes for the perch and roach mentioned earlier.

The week after I have at least one day lined up with Martin James on the Kennet, and I shall possibly be doing another radio spot with him, to talk about this years Barbel Show.
With any luck a chance to promote and the new Barbel Society, Barbel School,which is to be run by Dave Mason and Rob Swindells. On the Teme, Kennet and tidal Trent.

2011-02-18T08:50:00.001Z

Catch up

First of all the latest on mum, she has been advised by the specialist/consultant that all the cancer has been removed.
At the age of 88 she has now a decision to make. Does she want to go through the stresses and strains of 5 treatments a week of radiotherapy for 5 weeks. The first indication is that she doesn't!
A visit to the Oncologist in early March, to find out why she has to, and what happens if she doesn't, is our next move.

Fishing

I was intending to have a day on the Itchen next week, but things have changed as a result of the ongoing trips down south.
So before the end of the river season I shall be getting out on the Trent, or the Idle at every possible moment and maybe,although it can wait, a trip to a nearby fishery where the lakes are now producing BIG perch and roach to 3lb plus.
Fishing reports should commence shortly!

Essex Man

2011-02-10T18:58:00.002Z

RIP Trevor Bailey

Sad to see that Trevor Bailey died this morning in a fire at his house in Westcliff aged 87

Trevor earned 61 Tests caps between 1949 and 1959 and played county cricket for Essex for more than 20 years.

Trevor is perhaps best remembered for his defiant partnership with Willie Watson at Lord's in 1953, in which he batted for four-and-a-half hours. This innings from the all-rounder helped secure a draw which proved pivotal in England reclaiming the Ashes after a 19-year break.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/cricket/england/9393503.stm

I'm back...well for a little while.

2011-02-08T23:16:00.009Z

Mum

Good news, she's had the mastectomy operation at Queens Romford, and has recovered well beyond our expectations, a tough ol' girl.
Operation friday 8:30 am, home monday 5pm with drain removed from breast area, and a small drain left under the arm where lymph glands removed.
On wednesday the District Nurse removed the drain and changed bandages, friday another DN removed bandages !!
NHS at it's best,even for an 88 year old.
We were with her until today, she gave us a week and got fed up with me cooking for her, and wanted her house back.
We still need to keep an eye on fluids from the under arm wound building up, otherwise just a visit to the specialist middle of next week.

The Garden

We appear to have suffered from this years winter quite badly, many plants affected including the well established mahonia.
It looks like a remodel may be required in the close season. I'm tempted to fill in the pond adjacent to the mahonia, but will wait until the green leaves of spring start to show just to be certain of what has been lost.

Books

I took three books with me to mum's. The Chub Study Groups second book Chevin, Practical Barbel Fishing by Graham Marsden and Mark Wintle, and last but by no means least, Blood Knots by Luke Jennings.

All three books, I highly recommend and will review them elsewhere, save as to say you can't go wrong with the first two when it comes to knowledge of the species and how to fish for them.
In respect of Blood Knots this is a very fine story of a mid-50's born lad from a well to do family,growing up in the sixties fishing and mentored by his Military Cross winning tank commander father, and (Captain) Robert Nairac!

Last... but by no means least

Rest in peace Gary Moore

Listen out for...

2011-01-22T20:31:00.004Z

Melody Gardot

Update

2011-01-17T18:06:00.005Z

Sorry

I can see there have been a number of followers looking in, and I apologise for having not a great deal to say recently.
Important things that I have touched upon going on at the moment that need my attention, and it may well be I will have nothing to add here until perhaps mid - February.
Certainly not been in the right frame of mind to go fishing, although I really do want to, I keep finding excuses not to though.
Just need to give myself that extra push.
I can say, I still have my sense of humour, and am not letting the idiots get to me as they did in the past.
There are far more important things in life than swatting at the itching annoyances of midges in t'internet world.
I certainly have found that the BFW site isn't missed by me at all.
They banned me because I answered those that were looking for ways to get me to bite, by referring them to specific areas of the Barbel Society website and Blog, rather than answering myself.
BFW called it spamming, in my mind it was overcoming the inadequacy of the moderators on the site.
It has however helped me concentrate more on The Barbel Society facebook page, and Blog to get our message out to anglers. It's interesting to see just how many carp anglers are joining in and in fact joining us.

http://barbelsociety.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/home.php?sk=group_127485443977171&ap=1!/photo.php?fbid=482146144638&set=o.127485443977171

I'm glad to say, I spend far less time on this infernal machine, so there's no real excuse at all for not going fishing, is there?

Garden

For many of you I'm sure, this winter has so far done considerable damage to the plant life, itw ill be interesting to actually see what has survived come spring!
Something that hasn't survived is the pond, all of my rudd have died, and at least one frog didn't get out before the freeze.
Must look on the brightside though,I have a fgresh supply of dead bait!!
Thinking now of what to do with the pond, it's on the cards we will fill it in and create something else, but we've been recreating our garden every year since we came here, so it just another project.

The stream will be retained, improved and maintained to keep the bird life supplied with water, but I think almost certainly the Gunnera manicata will need replacing, we got caught out and didn't protect it before the ice set in.

I'll be back, but just to amuse you.

Getting old

Whether or not you are a country music fan, these are truly the words of a deep thinker, and a highly intelligent person. So simple, yet so profound!
Read the words of wisdom from the famous philosopher and iconic country and western singer songwriter, Willie Nelson.
On his 75th birthday only a man with such wisdom and maturity could be so concise and succinct in phrasing his feelings at this turning point in his life.

"I have outlived my pecker."

The Penis Poem

My nookie days are over, my pilot light is out.

What used to be my sex appeal is now my water spout.

Time was when, on its own accord, from my trousers it would spring

but now I've got a full time job to find the f***in' thing.

It used to be embarrassing, the way it would behave.

For every single morning it would stand and watch me shave.

Now as old age approaches it sure gives me the blues,

to see it hang its little head and watch me tie my shoes!

Essex boy done good!

2011-01-06T10:19:00.004Z

Alastair Cook

Following in the footsteps of another great Essex cricketer/batsman, his mentor and batting coach, Graham Gooch.
Alastair Cook (born in Gloucester) has now gone into the history books for his feats in this Ashes series, not certain about other newspapers but the Guardian today had a full page write up about in him in the main paper on page 3

http://www.guardian.co.uk/sport/alastair-cook

I'll not go into the records or his importance to English cricket it's all there, even the alure of his long eye lashes!!!
Congratulations, young man destined to be one of the all time batting greats, if he isn't already.
Hopefully he wont let it go to his head and end up affected, like Pieterson has allowed his obvious skills to be.
It's all over but for the shouting, so congratulations to Team England, the promise has now been realised.

Rest in Peace

2011-01-05T09:58:00.011Z

Gerry Rafferty

16th April 1947 - 4th January 2011

I first came upon Gerry Rafferty as part of Stealers Wheel in 1972 with Stuck in the middle with you, I still have the cassette tape version of the LP on which it features.
But, in the what were some of the best years of my life, his Baker Street became part of the celebration of the time for me the late 1970's and early 80's.
Working in Baker Street London, and soaking up the terrific atmosphere of the time,the pubs and the area around with many long standing good friends. His record always brings back very happy and fond memories to me.

So in celebration of his life I'll put Stuck in the middle.... and another favourite of mine on here. Rest in peace Gerry.

Oh alright and one more

Happy New Year

2011-01-04T16:51:00.003Z

Mum

For those interested, I've just had the 'phone call from Mum, she has been advised by the hospital that the mastectomy operation is lined up for the 28th January.
She seems ok about it, but want's me to be there.
It'll be a busy month for us travel wise, and who knows what after?
Anyway it's her 88th next Monday, so a long weekend visit beforehand, weather permitting, will give us a chance to chat.

Snow

Had our third significant batch of snow for the winter this morning, replaced all that had thawed during the week, although we still have great mounds around of the grey stuff left by the plough and the helpful farmer.

I was going to get some maggots and drive down to the tidal Trent, but the thought of driving for an hour in the snow put me off.
My lob worms are dead!
Maybe Friday.

Cricket

Stayed up for the second night to listen to the cricket, bored by lunchtime, very slow.
I think if I had it on tele then I would stay up and watch it, but I'm not giving in to that bloke Murdoch.
Anyway woke again a 5am to listen to the latest, and heard we had let the Aussies of the hook, bad bowling at tail enders...... again!!

I heard Geoffreys summing up, he got it right.
Switched on just in time to hear Cooke & Pieterson moving the score along nicely, then they both had silly turns which had me swearing, well Peiterson did.
Cook obviously got away with it, but the otherbloke,well, will he ever learn that cricket is a team game?
I think we are still good enough to win, time for Collingwood to show his class, I think.

Nostalgia

I've been doing a bit of writing about my early life, not fishing but general.
I may put it on here, or give it up as a bad job.
So far I'm working on what I remember of my life before work took over.

Later 1972

Earlier 1957?

From the past

2010-12-26T11:45:00.128Z

Reminders

Thinking about my memories of the Life Boys/church, and now the production of photo's via facebook from the family archives brings to mind happenings that still produce memories.

This picture brings to mind probably one of my earliest memories at just over 4 years old (the 3rd one along on the left at the front is me) and it was the Queens Coronation street party held somewhere close to the Edgware Road in London.Look at the jumpers to find my two younger brothers
I can't really remember the party in any detail, but I remember a song, probably because of my aunt Alice, it was this one, not the same version though.

Sometime during my Junior school days, after a sickness break for mumps, or something like that, we had a arithmetic test and I can remember what may have been my first use of logic, or common sense , when I realised none of the ounces went above 15 and got praise for my correct answers.
Arithmetic was always my best practical subject, geometry and algebra never seemed to be worth the effort.
I've touched upon my earliest public appearance in this Blog before, so won't remind myself of my red face version of a robin redbreast song.....too late.
I remember at 11 the test we took to see if we were up to 11 plus standard for grammar school, and we were confronted by a booklet of mensa type questions.
Something we had never seen before, my logic, and that of many others, defeated us that day.
But I have often wondered, being council estate kids, if we were chosen not to be grammar school types, because none of the school ended up taking the 11 plus!!

Shortly after, sitting at the back in my soon to be secondary school hall, taking a blackboard written test with over 150 others, and realising for the first time...I needed glasses...too late, streamed as average.
After that, I'm of a view with the benefit of hindsight, I only ever did enough to get average results in most subjects.
My GCE studying years were spent mainly on the sports field, or painting the scenery for the girls school plays. I got Art & Craft O level...just!
Our teachers on the whole weren't interested in teaching, most had a sports grounding and were mainly Welsh, so rugby, football, athletics and cricket got higher priority.
I represented the school in all of those.
We were segregated from the girls throughout the secondary school years, so I was a late developer in meeting female friends. Being a basically shy individual didn't help.

One thing I learned, from really early on probably from 11 years old, is that somebody is always out to map your status/course in life, it's up to you, the individual, not to let that happen.

It worked for me, 50 years later I still don't, and won't fit into the mould that others want!

Cricket

Took to my bed when rain stopped play at lunchtime,quite satisfied.
Had another listen at about 4:30am extremely satisfied, but not confident.
Woke again later than usual at 8am for the news, more confident but not yet convinced.

My view remains, we let them off the hook, and made them look better than they are in the last test.

We shall see.

Good health

2010-12-24T11:18:00.007Z

Cheers

To all my readers have a great Christmas(yes and you) and all you would wish for yourselves in 2011.

The Nativity

Have a look at this , it's very clever.

.......and finally

It's late fall and the Indians on a remote reservation in Nebraska asked their new chief if the coming winter was going to be cold or mild.
Since he was a chief in a modern society, he had never been taught the old secrets. When he looked at the sky, he couldn't tell what the winter was going to be like.
Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, he told his tribe that the winter was indeed going to be cold and that the members of the village should collect firewood to be prepared.
But, being a practical leader, after several days, he got an idea. He went to the phone booth, called the National Weather Service and asked, 'Is the coming winter going to be cold?'
'It looks like this winter is going to be quite cold,' the meteorologist at the weather service responded.
So the chief went back to his people and told them to collect even more firewood in order to be prepared.
A week later, he called the National Weather Service again. 'Does it still look like it is going to be a very cold winter?'
'Yes,' the man at National Weather Service again replied, 'it's going to be a very cold winter.'
The chief again went back to his people and ordered them to collect every scrap of firewood they could find.
Two weeks later, the chief called the National Weather Service again. 'Are you absolutely sure that the winter is going to be very cold?'
'Absolutely,' the man replied. 'It's looking more and more like it is going to be one of the coldest winters we've ever seen.'
'How can you be so sure?' the chief asked.

The weatherman replied, 'The Indians are collecting a shitload of firewood'

Fairy tales?

2010-12-21T20:45:00.002Z

Organised Religion

Yesterday was the first in a daily series of 4 on BBC1 of the story of The Nativity.
I've just finished watching part two, and it brought back memories of my younger days and stories from The Bible in general.
It had to do that, because I watch very little TV, so a half hour burst was enough to get me interested.
This programme which I do recommend to those who may be interested in the stories of The Bible, brought back good memories of my early childhood interest.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b00x1699/The_Nativity_Episode_1/

My interest in bible stories goes way back to my early days at school, but became more important to me from I think, about the age of 8, when I joined the Cabin Boys at my local Evangelical church.
For those of you that were lead to The Cubs and then to Boy Scouts, it was the starting point of the sea version of much the same sort of thing.

All that's left and my memories

Cabin Boys, lead on to Life Boys, with sailors hats and lanyards etc; and then at the age of 11 to the Boys Brigade.
I developed so much of an interest in religious stories that Religious Knowledge became my best subject in school, I can also recall picturing myself having a job in the church, maybe even a priest when asked "what do you want to be when you grow older?"
But that didn't last after my 11th birthday.

On a Sunday afternoon after morning service, it may well have been on my birthday, a church leader and main man with the Boys Brigade, came to the house to see me and talk about joining the Brigade.
Now, up until this time, I had visited the church on regular occasions for religious instruction, Sunday school, and joined in all the functions attached to that church including the choir and football team.
BUT, the church leader told me that day, for me to become a member of the Boys Brigade, I had to attend church.
So at a very early age, and probably the start of my stubbornness to anything or anybody who tried to enforce my participation in anything in life, I made the decision that I wanted nothing further to do with organised religion.
To this day I have not attended a church other than for other peoples weddings,Christenings and funerals and can't see myself ever doing so again.
Me and organised religion just do not mix still.

I'm still a sucker for a good story though!

Diary of a Londoner living in the Marches...

2010-12-20T16:43:00.008Z

Our First Winter
(with apologies Steve)

DEC 20th
It's starting to snow.
The first of the season and the first we've seen for years.
The wife and I took out our hot toddies and sat on the porch watching the fluffy soft flakes drift gently down clinging to the trees and covering the ground.
It's so beautiful and peaceful.

DEC 24th
We awoke to a lovely blanket of crystal white glistening snow covering as far as the eye could see.
What a fantastic sight, every tree and bush covered with a beautiful white mantle.
I shovelled snow for the first time ever and loved it. I did both our driveway and the pavement.
Later that day a snowplough came along and accidentally covered up our driveway with compacted snow from the street. The driver smiled and waved. I waved back and shovelled it away again.

The children next door built a snowman with coal for eyes and a carrot for a nose, and had a snowball fight, a couple just missed me and hit the car so I threw a couple back and joined in their fun.

DEC 26th

It snowed an additional 5 inches last night and the temperature dropped to around minus 8 degrees.
Several branches on our trees and bushes snapped due to the weight of the snow. I shovelled the driveway again.
Shortly afterwards the snowplough came by and did his trick again.
Much of the snow is now a brownish - grey.

JAN 1st

Warmed up enough during the day to create some slush which soon became ice when the temperature dropped again.
Bought snow tyres for both our cars.
Fell on my arse in the driveway.
Went to a physio but nothing was broken.

JAN 5th

Still cold. Sold the wife's car and bought her a 4x4 to get her to work.
She slid into a wall and did considerable damage to the right wing.
Had another 8 inches of white sh*te last night.
Both vehicles are covered in salt and iced up slush.
That bastard snowplough came by twice today.
Where's that bloody shovel?

JAN 9th

More f*****g snow. Not a tree or bush on our property that hasn't been damaged. Power was off most of the night.

Tried to keep from freezing to death with candles and a paraffin heater which tipped over and nearly torched the house.

I managed to put the flames out but suffered 2nd degree burns on my hands. Lost all my eyebrows and eyelashes.
Car hit a f*****g deer on the way to casualty and car was written off.

JAN 13th

F*****g b*****d white sh*te just keeps on coming down. Have to put on every article of clothing just to go to the post box. The little bastards next door ambushed me with snowballs on the way back - I'll shove that carrot so far up the little b*****d's arse it'll take a good surgeon hours to find it.
If I ever catch the a***hole that drives the snowplough I'll chew open his chest and rip out his heart with my teeth.
I think the b*****d hides around the corner and waits for me to finish shovelling and then he accelerates down the street like Michael SchuF*****gmacher and buries the f*****g driveway again.

JAN 17th

Sixteen more f*****g inches of f*****g snow and f*****g ice and f*****g sleet and god knows what other white sh*te fell last night.
I am in court in 3 months time for assaulting the snowplough driver with an ice-pick.
Can't move my f*****g toes.
Haven't seen the sun for 5 weeks.
Minus 20 and more f*****g snow forecast.

JAN 18th

F*** THIS, I'M MOVING BACK TO LONDON.

John Martyn

This is some of the music I was listening to in the late 70's, see what you think of him.

Experiences

The real enemy?

New pub sign ?

Getting there!

Dave Mason

This and that

Chapter closes

Barbel Society News

Happy new year

This year

Another chapter closes

Waiting over

Winter on the way?

A view from The President

Ah well!

Barbel Society and Angling Trust

The Barbel Society: Research and Conservation Auction 2011

Two weeks later!

Phew!

Winter drawers on!

Busy Week

Just bits'n' pieces

How?

All quiet on the eastern front

Well done

Autumn is upon us

Fishing..at last!

Update

Hexed!!

Apologies

Out again

Getting old

Early doors

Anglers Reward - August

Had a dabble!

That was hot!!

River Kennet 20th & 21st August

The inevitable

Off and running

The Barbel Society: Barbel School

More reading time!

The Barbel Society: Barbel School

Been away again

Back again

Update

Done enough!

Whilst I'm looking in

News

Larf? I almost wet myself!!

Weekend

Latest

Tayyabs, Whitechapel, London

Choked on my boiled eggs!!

Maidenhead man

Success!

Typical

An occasional excerpt from my life

One year old

The Barbel Society: Research and Conservation Report

Some of this and some of that!

Onward and upward

A date for your diary

Our 'Enry

What about me?

The Barbel Society: National spawning survey 2011

Good ol' close season

Is it a week already?

Another day

Barbel Society News

Exmouth Update

Celebration

Wahooooooooo!!

Life!

Tried and tested

That's it!

Oh well!

Fishing again......again!!

Fishing again!!

Fishing

FOR SALE