General Witterings -
Absent from Rosy

Here we are, back on Rosy after a brief trip to UK.

Symmetry

My apologies for bringing up such a complicated and contentious issue as palindromic dates.  It's funny how this newsletter is meant to be about boating, but how palindromes lead to a full in-box situation. 

Yes, there are a few more palindromic dates.  I didn't include them because they weren't on the e-mail that I copied them from.

No.  I don't read any spiritual/magical/religious significance into palindromic dates, on account of the fact that our date system starts at a random point in time, and that our months and years are somewhat artificial.  I might accord them greater significance if our months and years were based on a lunar cycle, rather than a solar one.

My time in England was short but extremely sweet.  I stocked up on knickers and trousers;  spent a day in London, and walked across the Millennium Bridge and visited Tate Modern and the Andy Warhol exhibition;  sneaked a visit to Tate Britain (in between a coach dumping me in London from Cambridge, and another coach taking me from London to Paris) to see the American Sublime exhibition (landscape painting in the US between 1820 and 1880).  And, of course, I spent good 'quality' time with family and friends.

A few years ago I acquired a digital camera.  It has had a pretty idle life as it EATS batteries.  The cost of Duracells for it just about equals the film and d&p costs of a film camera, and rechargeable ni-cads aren't powerful enough to fire it up for more than a few minutes.  However, a new Ni-Mi battery charger, and a set of Ni-Mi batteries have changed all that - so it's back to cheap photography.

A couple of days after getting back to Rosy, I got back into my wash-day cycle.  I aim for an 8 day cycle.  I hate to have a routine, so doing washing every Monday would be pretty anti-life-style.  For me, the limiting factor is knickers.  With 9 pairs of knickers, one can drop into an 8 day cycle quite easily (8 pairs in the wash and one pair on).  Such a system is, of course, self-randomising (via unexpected dribbly incidents) so that the pure 8 day cycle is occasionally interrupted.  The 8 day cycle has the necessary logistical infra-structure here in Briars, as the Laundryman is open 8 to 8, 7 days a week.  I used to work the 8 day system with socks as well, wearing each pair for a single day, but recently I've taken to wearing socks for 2 or 3 days.  Lack of visits from Jess the Woof are indicative of a need to enter into sock changing mode.

I still haven't decided on an itinerary for this year.  Or next.  This year could be up the Marne and down the Soanne, overwintering next year in Dijon, and the next year back here in Briare or in Auxerre, but nothing is yet fixed.  We're still waiting for a week or two of dry, warm weather, so that we can do some boat painting, before setting off on this year's cruise.

That's all Folks!! But don't forget the web-site where all these letters are archived.  Click on:

http://www.billybubbles.demon.co.uk

Toodle pip!!

Bill