Problems!

Oh dear, what is it with me? I have the bug for leather craft now. I must have had more interests and hobbies than a dozen men. Those who have been keeping an eye on my activities will have seen already a few pieces that I have made and now I have a few more. This one, is, I hope, more comfortable than real barbed wire wrapped around the wrist.

The one above on the left is a design based on some of the tribal tattoos that seem to have become so popular over recent years. It is hand cut, dyed with coffee and then given a bit of a shine using bees wax. The last one here is of course a Celtic

design and is made using embossing stamps that I

recently bought from a leather craft shop. I have about another dozen or so, each one different, but I don't want to post them on here as I may give them as Christmas presents. Now, all of this is causing me problems. Space, we need a larger camper, I am running out of places to store all of my hobby materials. Time, there are never enough hours in a day to devote sufficient time to my interests, I think that I will have to give up sleeping in order to get more done. So, that's it, you're up to date with things, except that Meg (my dog) has been very poorly for the last couple of days. In her never ending search for food, she has, I think, eaten something that has given her diarrhea and sickness and it has really knocked her about.

A Christmas Wish

Well, there are only about two weeks until Christmas and it is a time of year that I always have some difficulty with. I detest the mayhem of the shops and the buying for the sake of it, the TV adverts that apply emotional pressure and the loan companies that feed on the struggles of the less fortunate. I never know how to deal with it all, I want it to be a happy time for my loved ones and everyone else but how can it be done? So often in the past, I have tried to please everyone and as a result Christmas has been such an anti-climax. What a shame, that so often Christmas causes much upset when the intentions are all so good. What is the answer? I don't have a clue.

I do have one wish for Christmas though, so Santa if you are about.............How about making it one day, that no children in the world cry with tears of pain, fear or hunger.

Back in Staffordshire

The last couple of weeks there has been little to report. It seems the day that we left Yorkshire was the beginning of the monsoon season and our week at Wrexham was wet to say the least. Fortunately, as I said before, we were pitched on hard standing and so did not have to be towed off site like the rest of the vans. From Wrexham we returned to Staffordshire and spent some time with the family. I do enjoy seeing the family, in fact, not being near them is the hardest part of full timing for me. So we are now at one of our favourite sites, it is not too far from the family and is as pleasant as you can get. We have not done much to prepare for Christmas, in fact, each year the festive season becomes much more of a chore and much less of a pleasure. Humbug! I am quite looking forward to a spot of fishing, maybe some bird watching and who knows what else. I have today put out some bird feeders and cleaned the binoculars ready for action. Today, whilst in Lichfield I bought an old folding knife from a stall on the market, I know that I will get great pleasure from cleaning it up and making it serviceable once more. Over the last couple of weeks we have watched more TV than we have for years, I have set up the digital box and we have both enjoyed some of the documentaries that have recently been shown.

From A to B

This morning we departed Yorkshire at 9 o'clock, off the site and straight up on top of the moors. I really would like to have lingered, taken a long look over the landscape and maybe some photographs but the weather was set against us, the cloud was down to ground level and the screen was splattered with sleet. Driving was very unpleasant and we were both pleased to get back down below the cloud base. The remainder of the journey was quite uneventful and by 11 o'clock we were at our new location, Wrexham. The site owner kindly allowed us to set up on his drive due to the site being very wet. The view is pleasant and it is a top coat warmer than Yorkshire.

What Car?

Sadly our brief stay in Yorkshire comes to an end and I have to say a big thank you to our friends Andy and Pip who have been fantastic hosts, they have fed us, entertained us and chauffeured us around. Unfortunately, when they ordered the weather, they got the dates wrong. Yesterday, I went along with Andy to walk the dogs, it was rather wet but I enjoyed the scenery. That was after we had ransacked Todmorden flea market and collected a couple of goodies to help with the ballast.

Sadly, my footwear was not really the best for plodging around the very wet landscape I would love to have walked for longer.

This northern landscape of crags and ghosts of industry, has an attraction for me that I find difficult to explain, I am sure that we will return, hopefully in the not too distant future, any way, we have to, because the pies are magic.

Today, our hosts took us to Ramsbottom, a town that I have never heard of, but we had great time and ate what has to be, one of the best servings of fish and chips that I have eaten for a long time. Whilst there, we visited the local "Morrisons", Andy parked the car next to a small blue car that had a couple of modifications, one of which I don't recall having ever seen before. In the rear of the car was a pile of old polythene bags, the rear wings of the car were heavily splattered with mud, the screen, bonnet and wipers were sprinkled with straw and right in the centre of the bonnet was a lump of sheep shit.

I had to take a picture, at which point Andy said, "Do you know what this car is?.......it's a Turdbo" Thanks for having us, Tarra.

Moochin' about

Tuesday we went for a little mooch about Stockport, our friend Andy took us there in his car, the weather was not good and our hearts were not in it. As a result, we did not stay long. I have no wish to offend anyone, but it really is not my kind of place, too busy by far.

Wednesday we went to Hebden Bridge and had a mooch around there. We spent a good deal of time at the flea market, where I bought a couple of old tools. We thought it to be a lovely old town with loads of character. We bought a hot pork pie from a local bakery which we ate "on the hoof" and thoroughly enjoyed before walking along the Rochdale canal back to the site.

All of the boats in these pictures were being lived in, some had clearly not moved in years. I have to say, I for one, would not mind joining them, unfortunately Pat does not like water.

Ay up me duck

Wasn't the weather good for October? I don't remember any rain all month. Well Sunday 1st November certainly made up for it. We left Staffordshire at about 0900 hours bound for Yorkshire, Hebden Bridge actually, and it threw it down all of the way. Driving conditions were atrocious, we were both relieved when we arrived on site (in Mytholmroyd) at 1210 hours. We had a good deal from the site owners, being low season, the daily fee being just short of eight pounds with a hook up. For half an hour or so, we just sat, looking and relaxing after the journey. Suddenly, the van shook violently, rocking from side to side, woodland debris rattled on the roof and the leaves flew horizontally like golden snow. 15 seconds later all was calm once more. Except for one man that is, who emerged from a twin axle caravan 60 metres away from us, a tall silver birch tree had snapped off at the root and fallen across the rear of his van. Fortunately it turned out that there was only minor damage where the tree clipped the back end, 6ft forward and his van would have been a write off.

A couple of hours later our good friends Andy and Pip arrived, took us both back to their house and fed us like kings. We chatted and laughed for hours before they returned us to the truck. Next day, Monday, Andy picked us up again and took us for a little tour of the locality and back to the house. I went for a walk around the nearest town, Todmorden, while the other three sat chatting. I took a few pictures of this old town, wondering how on earth they built it all those years ago. The river runs through the town, the Rochdale canal runs over the river and the train line runs over the canal. Houses and mills have been squeezed into any area larger than 20 square feet. Funny, I don't think that we have ever been here before but it felt homely somehow. Anyway, here are a couple of pictures.

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I got the feeling that many of the current locals didn't have much interest in just how difficult life would have been for the original occupants of such a town and I wondered if they even saw the attraction that was so obvious to me.

I like it here and I can't wait to have a closer look at the moors and dales. Many years ago I spent a couple of years of my youth living in Yorkshire, nearer Harrogate though and I was sad to leave it then.