In The Flow

I know. It's been a loooooong time, again. I think I have some kind of blockage with regard to writing. Well - here I am, with some news and reflections about our recent ventures.

I just read through my last post, which was written on 17th February this year. Oh. My. God! Then I didn't know what was about to happen, just one month later: The Lockdown. Corona was already around, I now know, and I remember having a cold with quite a cough, which was over by the time we had to stay at home. Maybe I had it, maybe not. I certainly haven't had any symptoms since, for which I am eternally grateful. Ewan neither, fortunately.

So, we had to stay where we were, at the Winter mooring South of Oxford. A blessing. We absolutely loved it there, especially during the very wonderful April and May sunshine with our very lovely boating community that had started forming over Winter. We really were lucky, as we were always having a beautiful time and never felt isolated or truly locked down where we were. Many people walked past every day; some chatted, some didn't; but it just didn't feel lonely at all there. We were of course also able to go walkies without endangering other people, and we had a good excuse: Jack the dog. 

On 1st June the lockdown for boaters was lifted, and we coddiwompled further South (not without some drama at Abingdon Lock LOL). We found a beautiful field to moor at, and we stayed there till two days ago. We were surrounded by nature, had a post office and shop nearby, a car park as well, also a pub, but the best about that place was it being one of the most beautiful wild swimming spots in the country. And swimming we did - quite a lot. I can not easily put into words how much the wild swimming has given me. It was making me feel so alive and connected with myself and nature; I simply somehow just drifted into flow. God, I love being in wild water, and I can't wait to do it again next Summer.

We've had no glitches, no hiccups, all has been running smoothly, and we feel ever so proud of Coddiwomple. Our tin float is much loved now and even more appreciated. Gazing into the evening sun is always breath-taking, especially when it is reflected in the water and surrounding nature's scenery. It can only be described as magical. Having boaters, cows, sheep, waterfowl and other birds, insects and flowers as your neighbours is Living The Dream, certainly our dream. 

When Lockdown happened I stepped up and offered all my services online. Wow - what a journey that has been. I gained long-term one-to-one clients whom I support through the global pandemic, and I've been holding Family Constellations workshops on health issues every Saturday afternoon since. This virus has truly given me a bit of a kick in the backside and got me going. I guess, my response to a traumatic event (global pandemic) is being busy. So, somehow I was just very, very lucky. Ewan kept his job going all the time, as a so called key worker. Yes, the bridges in Oxfordshire have been looked after as thoroughly as ever; bless his and his colleague's cotton socks. 

I did feel a big dip in my mood, though, after all that business of the first 4 months, and I realised that even I had to somehow face the reality of this global crisis. Not as in suffering myself. But I've been definitely feeling the suffering of others and seeing much more clearly what the economical effects are. My heart goes out to all those who have been having a very difficult half year, and I truly wish that we will all pull together. It is community we all need, and it is technology that is helping us to stay connected.

We are now in a new place, a bit further North, mooring here and there on our way back to Oxford, which is the place we'll be moored at during Winter, again. We feel blessed to have such a wonderful Lock keeper who is always helpful and welcoming; always good for a chat and a laugh; and a real sport. We will very much miss the family who was locked down with us with their three-year old sunshine called Zeri. They have chosen to leave boat life and live on the land for a while. We are so grateful to have had these guys around during this most fantastic Summer (in terms of weather). Our Winter community is therefore going to be different, and I am looking forward to reconnecting with last time's peeps and meeting new lovely neighbours.

Life is good.

We're in the flow.

Our plan is to go to Germany for the whole of October, because my eldest daughter is becoming a mum for the first time. I'm so very excited to become a grandmother. I really hope we'll be allowed to go. As the numbers of infected are rising, our near future is quite uncertain, and we have to be prepared not to be permitted to travel. It would break my heart not to see my first grandchild in the flesh. But I won't be alone suffering from the consequences of another outbreak, and we'll just have to deal with reality as best as we can. We have a plan B, and if plan B doesn't work, then something else will come along and tempt us. A whole month on Coddiwomple would also be absolutely wonderful. I am very grateful for my life, and I'm very grateful for my Ewan.

Because the internet reception is shite in the current place, I will only upload one picture this time. If you want to see my pictures, you can follow "sparkling_silf" on Instagram.

Till next time,

Silvia x

Life's Ups And Downs

Hi Peeps!

I'm resting today, as I've got a cold. No worries, I'm on the up, just taking my time to look after myself. I've heard from so many that their cold has come back several times. I wonder if it's down to them trying to get back to work or back into action too soon. I'm lucky that I can rest and take it easy, thanks to my full-time working man, who makes it all possible for me to go slowly. Oh, I do love my hubby so, so much for being such a super star; I appreciate how he's soldiering on while I'm building up my life coaching business. It's growing organically, as I'm not one of those who wants to be in everybody's face with online posts and webinars all the time. I love it when my name gets passed on by happy clients. Oh, have I even told you what my work is all about? Well - I support people in finding ways out of the metaphorical fog into more clarity. I also do healing work, which involves a systemic approach called "Family Constellations". Has nothing to do with the stars. It's a bit like role play, only, it's not role play; it just looks like it is. Basically, once a client presents their issue, I help them set up their family of origin (family system) or current family (partner, kids) by using floor markers. Like this:

The floor markers have an inward triangle cut out to indicate the direction in which the family member is looking.

Each marker represents a different member of the family. Then I ask the client to step onto those different markers and feel into the representations (mother, father, partner, children ...). It's a felt, phenomenological experience.

The client feels into the representation of their family members.

We all kind of intuitively know how the others in our family are feeling towards ourselves and each other, especially when we step into their 'shoes'. In doing this, the client gets a much clearer picture of the dynamics within their family, their place and role in it, but also an insight into the entanglements that hold them back. There's a lot more to it, of course, but I don't want to bore you about that here. Just, some bragging: Clients come away with a sense of healing and deeper understanding, but also knowing their next step. Yep - that's me as a Life Coach.

A new car

We treated ourselves to a nice new (used) SUV, a silver Honda CR-V. We had it just about 10 days, ...

 
 

... when a pub customer bashed into it at about 11pm. That was the end of it - a write-off.

 

That was over a month ago, and we still haven't got our money from the third party insurance. They offered us £255 less than we paid. We're not amused. We're fighting our corner. Wish us luck!

So, how's life on Coddiwomple?

We're actually finally at a point where we have sorted all issues (I hope I'm not jinxing it), bar the bow thruster, which will hopefully be fixed in March. The solar panels work, the heating works, the composting toilet was a brilliant idea, and the water filtering system works too (although we're not too happy about already having to replace the filters as the water went yellow - probably down to the fast river flow). We have the furniture that we want, the kitchen looks lovely, and our guest room is being used by friends and family quite regularly.

It's great to have more day light again, which means we don't have to run the engine for so long anymore. On a sunny day, we're actually totally fine. Probably, because we had decided to switch off the freezer during winter. I shall be glad to have that one back on soon'ish, which means that I won't have to shop so often.

We have some very lovely friends who help us out with freezer space and laundry now and then. I'm volunteering at the local 'Talking Shop', a community shop and cafe in a village hall, baking my German style cakes, which are well received, and helping out at the till sometimes. I love it.

Ours is the white-dark-blue one in the middle.

We're on our Winter mooring, at a Lock south of Oxford after we had stayed on the free meadow mooring a little further up since late March. Just as we thought we could stay there another Summer, we've been told that mooring is now forbidden there, because the opposite house owners felt annoyed by the view of our boats. Yeah, bummer. But hey - we live on a boat, so we might as well roam the river from 1st April. Just - with us both using motorised vehicles, it's going to be a challenge to park them nearby. But I'm sure we'll figure it all out. We'll certainly be back on the Lock for the next winter, as we really feel safe and supported here. Those house owners clearly seem to feel the free view onto the meadow across the river is a given and included in the ownership of their million dollar houses, and, unfortunately, the owner of the meadow doesn't want to upset them. So, our little community will be dissolved from April to October, but we'll most certainly all be back next winter.

I'm - just like you - so, so much looking forward to Spring. The first signs are clearly visible, and I'm having a lovely time taking pictures while walking my Jack. Of course, I love the sunrises and sunsets most, as the light is magical then.

View out of our kitchen window in the early morning light.

At sunset, beyond the Lock, on a wind still evening.

The wildlife is certainly fully waking up and making a lot of noise with the sun rising. I guess they're starting the mating process as well as sorting out territories. It's amazing to witness it all, and I now really am relaxing into this life style.

 

 When it was cold and the heating didn't work (several times), I dreamed about a house in a warm place during Winter - six months there and six months on the boat. But actually, when the heating is working, it's really quite nice in our floating tin. Maybe one day, we might be able to have a little house somewhere down south.Coddiwomple withstood the two major storms, Ciara and Dennis, very well indeed, and despite floods on the main river, the mooring at the Lock has been well managed and flood-free. We can park close by on either side of the Lock, which is very handy indeed.I am nervous about us having to move away from 1st April, but nervousness is my default setting, - I know it's irrational - and I'm managing it with positive thoughts and remembering that I have my captain Ewan look after me, and friends coming to help if needed. All is good, all will be good.Aho!

So, boatlife...

I know, I know. I really am crap at writing posts. It's because I get distracted so easily, and then I don't find the time and peace I need to write. Scattered mind and procrastination - not a very successful combination. I don't recommend it.

Anyways - Here I am. We're still living on our river boat; it's been over a year now since we first set foot on it. How's it going? The short answer is, 'Well. Thank you 😊'.

And here's the long answer, if you're at all interested:

We've had quite a beautiful summer: Open windows, bird song, waterfowl noise, wildlife gazing, sitting outside in the sun, barbecues, warmth, even heat. When it was really hot outside, it was still amazingly comfortable inside.

Our six solar panels produced more than enough electricity during the long days. We were able to run the washing machine without having to fear running down the batteries. During the short days we have to add to the electricity by running the engine every other day for an hour'ish, depending on sunshine or clouds or a mix of the two.
Ewan has been keeping the water tank topped up by carrying about 220 litres on board every week. That is when we had no visitors staying over. I always felt so sorry for my dear hubby watching him carry 25 litre canisters through the boat. Remember, it's 70 ft long 🙈 Bless him. But that is about to change: We're getting a filter system this week. We'll be able to source water from the Thames. Yes. Don't ask me about the details, but it will be perfectly fine for washing and cleaning. For drinking it will go through another filter under the kitchen sink, which is being fitted today, by the way.
So, that covers electricity and water supply. The only bills we will have in the future are for gas, diesel and coal.
In terms of independence we've taken another big step by getting a composting toilet. This was a very good decision, we believe. No pumping out anymore. We're actually getting rid of the original toilets and will have the floor sealed.
The next step will be to make one bathroom out of two. We feel we don't need 2 sinks and 2 showers. The remaining shower will be changed into a combined shower/bath (now that we'll have infinite water supply 😉). This will cost us quite a lot of money, so, it might take another year until we actually go through with it. But it's good to have dreams.

We hadn't taken Coddiwomple out since we moored in our current spot. This is partly because we love this place so much and partly because I was still freaking out at the idea of moving her. But recently we had a befriended couple over, so we decided to take her to the pump-out, ca. 1.5 hours away. As we had the help, it felt less scary to me. Still, because of our bow thruster not working, strong winds and a boat blocking our way into the lock, we managed to bump her sideways into ballards (yes, some things fell off the shelves); land in the brambles with the stern canopy (phew, it didn't get damaged); and added to the collection of bow dimples by hitting the side of a lock, while going in. All in all this experience didn't quite reassure me that moving her is a good idea - well, that is when the weather is a bit rough. Ewan would tell you a different story; I believe he enjoyed the day very, very much. He's not a quarter as worried as I am. I'm glad we're back in our beautiful spot, and we won't go anywhere with her until .... don't know. Poor hubby!

I've got used to static boat life, though, and consider it now "The Life". How else can I have so much peace and quiet, beautiful views, nature walks on your door step, lots of wild life, lovely neighbours, and at the same time close to no bills? I know right? I am grateful.

Winter has arrived (at least temperature-wise). I always find the short, cold days and nights difficult anyway. But on a boat I find it even harder. The stove keeps us roasting, and the central heating keeps the other half .... well, not really warm warm. More like just about tolerable warm. I'm dreading the real cold days and nights. Squirrel (the stove) is running pretty much 24/7 now. By the time the warm air reaches the bed room, though, it has cooled down considerably and doesn't really heat the space efficiently. The central heating (diesel-driven) is only on partly during the night and early morning hours. The bath rooms don't get heated at all. I would call this situation .... improvable; we just don't quite know how. I'm sure we'll figure it out somehow. In the meantime, I have ordered another set of sexy long-sleeve thermal underwear. And my super warm Lang Tall Sally dressing gown works a treat.

So much for now. You will hear from me again. I promise. I just don't promise you when 😜

Namaste,
and Ahoi!

We've Gone Off Grid

This post was meant to go out a while ago, when the headline was "We're Getting There". I had to change it to what it is now, because we got there (work wise): The kitchen is done, the canopy is on, the batteries are fixed and the wiring finished. The heating is working, and the solar panels are drawing in most of the energy we need. 😅

It wasn't a very nice time. It was Winter, and we had lots of work done and therefore little privacy and lots of DDS (dust, dirt and stress). Our start into boat life certainly didn't go as well as we had imagined it. Ewan has chest pains (no, it's not the heart) and suffers exhaustion and is therefore written off sick for 2 weeks; and my neck has played up again, nearly as bad as it was 1.5 years ago, when it all started to go downhill with my spine; and my lower back is constantly in pain. Yes, it's another moany post, I'm afraid. And it goes on, I'm afraid, because now we're back in Abingdon, off grid, moored near Abingdon Bridge, and, despite the place being amazing, the weather is really not so good to us, rocking us about like nothing else. I'm constantly in a state of 'emergency', which can't be healthy. Ewan is much more relaxed, feels safe, and he's really enjoying some time off. He needed that so much.

I think, if we now were physically fit, we would actually start enjoying ourselves. When the sun is out, it's glorious here, and when the stars are out, the sky looks just magical. It just has to get a bit warmer, still.

So, really, we haven't quite got there. I'm sure we will, though. Once the winds ease and the sun comes out more, we'll feel so much better. I hope we're not delusional. The few things that still need to be organised, are

- getting the name onto the boat,

- getting the bow thruster repaired,

- getting the hull inspected.

Here are some impressions of the work site and new kitchen:

I know, it's natural that chaos comes before order, but it was annoying anyway.

The gas pipe and regulator had to be replaced, so, for about 4 weeks we could only use a camping cooker.

New fridge, new freezer, new gas hob, new LPG gas oven, new microwave and new fronts.

Oh joy!

But then....

...it looked pretty much as we had imagined it.

The worktops have been covered with a special sparkling laminate.

And - just so you remember, this is what it looked like before:

Some people would have preferred this style. But we love it in Ash wood with red worktops.

I just didn't like the cold, black and white, male look to the space. Now it's looking and feeling warm. The new red rugs help, too. We also decided to get rid of the big 3-seater sofa, as I just couldn't get comfortable on that. We replaced it with a two-seater sofa bed, which we are very happy about. Sitting is much more comfy now. 

So much more us.

Now we're moored in this very beautiful spot in Abingdon-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. On the photos below you can see the end of the garden of the Nag's Head pub. Normally we're only allowed there for 3 days, but we intend to stay until we're being moved on, because of the very windy weather. We're pretty much in the heart of Abingdon right now, which is very convenient and still so lovely. I'm so glad that Ewan's brother Duncan was available and happy to help us move the boat from Shillingford. I was still a bit nervous from the last experience. But now I'm feeling much more confident again.

Two confident males and a scared dog.

Moored opposite Abbey Gardens.

It's such a beautiful spot.

We'll enjoy another week of Ewan being off now, and the whole coming weekend we'll be celebrating Ewan's 60th birthday by having an Open Boat. We're both looking forward to that. Although, where the heck shall we store all the food and drink?? And where will they all sit? What if it rains? Saturday will be party night. We have no clue at all how we're going to make this work. But I do want to stop worrying all the time. Therefore, I shall be prepared as best as I can and leave everything else to fate.

Love to you All 💖

Work Site

Hello everyone,

It's been a while again. Sitting down and just writing seems a luxury at the moment. My (our) life has been so stressful recently that I feel we need another holiday.

Don't know where to start, so I will just start with the heating. It's still not working. We've had an engineer out twice and an electrician too. They came to the conclusion that it's the original wiring, and that we need to have it re-wired. Apparently Viking boats are made in Poland, with Polish standards, not English. God knows what that means. Anyway, a new loom has been ordered, and the engineer will come back this Thursday to start the job. Fingers crossed, we'll finally have a warm boat this coming weekend. It is getting to me that we have to have electric heaters plugged in, which draw a lot of electricity, which has been costing us £10 a day. The wood burner is going 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and we're still not warm in places. The floor is ice cold, and the 2 bathrooms are not exactly warm either. This particular job will have cost us an unexpected ca £1500, we think.

We had ordered 5 smart lithium batteries and the necessary kit to wire them in. Early January the electrician came with 4 only, as the 5th had tested faulty. During 4 very long days of putting the wiring in while it was very cold out there was also a test to my poor nerves. I'm not really complaining, as the kind soul didn't charge us a penny for the work, only for the batteries, the gadgets, the wiring and the accommodation. That came to over £10,000 (! - Yes, it's true. But these batteries are supposed to be good for about 20 years). So, we're very grateful indeed that this wonderful chap never charged for his workmanship. Still, it was stressful for both of us, as Ewan had to shadow him all the time in order to help when necessary, and I had to put up with the space looking as if a bomb had exploded. We're still waiting for the 5th battery; and some more wiring needs doing, which - he thinks - will take another 2 days work. This will hopefully be finished by mid/end February.

The boys sorting the batteries and me keeping the bellies filled

Six solar panels have been installed, tilting ones, and there seemed to be no problem at all. Took the young man a full day's work into the night, but it's working. We can't use solar energy yet, as we're still plugged in at the Hotel due to the electric heaters drawing so much. But it will be so fantastic to know we're using solar power for most of our electricity in future.

The canopy has been measured up, finally, 2 weeks ago, and apparently it's being fitted tomorrow (29th January). We're very excited about that, as the forecast is snow, and it will add to the boat's warmth and to our comfort.

This is just the frame for measuring the canvas which will cover it.

It'll look soooo lovely and will give us more room, especially for our dirty shoes.

Kinver seem to be doing a splendid job. It took them ages, though.

Poor lad, he had some difficulty in doing this job, as it was quite windy that day.

Last, but not least, we've had a kitchen fitter round since 21st January, and there's now light at the end of that particular tunnel, too. As you might have seen, the kitchen was black and white. We're changing it to ash wood with sparkling-red worktops. We've taken the electric oven out and replace the half-gas-half-induction hob to a full gas hob, so we don't use electricity when cooking/baking; we've replaced the dishwasher with a free-standing freezer, and we've replaced the built-in fridge with a free-standing one, as it gives us more fridge space. We hope it's finished by the end of this week. It already looks just like I had envisaged it, and - again - I can't wait for it to be done. The new LPG gas cooker and hob need plumbing in professionally. We've been let down this morning, but it will be done this week. In the meantime, we're using our new microwave for heating up food. I'll post the piccies when the kitchen is finished.

My health is not so good. My body is aching all the time, and I find it hard to get up and out of bed in the mornings. I feel stressed by everything, especially the cold, and I wonder if that is contributing to my achy bones. Ewan is not feeling much better either, unfortunately, and I'm beginning to worry about him. We do have good times on Coddiwomple, especially when we've got friends over. But we also have a good go at each other for nothing at times. The stress of the past 4 months is taking its toll. I know we'll get through it. But in the meantime we're just surviving, it seems.

Just a reminder, what our boat name actually means. We're looking forward to travelling purposefully.

My business is picking up. I'm a Life Coach and Family Systems Therapist, and for the first time since I've gone full-time self-employed, over 3 years ago, I'm feeling it coming on. That is a huge shift, and it feels fabulous. Having to deal with work, though, as well as everything else, adds of course to the load we're dealing with at the moment.

I can hear your "aaaaw"s LOL. Yes, it's not been easy.

My new flyer - A bit of shameless self promotion.

I do hope I've done a good enough job, so people understand what I'm offering, professionally.

Ewan is constantly making sure that we've got enough wood and water, he's also been amazing at shifting stuff around, so we have been able to use the boat as a living space. He is and remains my rock and my hero.

Our boating community, The Shillies, as we call ourselves, is just so lovely. One of them, Tim, is a homeopath, and we're helping each other with our issues. I'm totally into homeopathy, as it does help me and has always helped my young children, when they still believed in what mummy believed in.

Finally, I'm posting a few lovely pictures I've been taking during walks. Not only when the sun is out, nature is such a source of inspiration and strength.

Our amazing view in the sunlight onto Shillingford Bridge

Light and shade along the Thames Path between Shillingford and Benson

Jack's view

Reminds me that reflection is good practice, and mindful walks help

A beautiful berry dress, a welcome colourful spot in the wintry scene

A stranded narrowboat. Nature is conquering it back. Wondering what the story is behind this scene.

Beautiful reflection in the sunlight

I love willow trees; they're like fun curtains ;)

Life and Death next to each other, as it should be. Both beautiful and natural.

Grass is so resilient

Who doesn't love the look of snow drops

Is that a sign of Spring coming soon?

A bed of snow drops in a garden in Warborough - Stunning!

A very windy day on 27/01/19. Lucky it flew no further than the owner's garden.

Thanks a lot for reading and please always feel free to comment below. Oh, and remember to click "follow" on the right (if you're reading this on your phone, I have no idea if you can, actually).

Till soon,
Silvia

PS:
This is a Facebook group that I host: http://www.facebook.com/groups/OxonRiverAndCanalLife