7th January 2014 - Rebuilding the Bothy

A mighty crash of thunder and the brightest lightning I have seen in a long time disturbed our rest at 2.43am this morning. I know it was that time as the dog was trying to scale the bed and find some cover from the incoming fire!! I checked the clock as I moved the glass of water to a more secure location. It was only one crash of thunder...   well two actually but the second one really hardly counted as it only shook the windows, rather than the walls!! A sudden downpour of hail and then all was once more quiet...

Global warming has a lot to answer for. Well, the News channels have a lot of weather coverage and it is clear that nothing else is happening in the world. An "Arctic Vortex" is descending over the United States bringing the coldest weather in - wait for it - 20 years !!! Oh !!!  So it was this cold twenty years ago??  So it is not quite as astounding as the headline seemed to make out....  it is just that there was no twenty four hour television 20 years ago, so we have to make the most of it now!!!.

I will grant you that the ripped up promenade of Aberystwyth is quite impressive.

We have seen the waves crash into the bar and spray fly over Alexandra Hall on the sea front, but to actually rip the concrete suggest a little more strength.. But do we have to see it every twenty minutes??

And oh!!   It seems that it has all happened before - grant you a little more than 20 years - but this is Victoria Terrace in 1927...

But, it was fairly easy to go straight back to sleep,  awaiting a phone call in the middle of the night from the hospital which never arrived.

The morning was bright, but an early start was required as the poor old Bothy was booked in for the change of the Head Gasket. Sadly, another big vehicle expense. Mainly labour - they reckon over 9 hours for the job, and labour costs are expensive these days. Even the oil costs almost £100 to refill, but we found that out when the vehicle was serviced before going to Germany last year. It is the VAT that is the killer though. Still, we have got very used to having the option of the mobile hotel and stop over, with built in bed and breakfast.

The morning was bright - well until I got to the Bothy and found that the battery was flat and would not start. I know that we have not been using her over the Christmas period - but still!!!  Luckily, the extension lead was to hand after hosing down the paths with the power hose, and the battery charger was where it should be in the Bothy!!  Of course - that was when it chose to rain again... As I was running up and down the path setting the power up...  Ten minutes later there is enough charge to get her started and off we go. It is bright again now that I do not need to be outside...

Once she is back on the road - it will be a case of saving up to get the awning repaired and then we will be ready for the new season...

"On the road again ...."  ♪♫

At least if the weather does not improve, we do not have to worry about the canvas blowing away in the middle of the night as we did in the past.....