John Deed was struggling against all comers to get a just outcome for the family of a young girl raped and then murdered, supposedly by the driver of a foreign dignitary from a rich Arab state. The UK Government has a vested interest to obtain a valuable aeronautics order so behind-the-scenes activities attempted to ensure a not-guilty verdict. Witnesses disappearing, threatened, posted abroad as well as some serious jury nobbling.
The rest of the evening was a mixture from YouTube. The most notable being a video from a live-aboard narrow boat owner on the UK canals. He describes how he copes with winter conditions and includes some spectacular photography. I felt it was worth sharing so have embedded it below.
Another, canal-related video was of a concours between different narrowboats on the River Severn. Some of the boats are battery only, some hybrid and the remainder diesel. The aim was to demonstrate alternative propulsion possibilities and to see if batteries are a viable solution. I’d not heard of any narrowboats propelled by anything other than horses, perhaps people and diesel. Like my experience in a RIB with an electric outboard, it’s perfectly possible to use electric motors and a battery to replace diesel. The most striking differences were the lack of noise and fumes. I recall finding it almost impossible to hear when in a deep lock whilst choking on the fumes from the diesel engine. Other advantages include a smaller motor footprint as well as instant torque and change of propellor direction which is useful for manoeuvring and stopping in a hurry. It was, for me, very enlightening. I woke up during a following video and went to bed just after ten.
There were no demands to go out during the night so the day started when I woke up. I got the dogs ready so that we could disappear into the darkness on a reasonably starry morning with only the fine remnant of the moon just above the eastern horizon. Tomorrow, the moon will rise shortly before the sun so will be there for only a little while before being engulfed. We all made it to Azzuro although Isabella disappeared somewhere important to return huffing and puffing when summonsed.
Oskar decided to join Skinny and the girls for another walk to Azzuro and back. The river is crossable but I still managed to get both feet slightly damp.
I climbed Panorama to visit the bakery and Petrakis where I bought vegetables for the DDs and for me. There was also some brown tahini which I’d been searching for a little while. It’s not a brand I know but still a premium product.
After feeding the dogs, I got on with the DDs having delivered bread as usual. I eventually sat down with some tea but soon had to take out a wash for Mickey. He leaves us soon so this might be his last.
There were not too many other excitements other than a message to Nina expressing concern that I felt they were dominating the restaurant area with their stuff. I pointed out that the areas are for everyone and should not be used as a storage space for their possessions to the exclusion of others. Hopefully, they will have got the message and cleared up.
Bona and Noël arrived late afternoon. Bona tells me the doctor has prescribed a course of vitamins and suggested she give up work. They certainly would struggle to maintain their current lifestyle on only one wage. Bona is perpetually tired which is hardly surprising given the hours she works.
I returned to feed the dogs as I’d processed the DDs earlier.
There were a couple of support calls from LBS and Inter Sport. Otherwise, I spent time relaxing and reading up on the new version of the email filtering software. Thrilling but also quite interesting.
