Hello again! Missed me?

Hmm, I just had this guilty feeling – it’s a month since I last posted something here and I’ve been getting complaints from far and wide!!

So I’m sorry – no real excuse just out of my routine since I was away for 10-days sailing at the end of July; you know how it is?!

Anyway, the sailing was good although because the weather was so awful and unpredictable we didn’t get as far south as St. Malo, visiting (apart from Cherbourg) just Guernsey and Jersey in the Channel Islands. We did have some good sailing but mostly we ‘motored’ as either the wind or tides were against us – the tidal stream known as ‘the Alderney Race’ is especially severe and critical when sailing in that area.

And then I hurt my back!! Well it was after we had moored up at the Hamble on returning when we were moving heavy bags and provisions off the boat – I twisted and felt something go; ouch!! Next day I was flat on my back and crawled to see my Chiropractor, Henry Butterfield, who did his usual ‘tut, tut’ when I explained how it had happened!! Well, that’s how he makes his money I guess!!

It took all of two weeks to get myself fully mobile again – maybe I should be more careful in future!

Meantime there is some more up-to-date news on Clare which I’ll post separately after this.

We had a nice weekend break with our good friends Elaine and Sandy Downs in the lovely old Shropshire town of Ludlow last week and managed to experience a ghost for the first time!! It was actually a reasonably friendly ghost I think but nonetheless scary in the ‘prickly-hair-on-the-back-of-your-neck’ situation! The house is very old (actually its two very old cottages, knocked into one) and some parts of it date back a few centuries – it was at one time apparently used as a hospital!

I first sensed something when we went to bed at around 11pm – I walked into the bedroom to a really strong and pungent smell, like fish or something like that. Shirley smelt it too and we both agreed it was an ‘un-natural’ smell – we switched the light off and snuggled closer together, peeking somewhat carefully from under the bed-covers!!

Thankfully, the night passed without any problem!

Next day we mentioned the smell to Elaine, being careful not to phrase it in an offensive way to our lovely host and hostess!! ‘Oh’ said Elaine. ‘Did I mention this to you before?’ ‘No?’ we replied, feeling more than a little apprehensive at what she was about to tell us!! ‘A fish-like or deathly type of smell?’ she enquired. I couldn’t actually remember what the latter smelt like so I said it was more like cat-food, kind of ‘fishy’!

Well it seems that there IS a ghost there! Elaine has sensed ‘something’ close behind her on one occasion and literally tore down the stairs in a blind panic and on another she saw what she described as ‘a shadow’ moving into their bedroom. Plus they’ve both experienced ‘the smell’ which seems to appear suddenly and then disappear just as quickly!!

We stayed three nights and strangely only smelt the ‘pong’ on the last night we were there, and then not as strongly as that first night so maybe the ghost got used to us and thought we weren’t that bad at all to be in ‘his’ or ‘her’ house!!

So next time you switch off the light at bedtime………………….!!