Weekends

Crane, Norfolk, July 2011

The May Day Bank Holiday weekend started after work on Friday with a drive to Southampton, checking into an ancient, run-down (but clean) hotel, and almost immediately driving to a gig to see Alabama 3.

Mr A and I arrived at the venue a little late, and when we reached the door into the main room I wondered if we would ever get inside. There was a wall of people, but somehow we squeezed in and found a small space towards the back. The gig had started but I don't think we were very late. We each had just enough room to stand, and of course the tallest man in the room was in front of me - when he started jigging about it was time to beat a retreat in case he reversed into me and caused a nosebleed. Standing at the back was not much better - it was a frequently used through-route and we were constantly having to let people pass. Which was annoying. As were the group of people who seemed to have come for a good chat rather than to listen to the music. So all in all it would have been better had we arrived a little bit earlier.

It was nice to go out in the evening like 'ordinary' people do - it's been a long time since we've treated ourselves to this kind of event. The following day we visited Mr A's parents, and found his mother's dementia has reached the point where she struggles to put a sentence together. They are still managing to live together successfully at home, although I'm not sure how long that can last. Then on to Mr B and his wife and dog and a nice local walk from where we viewed the Isle of Wight and the Needles, and finally to friends J&C for a Chinese takeaway followed by pub (Mr A & J) or chat (me & C).

And back home on Sunday, with all of Monday to enjoy the Bank Holiday. As it counts as a weekend, I was in charge of the Catering Department, and I thought I would forsake Jamie Oliver for once and produce the Ultimate Lamb Biryani (from the Ultimate Recipe Book). The book said it would take 3 hours, but somehow I didn't take this seriously. I did little else that day, and it was a good lamb biryani, but not that good. The Great God Jamie clearly punishes those who forsake Him.

This weekend has been mainly spent in mundane tasks: yesterday contained laundry, a large amount of washing up, food shopping, cooking and then we watched an excellent film that I can wholeheartedly recommend: 'The Guard'. Today I have mostly been trying to renew/upgrade the contracts I have for mobile phone, landline and broadband, which I find fairly difficult and quite tedious. I finally completed the process of negotiation for the mobile contract, and a new touchscreen phone is on its way, my first foray into modern mobile communications. Along with the return to contact lenses, this was supposed to be a luxury that I allow myself as a result of having a job, but in fact the deal is no more expensive than my previous phone contract. The landline/broadband deal is still under negotiation.

Weekends are proving difficult for me. I work much harder in my current job than I have done in any previous jobs, with no down-time during the day other than a 30-minute lunch break. What with badminton on two nights a week, I'm very tempted to do nothing at all at the weekend other than a few easy household chores, food shopping and cooking, which I enjoy. But there are many other jobs that need doing - Mr A mowed the lawn, which was nice, but there is more to do in the garden and all sorts of repair and decoration that would make our house look a good deal better. I need to make a bit more effort during weekends at home.

Replacing a windscreen - in pictures

Mr B's 'workshop', 2012

Last time we went to see Mr A's parents, I took my clarinet and his dad accompanied me on the piano. We both enjoyed it, and he was keen to do it again, plus Mr A's mum isn't too well, Mr A Snr is having to cope with that on his own, and they really enjoy going out for lunch. So we planned to visit again this weekend, combining the trip with seeing Mr A's sister and some other friends as well.

The first job was to pick up Mr A's sister, and then the three of us made our way to the next stop, where Mr A's dad and I produced our best efforts with Bach's Air on a G String and the slow movement of Mozart's Clarinet Concerto. We need some easier, shorter pieces than the Mozart, more like the Bach. Off to lunch, very tasty, then back to Mr A's sister's to drop her off and onwards to Mr B's windscreen workshop. My car windscreen recently received another hit from a flying stone, so along with the small crack and the huge star-shaped crater, there was a new crack that's been growing fr three weeks in a way that would have been imprudent to ignore.

Mr B has featured in my previous blog - he was the friend who arranged for Mr A to go with him on a charity rally from Plymouth to Dakar, meeting a group of random strangers on the way who have now become firm friends. I was quite interested in seeing the whole windscreen replacement operation, simply because I like finding out about things that are new to me. I tried to take a photo of the crack in the windscreen, but the lighting conditions were not suitable and my photographic skills were not up to it, so you'll just have to believe me that it was a big one.

I also tried to take a photo of Mr B's workshop, which is very large, and entirely filled with junk except for a space just large enough to accommodate a car whose windscreen needs replacing. The photo at the top doesn't do it justice, because it's impossible to stand far enough away to give a proper sense of how much stuff there is piled up in there. I know a few people who are reluctant to throw things away, but Mr B beats them all. Mr A gave Mr B an old car for parts or scrap in 1992, and twenty years later it's still buried in that workshop, covered with junk inside and out.

Anyway, back to the windscreen replacement. After taking off the windscreen wipers, all the plastic pieces that sit at the base of the windscreen, and the rubber seals around the sides, the next stage was to detach the existing screen by cutting through the bead holding it to the metal frame. Mr B had a special knife attachment that he could run around the screen, but the corners were a bit tricky, so he fed a sharp profiled wire through the gap made with the knife, and sawed away using that. Eventually the old windscreen could be removed, and the remaining bead material cut away. I was surprised at how much time and effort it took to get the old screen off.

The edge of the new screen and the frame were de-greased and primed, and then Mr B laid a new bead on the new screen with a very nice triangular profile, just like icing a cake. Together, he and Mr A gently placed the screen in the hole, adjusted it so it was exactly central, and that was it - no need for pressure or time to cure, the bead just solidifies over time and you can drive about while it does. The plastics at the base of the screen hold it in place. That part of the operation is surprisingly quick.

So then it was just a case of putting all the bits back on in the right order, saying thank you very much, and then going back to the B's for supper and chat. On Sunday we all went for a walk in the lovely New Forest, lunch and then home. Before you knew it, the weekend was over and I had to go back to work.