Christmas comes.....

One thing that I enjoy about boat life since moving aboard in the summer are the chores. Mundane little tasks that must be accomplished to keep things on an even keel if Youyou’ll pardon the maritime pun. Filling the water tank, emptying the toilet cassettes, charging the battery, and now as we move into the winter, laying a fire, and topping up the coolant for the central heating and the engine. Sometimes when the days stretch empty before me, the knowledge that some of these tasks must be completed is what gives my day shape. This week, after a wait of a couple of months, I’ve acquired a water tank nozzle fitting. An exciting addition. No longer do I have to climb out onto the front deck and put the hosepipe into the tank and then return to the rear deck, or poop deck as it might be on a larger vessel and connect the water to the pontoon bollard. Now due to a state-of-the-art water nozzle the hose pipe is connected to the water tank permanently and I can lean off the rear deck and connect the other end of the hose and turn on the tap. That the tank is now so easy to fill has meant that I’ve been able to try out another novelty on the boat-my bath. Until now it’s been daily showers, and sometimes up quick run over to the harbourmaster’s office where there are shower suites to luxuriate in and not worry about the water usage. Scout has a little half bath - or as my friend Elly told me, a Japanese bath. It’s now easy to fill with steaming hot water and allows all six foot two me to sit in and soak. No stretching out, that’s to be sure. But, as most of my bath time is spent reading the paper or engrossed in a good book, the fact that this little Japanese bath makes me sit up is an advantage. So that’s another pleasurable winter morning treat to look forward to. It’s a time of the year for doing the familiar. The rituals that lead us up to Christmas and provide a little structure what can often be a hectic time of year. This year, for me, it’s all new. No big, long list of presents to buy, no planning what needs to be in the fridge, and no real knowledge as to where I will spend the big day. It’s all an adventure – a step into the unknown. My aim is to be in France with some of my oldest friends in their beautiful house. Having splurged out enough to buy at least half their house on rail tickets to get me to France and back, the next day I hear that it’s more than likely Eurostar will be on strike on the day I’m intending to go. I splash out yet again for a backup flight with easyJet the following morning. This evening’s news brings glad tidings that the border control staff and baggage handlers will also join what is rapidly becoming a general strike in time for Christmas. So, both my options of getting to Bordeaux may be cut. It’s hard not to feel aggrieved by the current situation. It’s also hard to know that many people are struggling on their current salaries to make ends meet and feel that striking is their only action. One can’t help but feel that the unions should really target the government and the employers, not the public looking forward to their first Covid free Christmas. A union such as the rail workers which has announced a crippling programme of strikes for this month gained no sympathy from me when they added the 24th and 26th December to their industrial action. It looks less like a strike and more a way of getting an extended holiday. Given that some of this industrial action is being taken by vital workers who are grossly underpaid and who throughout the pandemic were hailed as emergency heroes, one must take a deep breath and deal with the consequences. Those consequences for me might involve a Christmas on my boat. And that wouldn’t be all bad. Scout has become my haven, my safe place. I had an immense amount of good luck this year and I have received a phenomenal amount of love from so many friends to help me find my way through life. Yet one can’t shy away from there being loneliness in my life. And Christmas is like a magnifying glass. It makes our love greater; it makes the lack of it loom large too. I am determined that Christmas will be a success on whatever terms I must face it. I hope it can be with loved ones, with laughter and largesse. If it must be a simpler one then so be it. I just hope that no young couple, fulsome and pregnant, knock on my door looking for a boat to stay on.

Chritmas comes to Scout