Next Chapter

Where to start? I suppose it should be from where I finished off. That would be February when I last blogged, such a long time ago now that such a lot has happened.
We stayed at Reculver until the beginning of April enjoying the sea and all the delights it washed up on to the shores. Slowly the weather warmed and we started to see the bulbs growing and blooming before we travelled on from the coast to inland.
Due to lack of funds we could not go too far so only went into and around the Canterbury area. Mostly we were wild camping finding woods to hold up for a few days. It was a glorious time as spring slowly started to fade into summer and the days got longer giving us more natural light to work by. We even took to using candles to read by as the light began to fade before heading for our beds at the end of a day.
Troy enjoyed this time walking in the woods, collecting and learning about the natural habit and all the flora and fauna we came across. His reading improved to such an extent he read Harry Potter and the Philosphers Stone in just a week, a real achievement for him.
As summer slipped her shoes off to walk barefoot across the land we found ourselves yearning for company, so decided to visit the local campsite in Canterbury for some well earned R and R. We often stop by to say hello to friends we have made, who like us pitch up every now and then. For us it means we can have a bit of electricity, the use of the computer and DVD player, a well earned shower and the use of a washing machine. It can get tiresome washing by hand, but I would not change my life for anything as I have so much more freedom these days.
Whilst at the site my faithful kettle decided it had had enough and the lid lost its screw and the spout blew it top. I have to say I felt sorry for it as it has brewed many a cup of tea, coffee and soup for me over the past six years, so it must have been in need of a rest. Well I managed to fix it up to boil until another could be purchased. Not that I would have gone without as a saucepan would easily boil up water without much fuss, but a kettle is such a delightful thing and lets you know when it has done it's job. So now I am now the proud owner of a hand painted enamel kettle with a ginger tom playing with a ball of wool. This was painted by Martin Leman, who at the time of purchase I knew nothing about, who has painted several pictures of cats in many guises.




















I was over the moon when I received it as it fits right in to our motorhome, and nestled on the stove looked as though it had been there all its life. I look forward to years of happy boiling.



Our dogs have grown, and I am now the proud owner of an elegent collie lurcher and a very small staff who get on like a house on fire. I am very lucky with both as they are good natured although Talin, the lurcher does bark a lot and very loud at that. So he tends to frighten people, which is no bad thing when you live in a van and wild camp alot. They both love to be out of doors and can't wait to get out for a long run every day, which keeps both Troy and I fit.




Here's Troy in the middle of the University of Kent's Labyrinth. We have walked this many times as the dogs hare around across the open field in front of it. As you look out across you can see Canterbury Cathedral towering over the city. We have found many labyrinths on our travels across the British Isles, most of which follow this basic design. I like the feel of finding oneself as you meander round the twists and turns until you reach the centre or the core of your very being.






During one of our stays on the Canterbury Campsite we encountered this very unusual motorhome. Yes it is a plane, and the gentleman who owned it had converted it into a caravan of sorts. A bit cramped for my liking but he was happy with his lot, and it caused quite a lot of interest from other campers during it's stay on the site. I hasten to add he towed it behind his car, and did not drive it away. Though Troy and I thought it would be funny to see him take off from the site and fly it out.










Well summer danced her way through until she met up with autum and as the Harvest moon approached we suddenly started to see an abundance of mushroom and toadstools appear. As is our want we started to look out for them as they gathered in groups around fallen trees and leaves. We had to be careful not to step inside a fairy ring in case we were whisked off to fairy land. Anyway as the days passed drawing nearer to the full moon we realised they were gathering for their harvest ball, to celebrate and give thanks for their crops they had gathered ready for the winter. Pretty much like we use to do when we did not rely on the super markets to do our harvesting for us. It was lovely to watch as they grew and multiplied until after the full moon when suddenly they were gone, so our theory was right they were here just for the festival and then moved on to the next place and next party.
Well now autum has started to slide away making way for winter to don his cloak and shroud us in cold and dark days and nights. We are drawn inside early now and as the light begins to fade earlier and earlier. We are making the most of the daytime though regardless of the weather, as the dogs still need to stretch their legs and run as far as they can. We find oursleves back at Reculver beside the north sea, which throws up new delights each day. So much beach combing to be done and new finds along the shores, we relish this time and await the snow as the next full moon is upon us. Although as I write this tonight she is hidden from view by the blanket of cloud which blots out the light she would be shinning down on us from on high.
I wish you all a happy time and look forward to reading your comments, although I hope not to receive some of the more unpleasant ones I came across on my last blog.
So for now I bid you farewell and sweet dreams.

New Year blessings

I can not quite believe it myself, but we are now starting our sixth year in our motor home. I should explain myself here, we set out at the end of October 2004 and spent Samhain in our van. So each Samhain I class as the end of our year, which is in keeping with old ways, as at this time of year everything dies off ready to be re-born in the spring. So communitites celebrated the harvest they had reaped and made ready for the coming winter months.
We have travelled some miles in that time, seeing wonderful sights and meeting such diverse people throughout the British Isles. My son has now just turned ten and has grown an enormous amount in the past five years. His talent for drawing and creating evolves as I write. It is a wonder to see him conjure up a picture in what seems like no time at all. He is also reading fluently and enjoying different books, his favourite are still comic books. Of course super heros are still his real passion, which little boy does not aspire to some hero or another, and the comic books give him art ideas.
He has created quite a few short comic strips involving family and pets. At the moment he is working on a six page comic of 'The League of Extraordinary Dogs'. We await with baited breath. He has a good creative imagination, I'm sure it helps with other learning as he seems to try to picture things in his mind and then find a comparission to help him understand whatever we are discussing. The other day whilst out walking the dogs he started to develop ideas for a story. We were walking through some woods and suddenly he began to laugh. I stopped and looked at him and enquired if he was alright. " Yes I just had an image of a soothsayer I want to put into a story about magic portals in a wood. He is naked except for a tea towel made into pants" He giggled. When we got in he did no more than drew the man in his surroundings. He did look quite funny.
Then he set about writing his story, this is the more difficult part for him. He finds spelling challenging, and ends up having to explain what word he has tried to write. The English language is very difficult, as not all words can be sounded out, and sometimes letters masquared as a different sound. I had not even taken into account this difficultly until Troy started to write. We do spellings, but he stumbles at the sounds of the words. However, he ploughs on, even if only for a short while. He has gone back to the story and added sentences. Like everything else he learns he will get there, but it must be frustrating to have lots of corrections in your writing most of the time. I try not to make a big thing of it, and praise him whole heartedly when he gets the spelling right. We do spelling tests but I try not to make them a chore, don't want to put him off now he's on the road.
I have succesfully re-sealed all the joins in the outside of my van. It was letting in water as the old seal was either non-existent or peeling away. I had that done three years ago, so I can't complain too much. This time I was quoted over a thousand pounds and to move out of my van for two days. Well that was out of the question, as was the price. So I posted on a wildcamp site and got some very helpful suggestions. I invested in two tubes of sealent used on boats and have completed the job in eight hours over two days, whilst still living in my van. As you can probably tell I am very pleased with myself. I have to add that I am also pleased I did a good job as no rain has leaked in.
I am still trying to find a publisher for my book, failing that I would love people to read it and give their honest opinions, but I don't know how to do this either. I am a complete techonovice and find it all a bit difficult. This blog has taken some getting used to and I find putting it all together traumatic. I just can't seem to get pictures in the right place, so anything else is beyond me in computer respects. I am beginning to put together some future works So I also get confused as to where everything should go.
We are having a bit of us time now before yuletide and family time descend, as most of our time this year has been dominated by work and caring for others. Since being back in Canterbury we have cherished our time with family and friends, but delight in the peace and sanctity we call home. Taking the dog out late at night I can truly enjoy the wonder of the unvierse as it sparkles down at us. We are but a mere dot in the expanse of space. Last night as I looked up at Mars I saw a shooting star. They flash across the night sky bursting forth and are gone before you can even make your wish. I have not seen shooting stars since 2007, so I was especially glad to have been out at that precise moment. The night sky was alight with stars, so clear after the storm that had raged through the south east for two days.
I understand why the Americans call their homes on wheels land yachts, as ours swayed to and fro in the winds which danced a merry dance outside. As we sat in our van the wind outside sounded like an old toy Troy had had. It was a long plastic corrugated tube, with an end like a speaking tube. You whirlled it around and it made a noise. It made us chuckle listening to this sound. Our mirth was brought to an abrupt end when we both felt like we were on a see-saw. Not quite 'Wizard of Oz' but nearly I'd say.
Our days now will be filled with wood and walks, books and drawings and of course food and drink. During all this it is important to still the mind and concentrate on walking one step at a time, then look at what surrounds you. You will notice even the smallest detail in the surrounding world, which we so often miss. I look forward to what awaits us in the coming year and know there will be new experiences out there to help us on our way.

Luxuries

This is the height of luxury, I have a brand new carpet fitted in my van today and it is lush to walk on. Oh yes I am happy, happy, happy to have got rid of the original one as it has had so many things spilt on it over the last 5 years. You don't want to know what has hit the deck, or been brought in. So now the van is smelling very nice indeed, and looks like a 5 star hotel. Ok not quiet, but I would stay here, oh yes I do!
Troy now has to take his boots off before getting further than just inside the van. Don't know how long that one will last but it's worth a try. He was dead excited about the whole thing, even woke me up to tell me this morning that the event was happening today. He became bored very quickly when he couldn't help, well I mean how many does it take to fit a carpet as big as this?
I have also become the proud owner of a new duvet, one you can't see the daylight through, and last night was like barbados. Can't imagine how I've put up with that old thin thing for so long, but then we adapt. Along with the duvet I brought a new duvet cover and pillow slips, Sorry this must be very mundane for you all reading but it's a big event in our small world. So I now feel like the princess and the pea when I sit on top of my bed, it's so fluffy it makes my bed seem huge.
It feels good to bring new things into your life and although these are small compared to others I chrish them just as much. It seems to shed a new light onto all around, a bit like the countryside at the moment as the buds start to open and show their delicate colours to all who are looking.
As I reflect on the days events I know that we both have entered a new chapter in our lives, having discarded a lot of unwanted and unused items to make way for anything that may come along we need. I have been looking at changing our van as space is becoming a bit short. When we embarked on this journey, Troy was 5 and although we had downsized quiet dramatically we still had a few bits and pieces. Now he is 9 and we were down on living space, thanks to a lot of possesions we had acquired. So it has been very refreshing to go through all our stuff and decide what is necessary, a luxury and never seen the light of day for ages. The later tends to be the items who find themselves in charity shops waiting for their next owner. Very little is thrown away, unless it is broken of course, as we love to browse charity shops ourselves so know our stuff will find a good home.
Troy has grown as well and is a strapping nine year old, who is almost as tall as me, so you can imagin space can be tight. I have decided the next van will be less orthodox and more alternative. I had to have the security of a modern motorhome at the beginning. Well this was a big thing and although it felt right it was still a bit scary, and I didn't fancy breaking down or being totally ostracised and lost. I was already lost as a person, so to be lost with a five year could have been disasterous. I also did not know anyone else who travelled or owned a van, so had no-one to bounce ideas off. He has been a good van, taking us to many places I never even imagined existed. Now I am ready to through off that mantle and own something a little more than just a van, but something that will help us become a bit more self sufficient in every aspect of living. I have no fixed ideas or desires for perfection, as I know I can rememdy most things now, one way or another. So I am open to whatever vehicle comes my way at the right price, then we will have to sell Brian our faithful companion. It does seem a bit hard, but then we do the same with people. Not sell them of course, but come and out of their lives, upgrade them for different people with different outlooks. The important thing is not the sadness of it, but the lessons we learn and take forward into our own lives making them more enoyable every day.
It has been a forceful Full Moon, which makes me more reflective than normal, please excuse the tangents.

old to new

Well blow me down if that did not work just as it should. Have no idea why the gremlins decided to play with me last night, but I'm thankful they have let me off tonight. Now for my delicacy of words to start my blog off properly.
Hello one and all, especially those who have dropped by to read about our travels. We have been on the road since October 2004, Oh not that long then I hear a cry. Well in the greater scheme of things no, but in house living that's quiet a long time for me. The biggest difference is that when we get fed up we just move on and find some new adventure. Just like a snail with its home on its back, and funnily enough we have snails on the cab doors. Yes the van is called Brian, after a favourite TV personality. No not Big Brother, The Magic Roundabout of course, which other Brian could travel at those speeds eh!
For this I will have to talk about what is happening now, but have put together a little something about our very beginnings, no not the universe us as travellers. That is for another time, when I stop time travelling. By this I mean living now but writing about the past, I haven't actualy time travelled, as yet!
So where to begin, well I suppose this little venture is as good a place to start. I have heard about blogging for sometime, in fact since I was first on the road, but have never plucked up the courage to have a go. Then a couple of weeks ago we met some really nice people, with whom we have become friends, who have enlightened me on the wonders of blogging. Well in fact gave me a lesson in how to do it.
At the moment I am practising but will endevour to make things as entertaining as possible. Adding photo's as they are taken, don't hold your breath though as I'm not that good on that front either.
Whilst writing this I am having a bit of a Dorothy moment, as the wind buffets the van about. We are a bit exposed here, but it's wind and rain so I know it won't get too fiercesome. The sensation inside is very much like being in a boat on a rough sea, glad there's no duty free aisle.
With that in mind I feel the need to lie down and have a sea sick pill.
Ship ahoy!