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A day spent in A & E, learning that I have to call an end to my boat-owning days.  

I may be able to do eg hire-boat trips, but the full load of maintaining a boat is over.

 

These days have included 212 visits to the boat, typically for 5-7 days, each, over 10 years.  

Most of these visits have been to do works normally associated with fit-out, with a much smaller proportion cruising. Since my primary purpose was always to enjoy this work rather than seeing the sights, this was fine by me, and enjoy it I very much have.

So what do I have to show for my efforts?

A 60ft square (with rounded corners!) cruiser-sterned narrowboat, with large front well deck and nearly new cratch.  A front locker rather like a gas locker but with no drains. Going backwards, steel double doors give onto a step formed by a 70 gal poo tank into the main bedroom with a large fixed double bed, 2000 x 1400mm, over two 400L plastic water tanks filled via direct mains pressure under the control of a Teensy (Arduino look-alike). A large shower (1000x75 IIRC) and a Jabsco Deluxe mascerator toilet with an Elna basket stack in a bathroom with side passage. Then into the lounge with a tall-backed 2000mm long sofa whose back lifts up to give a top bunk for long narrow people (2M x 2ft!). Adjacent, the Morco D61B, primarily for the shower.  Room for a single compact folding chair beside, then on to a large dinette, capable of seating 4 modestly sized persons each side at a table with Desmo legs. This of course converts to a 2000  x 1400mm bed. Then the galley, a very large gas fridge freezer, set of drawers, full-sized 60cm double-oven cooker, and gas tumble dryer. on one side, and washing machine, diminutive laboratory type sink and a pile of tubs full of cruising equipment on the other.  I have omitted to mention the 2 large and 1 smaller radiators driven by the Webasto in the engine bay, and the convoluted low level ventilation ducted down from what used to be the centrally placed Puffin stove that I took out after many years of service.  Out of the double steel doors on the rear deck and the single small solar panel on top of the hatch can be seen, used for keeping the batts topped in my absence only. At the stern a rear bench locker houses 4 gas bottles with auto changeover valve.  

Doesn't sound too bad until I add that there is minimal internal wooden panelling inside. The interior of the boat is completely sprayfoamed, including the base plate, and, as the sprayfoam must be protected from sunlight, it has been covered with white hardboard.  I have never had the opportunity to replace this with the proper stuff which would have been oak or ash faced 9mm ply.  Lighting is a bit minimal, though the 35sqmm 12V bus down the full length of the boat should make additions easy.  

The hull was 2 packed on manufacture and recoated once by me and is probably due again, there is no great corrosion on the water line.  The topsides needed repainting 2 years ago, being Dulux over manufacturer's excellent 2 pack. The sides that get bruised in locks need derusting and painting.

So, all in all, a boat that can be lived in quite a lot , immediately, not quite to full liveaboard status due to the lack of a stove, whilst providing an opportunity for somebody who wants to do a lot of work to convert an ugly duckling into a swan. 

Oh, and did I mention the Beta 43?

I doubt its of great interest but I shall add pictures when my time and health permit.

I aim to enquire of my various relatives and friends if they want it, and if there are no takers by the new year, I shall be looking to part with it to a good home from the general public at a suitable sum.

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13 hours ago, system 4-50 said:

A day spent in A & E, learning that I have to call an end to my boat-owning days.  

I may be able to do eg hire-boat trips, but the full load of maintaining a boat is over.

 

These days have included 212 visits to the boat, typically for 5-7 days, each, over 10 years.  

Most of these visits have been to do works normally associated with fit-out, with a much smaller proportion cruising. Since my primary purpose was always to enjoy this work rather than seeing the sights, this was fine by me, and enjoy it I very much have.

So what do I have to show for my efforts?

A 60ft square (with rounded corners!) cruiser-sterned narrowboat, with large front well deck and nearly new cratch.  A front locker rather like a gas locker but with no drains. Going backwards, steel double doors give onto a step formed by a 70 gal poo tank into the main bedroom with a large fixed double bed, 2000 x 1400mm, over two 400L plastic water tanks filled via direct mains pressure under the control of a Teensy (Arduino look-alike). A large shower (1000x75 IIRC) and a Jabsco Deluxe mascerator toilet with an Elna basket stack in a bathroom with side passage. Then into the lounge with a tall-backed 2000mm long sofa whose back lifts up to give a top bunk for long narrow people (2M x 2ft!). Adjacent, the Morco D61B, primarily for the shower.  Room for a single compact folding chair beside, then on to a large dinette, capable of seating 4 modestly sized persons each side at a table with Desmo legs. This of course converts to a 2000  x 1400mm bed. Then the galley, a very large gas fridge freezer, set of drawers, full-sized 60cm double-oven cooker, and gas tumble dryer. on one side, and washing machine, diminutive laboratory type sink and a pile of tubs full of cruising equipment on the other.  I have omitted to mention the 2 large and 1 smaller radiators driven by the Webasto in the engine bay, and the convoluted low level ventilation ducted down from what used to be the centrally placed Puffin stove that I took out after many years of service.  Out of the double steel doors on the rear deck and the single small solar panel on top of the hatch can be seen, used for keeping the batts topped in my absence only. At the stern a rear bench locker houses 4 gas bottles with auto changeover valve.  

Doesn't sound too bad until I add that there is minimal internal wooden panelling inside. The interior of the boat is completely sprayfoamed, including the base plate, and, as the sprayfoam must be protected from sunlight, it has been covered with white hardboard.  I have never had the opportunity to replace this with the proper stuff which would have been oak or ash faced 9mm ply.  Lighting is a bit minimal, though the 35sqmm 12V bus down the full length of the boat should make additions easy.  

The hull was 2 packed on manufacture and recoated once by me and is probably due again, there is no great corrosion on the water line.  The topsides needed repainting 2 years ago, being Dulux over manufacturer's excellent 2 pack. The sides that get bruised in locks need derusting and painting.

So, all in all, a boat that can be lived in quite a lot , immediately, not quite to full liveaboard status due to the lack of a stove, whilst providing an opportunity for somebody who wants to do a lot of work to convert an ugly duckling into a swan. 

Oh, and did I mention the Beta 43?

I doubt its of great interest but I shall add pictures when my time and health permit.

I aim to enquire of my various relatives and friends if they want it, and if there are no takers by the new year, I shall be looking to part with it to a good home from the general public at a suitable sum.

Sounds great, any photos much appreciated, lots of good ideas there for othe 'fitters-out'

Do you feel up to writing a manual, or book, as the only relevant book is well out of date, but much quoted on here. I believe you can self publish nowadays.

You could use the Narrowboat Fitting book as a guide or pro former, I'm not sure about copywrite, but an a knowledgement would probably suffice. If you could put in websites or contact details of good resources, that would be great.

I used this forum to ask all sorts of questions I eould never have thought of before buying this boat, , and though sometimes I thought I knew an answer, often a better method was suggested.

The other book I use is the Nigel Calder Manual, again the format is ideal  as it goes in to nity gritty, not just, ''avoid this gadget", do it this way.

Take care of yourself, and keep your self in good humour, the NHS is a wornderfull institution, and staff are dedicated to get get you going again.

All the best

Jo

 

Edited by LadyG
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18 hours ago, system 4-50 said:

....but the full load of maintaining a boat is over.

Really sorry to here this. I've enjoyed reading your many interesting progress reports over the years. I hope things work out better than your current expectations and you still get to enjoy boating in good measure. Best wishes. :)

 

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Sorry to hear that but be consoled by the fact it gets us all in the end so be happy to join us others who have felt it sensible to give the boat up but stay with the forum, your experience can help others. You may find that you have far mre dspoable incme t spend on other hobbies when the boat has gone, its just life.

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A sad decision,I do sympathise.It is one we will all make sooner or later.

The writing is on the wall for me,stiffening back,hips,and knees are making boating and locking rather painful.Another year,perhaps two,and I will be giving up.

Best of luck.

 

PS   The Origo works a treat.Won't be going back to gas.

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  • 3 weeks later...

Thank you all for your kind thoughts.

 

A Cautionary Tale follows, which may be of use to some.

 

I am a careful person.   I always close craft knives before I put them down, I always reposition stuff the first time I trip over them without waiting for it to become irritating, and so on.  I have a rule on my boat which applies to not just to me but every visitor to my boat, "move slowly when inside the boat".  

However, 2 years ago I was standing beside my dinette, facing away, and I turned around to face it, and I caught the fleshy part of my upper right thigh on something projecting from the dinette seating that should not have been there.  Perhaps it was an umbrella, I can't remember.

Despite hardly moving forward it hurt! A lot! For half an hour I was in agony.  If getting to A&E had not involved launching a dinghy, rowing across the canal, unlocking 2 gates, and driving a few miles, I would have gone.  By the time I felt up to it, I was not sure that it was justified. Whilst painful, there was no wound or skin damage, and no significant bruising developed.  I ignored it, kept calm, and carried on.

Six months later a small hard lump developed on my leg in the same place.  Initially I did not make the connection.

In February of this year I got sufficiently concerned to visit my GP and got told to "keep an eye on it".  Some months later I saw another GP with the bump now 40mm across and 10mm high.  She said that she would refer me to a General Surgery consultant.  The appointment when it came through was for 3 months later which surprised me but being a novice in health matters I assumed it was due to C19.  Later I discovered she had decided that it was not growing and therefore low priority.  This was after just one viewing!  I wondered if I could get a faster opinion on the state of it by going private.  I explored this avenue with the following result:  they assigned me to the wrong sort of supervising consultant - and attempted to set up an appointment with exactly the same consultant as I already had with the NHS for a later date than the NHS!  This consultant then promptly cancelled my NHS appointment presumably due to conflict of interest!  I have abandoned the private route and now have had the General Surgery appointment and had my bump diagnosed as a sarcoma, and rapid action is now being taken to discover whether it has spread.  

All of this sort of thing probably occurs to many but I list it here as there are a number of lessons that I would like to have known earlier.

1. Move slowly inside your boat!  It didn't save me but it is a very good rule.

2. Keep everything safely stowed inside your boat!

3. Deal with those inside-boat safety issues that you have been meaning to do, now! Don't put it off!

4. Many GP's instinctive response is to fob you off, the logic being there are so many time wasters, and if its serious you will come back.  If you think that something might need to be done, insist.  Don't assume as I did that they are doing the best thing for you on your first visit.

5. GPs do not know everything.  Apparently a GP is only likely to see a sarcoma like mine once in a career.

6. Keep records. Nobody I saw actually measured my growth, even though all the discussion was about the rate (or not) of it. Note dates as well.

7. Don't expect to necessarily get good results out of going private at least until you have learnt their systems.

 

If it has spread I'm stuffed. If it has not then I'm in for a session of radiotherapy and an operation in January.

 

PS. None of this has anything to do with why I went to A&E at the start of this topic!

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1 hour ago, system 4-50 said:

Thank you all for your kind thoughts.

 

A Cautionary Tale follows, which may be of use to some.

 

I am a careful person.   I always close craft knives before I put them down, I always reposition stuff the first time I trip over them without waiting for it to become irritating, and so on.  I have a rule on my boat which applies to not just to me but every visitor to my boat, "move slowly when inside the boat".  

However, 2 years ago I was standing beside my dinette, facing away, and I turned around to face it, and I caught the fleshy part of my upper right thigh on something projecting from the dinette seating that should not have been there.  Perhaps it was an umbrella, I can't remember.

Despite hardly moving forward it hurt! A lot! For half an hour I was in agony.  If getting to A&E had not involved launching a dinghy, rowing across the canal, unlocking 2 gates, and driving a few miles, I would have gone.  By the time I felt up to it, I was not sure that it was justified. Whilst painful, there was no wound or skin damage, and no significant bruising developed.  I ignored it, kept calm, and carried on.

Six months later a small hard lump developed on my leg in the same place.  Initially I did not make the connection.

In February of this year I got sufficiently concerned to visit my GP and got told to "keep an eye on it".  Some months later I saw another GP with the bump now 40mm across and 10mm high.  She said that she would refer me to a General Surgery consultant.  The appointment when it came through was for 3 months later which surprised me but being a novice in health matters I assumed it was due to C19.  Later I discovered she had decided that it was not growing and therefore low priority.  This was after just one viewing!  I wondered if I could get a faster opinion on the state of it by going private.  I explored this avenue with the following result:  they assigned me to the wrong sort of supervising consultant - and attempted to set up an appointment with exactly the same consultant as I already had with the NHS for a later date than the NHS!  This consultant then promptly cancelled my NHS appointment presumably due to conflict of interest!  I have abandoned the private route and now have had the General Surgery appointment and had my bump diagnosed as a sarcoma, and rapid action is now being taken to discover whether it has spread.  

All of this sort of thing probably occurs to many but I list it here as there are a number of lessons that I would like to have known earlier.

1. Move slowly inside your boat!  It didn't save me but it is a very good rule.

2. Keep everything safely stowed inside your boat!

3. Deal with those inside-boat safety issues that you have been meaning to do, now! Don't put it off!

4. Many GP's instinctive response is to fob you off, the logic being there are so many time wasters, and if its serious you will come back.  If you think that something might need to be done, insist.  Don't assume as I did that they are doing the best thing for you on your first visit.

5. GPs do not know everything.  Apparently a GP is only likely to see a sarcoma like mine once in a career.

6. Keep records. Nobody I saw actually measured my growth, even though all the discussion was about the rate (or not) of it. Note dates as well.

7. Don't expect to necessarily get good results out of going private at least until you have learnt their systems.

 

If it has spread I'm stuffed. If it has not then I'm in for a session of radiotherapy and an operation in January.

 

PS. None of this has anything to do with why I went to A&E at the start of this topic!

I'm afraid that one has to take responsibility for self diagnosis, I've had similar problrms, not to mention blood test interpretation by the receptionist! 

I have had asthma since I was a kiddie, yet only got diagnosed when I went to an asthma clinic, when I was about thirty five, just happened there was an open door asthma clinic, and he diagnosed it. Standard  GP procedure is to hand out a tube for you to blow in and a random variety of inhalers., especially blue ones, but not the one I need, had to go to a consultant in the end, insisting on this as it was obvious mine was unusual and not responding to any random inhalers.

I google diagnosed something called GORD, went and demanded a prescription, the cure was instant, after years of  suffering unecessarily, I had described my symptoms, which were various, quite clearly as it happened, in the end the google came up with the disease, it's aparently quite a common condition.

I could go on, fortunately none of my minor complaints have been life threatening, so far, but if they think you have cancer, and then tests are negative, that will be the end of their interest.

The NHS is great in emergencies, A&E and all the sexy ailments, but one is expected to present with "all the usual ailments".

I am supposed to get an asthma consultation once a year (I suspect they get paid per consultation), one specialist asthma nurse who did my consultation declared I did not have asthma, but I still get asked to the consultation, by telephone this year!

Let's hope you are OK, it is sll a bit of a lottery. 

 

Edited by LadyG
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Hope all goes well Piotr.

My experience has been different and I have had excellent support from my GP and the oncologist.  I think it helps if you know enough physiology and anatomy to know what they are talking about and asking the right questions. 

I'm having a tricky time with my  current treatment and the oncologist has said we want to keep a close watch on you,  along with a healthy disregard for NHS funding cutbacks.  Another scan coming up and new chemo in the new year. 

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19 minutes ago, Laurie Booth said:

I've found my doctor to be useless, not been able to see him/her after 4 months of trying.

:(

You're not using the right keywords, like the GMC, and the other paymasters.  

I think you'll find  way, just be 'assertive', don't be rude, just ask to speak to the practice manager and ask her how to make a formal complaint. :)

I found a great way, when faced with a similar problem  I refused to speak to the Dragon they wanted me to speak to ... 

I said, don't me put me throught to her, my complaint is about her. Silence (muted). "We have a cancelled appointment tomorrow with Dr-Do-very-little, would that be suitable Miss Pia?"

Edited by LadyG
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1 hour ago, LadyG said:

You're not using the right keywords, like the GMC, and the other paymasters.  

I think you'll find  way, just be 'assertive', don't be rude, just ask to speak to the practice manager and ask her how to make a formal complaint. :)

I found a great way, when faced with a similar problem  I refused to speak to the Dragon they wanted me to speak to ... 

I said, don't me put me throught to her, my complaint is about her. Silence (muted). "We have a cancelled appointment tomorrow with Dr-Do-very-little, would that be suitable Miss Pia?"

Tried again, they are ringing me back :(

 

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On 02/12/2020 at 10:39, Laurie Booth said:

I've found my doctor to be useless, not been able to see him/her after 4 months of trying.

:(

 

Register with a different surgery.  If they are unwilling or unable to help you, why remain on their list so they get paid for you?

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8 minutes ago, TheBiscuits said:

 

Register with a different surgery.  If they are unwilling or unable to help you, why remain on their list so they get paid for you?

Both our local surgeries have full lists, so check the new place will take you before cancelling as you might end up on one miles away

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6 minutes ago, Chewbacka said:

Both our local surgeries have full lists, so check the new place will take you before cancelling as you might end up on one miles away

 

Fair enough comment, but you don't need to deregister from your old surgery - registering at the new one sorts it out as part of the process.

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9 minutes ago, Laurie Booth said:

Did he see you or spoke on the 'phone for 20 mins?

It was on the phone, but adequate for the consultation I needed, and he would have arranged to see me if necessary.

 Frankly I think the phone consultation is a big improvement in many ways, most of my hospital appointments have been by phone also, but seen when needed.

 No travelling, no parking hassles, no waiting around for ages with a bunch of sick people, appointments on time,  speak to the right person the same day, scrips sent to online pharmacy and delivered two days later.

 I accept that I am fortunate in where I am treated, but very grateful for the attention I get.

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1 hour ago, dor said:

 

It was on the phone, but adequate for the consultation I needed, and he would have arranged to see me if necessary.

 Frankly I think the phone consultation is a big improvement in many ways, most of my hospital appointments have been by phone also, but seen when needed.

 No travelling, no parking hassles, no waiting around for ages with a bunch of sick people, appointments on time,  speak to the right person the same day, scrips sent to online pharmacy and delivered two days later.

 I accept that I am fortunate in where I am treated, but very grateful for the attention I get.

This is my problem, trying to see the doctor, I've had 6 'phone consultations to no avail. Very hard to do urine samples, blood pressure (luckily I have a blood pressure gadget). Just waiting to see what happens with the clinic they are sending me to.

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