Week 11
We started the week by hanging up new bird nesting boxes...
...and to our great delight, the birds were fighting over them literally within 5 minutes!
A koolmees (left) and a pimpelmees were fighting over this one...
(I wasn't going to mention it...but we had an unfortunate sequel to this story. It was very windy when we put them up. So much so that the nesting box must have blown back and forth until the screws snapped!. We found it on the ground the next morning with the victorious pimpelmees inside - dead!. It left me with a sour feeling all day...we put the box back with 4 heavy duty screws).
This one is for a woodpecker... (which we hear quite often in the forest next door).
(somebody has to foot the ladder!)..
After my squirrel (eekhoorn) sighting the other day, we're now planning a squirrel house...
Boat news...
Official opening of bridges in Friesland begins 27th of March.
As we inch closer to the warm-enough weather, I've just about got everything ready to go back on board...
Janny found some stretchy rubber tape designed for purpose - so I was able to seal the new wiring for my nav lights...
The Gas Instalation
And I was mightily relieved when Sander (our boat-do-everything-man) rang to say that we don't have to change the gas installation after all!
Now, I think I was more pee'd off with the notion of having to change something that was perfectly good - rather than the inconvenience or cost.
It seems that Sander had come across a few similar installations that had to change simply in order to comply with the new regulations. So he looked further into it and even went so far as to go back to his instructor on the Installer's Course that he had done in order to become a Qualified Certifier (of gas installations).
He used mine as an example and said "it just doesn't make any sense to change it because it is perfectly safe the way it is".
It came down to "if you are happy to Certify it. then Certify it".
There's no regulation or certification against stupidity, so we just have to continue to treat it with respect and keep to our procedure of letting each other know that the gas is "ON" or "OFF" as required. And make sure that the changing of cylinders is done properly. The rubber hose at the cylinder has to be changed every 2 years and the regulator every 10 years.
Sander didn't say so, but we will probably remove the bayonet switch and the gas pipe to the unused heater.
Which reminds me: We'll also be able to install the new diesel heater... (says he without consulting the treasurer :-) )...
Walking, and more walking...
On Saturday, two women were organising a picnic at the Freulevijver. They were delivering everything by bike - requiring multiple trips.The sign says "Have a Happy Day".
The site was once visited by the Royal Family (I wrote about this once before but I can't remember the year of the visit). The structure was burnt down.
News of Ben...
A few weeks ago he did some modelling of glasses (eyewear) at a company called Ace & Tate. It is literally just around the corner from where he lives.
They also asked him to do his other work for them (Internet, website, advertising copy, etc).
And he had a model of glasses named after him!
and, I forgot to mention it last week...He took his new bike back to Amsterdam on the train. Which is quite normal here, but it is a regulation that only 3 bikes can be on any one train - he was the third! So lucky he didn't have to wait for another train. I don't know who counts or checks...but I learnt something new!
Nice photos- poor birdies.
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