Feet First!

We had a quick trip round a nearby Village Yard Sale on Saturday morning. I didn't really have anything on my list [apart from a bacon roll at the Village Hall] and Bob was - as ever- on the lookout for tools. It was here six years ago that we got the high chair which has proved so useful ever since. There were quite a few "pink plastic"pitches - ones where young families are clearly getting rid of children's books, toys, clothes etc - and things are either pink plastic or festooned with unicorns or dinosaurs. Suddenly something bright green caught my eye

A Clarks toddler foot gauge. I'd been talking to my good friend Amanda about these only last month. She runs the Little Acorns Toddler Group at church. The group has some 'baby scales' - with fewer baby clinics around, the mums in the village really appreciate being able to weigh their children. 

Amanda said the Mums had been talking about the hassle of getting children's feet measured. And if you do get them measured, you feel obliged to buy the shoes in that shop. A Clarks foot gauge would be useful. I said that I knew Liz had bought one on line [I think many Mums did this during the pandemic] They are about £15 [inc postage] But this was was only TWO POUNDS. I bought it immediately, and sent Amanda a message. When I got home, I cleaned it, and found that you can print off the instructions from the Clarks Website. It is a very clever system. I took the gauge to church on Sunday.

At the very end of the village, Bob saw a workshop stool. It was good quality, sturdy, and comfortable for his height, with a proper backrest. 

The seller was a really affable chap.He quoted a price, and we said we'd think about it. We went back to the Hall for a cup of tea. I suggested to Bob he should offer the guy a slightly lower price. Then the man himself came in. He chatted to the teamakers at the hatch, and explained his wife had returned so he was 'off duty' for a bit. Bob made an offer, and the guy replied "I was going to say to you that you could have it for that price - I'd rather it went to someone who is really going to make use of it"

When we got home, I discovered it is a Dauphin workshop stool, made by a top German company.  The only problem - the legs are tubular metal - but had neither castors, nor rubber ferrules on the bottom. Bob had a look through his workshop stash, and found some assorted washing-machine-transit-bolts. This are plastic tubes which screw onto the machine, and have rubber ends. But we won't be moving our machine. So he took a hacksaw to them, and stuck the rubber ends them in place with a hot glue gun. Brilliant - job done, creative recycling at its best,

We had some young visitors this week - they stayed with us while their Mum went to visit Gran [our neighbour] in the hospital. The 10 year old boy looked into Bob's workshop and said "Wow! All those tools. What's your job? Are you an...inventor...?" I explained that Bob is retired, and he's a sort of engineer who makes and repairs things. But he was clearly very impressed.

Earlier, Bob had been demonstrating his Mamod Steam Tractor. I think possibly this sweet child thinks my husband is somehow connected with Caractacus Potts from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang!