Thursday 9 November 2023

Not That Sort Of Fencing!

 

Back in the 80s, Liz, Steph and I used to sit together after school and watch Dogtanian and the Three Muskehounds. Later I watched Tom Burke, Peter Capaldi and others in the BBC series "The Musketeers". There is something fascinating about watching swordplay, the movements almost balletic. I once had a boyfriend who was keen on fencing.
But I digress - the problem here at Cornerstones is the other sort of fencing - the stuff round our property. In February 2020, a month before lockdown, our SIL Gary stayed here as he had business in Norwich, and reported that the back fences had suffered in the high winds. By the time we got here a week later, they were in a worse state. We planned to sort it over Easter. But then Covid...
...We will sort it when we retire, we said. Then things went awry with our planning, and only now is the work about to start. In that time the tenants on one side have changed [twice] and the neighbour the other side is no longer here, and her bungalow has just gone on the market. 
Early Tuesday morning, as I sat in bed drinking tea and reading blogs, I heard a vehicle outside. Is that the bin men already? I mused.

No,it was the bloke with all the fence panels, posts and gravel boards. He was very adept at managing his crane and depositing the materials alongside the raised bed. I stood in my dressing gown, monitoring the process. I am hoping that the work goes smoothly, and that the weather is kind.
We've just discovered that the oil tank is not healthy. We know it is 14 years old [because of this ] and they have a life expectancy of about 15 years. So that will be the next bit of property maintenance to get sorted. 
The English language is fascinating - fencing can mean to fight with swords, or the wooden boundary round a property. And tanking can mean to fail completely, to apply a waterproof membrane to a structure, or to deliberately lose a sports match. 

My fencing was tanking, so I am getting it replaced!

12 comments:

  1. There are so many rules around oil tanks now, I'm finding the same. I'm trying to ignore mine as I know there are some very costly hoops I would have to jump (such as a surrounding wall.....etc)

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    1. The word "Compliance" came up a lot when the guy came to look at it. That picture was taken a while back - but you can see it was sited too near the fence [which blew down] and the garage [which has wooden fascia] and there needs to be a bigger concrete platform too. £££...

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  2. We did the fence replacement about 6 years ago and chose a time when the house next door was empty. We did it ourselves with help from our daughter but I hope no replacements are needed as we definitely could not manage it now! Catriona

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    1. Our chaps should get it done promptly next week. We decided it would have tp be professionals this time, as we would find digging all the trenches for the gravel boards and holes for MetPosts just a little too much these days [ with all the rest breaks, we would still be at it next Easter]

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  3. Goodness, Dogtanian takes me back! I bought the sweatshirt from M&S for my eldest when he was a loyal fan. Can still remember the bright green background!Hope you and Bob aren't going to tackle putting the fence up?! It's a massive job.

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    1. I think Liz had a little pink teeshirt. No, wisdom has prevailed and we have budgeted for professionals

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  4. I used to watch Dogtanian with our son, who grew up to look like a much taller version of Tom Burke!
    When I was working, my mum was our childminder, they watched Dogtanian together, and had sword fights wielding paper straws! There was a lot of "Have at thee, Scurvy Knave" in our houses at that time!

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    1. It was a fun programme, wasn't it. We used to act it out too. Tom Burke is a great actor, but then he has acting genes from both parents. His Dad [David] played Dr Watson to Jeremy Brett's Holmes [the best tv adaptation imho] and his Mum Anna Calder-Marshall has been in heaps of things too. En Garde!!

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  5. We had to get a new propane tank a few years ago as our old one was 30 years old (we were told). Good to have it in good working orfer!

    Ah, the confusions in the English language!

    Hugs!

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  6. There's never a dull moment when it comes to home and yard maintenance, is there? Glad you are getting new fencing. I have a wall around my back garden - our winds are so strong at times that I don't think fencing would last long!

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    1. You are right - home ownership is both a privilege and a responsibility

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