A new toy

I know you're all keen to know how the new 'toy' is doing.

We took delivery of it on Saturday, and by Sunday morning it had leaked enough oil that it was in the shed parked up and Jack, Dad and I were sat around in the kitchen looking through various manuals.

The one handy thing about buying an ex MoD vehicle is that we should be able to fix almost everything ourselves given that there is a 1) user manual 2) repair manual and 3) parts catalogue.

It comes with extras such as a spare wheel, a gun rack, and a fold down table where you can plan your mortar attacks.  All necessary extras I'm sure you will agree.

Some other notable things that happened over the last few weeks:

• The cat was sick all over the carpet.  I don't know what it ate, but it ate a lot of it.  
• Jessie went to the vet and we've been told that she is too fat by a whole 2kg. 
• The Portaloo that the builders are using was blown onto its side with expected consequences

Operation clear out Papas house is well underway as he prepares for the move up to Seaford at some point soon.  One thing is for sure is that he certainly has a lot of stuff!  

I'm also currently in the process of designing a little website for myself because i've got a few wooden items that I'm sure people might like to buy.  

Daniel is back from Hong Kong tomorrow morning and is not happy about the fact that it was 15 degrees when he left, but only about 5 degrees now!

I just caught a clip of the film pretty woman and was reminded of a time earlier this year where mum and I stayed up late to watch it - she because of her love of Richard Gere, and I because I had never seen it before.  Strange how little things like that become lasting memories.

Friends and Colleagues

This is intended to be short post (I think) but who knows....and, as yet, I don't have a title.

Last night a friend and colleague from the States Assembly passed away. Just like Jilly, Richard Rondel had been suffering from cancer for some time now. Just like Jilly, he had received many and various treatments over that time....but, again, just like Jilly, it eventually took a hold that couldn't be cured.

Richard was a "People's Deputy" in the true sense of the word. He wasn't one for the "big" issues, preferring to focus his efforts on his constituents, and the many and varied challenges that one finds when living in town. He was always fronting up community issues and public events, especially ones that concerned "his" area of St. Helier. There will  be others that pay tribute in more public forums, but I just wanted to express my sadness at Richard's passing....yet another fellow Oncology comrade who will be greatly missed...another cancer fighter who faced things head on.

After Jilly was diagnosed back in 2012 we both (well, Jilly mainly...of course) involved ourselves in (among others)..... MacMillan.... (setting up a group to support women with "gynae" cancers) and also helping in a small way to start "Rising Voices"(a choir for anyone affected by cancer). We got to meet a vast array of wonderful people, all of which I am now honoured to think of as friends....but, it's a sad way of making friends. I warned Jilly when she said she wanted to do all these things to help other sufferers....I said "it's the absolute right thing to do....but we must be realistic....we are going to befriend people who are going to die, people who are going to get very very ill...people who will become wonderful friends and then pass away. We both knew what the future would hold.....but I think it's fair to say that we didn't know quite how tough it would be at times. We have now lost so many close friends....so many inspirational, wonderful people.

The last thing I thought about when I gave Jilly that warning about new friends not surviving was that it would actually happen to us. As many others will tell you....you just don't expect it to happen to you. Even now, there's still a small sense of unreality about all this. I know it's crazy, and it's been nearly two months, but it's not any easier to come to terms with....it's different, but no easier.

I'm starting to get back into more regular "work visits" to town...more time in the office (not that I have one any more!) ....and meeting up with more of my friends colleagues. This last week has been no exception, and I've "caught up" with some real good friends....coffee, pizzas, patisseries.... it's all been good. More to come tomorrow as well.....a real week of "meeting up for a chat".

I haven't stood on any scales for while.....I'm not sure if I want to! 

This laptop is now telling me it has 5% battery......better publish before it all disappears. More soon.

Buying more vehicles

I own four cars - a red 1991 Mini Coooper S, a white 1993 mini with a 1380cc racing engine and bucket seats, a 1987 Mazda 323 4x4 turbo, and a 2007 BMW M3.  

I told myself I would have to sell one of them if ever I wanted to buy another. The problem is that I really like them all.

Early on Saturday Jack, Dan and I went to see a man about a truck.  Jack and I had been looking at buying this particular type of truck for a while.  

My issue was that I couldn't buy the truck due to my self imposed rule.  That was until I found a loophole in my own logic - a truck is not a car.

The morning can be summed up with the following photo.

The man was very nice and took us for a drive in the truck.  Then he let us drive the truck and we liked the truck even more than we already did. 

The truck had a 3.5L Rover V8 engine and did a whopping 12mpg.  If you're wondering how bad that is, then just imagine driving to the garage, opening your wallet and throwing money at the attendant until you have none left.

Here is a video of Jack driving the truck:

(Steely eyed readers might have identified this as a Land Rover 101 Forward Control)

On Sunday we offered the man some money for the truck, and he accepted.  We are hoping to take delivery of the truck this weekend at which point we will cruise around struggling to talk to each other over the noise of the engine. 

The only concern is that if you crash the truck, your legs are the crumple zone.  

New Boots and Panties

Tonight's blog title is an album from 1977...the debut LP from Ian Jury. Back in those days The Blockheads were widely recognised as the best backing band around, and certainly I thought they were pretty good. The album went platinum...and is always well worth another listen. There's no real reason for using it as the blog title other than to get our reader's attention....and also to say that I've put the shorts away. I always try to last in shorts until bonfire night...and this year was no exception. I even kept the "short pants" on for the Young Farmers Club breezing competition a week ago....but it was pretty challenging, especially after the sun went down. In fact it was a little chilly all of last week, and by Saturday evening I was ready for the long trousers....so out came the jeans. I doubt you'll see my legs again until next Spring....unless you're very unlucky.

So....I need to say a little about "breezing", or shallow ploughing to you non-farming types. It is (or was) a traditional Jersey autumn activity, where the soil is turned over with a small plough to bury weeds, leaving the soil clean and ready for the "big" plough later on....usually December. These days it's not so well regarded, as it also releases nitrates....and everyone now ploughs just before planting. Anyway.....we in Luce family have a long history of taking part in the competition. I was successful back in my day, and Jack carried on the tradition winning a few times....and 2 years ago Bex won as well! Here's so photos from the various competitions.

  Me.....

Bex.....

Jack...

I think it's clear who's doing the best job!


Yet another friend came up to me today to ask "how are we were doing?". The answer is that we're doing okay...we have the odd days when things aren't so great...but we're finding our way through. Something else that I was asked about (and again it's something that quite a few people have suggested) is the turning of this blog into a book. I can report to our reader that this is already happening. One of Jill's nieces in the UK is working away getting all the blog posts into one place, and then the editing will start. Once it's all done, and we're all happy, the idea will be to make the book available to purchase, the receipts going to one of Jill's cancer charities...and I'll report more as it happens.

Today was a States day...and just before lunch, as I sat in the Assembly, a message popped into my inbox. One of my friends at the new Acorn recycling centre had sent me photo....did I know anything about a very large Bible that had just been handed in? There was a certificate inside the cover....here's the picture....

 
I was immediately excited....Hedley was my Grandfather. They had obviously unearthed a old family heirloom. I asked said friend if he could put the book to one side and I'd get my Dad to go up and buy it...we'd all be very excited to see it I was sure. Awarded from Ebenezer Chapel it was dated just months before the First World War started....one the Papa Luce had gone off to fight in. I sent Dad an email and left it with him.

On returning from the Assembly this evening I had a call from Pops. It turns out he wasn't as excited as I was to receive the news.....it had been HIM that had taken the book up to Acorn this morning! Our reader will remember that Pops is clearing out his many rooms at Holmchase ready for his big move up here to Seaford next month. I'll have to keep an eye out for more of my inheritance appearing in local charity shops in the near future!



In searching for ploughing photos in my iPhone memory bank I came across the photo below. One of Jilly and I indulging in one of her sporting passions....tennis. Taken in July last year it's from Wimbledon. We had stayed overnight in Kensington, got up really early, taxied down at 5ish, and queued in the field...and were lucky enough to be far enough up the public queue to get tickets for the Centre Court. Our reward, amongst others, was to get to see Joanna Konta beat Simona Halep in a really tight Quarter Final. Here's the moment that Konta won the second set tie break....a photo courtesy of the BBC...Jilly and I are (obviously) in the top of the shot....a little blurred, but it's clearly us. I think you can tell we were excited! Another great memory of our shared moments together.....good times. More soon reader.....