Friday 30th March 2007
We got up early to have breakfast, pack and finish cleaning the outside of the boat. It seemed to take forever to load the car, mainly because of the extra junk we brought in case Tess needed it.
Some of the boats moored near the bridge had moved on by 9:15am, so I moved Hawksmoor nearer to the marina so that the valet mooring volunteers would have less far to walk.
We have had another wonderful holiday and are pleased to report that Tess was almost fully house and boat trained (we washed and disinfected the mat where she had a wee when we couldn't pull in to the side quick enough). We originally planned to be back in August for a two week trip with Tess, and with Lucy, Robert and Rosemary for the first week - dropping them off at Nantwich for a train ride home..... but our plans have now changed.
The death of my mother, followed by the deaths of a number of friends, neighbours and acquaintances made us reappraise our long term plans. Perhaps we should live more for the day instead of always looking to the future. Our intentions were to buy our own boat in about nine years' time and that I would then cut back on work as I try to ease myself into retirement. We had already decided that commissioning a new "dream" boat would probably be a disaster - what seems like a good idea on paper doesn't always match your expectations in practice. With that in mind, a second-hand boat seemed a much better proposition and we had been keeping an eye on the various brokers' websites just in case anything too good to miss came along.
One week after our return, we spotted an advert for Sophie-Jane No 2, a seven year old boat that had been designed and used by a family who treated her as their pride and joy. We phoned the broker on Good Friday and visited the owners at their boat in Stafford on Easter Monday. The storage, accommodation and the engine that was as quiet as Hawksmoor ticked all the right boxes for me, plus everything was in such beautiful condition internally and externally. Jen could hardly contain her enthusiasm.
The owners, John and Pauline showed us every detail and we could tell that they were sorry to be parting with her. It was obvious to us that they wanted to sell to a family who would appreciate her in the same way that they had. Without even consulting each other, Jen and I knew that we would be buying Sophie-Jane No 2, and we knew that John and Pauline also knew.....
The following day we made an offer which was accepted and the deposit was sent to the brokers. We are now in the process of cashing in investments to raise the balance of the money. Why is it so easy with some companies, e.g. Interactive Investor and F & C, but so difficult with others, e.g. AXA. If a bond has performed poorly over the last eight years, why would I need to speak to one of their advisors before cashing it in? I just want our money, not advice from people who didn't look after our money that well in the first place..... The call-centre in a far off land with the enigmatic accents and satellite delay told me no less than twelve times that I needed their advice before they finally gave in and agreed to send the paperwork. I'm not keen on investing with them again.
We hope to keep Sophie-Jane No 2 on her current mooring at Stafford through the summer and then transfer her to the new Blisworth Marina at the end of August, slightly closer to Southampton.
We have had a wonderful time with Hawksmoor and would highly recommend the Ownerships scheme to anyone. Thank you to all the other owners of Hawksmoor and we hope our paths will cross in the future - probably on a blind bend or bridge-hole...
In Memory of Ruth Ellingworth Edwards
Architect, Mother and Matriarch
8th March 1928 - 31st March 2007