Quiet summer so far

It looks like summer's on the way out and we've hardly been anywhere. It's not that there wasn't anywhere to go just that with pressure of other things there hasn't been a lot of time to go there. Most recently we were invited to a small private garden party at our friend Ben's house. It gave us a chance to try out the new wheel. Rosie's had a modern handle up till now which gives away the fact that she's not as old as we'd like to pretend. This one was found in a local scrap yard and is believed to come from a late 19th century treadle sewing machine and we reckon it look the part. A few minutes with the wire wool and a touch of WD40 and it slipped straight on the existing shaft......


 A picture from Saturday just arrived by email. I dont know who took it or who's turning the handle as I'm stood to Rosie's left and my assistant, Ben, is disappearing out of the picture to the right. I have hopes that Ben might be persuaded to don a monkey suit at some time but suspect he's getting a bit old for dressing up like that.
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Hottest day of the year!

Hottest day of the year, too hot indoors so we went out - into the sun - and spent the morning at the boot sale at Kassam Stadium. If you’re looking for a boot sale in the Oxford area this one happens every Sunday morning at a sensible time. Setting up from seven but we were told to get there about 10, by which time it’s busy, and all over in time for a latish lunch.

A quick sarnie at home and off the other way to Headington for a couple of hours entertaining the soccerphobes trying to ignore the BIG match. It was hot with a capital H O T - Tarmac melting on the roads, and Rosie suffered too. Nothing serious but the heat proved too much for a glued joint on her drive belt. We tried a repair on the spot but to no avail so we had to call it a day and head for home. Never mind, it was fun while it lasted. It was hard work pumping anyway, the air wasn’t trying very hard, but roll two sounded good. It’s our summer time roll and starts with a medley of “In the summertime” and “Let’s twist again”.

More research is needed in fixing the belt. I reckon a metal clip of some sort as well as the glue like we’ve seen on some of Rosie’s bigger brothers.

The pictures attached are one of Rosie’s young friends, Ben, who came to join us for the afternoon. Apart from Annie, Ben is one of the very few people we can trust to look after her while we go for a cup of tea. The first picture is Ben and Rosie entertaining the bike racks which were full so a few folks were out and about. The second one shows a passenger on the “Brookes” bus showing some interest while stopped at the lights. The few others don’t really seem interested but probably can’t hear anything anyway, you know what there modern hermetically sealed buses are like. The third shows that there were actually a few people about.

Home in time for tea then a work sheet:

• Fix Rosie’s belt

• Tune. Rosie like to keep out of the sun ( a bit like Annie really) and the hot weather has had quite an effect on the tuning.

• Fix spacers to some of the rolls. The weather affects all the ones where the alignment is with the hexagonal pin on the end of the spool but not the ones on home made spools where the hexagon only provides the drive and alignment is by card spacing washers. Confused? Don’t worry, I know what I mean.

Coming out of hibernation

A quiet winter but spring is in the air and I've been dusting the organ off ready for the new season. After a surprise birthday present on "bus pass day" in January of loosing my job I have time for other things. I'm looking for work but as the job centre say, there's not a lot about for disabled 60 year olds. I feel neither. The other news is that Anne surprised us all by getting married a couple of weeks ago to an old friend. I suspect this will leave her with less time for galivanting with "Rosie" but time will tell.

The diary for the new year is beginning to get a few entries but nothing for a month or so. Reckon I'll just have to hit the streets in Headington.

Looking through the files I find not a single picture taken there even though we're made the local press many times. Must rectify that soon. I'd also like to get a video clip or two to add here but that requires first that I get a clip and secondly that I find out how to add it. It all takes time. Perhaps a plea to anyone who has a clip to send us a copy. There must be many but most have been take in far flung places. Talking of far flung places the picture here was taken a couple of years ago at Padstow. We'd been invited to go on a sponsored cycle ride along the Camel Trail. Being a bit canny we got sponsorship for going not per maile so spent most of the day busking in the town centre. More practical than trying to get Rosie on a bike. Anne came up trumps to compensate by making a camel costume for two other friends to wear on their tandem.

Our next "official" outing is not till June 20th when we're at the fete in Chadlington, but other regulars are beginning to firm up dates.

Anyway, time's pressing an my hour on the library computer is almost up. Come and say hello if you see us about.

P.S. sorry about the spelling. Mistakes corrected 16.04.

Random thoughts

Nothing much happens at this time of year, summers's gone and it's a bit early for Christmas, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to do. Some of our friends have arrangements at local shopping centres but so far we haven't been lucky. We used to have an arrangement at the local centre but a change of management put paid to that.The new management don't want us and were quite rude about it and then last year they paid someone to come from many miles away to give what we were offering for free, and not such a good organ though we're a bit biassed on that one. Currently we're waiting to hear from one of the nearby megastores. The nearest one to home wanted to charge us to go there but the next nearest, still only three miles away, are more hopeful. If they agree I'll give them credit and shame the others. We're also hopeful that a big garden centre  a few miles up the road may have us but we have to wait till next spring to find out.

Rosie has had a bit of maintenance, just a drop of oil on the bearings and a good clean out, Alan isn't up to more serious jobs but there are others who can do them for us. A tuning would help too but Rosie still sounds sweet and is withing acceptable limits for a street organ. Alan will do it given time but it's a bit like the cobbler's children - after a day at work in the piano workshops......

One other project is to produce our own music rolls. Lots of possibilities here but again, after a day at work...  anyway speaking of work I can hear tuning going on below me and that's a sign that lunch is over and the grindstone is beckoning. The office also want their computer back!

P.S. The picture is Rosie, Anne and Alan at Banbury Street Organ Festival.

Autumn Fayre

Our first real entry. Well this is a quiet time of year for Rosie. Summer is almost over and it's not yet time for the run up to Christmas so last weekend will probably be our last outing for a while, at least to an organised event. We were invited to the Autumn Fayre at Windmill School, just a mile or so from home where the sun shone all afternoon, mind you Rosie has never been rained off yet. There were all the typical stalls in the playground round the corner (plenty of tea and cakes kept Alan going), fire engine, ambulance and police cars through the gate next to us, and tug of war, penalty shooting and other field activities on the field across the path.    The picture is of two of their little "puppies" turning Rosie's handle and quite a good job they made of it. Lots of others had a try but most found it a bit harder than they expected.An easy afternoon and an invite back to future events so I guess they liked us, we created the right atmosphere they said, and after it all we were able to make a donation to our own favourite charity (Open Doors) from the expenses. 

Hello world

We've been told for a while that we need a web site but a full blown site is really too much so we've settled for a blog.

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I'm finding my feet with this and so just wanted to get a few words on the blog to make it happen. As time permits, and that will be as soon as possible, I'll add introductions and pictures.
For now this will have to do.