October
2025
October is the month for funerals. My dad died in
October my mum did as well. One of our
very good friends was added to the list and a trip to Barnsley was needed. I
feel that this month we need to change our names to Mister and Misses De’Ath.
Too many people we know have left this world. I refer to Zuben Garg the famous
Assamese pop star and I was lucky enough to be invited to the UK Premiere of
his movie about drugs and gangs while he was here. A message for the youth of
Assam.
I have new spots for the El Cid. Those I fitted in
1997 have lost their lustre. Still working but with corroded reflectors needed
sorting so I set about rewiring as the fittings were different. So were the
mounting brackets. Having got that done
I checked the rocker oil feeds for oil-tightness while there was access as I
had a problem at Easter. All was good. There was a leak on the exhaust. I
thought it was the heat exchanger but it turned out to be the joints needing
reseating. Also I put some silicone sealant on the gaps at the front of the
exchanger to stop any free exhaust gases from getting in the cab. It had been
quite smelly on the last trip.
We had a trip to Bristol in the C3 for my
Sister-in-Laws’ funeral. On the way we went via Yeovil to drop the gearbox and
parts off a Ric Pembro’s for assembly. Gita and I had set aside the whole week
for family and any jobs we needed to do. The funeral was quite beautiful with a
non-religious service celebrating her life marked by a poem of love written and
spoken by one of her cousins. Yet again being so close to death and
understanding your own mortality I have been stirred into more action. A book
from the grandchildren “A gift from us to you for us”. They want me to tell the stories of my
childhood and my adulthood of me and my family before it all gets lost in the
mists of time and poor memories. I confess, I don’t think I’ll ever finish it
as my memories merge with theirs.
It was another French car day at Blackbushe Airport. I left early but got snarled up in traffic on the A312 just down the road from my house and languished in the queue before I could get out of the traffic and go through Hayes to pick up the M4. Once on the motorway it was a relatively quick trip. It was great to meet up with members of the Thames Tortoises as there no longer seems to be monthly club meetings. The day had started in lovely sunshine and deteriorated to cloud and cold drizzle. I left early to keep ward. I was beeped at by a kind gentleman who told me I had a flat tyre on the slip road of junction 3 of the M4. No sooner as I was on the A312 the tyre was completely flat. I found a place to stop just before the roundabout and changed the wheel. Another kind gentleman stopped to give me assistance but it was not needed. The flat was caused by a perished valve that had lasted less than three years.
Two tyres and valves were changed when they were fitted in 2022 before going to Spain. I had a rest day on Sunday and Monday I was heading for the tyre place that had changed and fitted the tyres in 2022 but ran again into the traffic jam that was still there from Saturday and I abandoned the gripe mission and went to another tyre place that has more reliable services. A successful morning and with grandchildren staying with us little more could be done that day. Managed to repair one of the suspension cans. They are too good to cut down as a temporary solution for the van. Painted them the next day. After a couple of wet days it was fine enough to take the Buell for a run out. A forty mile trip, a tense ride. It was a journey into the unknown as problems had side-lined it for a year. A good shakedown run with everything working as it should and the engine getting smoother as every mile passed. It was still dry in the afternoon to fit the suspension cans to the van to get them out of the garage.
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