A Big Wet Adventure

As if the previous day were not sufficient excitement, a problem was spotted with the fuses which led Charles to investigate the cellar - AWASH! The house is built on top of a stream (not the cleverest plan known to man) and the cellar naturally fills with water, necessitating the aid of a full-time pump. Unfortunately the cord fastening the pump to the beam and maintaining the pump's position had snapped and said pump had tipped into the water and for some reason stopped working, hence the deluge. Obviously all electricity had to be switched off before a wellie clad Charles ventured forth to assess the situation. Much sloshing around in water with the aid of a torch, removal of said pump from scene (of crime), check that wine bottles not affected etc etc.
Sometime or other we managed to complete the Manaton film which is rather glorious and atmospheric with the pianola and the rainy, windy, thundery weather.
Libby returns back home Sunday, meanwhile Charles anticipates the arrival of the Bear on the 30th for another week of Charlotte editing. And then yet another guest (Anna B-G) after that.
No rest for ....
However Libby is keeping out of his hair for about 6 1/2 weeks or probably even longer if Anna secures a Montezuma related trip to Mexico. Ole!

Filmmaker helps police with their enquiries

About 4am Friday distant sounds of planes could be heard. Charles, in a delusional state, decided the Air Force were practising a royal fly-past in secret. However the noise gradually became louder, until at about 5am it was obvious that a helicopter was circling overhead. Police cars with lights blazing drove round the drive countless times - it should be remembered that this is a pretty remote part of Lincolnshire. The cars could be seen negotiating the small roads in the area and the helicopter appeared to be hovering over the neighbouring church. Having ascertained that both of us were still alive and safe and the doors well and truly locked, we hunkered down until morn, when we discovered (via the local radio station) that some gangsters had driven a fork lift truck into the wall of Barclays Bank in Spilsby, thereby removing the ATM machine, and, for some strange reason had made their getaway to East Kirkby church, an isolated spot to be sure but also a dead end. Here the felons had been located by the helicopter (borrowed from Yorkshire since amazingly enough Lincolnshire do not own one) and finally apprehended by the constabulary.
A very attractive young blond officer of the female persuasion came to the house later in the day to ensure everything was safe and no-one was hiding out in the barns. Youthful Charles was only to happy to help with enquiries.
We had to make a fleeting visit to Spilsby that day (since we came from the 'big 'ouse' we were waved magisterially through the crime scene and dozens of police-personages and forensics) and actually saw the 'Hole in the Wall' (literally), excited townspeople describing the 'wild west' character of their sleepy little township!
More progress on Manaton despite the broo-ha-ha! And in the evening Libby devised a rather splendid Bread and Butter Pudding for Soundbites.

Non Stop

I returned home from the FBSG/Piper trip Monday 16th, had a busy week catching up on mail, attending the NADFAS Directory meeting, ensuring I had everything ready for the next editing session and then departed again Sunday 22 for my monthly mother visit prior to another FBSG session at EKH starting Wednesday 25th. Poor Charles was similarly busy - Joe the Bear was resident to help edit Charlotte Bach - Charles also taking on the duties of master chef and plongeur.
We made a great start Wednesday, not only recording all the words for Manaton and Bucklebury but actually making a start on putting together the Manaton sequence.
Thursday more progress on the Manaton film. In the past Libby has sat in the edit suite dumbfounded and full of admiration for all the techy stuff. However over the months she's learnt a thing or two, and being of an impulsive and hasty nature, has begun to interrupt with 'Why don't you do such and such?' or 'Aren't you going to whatever?' just as the eminent filmmaker was about to perform said miracles. She was deservedly threatened with the ceremonial taping of the mouth thereby preventing such intrusions, and spent much of the day hoping to avoid censure and raising her arm whenever she had a question: 'PLEASE SIR ...'
Over the evening meal the pair tackled the thorny problem of the Piper film composition and structure, put together a list of all they had filmed last year and all the interviews and decided that Libby should make a list of the Piper works to be included together with dates, before they proceeded further.
Tip from my mother - I squeeze fresh oranges each morning and she suggested drying out the skins and then using them on the log fire - they burn well and add a citrusy aroma. Environmentally correct and might save the odd penny. She recalls drying oranges as a child 90 years ago!

Orange skins awaiting chilly weather - image added 1 May 2009 after much orange squeezing and drying!

pianolas

Now this may at first sight appear to be an odd entry for a DVD on stained glass, but bear with me. The window at Manaton is a memorial to a young lad who had Down's syndrome, died in 1927, and wasn't educated in the usual way of things - but his parents did buy him a pianola and hundreds of rolls which he played endlessly. In the hopes of enhancing our project further we made an appointment to film at the Cambridge Pianola Company where a delightful young Polish man, Greg, agreed to perform Elgar's Salut D'Amour (see above). We were absolutely entranced by the player pianos and the staff and proprietor, Tom Poole, were all so welcoming. Great start to our current trip which is actually Piper based - so I'm now going over to that blog - toodle pip!

cunning plan

Yippee! I think the cunning plan was successful - herewith Libby's version of Brangwyn's design for Tiffany - Flute Players, complete with opalescent glass effect! Whadyathink?

Gareth, Slaughter, Tiffany and the AGA saga

Having done my dutiful daughter act, it was on to Film Farm on the 25th March. We put the final images into the Northampton film and generally charged batteries (animal, vegetable and mineral). The following morning it was the long 6 hour slog to Mumbles, calling in on some friends near Cardiff for a restorative cuppa and a look at their super new Brangwyn painting. Friday morning I had a run along the front (unfortunately not the beach itself because the tide was up) and then met Charles for a leisurely breakfast before setting off for Carmarthen and Gareth. The stained glass panel is coming along superbly - see detail of delicious apple and foliage and Gareth with his kiln. Four hours solid filming, most of it hand held so poor Charles was suffering by the end, and, having eschewed lunch was in a pretty dismal state by the time we returned to Mumbles. However a Dick Barton special (see entry 23 September 2008) did much to restore the parts others etc (I didn't think the fish and chips were up to much this time actually, but then I'm not an F&C connoisseur). See below one happy bunny - almost in focus!
Saturday back to Film Farm. As we drove up the drive we noted scattered white feathers. Fearing the worst we leapt out and followed the trail - and a long trail it was too, round the copse, across the drive, past the terrace, over to the long pond, another pile of plucked and bloodied feathers by the vegetable garden - and a dead hen neatly deposited in the small pond. The second hen was not discovered - probably carried away by the marauding animal - we reckon a dog because the hunter was obviously playing with his prey.

A restorative drink was required to recover from the shock.

The following few days were spent putting together the Tiffany film and I managed to squirrel away some time for letterpressing. At the end of each film we have a grand finale - Miscellany performing their Ella meets the nuns choral activity accompanying a visual extravaganza of the particular window. However the stringent contractual obligations of the American galleries who own the 2 completed Tiffany panels preclude their use in such a format and the only images available are black and white sketches from ancient tomes - not hugely exciting. BUT, on my return journey yesterday I hatched a cunning plan. Let's just hope it's successful.

Staggering downstairs to make himself a cup of tea on Wednesday morning Charles discovered the black hole of Calcutta re-enacted in a smoke filled kitchen - the Aga was spouting noxious stuff like there was no tomorrow and no shortage of oil. The cats weren't too happy either. Every surface was covered with a greasy black grime and the cobwebs looked decidedly the worse for wear (not that there are any in such a pristine kitchen of course).

It seemed best to escape to Kent and leave him to it!

And then today another sadness - the little black hen, Dot, who was terrorised by Gin and Tonic (better known as the Hooligans) died this morning, a few days after her tormentors from whose battering she never really recovered.

We've both got a week of catching up with mail and jobs before a Piper foray starting next Wednesday - it's all go!