well, a visit to my Mum and Dad at the weekend means yet more exposure to my Dad's increasing range of bizarre idiosyncrasies and ever more curious way of going about doing things. this weekend was no exception; in fact i would argue he was on top form. only a canal ride and a chance meeting with some lovely lads who live on a barge together could have made it any more perfect.
warning signs were there from the start, really. when we arrived it seems that he had decided the moment that we sent word we were on our way that cementing a piece of wood to the front door as a "draft excluder" was a particularly good idea. we arrived, then, to find our way into the house prevented as no one was allowed to walk near the cementing project. i have no pictures of this, alas, but bear it in mind for the stunning conclusion.
a little while after the festival of timber and cement it was mid-way through watching some sort of horses being sold that Dad just got up and walked out the house without a word. sensing something was up, i grabbed my camera and ran after him.
as it turns out, he was off to his newly installed and most impressive shed. as you can see below, he went there to fetch a gas-based heater.
nothing unusual in that, as such, as it was a particularly cold day. the fact that he went and fetched it, positioned it in the house and then didn't quite get around to putting it on or igniting it, however, gives you a clue to the day's proceedings.
a crowning glory for many, if you will, was when Richard returned from the shops. it transpired that he had invested in a "beanie" style hat, one bearing the flag of England. Dad asked where his was, which took Richard by surprise as there was no prior solicitation or conversation about him getting one for Dad. after a bit of a "i want it, i want it, i want it" performance, Richard opted for the quieter, simpler life and just gave Dad his. the result was a very happy Dad!
after a reasonably (by his standards) normal dinner and berating for everyone who did not get quiz questions from the newspaper correct to his exacting standards, it was just about time for us to head home. it was, needless to say, as soon as we got William and James ready to go that Dad decided his concrete based wooden draft excluder was not going to work, and thus he should "drill the bugger".
he wouldn't block off the door with a power tool and impressive tool box just as we were trying to leave, would he? oh yes, he would.
just to make sure that we knew he was going to make it as tricky to get out of the house as he did for us to get it he encouraged Colin to join in the blockade by the door!
well, there you have it. yes, i fully expect to arrive one day and find a Harley sat in the drive, or even possibly him proudly showing off a tattoo or some sort of piercing, quite frankly.
if the question is would we have him behave any other way, then the answer is no, not really, not at all. we love him just the way he is, just ask James!
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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