A Costly Trip

Although we had a lovely time visiting our daughter Sarah and her partner Duncan and our two Scottish granddaughters last week in St Andrews, it was an unlucky week for us. 

On Tuesday morning Marion headed out in the car only to return five minutes later to report a flat rear tyre. We don't have a spare wheel (don't ask me why new cars never have spares), so the flat involved a roadside assistance call which resulted in the car being shipped to Dundee where a new tyre was fitted at the not insignificant price of £268. It was five hours later that I returned to the caravan. Bad luck but just one of those things.

It would have been just one of those things but yesterday after we drove the five hundred miles back from Scotland, the other rear tyre was flat. Another new tyre was needed. This time Fram Tyres did the job and the cost was £245.  Both tyres had pieces of metal embedded in them. We've no idea where they came from but over five hundred quid made it a very expensive week in St Andrews. While we were in Kirkby Lonsdale the previous weekend we talked about punctures and I foolishly said that I hadn't had one for years. I don't know if you believe in tempting fate but, if you do, there couldn't be a better example.

  

Car problems apart, it was great to see Rose and Melody growing up. Here they are enjoying a cartoon on the TV with Marion.

St Andrews is a magical place and the ancient colleges are steeped in history.

There's always plenty to do and this time we discovered the university's small natural history museum. Those enormous lobster claws would have fed a family at the local seafood restaurant.

Rose is a toddler no more and is now a real schoolgirl.  She's a keen dancer and wanted to show off her moves. She's very athletic and can leap high into the air.

We're back in Framlingham now but we've got some decorating being done next week so we're off to Scotland again at the weekend to give the decorators the run of the house. It's a bit of a trek but worth it to avoid the smell of paint and the mess.

In the few days home we've a few jobs to catch up with for a couple of elderly people we help for the Framlingham Hour Community and we've had a bit of gardening to get on top of but I managed to find time to get out with the detector for a couple of hours today. It looks like the field is going to be planted very soon so it won't be available to search again until harvest. I didn't find a great deal but there's always something interesting.

I'm not sure about this one but it may be a medieval sword pommel.

Today's medieval silver penny was minted in Canterbury but I can't say much more about it.

A fragment of a gilded medieval buckle

Large copper alloy stud - most probably medieval

Musket balls always turn up

Pot mends are also common finds. This one has fragments of terracotta pot remaining 

Although I thought that this was just a lead scrap when I found it, after  brushing away the dirt there is a clear AD impressed. I wonder if it could be a broken medieval pilgrim's badge depicting the Agnus Dei. 

I gave you a sneak preview of my new novel's cover recently and I'm delighted to say that the paperback cover has now been completed. Here it is.

In these days of rolling bad news I've attempted to write a light hearted novel that will make the reader smile. If you enjoy antiques, eBay, romance and a bit of family drama please give it a try. I'll be posting a link on the blog on publication day. If you enjoy it, a very short review on Amazon will be extremely helpful. If you don't like it please let me know - constructive criticism always welcome.