Tag Archives: John

Shad gets dizzy at the Festival of Speed

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My head must have been spinning all day thanks to the huge collection of super-fast and super-classy cars and bikes that went zooming past John and I last weekend at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.  The Festival is an excuse to celebrate some of the world’s most beautiful and powerful cars in the grounds of Goodwood House in West Sussex.  John and I joined thousands of other visitors to the event as we made our way to the stands where we had a fabulous view of the cars roaring up the track (known in Goodwood circles as ‘the hill’).  The cars raced against time to the finish line in various classes which included vintage, rally and touring cars, with my favourites being the grand prix vehicles and the prototypes.  John said there must have been millions of pounds worth of cars there including Bentleys, Maserati’s, McLarens, Porsche, Ferrari’s, Lotus and Jaguar.

 

Amongst the crowds were a few famous figures in the racing world such as Lewis Hamilton who gave an interview outside the front of Goodwood House at the base of an ambitious sculpture designed to commemorate the span of Mercedes-Benz 120 years in motorsport.  This giant white monument reaches over the house and features a car on each arc, one is last year’s Hungarian Grand Prix winner driven by Lewis Hamilton and the other is the very first 1934 model silver racer.

 

We saw racing legend Stirling Moss (winner of the 1955 British Grand Prix) drive a classic silver post-war Mercedes which cruised serenely past the stands, bringing to life an era reflected by the 3 white vintage Mercedes and their drivers clad in old-fashioned helmets, white race suits and goggles.  In complete contrast, Austrian racing driver Patrick Friesacher took showing off to a whole new level when he wheel-span like his life depended on it in front of the crowd, pouring coloured smoke from his back tyres.  Then World Rally Champion Daniel Sordo decided to tear up the tarmac performing back-to-back donuts in a Hyundai i20.

 

We saw Damon Hill (winner of the 1993 Hungarian Grand Prix the first of 22 victories) hurtling up the hill in his Williams Renault FW18 and John managed to get an autograph from Sir Jackie Stewart (winner of 3 World Championships).  We also got a picture of Giacomo Agostini, Italian world champion motorcyle roadracer who has a record 122 Grand Prix wins and 15 worldd championship titles leading some people to credit him as the greatest motorcycle racer of all time.

 

Some of the contemporary prototype cars were so silent and smooth that you barely knew they were there, but the engines on most of the racing cars and bikes were so loud that it made my lobes vibrate and I had to stick my paws in my ears to muffle the noise.  Like when the Typhoon flew by – a military fighter plane designed to be agile and maneuverable in combat with other aircraft.  Towards the end of the day, as another plane (a Hunter) soared overhead, we made our way back to the car park and were smiled at by two lovely ladies dressed in American 1940’s costume sitting on the wing of a WWII plane.

Shad goes down memory lane

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John loves his history and has many books around the house about history ranging from UK to Military and of course photography.

As John is a museum junkie, he loves to take me along to exhibitions and shows depicting recent as well as ancient technology.  I especially enjoyed seeing how revered the cat was during the ancient Egyptian period.

This past weekend we decided to stay local to home and visit two events.

70th D-Day Commemorations saw us at Bognor War in The Air….. several displays and airborne flypasts in remembrance of those 10,000 that fell on the first day of the landings and the men and women who supported not only in the air but also on the ground.

 

Tangmere Military Aviation Museum Vintage Car Show

Myself and John have visited Tangmere on a few occasions and love the Aircraft and displays they have on show about the history of the local airfield.

This Sunday they had one of their special days and vintage car and army vehicle owners turned up to show off their lovingly restored machines.

Shad gets a pair of binoculars

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John bought me a zazzy pair of binoculars for my birthday this year and we decided to road-test them on Sunday with a trip to a nature reserve.  It became obvious very quickly that the strap was too long for a wearer whose neck is so close to the ground.  But the helpful staff performed a bit of nifty strap-work (despite curious glances from on-lookers) and soon I was kitted out and ready for action.  With a meow of appreciation, I trotted off down the muddy path that twisted its way through the tall trees and thick bramble to the wonders nature had in store for us that day.

Normally, John and I both have cameras and work as a team to get the best shots we can, but today I was ‘off-duty’ and determined to relax and enjoy the surroundings.  I could hear the birds singing, but they were incredibly difficult to spot, possibly because they were a little nervous about being watched by an adventurous sleek black (ever so slightly portly) cat like me!  But with my extraordinary patience and enquiring mind, I was able to spy a few good-looking birds, including Canadian geese, mallard ducks, goldfinches, greenfinches and the one I was most excited about, the great spotted woodpecker.  Ok I’ll be honest, John was much better at spotting the birds than me, by the time I got my fab new binoculars lined up to the right place, the cheeky little minxes had flown off.

While we were sitting in the hide-out watching the wading birds dipping their heads beneath the surface of the streams and marshes, the swans and black-headed gulls flew overhead and we caught sight of a small group of deer resting beneath a large leafy oak tree, probably planning their next meal or deciding on a safe place to sleep that night.  As we walked back through the woodland, panting somewhat because it was uphill, we noticed a field of cows that all had horns and I had to laugh when one of them used her horns to have a good scratch.

On the way home, we stopped at a friend’s house for refreshments and I bumped into my old mate Muffin sunning herself in the back garden.  I entertained her with tales of my adventures through the forest and the fascinating species of wildlife I had witnessed with my magnificent binoculars and she was very impressed.

Muffin

Shad does the vets

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Just like a finely tuned luxury sports car, I need an inspection and regular maintenance to keep my body in tip-top condition.  So the other day when John said it was time for my annual check-ups and vaccinations, I hopped happily into my basket for the trip.  Unlike the average cat, I don’t mind travelling in my box (providing my blanket is in there) and watching the world go by from the back seat of a family saloon.  I’m even partial to bit of the old Bublé serenading on the radio while John warbles merrily in the background.

We arrived on time (I do like to be punctual) and sat in the waiting room which I had to share with a hamster and a pooch.  The sandy-brown hamster’s nose wriggled as I went past, narrowing its beady eyes and huffing disapprovingly at me.  Honestly, the assumptions people make, just because I have claws and a feline instinct!  I happen to like all furry things with whiskers, so I gave it one of my ‘Excuse me but I have evolved you know’ looks and sniggered when his owner stood up after the vet called out “Munchkin”.  I suppose you can’t really call a small fuzzy nearsighted rodent “Rambo”!

The pooch in the room looked like a Samoyed or Samoyed-cross, a playful and gentle breed of dog that I know about because one of my buddies from the fostering pen was adopted by a lady who had a white fluffy one.  I’ve heard some stories about irresponsible dog-owners who encourage their canines to chase cats so I tend to be quite wary of them, plus I once met a mixed breed hound who bothered me.  But I must admit this guy seemed good natured and my mate Jasper who was re-homed to the house with a Samoyed reckons it takes no notice of him and they’re gradually becoming pals.  My personal opinion is that pets learn their manners from their owners, which is why being a conscientious owner is so important, particularly when an animal is young and learning all its behaviours.  Goodness knows where I get my suave and unconventional personality traits from!

You’ll be pleased to hear that my experience with the vet went reasonably well, considering I was jabbed, squeezed and poked in all sorts of areas!  But I know it’s for my own good and it was all forgotten when she started cooing over my fetching facial features and admiring my oh-so-silky black coat.  All cats (and dogs for that matter) benefit from regular yearly exams to check for gum disease, bladder stones, signs of chronic illness like diabetes or more life-threatening conditions.  I’m happy to report that I wasn’t diagnosed with anything horrible, although John got a disparaging look from the vet about my waist-line!  What can I say, nobody’s perfect!!

Shad snaps the smooth swift surfers

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The recent wet and windy weather has sadly wreaked havoc for many people across the country.  I can’t imagine what it must feel like to see your home flooded with water and lose your most treasured possessions, like those photos and trinkets that have sentimental value and are irreplaceable.  John and I have been quite fortunate and although there has been some localised flooding and roads blocked, we have not had evacuations, power loss or injuries in the area.  But like many things in life, there are two sides to every story, and we witnessed the fun side of the unsettled weather the other day when we stopped on the sea-front to watch the guys and gals I their wetsuits riding the waves.  They looked so happy out there, pushing their bodies to the limit to harness nature’s powers just for the challenge of it, smiling and waving to us while the strong winds drove salty rain-drops into their faces.

Suddenly I picked up a powerful smell in the air and turned to see a pretty blonde canine whose enthusiasm for the outdoors bordered on bonkers!  Despite the pungent smell of wet dog (bet you thought I was getting a whiff of something else!), I chuckled to myself as I watched her bounding across the damp sand and shingle to the water’s edge to fetch a stick and go running happily back to her master for another go.  Dogs seem to get such a thrill from pleasing their loved ones and demonstrating their loyalty and dependence.  I think it’s important to point out here that cats are devoted too, and depend on humans for care and nourishment, but they show it in their own unique ways.  I like to surprise everyone after dinner with a mad sprint across the house, leaping into the air to land deftly on a piece of fluff in the carpet, hurtling up to John with my ears back, rubbing my cheeks lovingly against his leg, biting his toe, and then diving into my bed in front of the fire for a nice nap with a sweet innocent look on my face!

We got chatting with some of the onlookers watching the surfers, mostly friends and family members who had come to cheer them on.  They told us that the surfers were very serious about their sport and there was friendly rivalry between the kite-surfers and the wind-surfers, but it was all in good taste and part of the merriment.

Shad goes on the water for the first time

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My closest and most daring experience with water to date has always been my mad dash through the shower as John turns it on.  For some reason, I hear the shower door open and the motor start to run and I am overcome with an impulse to hurtle on to the shower floor and leap across it before the water hits.  But my encounters with water took a fresh turn on Sunday when John and I ventured across the seas with John’s daughter Natasha and her little boy.  When I say ‘the seas’, I mean the bit known as the Solent between coastal Hampshire and the Isle of Wight, which from my perspective was like an ocean.

We arrived in Portsmouth, first in the queue for the ferry, and I felt like Jack Sparrow in Pirates, all villainous and swash-buckling, ready to board the Black Pearl.  I got so excited I had to excuse myself for a moment and use the facilities.  The ferry arrived at port and it looked like a giant rusted metal rectangle floating on the shimmering surface of the water.  I looked resolute at John and he smiled reassuringly as he drove the car on to the boat and parked at the front.  I stayed in my travel basket until we found a seat upstairs and got our cameras out.  As we made our way to the outer deck, I could smell the salty sea air and hear the water swell as the Black Pearl parted the waves.

The Solent was calm and a murky turquoise green and the sky was blue with the odd puffy greyish-white cloud overhead.  An aircraft carrier rested motionless at the harbour, speed boats powered past us and huge cargo ships sat ominously in the distance, their boxy silhouettes a reminder of the other world that exists at sea.  The mainland got smaller and the Spinnaker Tower disappeared into the distance as we cruised towards the roughly diamond-shaped island that is known as an area of outstanding natural beauty.  We soon arrived at Fishbourne, disembarked and set off through the narrow pot-holed country lanes and rural landscape towards the dramatic chalky coastline on the other side of the island at Sandown, where I caught sight of our destination.

http://www.wightlink.co.uk/

Shad does PAWs animal sanctuary

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Have you ever met a rabbit who thinks she’s a chicken?  John and I did at the weekend.  This rabbit spent her life with chickens and was not socialised by her previous owners.  So when PAWs Animal Sanctuary in Findon, West Sussex rescued her, she was unable to settle with other rabbits and soon became affectionately know as Mrs Grumpy!  This big bundle of fuzz is now well cared for and lives happily with 2 tortoises and a cat.  Her name is Fluffy and she has long soft downy ears and fur so thick and lush that the tortoises snuggle up to her at night for warmth and comfort.

PAWs has been rescuing, rehabilitating and rehoming animals for the past 30 years and is a small locally-based charity run by Stacey and Sheila in their back garden.  John and I met Stacey on our visit and she welcomed us in and showed us round, telling us about the animals she is currently caring for.  Some of them are permanent residents, like Fluffy who needs special care and patience, and some of them are looking for new homes.  Basil the black cat was rescued from the house where he lived when his owners moved out and left him behind.  Then there’s Harry the long-haired black and white cat with a black beard and half a moustache.  There was a number of cats with amusing facial markings and I must admit I felt a little jealous.  I reckon I’d look good with a white handlebar or a Fu Manchu!

Now, you know how curious cats are.  Abbey the old tabby cat you can see sitting on my camera bag was sniffing round my equipment the whole time we were there.   Her tongue hangs out because her jaw is misshapen due to wearing a metal brace in her mouth for 5 years following a road traffic accident.  The brace should have been worn for only 6 weeks but the owners never took her back to the vet to have it removed.  When this friendly little pussy-cat was rescued, she had dreadful ulcers and infections in her mouth, but PAWs fixed her up and she is now living a comfortable life.  I thought she was being a nosey parker but it turns out John had hidden some treats in one of the compartments in the camera bag, so me and Abbey hooked them out with our paws and enjoyed a snack together in the sunshine.

Abbey has lots of company at PAWs including a donkey, guinea-pigs, a peacock and a clutch of chickens.  The chickens spend their days clucking and pecking around the garden and are tucked up safely into bed at night.  If you pop over to PAWs on a Sunday afternoon, you can buy some of their scrumptious free-range eggs, drop a couple of quid in the collection tin and sit on the bench in the garden, watching the animals and talking to the volunteers who are busy grooming, feeding, medicating, exercising and bonding with the animals.

Like every animal charity, PAWs is always full and has a waiting list of animals to come in.  But PAWs provide a unique service to the animals of Sussex because they rescue 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  However they can only go out in the middle of the night on Christmas Eve to rescue an animal in distress if they have the resources to care for it.  They don’t have secured funding or a national infra-structure to support them so public donations and support from local businesses are essential.  All proceeds from donating go directly towards the upkeep of the animals and enable PAWs to meet the increasing costs associated with caring for animals.  They have also launched an appeal to raise money for a desperately needed bigger and better animal sanctuary so good luck to them for that project.  Thank you PAWs for the dedication and hard work and sacrifices you make every day to look after animals in need.

Shad gets jiggy with the Saga Louts

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This music-crazy bunch of over-forties form a band called the Saga Louts and consist of a lead singer (John’s brother) who also plays the harmonica, a lead guitarist, a bass guitarist and a drummer.  They played down the pub the other night and I decided to forego my mid-evening nap to tag along with John and see them perform.  It was all very rock ‘n roll as they played songs such as Route 66, Summer of ‘69 and Brown Sugar.

It was quite loud but very entertaining and I could see how much the band and the crowd were enjoying themselves.  At one point, John’s brother Colin was crooning with all his might, eyes tight shut, lost in his own world, swinging his groove thing and serenading the ladies!  I was hoping to catch John having a shake and a shimmy but he’s much too shrewd to get caught doing a ‘Hammer shuffle‘ or a moon-walk so unfortunately I have no embarrassing photos to show you.  But here are a few pictures of the Saga Louts doing what they do best.

Behind the scenes with Shad

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Natasha, John’s daughter had the chance to shoot with me today!
While I was was setting up my camera, Natasha took the opportunity to capture the master at work.

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Shad meets the Equihunter again!

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Equihunter – Luxury Horse Box Manufacturers

Here are some rather stylish images (though I say so myself!) John and I captured when we took another jaunt to the Felbridge Showground.  This horsebox is for sale and is 3½ tonne as opposed to the 7½ tonne vehicle I told you about a few months ago.  John’s friend took the horsebox in to the jumping ring and we were lucky enough to find a nice rider willing to pose for us in one of the photos.  Horse and rider appeared so dignified that I couldn’t resist a closer look, so I hopped up on to a fence where I was level with the horse’s face.

Soon all dignity had gone out the window as we were nuzzling and shnozzling unashamedly.  I’m not normally given to swooning, but I am a cat after all, and when I find something I like, I have to rub myself against it!!  He had a lovely big nose with soft lips and short thick whiskers, and every time he huffed and whinnied, hot air blew out of his large round nostrils.  I like horses, they’re loyal and work hard, and I’ve seen some horses happily let a cat have a snooze on their back too.

3.5 Ton

It was raining on the day so I spent most of the time lounging around inside the horsebox, enjoying a nap on the cream leather seats of the cabin, checking out my reflection in the mirror and watching John contort himself into all sorts of weird and wonderful positions to get some good shots.  He had wet knees and frizzy hair by the time we left.  On the way home, he made a remark about my apparent lack of exertion during the day, but I explained that I was conducting research in the vehicle, serious corporate quality assurance work, all part of the business.  He rolled his eyeballs and smiled while I shut my eyes for a late afternoon siesta.  It’s a cats life!

Compact Sink and Cooker
Two ringed cooker

Equihunter – Luxury Horse Box Manufacturers

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