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Panacea Newsletter 9

Spring, summer, autumn and winter-we have had them all during these last two months but we have had a great time!

Connor was helpful with the power barrow transferring a delivery of wood pellets into the shed. He has also visited Teddington Lock where a diver was working on the lock gates. Marko came with us looking for sea trout that were heard to be thereabouts. Connor also set up the freshwater tank in the shed and caught six tiddlers, mussels and found a caddisfly larva. Marko also set up our crayfish trap and made sure that we had a licence attached as it is a requirement in the Thames.Oh yes,Barkis helped too!

Josh has persevered well with his pickup lorry and has only some final finishing touches to do on the paint work.I cannot emphasise enough the skills that are required in order to complete such a task, especially when bending metal to the necessary angles for mudguards and the cab of the lorry and meticulous carving with the electric chisel to shape the front of the lorry. Really well done Josh!

We have been out on Hendrina when the weather was sunny and the river calm. Josh took control and capably steered her up to Chertsey lock and back again. She is currently having some more work done on her deck area using the special flexible varnish which allows for temperature change without cracking the surface.

As for the others Christina is busy working towards entrance exams. Hannah is coming back to prepare for her English GCSE and Robbie has progressed well in making his safe. Lewis completed his complicated hand steady game-a fantastic achievement with once again real technical skill requirements. He has the final challenge of this newsletter. Lewis is able to complete the marble solitaire challenge to get the single marble in the centre hole.He has made a new challenge of this game which is to get the one red marble,the rest are all green, as the solitary one left in the middle hole. He is now starting to make his own solitaire board out of a thick chunk of wood. Well done everyone, good work!

Dated: 2012-05-01 and Updated: 0000-00-00