Thursday, June 14, 2007
Nostalgia
Spent some more time in Gosport helping to clear the roof of our naval aunt's house. Now the pround owner of two interesting boxes. One, made out of fat pine planks with lots of dovetails and three working drawers is around 20 inches by 20 inches by 30 inches. Very substantial affair which could take a fair amount of rough handling, had nothing sticking out and could be stacked like containers; and, which we suspect was what a naval officer had to keep all his worldy possessions in while on a cruise. Naval ratings had kit bags. Perhaps the captain got to have both.
The other is a steel box around 10 inches by 10 inches by 40 inches, the construction being of the ammunition box variety. The odd thing being that it has been carefully lined with thin copper sheets, all carefully soldered together. We suspect that this one might have been used for storing said officer's dress uniform - although we wonder what would have happened had seawater got near it - sea water doing funny things when two differant metals are in the same vicinity - according to Wiki the funny things in question being what makes batteries work.
On the other hand we have it on good authority that brass does not corrode in sea water so perhaps being an alloy does not count as two differant metals being in the same vicinity.
We disposed of various other wooden packing cases used on sea voyages. Heavy affairs, not a bit of plywood or hardboard in sight (never mind chip board) and not quite as posh as the chest of drawers, but again, carefully lined with canvas, oil cloth or whatever. I guess you just have to hire a container these days and fill it with cardboard boxes. Not got the same glamour at all.
The owner of the boxes was also of a sufficiently careful generation to make string handles for the many cardboard boxes he had for storing valubles in the roof. And a special cardboard box had even been folded and tied up against its next outing - which, sadly, never came to pass.
Reading the copy of 'The Wind in the Willows' acquired recently from Lyme Regis and which turns out to be at least our second copy. Odd sort of book, can't imagine a Frenchman writing it or reading it. Maybe a Russian. All very English and turn of the century before last. And not really a childrens' book either, despite being about small cuddly animals and the blurb describing it as a book of and for youth. In the same camp perhaps as 'Three Men in a Boat' - which I have never read. Must ask BH as this last is something she reads from time to time.
We have heard reports that it is possible to be appointed as a lecturer in music at an English university without being able to read music. At first I assumed that the lecturer in question was supposed to take a special interest in 16th century split trunk drumming on the upper Volta or musical accompaniments to whirling dervishes in post-schism Iran - neither subject needing the benefit of Western musical notation. But the Grauniad reveals all, carrying an advertisement for a lecturer in music technology. The person they are looking for seems to be somebody who knows all about sound, computer generation of sound, acoustics and the all the other engineering and mechanics of today's music business. Not a job for a musician - even a pop musician - and certainly no need for anything so quaint as notation.
The other is a steel box around 10 inches by 10 inches by 40 inches, the construction being of the ammunition box variety. The odd thing being that it has been carefully lined with thin copper sheets, all carefully soldered together. We suspect that this one might have been used for storing said officer's dress uniform - although we wonder what would have happened had seawater got near it - sea water doing funny things when two differant metals are in the same vicinity - according to Wiki the funny things in question being what makes batteries work.
On the other hand we have it on good authority that brass does not corrode in sea water so perhaps being an alloy does not count as two differant metals being in the same vicinity.
We disposed of various other wooden packing cases used on sea voyages. Heavy affairs, not a bit of plywood or hardboard in sight (never mind chip board) and not quite as posh as the chest of drawers, but again, carefully lined with canvas, oil cloth or whatever. I guess you just have to hire a container these days and fill it with cardboard boxes. Not got the same glamour at all.
The owner of the boxes was also of a sufficiently careful generation to make string handles for the many cardboard boxes he had for storing valubles in the roof. And a special cardboard box had even been folded and tied up against its next outing - which, sadly, never came to pass.
Reading the copy of 'The Wind in the Willows' acquired recently from Lyme Regis and which turns out to be at least our second copy. Odd sort of book, can't imagine a Frenchman writing it or reading it. Maybe a Russian. All very English and turn of the century before last. And not really a childrens' book either, despite being about small cuddly animals and the blurb describing it as a book of and for youth. In the same camp perhaps as 'Three Men in a Boat' - which I have never read. Must ask BH as this last is something she reads from time to time.
We have heard reports that it is possible to be appointed as a lecturer in music at an English university without being able to read music. At first I assumed that the lecturer in question was supposed to take a special interest in 16th century split trunk drumming on the upper Volta or musical accompaniments to whirling dervishes in post-schism Iran - neither subject needing the benefit of Western musical notation. But the Grauniad reveals all, carrying an advertisement for a lecturer in music technology. The person they are looking for seems to be somebody who knows all about sound, computer generation of sound, acoustics and the all the other engineering and mechanics of today's music business. Not a job for a musician - even a pop musician - and certainly no need for anything so quaint as notation.
# posted by Jim @ 11:30 AM 
