Back in the day when the video recorder allowed you to preserve your favourite shows I had two cassettes that I played to death. The first was The Damned 10th Anniversary concert and that was played a lot, the second contained the film Splash and a BBC2 Play for Today called Will you love me tomorrow.

It is well documented that Splash is the film I have watched over 100 times but not many know I actually watched the whole tape so the play has as many views too!

The play is about 2 girls who abscond from an open prison in Manchester and spend a couple of days on the run in Rhyl, where we find out the Jackie murdered 3 children when she was 9 years old and has been locked up for the last 11 years. Its low budget as all Play for today’s were but introduced some great actors.

Not sure why as a teenager I loved watching the film and play so much, I am sure it wasn’t because Daryl Hannah was in one Joanne Whalley was in the other.

With a PCP agreement you pay monthly installments for 48 months and then either pay the ‘bubble’ payment at the end or get rid in a way that pays off the rest of the agreement and get another car and start again. Last month they reminded me that I had 3 payments to go so I need to think about what I was going to do at the end of March so I started looking for a new car.

I have never liked change, happy that how it is is great so why change but this was forcing me to buy another car, and I didn’t want to.

Tonight I sat in my car, waiting for Lincoln to finish his drum lesson, contemplating driving 175 miles to Horsham to buy a Black Ford Fiesta 2 door ST-Line to replace the Black Vauxhall Corsa SRi I was sat in…

It would have cost me £75ppm more for 4 years I would have taken a day off to go and get it and petrol there and back to replace something I already have.

The bubble payment is £4610 and a loan from the bank would cost £9ppm less for only 30 months so I applied for a loan had it accepted and transferred to my bank account when I got home and I paid off the rest of the agreement.

I borrowed a little extra to get a ding on the rear bumper fixed and get it serviced and valeted and once done it’ll be like a new one….!

I wrote the blog, below, in February 2010 on third anniversary of Yvonne’s passing. Today was the 19th anniversary, so much has happened since then, that it is scarcely believable!

I still think of her, I always will because without her the rest would have been possible?

Little did I know that I was going to find my future when I travelled 4500 miles away from Middlewich back in March 2008. all I wanted was a holiday to look forward to. Truth be told I wasn’t even sure where I was going, so on the way back from the travel agents with ticket in hand I called in on John (Garner) to take a look at an atlas to find out where, in
America, Denver actually was?

Coming upto two years on from that trip, I’m married to a wonderful woman who is
expecting our first child in April and most
importantly I’m happy. We have a great life and it just gets better everyday,

To forget my past would be crime, after all its what brought me to this point in my life, a bigger crime would be not enjoy my future…!

Jamie 2007 – Forever

Rest in Peace Von

Car shopping is one of my least favourite activities, I just don’t like change and my Vauxhall Corsa is enough right now but the terms of the PCP agreement means I either give it back or pay the ‘bubble’ amount which is 4 grand.

I drove a new Corsa and Mokka but the manual version had a footrest to the left of the clutch which my foot caught every time I changed gear which I am not sure I could ignore. I did like the Mokka but after investigating the automatic version it was annoyingly too expensive, I just don’t think I can justify having a £300pm car payment sat on the drive most of the week.

I also drove a Puma which didn’t really light me up it was a higher driver position and seemed like I had to reach down to change gear, which maybe my perception after getting out of a Fiesta minutes before?

The Fiesta I liked but until saying up all the cars I looked at that Black small car is enough and if the Fiesta I test drove was black 2 door ST-Line and looked a bit sporty I possibly would be the owner of a new car.

Looking on Autotrader there is an automatic version at the right price but its in London so I think I might ask CD if they can find me one…

I have now moved the Cyclone into the corner saving floor space which was something I had to do because it would have done me head in

The pipework is routed as simply as I can with flowing bends rather than 90s and I have sealed the drainage pipework with gaffer tape and jubilee clips and think its as good as I can make it now.

So I turned it on and it was good and the setup looked solid but that was only one of the motors so I turned the second motor on and it stayed solid but the increase in suction was impressive.

At 68mm bore the performance was really good but when I reduced the bore for tools like a sander etc and it began whistling so I switched the second motor off, just incase.

While I did the tests, above, I put a flexible exhaust pipe on one of the motors and it is SOOOO much quieter, I will DEFINITELY be getting another length of pipe for the other motor because I can have both on they will be quieter and nothing collapses at 68mm bore.

It looks like the weakest part of the system is the bag under the Cyclone which by all accounts is how it should be…?