More Helpful Things...

With a Big Red Bean Bag

Time to rest my teccy brain for a while and write a short Caring piece about Helpful Things - things I’ve used to help me care in ways not initially intended.

I’ll stretch the topic a little for the 3rd item: - Caring and Garden Railways? Of course. My projects are my release, and help support my ability to care. What’s more, Spring is here… (I think).

Home care givers try to sort out *everything*, whatever happens.

The Big Red Bean Bag

“Edgar” claims the Big Red Bean Bag. Edgar is a huge soft toy calf we bought in Cowgills, Clitheroe (England) 50 or so years ago.

When you are 70, lifting another adult isn’t easy. My wife collapsed on the floor. This can happen if she catches a virus on top of her MS. I can lift her a little on my own, but not high enough to get her up on to a bed or chair. And we don’t have a hoist or air lift.

Sometimes, carers have no option but to call an ambulance and paramedics to lift their dependant from the floor. Sadly, aside from diverting a scarce resource, in the UK a non-emergency ambulance call can involve a long wait with the vulnerable dependant stranded for hours on the floor or ground.

Our big red bean bag is a very Helpful Thing. I bought it for grandchildren watching TV. Nowadays it helps me to lift my wife.

I gently sit her up with the bean bag snugly behind her. I stand behind her and the bag, and supporting her shoulders lean her onto the bag and ease her steadily toward me, so the soft bag rolls along between her and the floor, until she is sitting up on the bag. She is now near enough to bed height to allow me to transfer her across to the bed or a chair.

She reassures me this manner of rescue doesn’t hurt her at all.

A Fish Food Tub

Drip… drip… drip…

Torrential rain outside. A wet patch on the duvet. My heart sank. How are we going to sleep? The traditional purlins in our bedroom roof are exposed, with a spiral stair up to my mezzanine teccy area in the loft space. I can at least see what’s occurring without a surprise plaster bulge scenario, needing a drill hole to release a cascade of water…

You know those people who don’t throw things away because… just in case? That’s me. I had some empty fish food tubs and cup hooks in the shed. These tubs have a pivoting handle like a bucket, but with more refinement for the required task…

Fish food tub suspended by a cup hook from a purlin. The space between purlins has rockwool insulation, plaster board and 3 small Velux roof lights for natural light..

An empty Fish Food Tub is a very Helpful Thing I put a hand towel in the base to muffle the sound of drips.

Now fixed and cleaned, our aged roof had liberal clumps of moss, and a couple of rusted nails had allowed a tile to slip. We’ll need a new roof eventually, but I’m discouraged when see owners nearby scrapping traditional purlins covered by tongue & grove boarding, and replacing them with modern “A” frames as a cheaper option. I couldn’t bear to lose my teccy-area space.

Margarine Tubs

An empty margarine tub is a very Useful Thing. This is I admit a brazen excuse to write a little about garden railways. As weather improves, I’ll write more in articles to follow. These “Flora” tubs are old ones I’ve hoarded. I buy “Olive Spread” from Aldi now.

The tubs were made resplendent in aerosol silver. I scratch-made strip wood frames and sprayed those orange. Then formed aluminium angle axle bearers and wire coil springs. The final stage was to buy in steel wheels, buffers and ladders.

The result, 16mm scale 45mm gauge ore or ballast wagons for a garden railway, or my indoor exhibit. The completed single wagon is on my indoor exhibit.

In the garden. radio controlled loco “Criccieth Castle” hauls a train of “margarine tub” ore wagons round the return loop. Motive power also includes live steamers and some scratch built locos.

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