Yesterday I spent ten pounds…and all afternoon…travelling across the county by train to return my Apple Mac Mini to Solutions Inc on the Old Shoreham Road beyond Brighton for repair. It was a wasted journey. ‘When did you purchase it sir?’ ‘April last year…but I haven’t used it much…four months total...and not for the past three months. But when I went to use it again it refused to boot up. Not a murmur. I even left it on overnight hoping it was something like an internal battery that needed to charge itself up before it would go. But not a dickie bird.’

‘Regrettably Sir the warranty period is twelve months. Did you take out an extended warranty.’ ‘Probably not. I was told Apple Mac Minis never go wrong. Can you check?’ ‘Part Number?…No Sir…Regrettably you are not coming up on the computer with a 3-year Extended Warranty.’ ‘Then I want it replaced I presume Apple doesn’t build their computers with six months obsolescence.’ ‘Regrettably I cannot authorise that, Sir. You will need to talk to Apple.’

‘But you are Apple’s Sussex representative.’ ‘Yes Sir. Exactly. We are not Apple. Here is the number you need to call.’ ‘So I’ve just wasted ten pounds coming to Brighton.’ ‘Regrettably yes Sir. But we will of course be happy to repair it. But our minimum charge is £150…for the computer engineer to take the cover off. And the only thing that can go wrong is the motherboard. So he would replace it. This would cost you another £150 for a new motherboard.’

‘But I only paid £339 for it…new. And I can get a new PC laptop for what it will cost me to have my Apple Mac Mini repaired.’ ‘True Sir.’ ‘So you recommend I throw it in the bin.’ ‘ That is not for me to say Sir. But recover the data first. And it is worth talking to Apple. They may approve a parts replacement under warranty for you Sir.’

‘Can I check the power pack.’ ‘Certainly Sir. But regrettably you must go back to Sales...just 100 yards round the corner. I don’t have the right connection. We never see Apple Mac Minis here because they never go wrong. Aah! Wait! Hear that...when I disconnect the PPU. So that’s not your problem.’ Pity...a new PPU would only set me back £40. At least insult was not added to injury with ‘Have A Nice Day Sir’. Back across the county. What to do?

Sunday 27th August 2006 was the day for this year’s annual Rye Raft Race. Once upon a time the race started at Strand Quay and ran downstream to The Conqueror in Rye Harbour. For some reason it was switched ten years ago and now runs upstream from the Fishmarket. But at least this meant that the rafts were launched 44 yards away from Vemara from the sheep pasture on the opposite side of the river giving me a grandstand view.

After devoting hundreds of hours to playing cricket in my younger days I can estimate cricket pitch multiples very accurately…to within an inch or two. A cricket pitch is 22 yards from wicket to wicket…the Old English measure of One Chain. Hence my confident claim that launching took place two cricket pitches away from Vemara’s cockpit.

It was the best turn-out for many years with eleven rafts competing. It has been storm showers every hour or so for the past two weeks. But today the weather stayed fine until mid-afternoon. As the rafts disappeared round the bend and out of sight I must wait until the Rye Observer comes out on Friday to find out who were this year’s winners.

It was a very sociable day for me. The previous evening a black-leathered and black-helmeted figure had appeared on the river bank at the end of Vemara’s catwalk and stood there for some minutes gazing at the boat. This is not that unusual an occurrence as Rye is the destination of choice for bikers from all over the south-eastern suburbs of London who gather at Strand Café most weekends…and on bank holiday weekends in particular.

But this was no ordinary biker. These black leathers were riding a bike with a German number plates. All the way from Germany just to see me? Well perhaps not. But it was my elder brother John…last seen at Heidi’s house in Rye Harbour a year ago. I had received sixtieth birthday greetings by email last month and we had made an unsuccessful attempt to meet up at Christmas when John was in Leeds and I was in Llangolman. We arranged to meet up again before he left Rye on Bank Holiday Monday for his newly purchased Property Development Project in Bishop Stortford in Hertfordshire…a few miles away from the family home in the village of Braughing.

So after the Raft Race I was making my way to meet up with my brother and his wife Sue when I bumped into Martin returning to his house on Fishmarket Road after watching the race from the bridge so I took the opportunity to take my first guided tour. David was at home so I gave him the telephone number to Malcolm and Claire Wallace. Last week I had made arrangements with Claire that next week when Dynamic Events were back in town after a 400-person conference up north David could go round to their offices on South Undercliff and choose two of his mother’s large Rye Maritime Heritage watercolours held in store there to have on his wall at 42 Fishmarket Road.

Martin was in the middle of serving up the Sunday Roast so I did not linger but continued round to Regents Square …named after the old Regent Cinema that was bombed by Hitler’s Luftwaffe. I spent a very enjoyable few hours catching up on John, his family and the rest of the clan before returning to Vemara…and my research into the last time that the Monarchy and Parliament were at loggerheads…which means most of the 17th Century.