Run-of-the-Mill

Since my last entry we’ve spent some very ordinary days, hence my lack of motivation to report!  This is just to pin-point our current location really and to mention a few mundane things:-

• Cavalry one day, Navy the next!  Completing the last 5 locks on the Atherstone flight I was helped by the crew of the boat following – chaps from the Navy!  The Navy apparently owns 3 narrow boats for their staff to use.  This time, the operation of those locks was ……… easy-peasy!

• Coming through Nuneaton we got a jacket wrapped around the propeller.  The Navy chaps picked up a matching jumper on theirs!  How DO these sorts of things end up in the canal?  It can’t be by accident?  The mind boggles!

  Wood around the prop       and then clothing!

• Between Atherstone and Rugby we have made ourselves moor up in some different places.  We were finding that we were tending to stick to mooring spots we knew to be OK so, in order to break that predictability ………………

                                                                          Moored in the Autumn sunshine near Easenhall.

• We haven’t moored up where we usually do in Rugby – we’ve gone on a bit further and have moored by the golf course.  Yesterday we cycled into Rugby town centre from there – not far but up-hill all the way.  Oh, for that electric motor!  Coming back though was ………. SIMPLES!!

• The Bionic Boiler has packed up …… again!  It HAD been behaving itself!  I have now lost all patience with it and want it to be jettisoned but John, it seems, has developed an intimate relationship with all it’s components and it’s mood swings and it appears that he is unable to envisage life without it!!

• Speaking of not living without things …………………  Those of you who know me well know of my attachment to all things purple.  What about these then?  My birthday present from my mate, Gill.  Fab-u-lous!    

• With both Gill and Mick in mind, it seems amazing that it’s half-term next week already.  How quickly one forgets!!

• The cabin lace up at our windows is literally falling apart.  Old age, sunlight and washing detergent have all taken their toll.  So, I have set myself the challenge of replacing it.  Thing is, I can only ‘do’ one self-taught crochet pattern!  And, it needs to be made smaller to go up at the windows.  I have been in every traditional wool shop/craft shop I have come across between Llangollen and here and it seems that the recommended yarn (Twilleys no 5) is no longer available.  I managed to get one ball of something that looks promising in Atherstone so the experiment has begun.  For each window length I need to do 14 crocheted patterns so, if I do one pattern a day (MASSIVE concentration required) it should take me …….. 4 months.  Yeah, right!!   Just as well I no longer have a day job!

 

• It was Meg’s birthday last Saturday and not a soul out there in Brazil knew it!  We had a really good internet connection where we were moored so were able to talk to her and see her on Skype.  To me it’s like Merlin - just magic.

• The paintwork needs a polish.  Having read Lynn’s recent blog (n/b Piston Broke) John is out there doing it right now!  Keep a space for us guys – we’ll be with you (like it or not) either today or tomorrow.

Well, I did say mundane!