Shiralee: Crick Marina # 3

23^rd November to 28^th November

Saturday 23^rd November

If you’ve heard of Open Office, you’ll know that there are several varieties of this free alternative to Microsoft, one of which is called Apache. But the one that I have on disc is called Ubuntu, an African word meaning ‘shared humanity’.

I’ve already loaded Apache on the Toshiba laptop, but this morning I decided to give Ubuntu a go. This is much bigger than Apache, at 5 Gb and according to the blurb, also gives completely free and secure access to the Internet via Firefox.

It kind of mirrors what you would expect to see on a Windows screen, except that all the programme icons sit to the left hand side.

Unfortunately, with the limited time at my disposal first thing in the morning I really didn’t have enough of that commodity with which to investigate further. It seems though, as if it is necessary to manually select the means by which you wish to access to the Internet, because this didn’t come up automatically.

Looks like a long learning curve for this one. However, if you would like to try something completely different, it might be worth your while to check out Ubuntu, which can be installed alongside your current platform; be it MS or Mac; or it can be installed as your only platform, eliminating the Windows or MAC System.

I’ll certainly be taking a closer look at this over the coming weeks.

Sunday 24^th November

 With all the problems with our ‘Three’ WiFi and the weak signal from the marina one, we decided to fork out £32 for a WiFi Aerial, which arrived yesterday. So, having fitted the aerial to our top box and, having dug out the Toshiba, I plugged in the aerial but, as soon as I tried to access the Internet, I was asked for a User Name and Password, neither of which I had at my disposal.

In high dudgeon then I traipsed across to the marina office, where Noel filled out a form for me to sign, upon which were the necessary details. And that’s when my problems really started.

 Knowing I would still be unhappy at having had to chase around for UN and P, Wifey had a cup of tea ready for me. So understanding is that woman. Anyway, once again I connected to the marina WiFi, but this time when I tried accessing the Internet, no nag screen came up and, after several attempts at jiggery pokery here and there, I finally gave up on the Toshiba. I have no idea what the problem can be, but I may try carrying out a Restore sometime.

 I then dragged out the VAIO, but not for the WiFi, no, this time I wanted to do a full back-up onto an external hard drive, of which I have two, a 160Gb and a 320Gb Verbatim. For some reason, which still remains a mystery to me, neither laptop will accept the smaller of the two as a back-up unit, so I always try the 320 first. But, wouldn’t you know it, the laptop couldn’t see it. Then, when I unplugged the HDD, a nag screen came up telling me the device needed formatting and ‘would you like to format now’?

 Of course, I clicked ‘yes’ and plugged it back in, but I then had another screen telling me the item could not be formatted, by which time I’m pulling my hair out. Anyway, after much faffing around with the Control Panel, I finally got the thing to format and, because it took so long, removed laptop and HDD to the bedroom to await results.

 Eventually, after a couple of hours; or so it seemed; formatting was completed and I then instituted full back-up. This was at about 2pm, but, by the time we wanted to sit down to dinner, only about 20% of the back-up was completed, so into the bedroom it went again.

 We usually retire at about 10pm, by which time only 60% of the back-up was completed and it wasn’t until I answered a call of nature at about 2am, that I discovered it was finished.

 The good news is that, after plugging in the new aerial to the VAIO and connecting to the local WiFi, up came that nag screen asking for UN and P, which I gladly supplied. I now have a much faster, although insecure Internet access.

 Naturally, whilst I was online, up came another screen, this time from Avast, telling me I had an insecure line and offering protection for an extra £5.95 per month. This would probably be worth it, but I must first ask Wifey before committing to a regular outlay. I can always cancel it when we leave here next April.

Other news? None whatsoever, because I spent all day faffing about with the laptop.

 Today is Sunday and, after all the frustration of yesterday I really do deserve my Sunday lunchtime drink.

 Now, like most pet owners, I’m a big softy. I just can’t help it. So, when I contacted a very kind-hearted family member about Rusty’s sad demise, she mentioned something called The Rainbow Bridge. Of course, I thanked her for her kind thoughts, thinking no more about the subject.

 Realising that I obviously hadn’t even heard of The Rainbow Bridge, this kind person – whose name will remain between us, just in case she would rather not see her name in print – then offered to tell me about it. The following what she sent:

 THE RAINBOW BRIDGE

 There is a bridge connecting Heaven and Earth. It is called the Rainbow Bridge because of its many colours. Just this side of the Rainbow Bridge there is a land of meadows, hills and valleys with lush green grass.

 When a beloved pet dies, the pet goes to this place. There is always food and water and warm spring weather. The old and the frail animals are young again. Those who are maimed are made whole again. They play all day with each other.

 There is only one thing missing. They are not with their special person who loved them so on Earth. So, each day they run and play until the day comes when one suddenly stops playing and looks up! The nose twitches! The ears are up! The eyes are staring! And this one suddenly runs from the group!

 You have been seen, and when you and your special friend meet, you take him, or her, in your arms and embrace. Your face is kissed again and again and again, and you look once more into the eyes of your trusting pet.

Then you cross the Rainbow Bridge together, never again to be separated.

 Now, isn’t that just so slushy and warm? I love it.

 Monday 25^th November

 We have to take the bus into Rugby today. Why? Because, after just eight days of use, the new electric kettle we bought from Argos has packed up. What makes this so annoying is that we searched high and low, amongst all kinds of shops and stores, for a 1 litre kettle, which took us several weeks, only to find one in Argos and that one’s no good.

 I made a start on my pastel of Rusty and, so far so good. This time though, instead of starting at the top and working down, I started at the point where I made my big mistake, her eye. After spending half an hour filling in the water and reflections last time, I made a right mess of her eye and had to tear the paper up. This time it’s looking pretty good and I can always turn the paper upside down to work on the water.

 This Crick WiFi Hotspot is working quite well through the new aerial. It’s a funny operation though, when it comes to connecting. When I plug the aerial in I have to wait a while until the signal is recognised by the laptop. I then have to click ‘connect’ on the appropriate icon. However, in order to make a proper connection, I then have to go onto the web and sign in. If I don’t do that first then I am unable to download my emails through Outlook. Still, it works and that’s the point of shelling out £32 for the aerial. My ‘Three’ WiFi unit is now back in its box until we leave here in April.

 Tuesday 26^th November

 Sister Carole is studying Archaeology and has asked me to find some books for her. This is OK, I’m happy to help. I use a site called Addall, which has access to most of the other online book sellers, so it’s usually easy tracking down out of print books.

 This morning, nice and early, I accessed the site and easily found the first of three books that Carole wants. After that, slooooow, with the screen sitting there, all blank and with the cursor circling like a demented gnat. Will try again later.

 Meanwhile, Wifey has a fasting blood test this morning at 8.30, so she’s going to be ravenous when she gets home.

Later……

 After much faffing about at Addall and, after overcoming my dear sister’s incorrect info, I finally managed to order her books, all from Amazon although, after that Panorama programme, I must admit to hesitating about that.

   “Two women called at my door and asked what bread I ate. When I said white they gave me a lecture on the benefits of brown bread for 30 minutes.   I think they were those Hovis Witnesses.”

Wednesday 27^th November

 Well, I once again set up the Toshiba and attempted to get online via local WiFi, but still with no luck. The procedure for doing so goes like this:

 1/ Plug in the aerial lead and click on the little triangular icon in the System Tray

2/ Click ‘Connect’ on the marina WiFi icon
3/ Click on Internet Access
4/ Fill in the User Name and Password.

 Simple? No!

 At stage 3/ of the proceedings a blank Internet screen comes up and my cursor, once again, sits there whirring away like a demented gnat. Then after what must be at least a minute, up comes the sign-in screen.

 So, not too happy with this state of affairs, I carried out a Restore on the Toshiba, but still had the same problem. I have now given up on the Toshiba for now.

 Back to the VAIO and, because I had already signed in on that one, I had no problems getting online. Ah well, you can’t have everything.

 Thursday 28^th November

 You may remember me mentioning a 1 litre kettle that we bought from Argos recently? Well, a few days ago we returned that kettle for a replacement, because it simply stopped working.

 Today we’ll be returning the replacement for another kettle, but this time for a different make and model, because the replacement sprung a leak. Not just any old leak though, oh no, this was around the base and ran onto the base that’s connects the kettle to power. You can imagine the result had we not noticed the leak and switched it on. At the very least the fuse would have blown but, since this is 13 amp, the charge could well have bypassed the fuse and blown our Inverter/Charger or tripped out the outside supply. Nasty!!

 Considering the fact that this particular model of kettle is unreliable and potentially dangerous, I have reported the matter to Argos Customer Services. As to whether they will take it up with the manufacturers, well, we can only hope.

 After returning said kettle this morning we’ll be heading for Watford gap Services, where I’m hoping to find a decent pair of boots.

 On that happy note I think I’d better post this blog.

 Happy days from Dave and Sheila.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shiralee: Crick Marina # 2

13th November to 23^rd November

Wednesday 13^th November.

N.B. Any jokes you see in this and future blogs, will probably come from my good friend Alan.

Well, winter has arrived and we have a frosty start to the day, part of which we’ll be spending in Daventry. Our MOT is due in February but, since I know we need two front tyres and will be travelling down to Harlow on several occasions before then, we’re going to get them changed sooner, rather than later. We also need a new radio aerial for the boat, which is something I should have bought whilst I was in Harlow on Saturday.

The steroids are doing wonders to Rusty, she’s far more alert and active now, so much so that even our nearest neighbour has passed comment. It can’t last of course, but at least her quality of life has improved.

“Since the snow came all the wife has done is look through the window.  If it gets any worse, I'll have to let her in.”

Friday 15^th November

Our radio has been playing up of late, on occasion we find the volume goes down and the sound is somewhat scratchy. We have a wooden box on top of the cratch cover, mounted upon which is a holding tube for the TV aerial and a separate aerial for the radio. Unscrewing one side of the box and looking inside, I could see that the wire from the radio aerial had come off and so, not wanting to take the whole box apart to fix the problem, off we trotted to Daventry for a new aerial. We also stopped off at the tyre place and had the back two replaced.

That was on Wednesday morning, after the ice had cleared, of course.

Yesterday we didn’t do much of anything so, as you can plainly see, life in a marina is pretty humdrum.

However, it’s not so humdrum that we’re totally bored. I still have my paintings, guitar and ukulele and Wifey has her Sudoku books. Rusty has her regular hourly walks, on the hour most of the time. Last evening she was wandering around, obviously looking for somewhere to pee, but I nipped that idea in the bud, pretty sharpish I can tell you.

How very strange that she can still go all night!!

Sunday 17^th November

Yesterday, as far as the Internet was concerned, was an out and out disaster. Crick Marina is a real dead spot where ‘Three’ is concerned but, since they do have the most transmitting towers, there would be no sense in changing.

Anyway, more in hope than expectation, I even tried taking the WiFi onto the roof and connecting it up to the laptop, even so the download speed was only running at a maximum of 150Kb/sec. I then tried using the old dongle, but found that to be even worse. Then later in the afternoon, with the WiFi still in its little pod, I stood it on the biscuit tin, on the ‘wrong’ side of the lounge and, lo and behold, I had a signal, and a strong one at that.

Now, when I say the ‘wrong’ side of the boat I mean that, when I hang the unit in the window on that side, I get no reception at all. But it seems that, by placing it lower down, it’s picking up the signal through the opposite window, which is where I would usually hang the darn thing. Me no understandee!

In addition to the strong signal, the email I tried sending yesterday; one that had a picture in it, which can be difficult sometimes; that went out too. So, leave it on the biscuit tin.

Last night, just about half an hour after retiring to bed, along came Rusty and spewed up on the carpet. Then after she had been out again, she then wandered down to our bedroom and started scratching on the carpet. It was then necessary for Wifey to take her back to bed, and it was left to yours truly to put the usual barrier up to prevent further night time wanderings. It’s now almost 6am and she’s sound asleep.

Would you believe it, I just tried sending an email and noticed that the signal had dropped then, after a couple of minutes it came back. What a bummer!!

Monday 18^th November

We took our wee pooch to the Vet today and, since the pills seem to be doing her good, she’s on them for another month, with the proviso that, should she take a turn for the worse, we are to take her back. So far so good and a month’s supply of pills is only £2.38p. Gotta be the cheapest Vets around.

Tuesday 19^th November

That trip to the Vet totally exhausted our Rusty, so much so that she spent most of the day sleeping, then managed to down some food much later. As a consequence of which she needed to go out during the night. At times she’s really quite chipper and her ‘normal’ self, at others she all morose and quiet, which does worry us.

I took her out again first thing this morning, but she needed to be carried all the way, so she’s certainly not enjoying life right now.

Now, the Internet, which is something of a joke, here at Crick Marina. I’ve been at the laptop since about 6.15 this morning and, in that hour I’ve just managed to download 8 emails and shopped for some pastel pencils at Turner’s of Stockport. It doesn’t matter where I put the WiFi unit, everything is very slow and the signal keeps dropping out. Not good, not good at all!!

If I thought it would be safe to leave Rusty on her own today, I would accompany Wifey into Rugby and call into the Three shop, but I think she’ll be going on her own.

Wednesday 20^th November

Yesterday was a very sad day for us, because we finally had to part with our beloved pet, Rusty. Her condition had become too serious for us to allow her to go on any longer. We’ll miss her dreadfully and will have many fond memories of her. The end of a very happy relationship, with a dog with an attitude problem, never letting us forget who was boss.

Thursday 21^st November

 

Naturally, at the passing on of our wee pooch, we decided we would like a pastel painting of her. So, having scrolled through the multitude of such photos, here’s the one I’m going to do. It could take some time, because I really will have to do her justice.

 

Friday 22^nd November

You know how I’ve been having trouble accessing the Internet and downloading stuff? Well, as a result of having to call into the Marina Office to sort out a power failure, I asked Noel about the strength of their own WiFi signal, with a view to moving closer to it. The upshot of the conversation was, that their unit has a booster unit quite close to our small marina, so I should get a good, strong signal here, which I’m not.

Being something of a Technophobe where these things are concerned, Noel’s question as to whether I had a WiFi aerial on the boat, rather took me by surprise, since I wasn’t aware that I needed one, thinking, in my ignorance, that my WiFi would pick up on the marina signal.

Oh no it doesn’t! It’s the computer that picks that signal up and, without an aerial any signal I do receive will be very weak.

So, I have now ordered an aerial, which means that, for the duration of our stay here at Crick, I will not be needing the ‘Three’ WiFi unit at all and I should have no problems with emails or the Internet. Whoopee!

I made my first attempt at painting my photo of Rusty this morning and, after filling in the water and reflections, I made a start on her face. Oooops! I failed miserably, making a right mess of her eye and, if you can’t get the eye right, there’s little point in continuing. So, later today I’ll have to prepare another sheet of paper and start again tomorrow morning.

Saturday 23^rd November

Our neighbour on our port side, is Martin and his wife on Coriolis and a very nice couple they are too. When we came back from shopping yesterday, they were in the process of taking their boat into dry dock for work on the waterline paint. It will only be there for a few days, which is a pity really because, as I discovered later when I hung the WiFi in the window, it’s their boat that’s blocking our signal. This also tells me that, if I want to use ‘Three’ for Internet access, I’ll have to find a longer lead and put it on the roof, nearer to the front of the boat. Can’t wait for that aerial!

Now, whilst I still have a strong signal, I’ll post this blog.

Have a great weekend.

Dave and Sheila

 

 

 

 

Shiralee: Crick Marina # 1

 

1^st November to

 Saturday 2^nd November

 After walking to the Health Centre on Thursday; which we figure to be about 1½ mile round trip; I swore I would not do so again. However, since I really do need the exercise, I recanted that decision and walked there again yesterday morning in order to collect my medication, and I’m glad I did because I felt all the better for it.

 This also means that, at Sunday lunchtime, assuming it’s not peeing with rain, we’ll be able to walk to the pub. Now that I think about it though, the walk from Mercia marina into Willington would have been no longer and it’s flat for the most part.

 Carrying Rusty out to the car park is OK at present, but I dread to think what it will be like in icy conditions. She’s not a heavy dog by any means, but it only needs one slip and we’ll both suffer. So, we’ve either got to ask Noel for a move to a different pontoon; one that’s nearer to some grass; or I’ve got to buy a decent pair of boots, before that icy stuff turns up.

 Actually, the boaters in this small marina are really friendly, so I’m really not that keen on moving. Watch this space!!

 We had a chat with our neighbour yesterday and discussed the problem we’ve been having with our water pump. Now, since the expansion tank sits over the hot water tank, (Clorifier, in boating terms), we didn’t consider that the pressure there could possibly affect the cold tap. However, for some complicated reason that I have now forgotten, Martin suggested that we check this out and, lo and behold, the pump now works perfectly.

 We have suffered that problem ever since we left Mercia, and it’s been getting worse, so, why did we not think of that earlier? Dumb and dumber!!

 Andy will be returning the car on Sunday morning and, while he’s here he’ll be removing our water filter and inserting a length of pipe. We don’t want a recurrence of the broken filter any time soon. He was also going to sort out our batteries for us, but he’s going straight to his sister’s place after fitting the pipe. This is not a problem since we are now on mains power, but it will have to be sorted out before we go cruising again.

 Talking about mains power, we have now rescued our toaster from the bowels of our cupboard and, having bought some of those lovely square toasting crumpets from Asda, I’m quite looking forward to seeing how they turn out. Sadly, our electric kettle packed up just before we left Mercia, so we’ve got to buy a new one. There are plenty of them about, but they all seem to be 1.7 litre capacity, whereas my awkward wife wants a 1.0 litre one. Go figure!

 Sunday 3^rd November

 Joy, oh, joy, only very distant sounds of fireworks last night, unlike Mercia, where they usually hold their own display and we have to suffer the smoke next morning. I guess I’m getting old!!

 Well, the one thing I had hoped would be OK, isn’t. I’m having problems with the Internet. OK, we had a problem when we were moored up a couple of days ago, but we expected that but, we didn’t anticipate problems here in the marina. Indeed, not only does our signal from ‘Three’ drop out, but the local, free WiFi signal is even weaker than ‘Three’.

 This morning I tried sending an attachment to Emma in NZ, but it simply wouldn’t go out. Looking at the icon in the System Tray, I noticed it had been crossed out, meaning ‘No Signal’. So, after re-positioning the unit, I tried again. Still no joy. So, I then rebooted the unit and the laptop and, hey presto, the message went out, along with the attachment. This kind of situation really does become quite tiresome. I might have to put the WiFi unit into its little box and screw it to the Topbox on the roof and then plug it into the laptop. What a palaver!!

 Monday 4^th November

 Andy and Sandy popped in yesterday, on their way to Andy’s sister in Cambridge, and brought the Alfa with them. We had a real good chat, catching up with the gossip and our separate escapades on the cut.

 The car is running well, she’s old but happy; a bit like me really; so I suppose, after all the money we’ve spent on her since we bought it about three years ago, we had better keep her for a while longer. Besides which, we’re not yet in a position to trade up; or down as the case may be!!

 We popped into The Wheatsheaf pub at lunchtime and, whilst it wasn’t as busy as the Red Lion, it seems like a friendly enough pub; parent’s with kids and football kit etc.

 Tuesday 5^th November

 We’ve discovered something else about Crick, that’s just a wee bit disagreeable, and that’s getting our cassette to the disposal point. As I mentioned before, at the end of the pontoons and through to the car park the pathway is all loose gravel, which makes it pretty difficult when wheeling a sack barrow. Then, having driven up to the disposal point, we have to drag the barrow around the office block, or heft it out of the car and carry it there, which is no mean feat considering the full-up weight of the thing.

 As an aside, I do hope the management here are not like Paul Lilley at Pillings Lock, who trawls the Internet for signs of adverse comments about his beloved marina.

 Today we’re taking the bus into Rugby for our big shop. From what our neighbour, Martin tells us, Daventry is well worth a visit for small shopping expeditions, so we’ll probably give that town a try later in the week.

 Friday 8^th November

 Yesterday was one of those days where we didn’t do much of anything. Well, after the excitement of Wednesday we thought we’d take it easy.

 I think I’m getting the hang of this pastel painting, and it’s taken me long enough, I have to say. I don’t plan on posting everything I do, but I thought you might be interested in this latest offering.

 

 This is of Cheddar Gorge and is taken from a photochrome photo from about 1900. When I showed the photo to Wifey, she assured me that, apart from the road now being paved, the scene will be pretty much as shown. At least, the cottages are still there. I can’t be sure about this because, although we have visited Cheddar and other parts of Somerset, any photos we took at the time seem to have been mislaid.

 The next pastel I do will be something of a surprise for my mentor, Emma. I’m not even going to show here what it’s of until it’s finished.

 This afternoon I will be obliged to undergo a New Patient Review at my local Medical Centre. That should be fun. Hopefully they will leave my medication as is, rather than behave like a new broom.

 Saturday 9^th November

 Yesterday became rather tyersome. No, I haven’t misspelled that last word. Tyresome is what I said and tyresome is what I meant.

 We drove up to the Co-op yesterday morning, rather than walk, which was when we encountered our slice of bad luck. In order to pull into the lay bye outside the shop, it was necessary for me to mount the pavement, but when I did so I put the front wheel over the storm drain and down went the tyre.

 Naturally I panicked at this, simply because the changing of car wheels is not at all easy for me, since I can’t kneel down on the new knees, and that’s when our slice of good luck turned up, in the shape of two young Latvian lads.

 I once possessed a spider tyre iron, but that seems to have disappeared. I also should have had a straight one with the jack, but no such thing abides in my boot. Then along comes my second slice of luck, this time in the shape of a local mum, who loaned us hers.

 Those two lads eventually managed to change the wheel but, even though I didn’t want to embarrass them, I felt I should at least offer them some recompense for their trouble, but they wouldn’t take it and the elder of these two; brothers as it turned out; had already said goodbye and walked off.

 Believe me I’m not usually that lucky. Having a flat tyre would normally occur on an open road, miles from the nearest habitation so, hallelujah for those two Latvians.

The new tyre, incidentally, meant a drive over to Daventry and cost me £48. And, that’s not the end of it either, because I know we need to change the two back ones before the car will pass its MOT.

 Monday 11 November

 I paid a visit to Alan on Saturday and tried to do some shopping. I need a pair of boots, I also need pastel paper and a few pencils and I wanted an in-car t.v. arial. After much fighting through traffic, which can be rather horrendous on a Saturday, we managed to find most of the pastel stuff we needed, but not the boots or the aerial.

 Hobby Craft supplied the pastel stuff and, since Alan also wants to give pastels a try, he bought loads of stuff. Unfortunately, as with many big stores, they all stock the same stuff, so I couldn’t get the individual pastel pencils that I want.

 We called into Maplin’s too but, when I asked a staff member about the aerial, he looked at me as if I was potty. However, when I mentioned that it runs on 12 volts, he pointed to just one of them and walked away. In the event we found about five of this type of aerial, so I have to wonder what sort of training these stores give.

 The evening, as you would expect, was spent supping pints at The White Admiral, which was followed by a very pleasant repast of chicken and chips. We then watched some drivellish film about a disastrous flood, followed by some great Status Quo and retired quite late, by which time we were all quite knackered.

 The trip to Harlow took 1¾ hours and, by the time I arrived back at the marina, I still had more than half a tank of juice, so moving to Crick is saving quite a bit of dosh.

 My next trip to Harlow will be on Alan’s birthday on 13^th December, so I guess I’d better buy a card and pressy.

 Today we have a trip to the vet, which we’re not really looking forward to.

 Tuesday 12^th November            

 Well, the visit to the Vet was not a happy one. Our wee pooch has been diagnosed with a Lymphoma, which accounts for the lumps we have found under her neck and the other lumps elsewhere. She doesn’t seem to be in pain, although she is rather shaky on her legs. The Vet has given us Steroid pills and we have to take her back next week, to see how they are working. At the age of 17, whatever the Vet does for her will only be for short term relief. He said, she could live another four months, or four years with the condition, although the latter is most unlikely. Still, we’ve enjoyed her company for the past 11 years and are most grateful for that. Whatever happens during the immediate future, you may be certain that we won’t let her suffer.

 As for the weather today, well, after a miserable day yesterday and rain overnight, the sky is now clear and the sun is shining.

 Now, at six pages long I suppose I really ought to post this blog.

 Enjoy the rest of your week.

 Dave, Sheila and Rusty.

 

 

Shiralee: Cruise 2013 # 35

Braunston to Crick Marina

 Sunday 27^th October

 Well, our 2013 cruise is all but over. We now have about 10 miles and two tunnels to go before our new, winter moorings. I, for one, am quite looking forward to settling in and exploring the surrounding area. I’m especially looking forward to investigating the town of Northampton, which we’ll be able to visit by bus.

 All in all we’ve had a very successful seven months. We now need to decide what we’ll be doing for 2014.

 Monday 28^th October

 That storm arrived last night and, this morning we have a flooded towpath, something I’ve never seen before. Really, the water is about ½ inch deep all along the towpath. I don’t think we’ve seen the worst of it yet either as this is suppose to continue well into the rush hour, and it’s only 6.30 right now.

 We’re on 48 hour moorings too but, if any jumped up CRT man comes along and orders us to move, he’s in for a shock. We ain’t going anywhere in this. Full Stop! The double locks would be a nightmare for Wifey and I don’t relish getting drenched through, so there!

 Actually, we had hoped to at least get through the locks today, because that would leave us with an early start through the tunnel tomorrow morning. Still, we’re only 10 miles from Crick now, which will only take a couple of days. Then we can settle in for the winter.

 I started a new pastel painting yesterday morning and immediately messed it up. Great, just great! For some reason I simply couldn’t get the colour right on the roof of a house. Still, it’s just as well it went wrong at the start and not half way through.

 Tuesday 29^th October

 Yesterday morning was pretty grim weather wise, loads of rain and the towpath flooded, so we stayed put for a couple of hours and then, once the rain had stopped, we followed another boat to the locks. It’s really great when you can double up when negotiating double locks. Going it alone can be something of a trial, especially if it’s at all windy, when you usually find the boat drifting inside the lock.

 The boater that I accompanied through the locks was a Yorkshireman, but living in Clacton. His boat is stored at Crick marina, so I daresay we’ll meet up with him and his family from time to time.

 When we finally passed through the six Braunston locks, we moored up and left the other boaters to go on through the tunnel and on to Crick. Apart from the odd boat that pulled in preparatory to passing down the locks, or going through the tunnel, we were left on our own and had a pretty quiet night. However, the silence was shattered early this morning, by the sound of some small animal in mortal terror, possibly caught by some carnivore or other, maybe an owl. It’s a pretty grim sound, but that’s nature in the raw.

 This morning we left Braunston and passed through the tunnel, which is 2042 yards long and can accommodate two boats passing each other. Fortunately nothing was coming the other way and we made it to Welton Hythe marina within an hour and moored up opposite.

 Prior to entering the tunnel, I set the ‘speedo’ to 1200 rpm and kept it there right through to the end. Then, after a wee bit of calculation I figure that 1200 revs equals about 3½ mph. Some years ago, on a straight mile of canal, 1200 rpm equated to just over 4mph. I wonder how that can be!! Perhaps it has something to do with the new gearbox that Andy fitted earlier in the year. Anyway, it now means I can cruise at about 1300 rpm without breaking the speed limit. How great is that??

 Tomorrow morning all being well with the weather we’ll pass through the seven Watford locks and be in Crick, just in time for a nice cup of coffee. If we can get moored up along the towpath, we will do so and then take up our moorings in Crick Marina on Friday 1^st November. This will give us time to pay a visit to the local surgery and book ourselves in.

 Wednesday 30^th October

 Alan and Chris returned to Germany yesterday morning, so perhaps we’ll start receiving some jokes. It seems Alan’s normal UK supply has dried up, so I’ve had nothing to send on whilst they’ve been over here. Shame on you!!!

 Anyway, today we make our way to Crick, which entails about five miles, Crick tunnel and seven locks. The weather is calm and bright, so it should be an easy trip. Mind you, it’s good to see an early sunrise now that the clocks have gone back.

 We stopped at Welton Hythe Marina yesterday morning and, later in the afternoon a holiday boat moored in front of us. I’m hoping we can get away before they do this morning, because I would rather be ahead of them at the locks. Some holiday boaters can be a bit slow at locks and they can be less than helpful also, standing around by their boat, instead of helping with the lock paddles and gates.

 So, Crick here we come.

 Thursday 31^st October

 For our final day of cruising, yesterday morning could not have been bettered, bright sunshine and calm conditions all the way to Crick. We left Welton Hythe well before eight and, thankfully, well ahead of the holiday boat. It wasn’t until about 20 minutes after we arrived at the bottom of Watford locks that they turned up.

 Watford Locks, as any boater will know, consist of a set of staircase, which are overseen by a lock keeper, to whom boaters must report before entering the locks. From leaving Welton Hythe to exiting the top of the seven locks, took us just 1½ hours, which is not bad going. We even managed to dispose of our rubbish and top up with water before the holiday boat entered the last of the seven locks, and we were then on our way to Crick.

 Our first port of call, after our coffee of course, was the local Co-op and to find out where the local Medical Centre was located. The walk up to the Co-op is enough of a slog for me. For Sheila it’s a simple, leisurely stroll. However, from the Co-op to the Medical Centre is, according to the roadside map of the village, another slog.

 So, why am I telling you all this? Well, Andy won’t be bringing the car over until Sunday morning but, at about 3pm today I have an appointment with a doctor, which wouldn’t have been necessary if I had enough medication to see me through until Monday. Thankfully, Wifey walked to the Centre twice for me, just in order to get my appointment.

 When she returned the first time, it was to tell me we had to first book in to the marina and get an invoice proving we were actually going there. So, off we marched to the marina office to sign in. We then had to fill in some forms along with which she took that invoice back to the centre. Only then was she able to make an appointment.

 What a palaver!! I now have to slog along to the centre this afternoon, discuss my needs with a doctor and, with a bit of luck be issued with the necessary medication.

 Yesterday we had trouble with the mobile signal, and this morning I’ve had problems with the Internet. So, there’s a pretty good chance we’ll move onto the marina this morning, assuming this rain stops later on.

 All in all today promises to be a busy one!

 Friday 1^st November

 Yesterday, straight after Wifey returned from the doctor’s, we moved the boat into Crick Marina but, almost immediately, we discovered that we have no mobile signal inside the boat. That’s a great start to our stay here and it means we’ll have to take the phone outside to make and receive calls. This applies to O2, Orange and Vodaphone.

 This morning I discovered problems with the Internet. After three attempts I did manage to download my emails and check online for the nearest vets. But now, as I look at the System Tray, I see the Internet icon is blanked out, meaning I have now lost the signal. They do have their own WiFi system here, but, from where we are sitting, that signal is even poorer. I guess I’ll have to try to reposition our WiFi unit to see if I can get a more permanent signal. Failing that, up on the roof it goes.

 Now, as to future blogs while we’re at Crick, well, as with last year at Mercia, I’ll probably keep it going, but only if something other than the boring day to day living crops up.

 For example, with our wee pooch being rather wobbly on her pins now, and the pontoons here being covered in chicken wire, to make it safer for us humans to walk along in bad weather, she does tend to get her claws caught occasionally. So, rather than have her injure herself, we carry her out to the car park when she needs a call of nature. We’ll have to see what happens when the snows come!!

 I had hoped to post this now, but even though I am able to access the Internet, Blogger is very slow. It may be that I’ll have to put the Wi Fi unit in a box and put it on the roof then connect it to the laptop. I tried this at Mercia, but that was no better. In the end we found the best place in the boat and managed with that. I didn’t have this much trouble with Blogger though.

 Right, that’s it, I’ve moved the WiFi to a different window and accessed Blogger almost immediately.

 So, now we post.

 Take care all.

 Dave, Sheila and Rusty