Friday February 26th to Monday 14th March
Saturday 27th February
Yesterday seemed to be one of those days when we’re constantly on the
go. At first we intended to catch the 09.40 bus to Rugby, but due to
circumstances beyond my control, we took the one an hour later.
Rugby itself was OK, but what with it being a Friday and very busy, we
had no hope of catching the next bus bac, so we ended up at our usual coffee
shop and the wandered around the charity shops, where we bought four books.
Upon our return to Crick marina; on a packed and very warm bus; Alex
needed to go out, which fell to me whilst Wifey made the tea. After which I
emptied the decking from the car so that we could get some coal. We then had to
take a walk up to the Co-op for some eggs for dinner; which we had already
highlighted as scrambled eggs, bacon and mushrooms, as part of our 800 calories
a day diet.
During all this kerfuffle, I fell to talking to another couple of
boaters, following on from which we dipped the fuel tank and then walked around
to the garden centre for those eggs; which we didn’t get from the Co-op after
all, because they were too small.
Eventually we settled down and watched TV for a couple of hours and
then had dinner, followed by more TV, which included Wilhelmina, the film with
Judie Dench. We also have the book of the same name. All in all, a pretty
hectic day, well, for us anyway.
Today I have some printing to do and then a copy of Wendy’s family
cartoon portrait.
Tuesday 1st March
I had an appointment with the NHS Optician yesterday, to assess the
state of my cataract and, after a thorough examination and questions as to
whether I have any problems with my eyesight, it was decided that no action
needs to be taken at this time. Goody, goody!
Saturday 5th March
So far everything seems to be going well with the 8-week diet. We’re
taking at least one long walk a day, sometimes two, although I don’t feel as if
I’ve lost weight this week. I’ll know for sure on Monday morning, which is when
we usually weigh ourselves.
I’m now in the process of building our new top-box, having drilled all
the necessary holes in the base. Wifey will be taking the bus into Northampton
on Tuesday, so I’ll probably do some more while she’s out of the way.
Sunday 6th March
I have finally finished Wendy’s Cartoon Portrait, but (sorry Bruv), I
only used short shadows. I tried several variations of longer shadows, but they
just didn’t seem to fit with a cartoon.
Tomorrow morning will tell me if I’ve lost any more weight, because,
despite Dr Mosley’s assertion that we should weigh ourselves more often, we’re
of the opinion that, if we find we’re not going down, it’s more likely to
disappoint us and, just maybe, put us off the diet. I’m hoping to have cracked
the 14 stone mark.
Today we’ll be visiting the club as usual, but it’s had a bit of a
makeover this past week, with new pumps, furniture and bar, so it should look
pretty good.
Monday 7th March
This morning has to be the coldest this year; very thick frost out
there. Hopefully it won’t be like this next week, when we take our three-day
break while Shiralee’s hull is being blacked. We’ll be spending those three
days in a small cottage by the side of Rutland Water and are hoping for some
interesting walks.
Today we’ll be driving over to Sainsbury’s for our weekly shop. Unlike
most men I rather enjoy our shopping trips. Perhaps that’s because Wifey
doesn’t dither and we don’t always shop at the same place. We sometimes use
Asda in Rugby and we sometimes shop in Daventry.
I weighed myself this morning and found I had lost another 2 lb. I am
now at 14 stone 3 lb, which means I have now cracked the 200lb mark.
Next Monday our boat goes in for hull blacking; a necessary evil every
two to three years; and, since paint is far cheaper than rust, needs must when
the Devil drives. So, since we aren’t able to stay on the boat whilst it’s in
dry dock, we’ll be renting a cottage right on the edge of Rutland Water.
Unfortunately, we can’t arrive before 3 pm, so we’ll have to poodle around the
Water for a while, or visit Oakham. There are a few cafes scattered around the
Water, so we’ll be able to break our daily walks. There’s also a pub about a
mile away and so, if they allow dogs in; which most pubs in this neck of the
woods do; we could enjoy a lunchtime break. We’re both quite looking forward to
the break.
Tuesday 8th March
So, there was I at about 06.00 yesterday morning, girding my loins all
ready to get stuck in to a new Cartoon Portrait, when the programme took it
upon itself to stop working. It seemed to get through part of the setup, but
stalled at finding the fonts. So, having checked that all the fonts were where
they should be, I then, with great hesitation, pressed ahead and installed the
programme again. At first this didn’t do much, so I tried again, and again, and
finally the programme loaded. Just to be sure, I then ran a scan for bugs, but
none showed up.
Sheila is taking the bus into Northampton this morning; probably to
browse clothing and such; while I soldier on with building our new Top-Box,
which is now showing signs of wear after almost 10 years sitting on top of the
boat in all kinds of weather.
I bought the timber when I last went down to see Alan and, after having
it all cut to length by the nice man at Wicke’s, brought it all home, along
with some thick, exterior ply that Alan supplied. With Alex watching over me
I’m pretty sure I won’t make any boo-boos.
Wednesday 9th March
Wifey came to me after her morning wash and brush up, to show me, what
she called, a wonky face. It seems she has an abscess under a tooth. So, no bus
trip to Northampton and she had to visit the quack for anti-biotics. That trip
will now take place on Thursday as she’s having her Barnet cut today.
This was good for me, because she was then able to help me partly
assemble the new Top-Box. We’ll finish assembling it before we go off cruising.
The old one will be broken up for firewood. Well, it is nearly ten years old
and rather flimsy now.
This morning has started with heavy rain, something Alex doesn’t think
much of when I take him for his morning pee. But, needs must when the Devil
drives. I don’t much like it either, but…….
Saturday 12th March
Apart from a trip into town and having more work done on the car, not a
lot has happened since Wednesday. Except that we won’t be coming back to Crick
this coming winter.
We received a letter from the owner of this marina Mr M. T. Langer, in
which he states, “We are writing to you, as a Crick Marina moorer whom we
believe uses their narrowboat as a residence on at least a part-time basis.”
All of which is true, of course. However, he also states that Crick Marina Ltd
provides moorings primarily for leisure moorers, i.e., those who do not live on
board, but leave their boats here when not in use.
This is, of course, a load of nonsense, because they have quite a lot
of boats here whose owners do live on their boats, but pay a premium for the
privilege of doing so. The only reason we can think of that has prompted him to
do this, is greed, pure and simple. In order for us to continue mooring here he
has increased our fees by 15%, leaving us with an extra £400 per year to pay.
We wintered over here for the first time during the winter of 2014/15
and those five months cost us £912.66. Since then the fees have increased a
couple of times. But using that period as an example, we would now be looking
at £1049.60.
The only reason we agreed to pay throughout the whole year; rather than
just the winter period; was so that we could guarantee a mooring when we came
back. This has cost us dear, but we really didn’t want to find another marina
every winter, which means registering with a different doctor, to say the
least.
So, since this prize greedy-guts insists upon this extra 15%, we’ll be
finding somewhere new next winter.
Later…
I mentioned the above to a fellow boater this morning, but he hadn’t
received his letter yet. He did say though, that if the fees are going up by
15%, he would also leave. Later in the day we saw him with two other boaters
holding, what looked like an envelope.
Methinks Mr Langer has shot himself in the foot.
Monday 14th March
This situation regarding the rise in fees quite interesting. We’ve
spoken to more boaters about this and, without a doubt many of them will leave.
You see, most boaters, whether they live on board or not, do like to spend
quite a lot of time cruising. Not everybody goes off for seven months, like we
do. However, when we do leave the marina, for whatever length of time, we are
required to leave our car keys, so that, should an emergency arise while we’re
away, our cars can be moved. And, where the Crick Boat Show is concerned, our
cars must be left in the big car park, so they can be moved to make way for the
people arranging the show rents and such can park their cars.
So, why all that info? Well, while we are away enjoying the scenery,
our mooring bays can be used for other boaters wishing to spend a day or two
here, in the safety of a marina. This means that, while we’re away Mr Langer is
earning even more money from our vacant pontoons. All marinas do this, but it
still rankles that we’re paying for him to make more money.
Anyway, whatever the case, we’ll be leaving sometime in April, never to
return.
Incidentally, the boater I spoke to earlier has already given in his
notice to leave. And he’s just the tip of the iceberg. Like I said, nobody
likes being held to ransom.
Now, on a much lighter note, we’ll be able to get into our cottage by
noon today, so we have no need to wander around Oakham with Alex in tow. This
is great news, because it will give us the afternoon in which to wander around
the Water instead.
And that, as they say, is that. Let’s get on with posting this blog.
Have a good week folks.
Dave, Sheila and Alex.
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