Bosworth Marina Winter 2016/17 #2

Saturday 22^nd October to Saturday 29^th October

Monday 24^th October.

A little over six months ago, we left Crick marina, for the last time, and set off for our summer cruise, which we enjoyed immensely.

As you all know, just a couple of weeks into this month, we arrived here at Bosworth marina and settled in for the next six months.

On Saturday, I finally managed to get down to Harlow and visit with my brother, Alan. A great time was had by all and I came home yesterday, having enjoyed a few drinks with said brother, and toting a huge envelope, full of mail; some of which, by its very nature, goes directly to Alan. There were also some letters that were re-directed from Crick; such as hospital and doctors stuff.

So, after a most enjoyable day and a good serving of bacon and onion pudding on Saturday, Sheila and I started wading through our correspondence and I had to face up to the fact that I had been a naughty boy. In among those letters were three from Rugby Police Camera Enforcement. I had run a speed trap on 25^th April. Woops!!

So, what to do. Do I simply email the unit, explaining the situation? Accept the £100 fine, assuming I can still do so after all this time? Go on a Speed Awareness Course, as suggested in the letter? Or a What’s Driving You? course, both of which cost £80. The £100 fine also includes three points on my license, whereas the other two don’t. Ignoring these letters is not an option.

I think, in the first instance, I should give them a call this morning and see what they suggest. More on this later!!!!!

Today is a chill-out day and all we’ll do; unless Wifey wants to do a big shop at Morrison’s; is walk up to the town and do a small shop instead.

Tuesday 25^th October

I emailed the Rugby Police yesterday, explaining why I hadn’t replied to the original notice and reminders and, in reply, was told that the case had been submitted to the Magistrates Court, who will contact me in due course. We’ll see what happens next.

Today, my neighbour; who owns a garage; is taking the Alfa in to see what can be done to the gearstick, which is not at direct as it should be. If it can be fixed, at a reasonable cost, I might still trade up. However, if it means a new, or recon, gearbox, then I may keep it for another year.

Today, having carried out a Morrison’s shop yesterday, we’ll walk into the village for the paper, and stuff we may have forgotten yesterday. Actually, we didn’t forget anything, we just left the meat items for today, so that we can purchase them at the local butcher’s.

After that; since we’ve both bought new T-shirts, tops and jackets; we might have a go at sorting out some old stuff. What we find, that is good enough for a Charity shop, we’ll put by until we go into town. The rest will be rubbished.

Now, we watch the 6 o/clock news every evening and, having seen the item about the perils of Diabetes, I’m even more determined to get my condition under better control. This means cutting down even further on carbs and increasing the vegetables. My Blood Sugar readings are mostly in single figures, but fruit always causes a spike into double, so I’ll reduce that a little. Other than that, and, of course, increasing my exercise, I can’t see what else I can do.

Wednesday 26^th October

Whilst I was in Harlow visiting my brother Alan, we discussed trading in my Alfa for something newer and chunkier. I have been considering a Jag or Merc. Being the pragmatic one of the family, Alan suggested ‘the devil you know….. etcetera.

Anyway, once home, I had a chat with our friendly, neighbourhood car mechanic; my next-door neighbour, Dale; and I asked him to see what could be done about my floppy gearstick!! So, he took the car away yesterday and, when he returned in the evening, he told me that a new gearstick was needed, which would cost, with labour charges, something over £200. After a very small amount of consideration I asked him to order the part and arrange to get the job done, asap.

I can now relax, because this puts a totally different slant on the purchase of another car. I do like driving the Alfa. However, that loose gearstick has been driving me frantic for quite some time now, which was why I was considering trading it in. Instead, I’m going to keep it for another year and think about a trade-in while we’re out cruising next summer.

Today, we have nothing special to do, so we’ll just walk up to the village for the paper and milk. Later on, we’ll probably take a walk over to the local Water Park. No doubt our wee pooch will enjoy a run around there.

Thursday 27^th October

Prior to purchasing Shiralee, back in 2006, we paid a visit to a colleague of mine, who still lives on a boat. Bill and Babs still permanently moor at Keckys’s Farm, on the River Stort, which is where we also moored for the winter of 2006.07. Anyway, one of the things Bill pointed out, was the shortage of storage space and his advice was, “When you buy a new shirt, chuck out an old one.”

During the last couple of weeks of our 2016 summer cruise, we visited a few clothing stores and topped up our supply of tops and T/shirts, some of which are becoming somewhat tatty. The problem with such a venture, especially when living on a boat, is having to cram everything into such confined spaces, which prompted us to recall Bill’s advice of 10 years ago.

Yesterday afternoon we had a clear-out and boy, was it a clear-out? Now, although some of the stuff we put aside for disposal is still wearable, it’s not wearable by us, simply because we’ve both lost weight. For example, some of my t-shirts are XL, whereas I’m now down to L. Similarly, some of my trousers and jeans are rather baggy and don’t feel comfortable.

So, we spent a good hour, going through cupboards and separating the good stuff – for charity shops – and the not so good stuff – for disposal in a clothing bank, which just so happens to be in the local car park. Today, when we go into Market Bosworth for Wifey’s blood test – I had mine last week – we’ll dispose of a huge, plastic bag full of old stuff. Next week, when we take the bus into Hinckley, we’ll take the other two black sacks of wearable clothing to a charity shop.

We now have lots of space for more clothing. Talking of which, when we drove down to the farm shop cum clothing outlet, which lies on the road to Hinckley, I spied a rather good wax jacket. They didn’t have one in Large size, but the Medium sized one did fit. Unfortunately, the darn thing had one of those double zips up the front, which I find very difficult and frustrating to operate. They’re so darned fiddly!! So, that was out. Keep looking !!

Friday 28^th October

Frustration rules today. I was replying to a message from my pal Alan and, in his message he gave the temperature in Germany as 2 degrees, only he added the symbol beside the 2. With me? Anyway, when I replied I couldn’t find the Symbols Menu, and I still can’t. Anybody out there, who has my email address and can tell me where this menu is, please respond to this desperate plea.

Off to Atherstone today, to dispose of some old clothes and do some shopping.

Saturday 29^th October

Armed with two black sacks full of old clothes; and I mean FULL; we ventured forth to Atherstone. We parked in the Co-op car park, because that’s where we would be shopping afterwards. Trudging down the High Street, with the aforementioned sacks, we finally found a charity shop and dumped them with the nice lady.

On a table in front of the till, was a small box containing a pack of cards, a set of dice and a set of dominoes. I don’t know why, but I couldn’t resist buying it. All I have to do now, is get my wife to join me in a game of dominoes.

“Just out of interest,” I said to that nice lady, “you don’t happen to have a game of ‘Shut the Box’, do you?”

“No”, she said, “but, if you pop across the road, there’s another shop that does have one.”

So, after paying for my purchase, we popped across to the other charity shop and, lo and behold, for the princely sum of just £1.99, I bought a De Luxe Shut the Box, that has 15 numbers on the swivel bar. I now have to persuade my wife to give that a go too.

I remember the landlord of The Chequers, in Commonside Road, Harlow – Alan Birkbeck – playing this with friends. Much money changed hands on the odd occasion. The game can be quite addictive, but great fun.

And, on that note, I’ll wish you all well and post this blog.

Good health from Dave, Sheila and Alex.

Bosworth Marina Winter 2016/17 #1

Friday 14^th October to Saturday 22^nd October

Friday 14^th October

Having sorted out the odds and ends concerning our stay here, and after taking Alex around the marina and along the towpath, we repaired to Shiralee and settled in for the day.

Later in the day, having finally sorted out the Microsoft Money programme for Wifey, I then removed same from the VAIO. Not that we’re likely to get anything for it if we try to sell it, but we really don’t need that programme and the accompanying details left on it.

And then, sometime later in the evening, I received a strange phone call, purporting to be from a company calling itself The Credit Investigation Department, or some such nonsense. To be honest, the person on the other end of the line, was broadly Pakistani or Indian and I had trouble understanding what he was on about. In frustration, I asked him to speak more clearly and, when I finally understood what he was saying, I said, “I haven’t a clue as to who you are, or what you want from me. Goodbye”, and I put the phone down. He didn’t call back.

Once again, out came the laptop, this time to check up on this company and, no surprises here, it was a scam. You have been warned.

Today, assuming Dave is able to give me a lift, we’ll be collecting the car from Crick Garage.

Incidentally, as with most marinas these days, security is very important, so we were obliged to purchase an electronic fob for the main gate. All internal gates also have entry codes, and all are different, but the main gate has its own electronic fobs for cars to come and go.

Saturday 15^th October

Our second day at MB, although not a complete disaster, could have been better.

Dave picked us up at about 9.30 am and drove us over to Crick to collect the car. After a quick chat with Malcolm and Chris, we set of for the village Post Office and Co-op and, after coming out of the C0-op, I noticed a cardboard box on the back seat. In it were some rather fine cups and, since they weren’t ours, we decided to take them back to the garage. Unfortunately, the back door wouldn’t close and so Sheila had to sit in the back and hold it closed, while I drove back to the garage. Chris soon corrected the problem with some WD40 and we were soon on our way again.

Now, when we left Crick at the end of April, Malcolm asked if it would be OK for him to use the car, just for short runs here and there. No problem there. In fact, better to be used than stand around and have a flat battery and tyres when we returned.

Well, I can safely say that the car hadn’t been used much. How do I know this? Well, the time and date were both wrong, pointing to a flat battery at some point. Also, having taken a reading of the mileage done before we left, it hadn’t moved by much when I picked it up.

Still, it started first time and we got to MB without problems.

What almost turned into a disaster, is what happened later in the evening. Sheila was almost ready to dish up dinner, and as is his usual wont, Alex was hovering nearby. In fact, he was hovering behind me. He was so close to me that, as I turned around, I tripped on him and scraped my arm against the wooden cooker surround.

Under normal circumstances this might not have been too much of a problem. However, with these blood patches under the skin of my arms, it proved to be a problem indeed. Because, that scrape took off the top of a few of those patches, with the result that I bled like a stuck pig. And, it wouldn’t stop.

So, after much faffing about and holding a damp cloth to the offending areas of my arm, we sat down to dinner, with me giving Alex some nasty stares. I think he got the message. He’s forgiven now, of course.

Being unable to stop the slowly weeping blood, Wifey dug into our medical cupboard and emerged with some lint and crepe bandage, which, after slathering my arm with antiseptic cream, she wrapped around my arm and all was well. At least, all was well until this morning, when the bandage had slipped, so Wifey had to get out of bed and help re-do the bandage. All is well again, at least until later, when I should be able to remove the bandage and lint and expose the wounds to the air. Hopefully, even if I have to dab at them occasionally, they’ll eventually dry out and should be OK until Monday, when we’ll be signing up with the local GP practice.

As for the marina? Well, we have two close neighbours and that’s a different scenario to Crick, where live aboard boaters usually have empty boats beside them. The neighbour to our left is a car mechanic. How useful is that? On the other side, we don’t know. But I’m sure we’ll find out eventually.

Sunday 16^th October

We had a pretty good day yesterday and started it with a walk up to the village. From the moorings outside the marina, this is about a mile but, from our boat; which is moored just outside the main office; we have to walk around the perimeter before we reach the towpath, so the distance is considerable more. However, on a dry day, this walk is rather pleasant and takes in the, now defunct, golf course and the turning to the country park. It’s mostly uphill, which is fine, because coming back is mostly downhill.

My rather nasty and angry looking wounds have, for the most part, dried up now. Goodness knows what the local GP will think of the mess though.

Today we’ll probably drive over to Shackerstone at lunchtime, for our usual tipple and snacks. By canal it’s about three miles but, from the marina, much less, I think.

The marina also sells newspapers on Saturday and Sunday mornings, so there’s no need to walk into the village for these. Unfortunately, the one thing the village lacks, is a decent car park, so it’s best to walk there, unless it raining or snowing, in which case, parking in one of the many side streets is probably best.

Monday 17^th October

We took a couple of good walks yesterday, but didn’t bother with our usual Sunday lunchtime drink. I think the fall that caused my blood patches to open up, also banged me up in the tummy area, because I really didn’t fancy food or drink. Although we had our usual boiled eggs and toast for breakfast, we just snacked for the rest of the day.

Off to the local medical practice to sign in and make an appointment to see about these blood patches. Other than that, we have no plans for going out.

Tuesday 18^th October

We booked ourselves into the local surgery yesterday morning and I made an appointment for later in the afternoon. After checking out the nasty looking blood patches on my arm, the doctor told me that, regardless of the adverse cosmetic appearance of those patches, I must continue taking the pills that cause them with their side effects. So, it looks like I’m stuck with them. Keep taking the pills, he said, or should that be pils? Ho, ho.

This morning we’ve had some pretty heavy rain, so we might have to drive up to the village for the paper. Other than that, a pretty easy day beckons.

Thursday 20^th October

Another long walk into the village yesterday, and all the better for it. I have to say, I do find it a bit daunting at first, simply because it’s quite a long walk around the marina, before we hit the road to the village. But, I do feel refreshed by the time we get back.

Other than that walk, life goes on quietly and gently. We don’t even get any traffic noise here, so it’s very peaceful.

Today, Wifey has an appointment with the hairdresser, so I’ll run her up there in the car. She might want to walk back, or she might ask me to wait. Either way is ok by me.

On Saturday, I’ll be going down to Harlow to stay with Alan. On the way back, on Sunday morning, assuming I hear from my daughter, Teresa, that it’s ok to do so, I’ll divert to her place. She has a few problems with her house and mobile phones, which I’m hoping to help her with. But she’s also unable to get into her laptop, because she’s forgotten her password. I’ve downloaded a programme that should rectify that problem.

So, if I’m unable to visit her on Sunday, she’ll still have problems with all three items.

Saturday 22^nd October

Well, it’s off to Harlow this morning. I was hoping to call in on Les and Dave, but it seems they’re still away on holiday. My daughter is busy Sunday, so a visit to her on my way back home is now out. No doubt I’ll get there eventually. However, I will still take the necessary software with me, just in case she phones and says it’s ok to visit after all.

Meanwhile, I’m still searching for another car. Taking all things into consideration, it looks like a Jaguar X Type. Whilst I also fancy the Mercedes C Class, I’m afraid the fuel consumption is a wee bit too high, especially considering the fact that they are diesel engines. Also, for the price I am able to pay, I can buy a much newer Jag than I can a Merc.

My search goes on.

So, happy days are here again. Winter is almost upon us and we’ll be stuck in a marina for the next six months. We’ve watched this place being built over the past couple of years. Each time we’ve passed, or moored up outside, a bit more has been done. It’s not complete yet, because there’s still quite a lot of groundwork still being done. But the pontoons are almost full now, so it’s become quite popular. Our neighbours, on both sides, seem to be permanent residents and go out to work. Both are quite friendly too, so we’ve made the right choice of marina.

And, I think, that’s about it for this, my first blog from Bosworth Marina.

Take care folks and enjoy your weekend.

Dave, Sheila and Alex.

Cruise 2016 # 12

Wednesday 5^th October Thursday 13^th October

Thursday 6^th October

We took the bus into Rugby yesterday, as planned, and did a bit of shopping. After that, we walked around to the bakery, which is just around the corner to Brooke’s café, but the bakery was closed and, according to the new waitress at Brooke’s, had been for some time. Not only that, but our favourite waitress had left Brooke’s. I just don’t know what’s going on her. We turn our backs for a few months and everything goes cuckoo.

Still, we did enjoy a latte and a cake, with me having the fruit scone and Wifey having a lemon drizzle.

Our day was further spoilt at the bus stop. A young couple sat downwind of us and he produced one of those, foul smelling, imitation cigarettes. I think I prefer the original variety. Yeuk!!

Back to my old VAIO. I downloaded this huge programme yesterday, which is supposed to set up that laptop back to its Window 7 configuration. Having done that, I then, as per instructions, downloaded another programme, which was supposed to allow me to burn the first programme to a USB drive, so that I could load Windows 7 onto the VAIO.

So far, so good, or so I thought.

This morning, intending to carry out this further operation, I plugged in my new USB drive and clicked on the new programme, with which I would be able to burn Windows 7 ISO onto the USB. This programme came up with a message, asking me for the ISO details. Hmmm?

Now, this programme now sits on my hard drive and, according to what I am reading, it is called VLan, which is a media player. Hmmm? Again. I’m not too sure now, if I’ve downloaded the correct programme and, since it took an age to do so yesterday, I’ll have to wait until later today to have another go.

This I will do while we’re at Hillmorton.

Friday 7^th October

Yesterday morning, prior to leaving for Hillmorton, we took a walk to the shops, for the Mail and other odds and sods. Along the way we met up with another boater, who said, “I’m leaving early today, because I don’t want to be stuck here while CRT remove the car from the canal.”

As we rounded the bend and walked under the bridge, sure enough there was a Ford Fiesta in the water, and it had been dropped in so that it was pointed across the canal, which could give some boats a bit of a problem getting past it. Fortunately, we were facing in the opposite direction, so it should be gone by the time we return that way today.

We eventually decided that, rather than go through to Braunston, we would turn around at the bottom of Hillmorton locks and moor up at the golf course, about a mile back from there, where it’s nice and peaceful.

Today we’ll head on back to Newbold and, after popping into the shop again, move along to bridge 26. Hopefully that Fiesta has been removed. That’s the second time we’ve been faced with a car in the canal. The last time was on the Huddersfield Wide, just after coming out of Huddersfield, when we found a car in a lock and couldn’t pass through until it had been removed, about 3 hours later.

After arriving at the golf course and after coffee and reading the Mail, I set to to make the bootable USB for the VAIO. However, when I had done so, a message came up telling me that a certain part of the process had not completed. But, when I checked the USB, that part had been included. Strange, or what? Anyway, just to be on the safe side, I’m now creating a bootable DVD. Clever Forsythe!!

Saturday 8^th October

We left our moorings at the golf course at about 8 am and made our way back to Newbold, where we intended to do a bit of shopping, before carrying on to bridge 26. Along the way another boater, heading in the opposite direction, waved us down and told us that the car was still in the canal at Newbold. The mind boggles, it really does. Not only is this obstruction a nuisance to boaters; it’s on a bend where other boats are moored; it’s also a danger to wildlife, especially the large group of swans that congregate there, (They do so, because some fool comes out and feeds them every morning)

You would have though, wouldn’t you that, instead of sending a tender, with a small crane, which would normally be used for dredging, they would have arranged a real crane with which to do the job. Well, at least there was somebody from CRT in attendance. So, that’s something, I suppose.

Another odd thing that happened on our way to Newbold, was the lady walking her Spaniel. This dog was clearly getting on in years and, by the owner’s own admission, was stone deaf. And yet, not only was it walking along off its lead, she was unable to call it back when it jumped into the canal, swam to the other side and clambered out, only to disappear through the undergrowth and into the field.

The last we saw of her, was when she stood on the nearby bridge that ran alongside the canal on the towpath side. I think she had a good half mile walk, to the nearest bridge that spanned the canal. She then had to find her way back to where her dog had disappeared. There are some strange people about and no mistake.

This morning we’ll be heading for Hawkesbury Junction again, where we’ll spend the final weekend, before taking up our winter moorings at Market Bosworth.

Sunday 9^th October

Arrived at Hawkesbury Junction at 10 am and, after topping up with water, Wifey popped across to the local shop for the Mail and a bottle of milk, whilst I made the coffee. Works for me!

Later in the day, having already created a reboot disc for my old VAIO, I set about getting the thing working and, yippee, it’s all running nicely now. Mind, you, it’s so old that I have no idea what I’m going to do with it. But, at least it’s up and running again.

Monday 10^th October

We’ll probably be at our new moorings before the coming weekend, so this is probably the last blog for our 2016 cruising.

I have been searching for a programme that will allow me to recover my daughter’s password. Most of what I’ve seen has not filled me with confidence. However, and finally, I found Lazesoft and have downloaded their free software and made a bootable DVD. Hopefully, when I finally get to visit Teresa, I’ll be able to get her back into her laptop.

Meanwhile, despite the dodgy looking clouds out there, I think it’s time we took our pooch for a walk.

Tuesday 11^th October

Well, we took that walk and, although rain threatened, we made it back without getting wet.

Today we have several things to do, the first of which is to walk down to the shop for the Mail. After that, it’s a quick read and then catch the bus to Nuneaton, where we’ll do a full shop, so that it won’t be necessary again until we reach Market Bosworth marina.

In addition to the above, I’ll have to give Chris at Market Bosworth a bell, just to ensure that our pontoon is clear for our arrival later this week. When we booked our winter moorings, sometime before leaving Crick, we said we would probably be arriving on the 1^st of November and, since these pontoons don’t stay empty during the summer months, there could well be another boat in our spot, and that would never do.

Now, having burnt the necessary Password Recovery software to a DVD, I decided, just to be on the safe side, to also burn it to a USB. Surely one of them should work? Now, when I get my car back and an early opportunity presents itself, I’ll be able to visit my daughter and sort out her laptop.

Unfortunately, she’s still having problems with EE and her non-working iPhone. This has been going on for at least the past 10 days and should have been sorted by now. In desperation yesterday, her mum took her into their shop in Bedford and, after a right old bull and a cow, she was given a temporary, Pay as You Go phone, to keep her happy until her new, working iPhone actually arrives. She’s been reluctant to cancel her contract; despite her right to do so, after being let down for so long; because she’s been with them a long time and, up until now, hasn’t had any problems with them. Hopefully, once this temporary phone is online, we’ll be able to continue texting by mobile, rather than using her house phone. Texting, I have found, is so much simpler.

Wednesday 12^th October

Yesterday was a mixture of fun and frolic. After walking Alex down to the paper shop and buying the Mail, we walked him back to the boat – naturally – and had a quick read of the paper. After that, we caught the bus into Nuneaton for a big shop.

Upon our return and after supping a well-earned cup of coffee, I booted up the laptop and continued my search for a low mileage, Jaguar X Type. There are quite a few about, so I shouldn’t have a problem finding the right one.

With nothing much else to do, I put the laptop away and, later on, after dinner, out it came again. Only, this time, I ran into a wee problem when I accessed the Internet. Because, up popped a message from 3, my ISP, telling me I had exceeded my monthly allowance and that, in order to continue using the Internet, I would need to log into my account and upgrade to a new monthly plan.

Now, I keep all my Internet info, such as web sites and passwords, in a programme called Typitin. So, when called upon to provide a password, I know where and what it is. Unfortunately, 3 did not recognise my password, so I attempted to ask for it to be reset. And this is where the fun started.

My main email provider id a company called Absolute Email and, I have set up Outlook to automatically download my messages. However, by the time 3 had sent me the necessary link to change my password, I could no longer get online. Great!! They want me to upgrade and pay more for their service, but they’re not willing to allow me the time to reset my password and o through that process.

At the moment I am without Internet access. I phoned my brother, Alan and asked him to do this for me, simply by providing him with my login details at Absolute, so that he could then click on the message from 3 and reset my password for me. But, unsurprisingly, that didn’t work either.

For the rest of the evening, I wracked my brains to find a way around this problem, without actually paying 3 any more money per month and I think I’ve found the answer. It all depends on whether Market Bosworth marina has free WiFi. If they do; and I shall phone them later to find out; I’ll be able to use that for the first six days, which is when my next month’s allowance with 3 begins. Simple!!

This still doesn’t help with the password problem, but that can be sorted by phone. Although, I’ll be asking 3 to call me back, because theirs is a pay by the minute line, and that gets expensive when calling from a mobile phone. The alternative to this, would be to wasted part of today, taking the bus into Nuneaton again and paying a visit to the 3 shop. Nah!!

Today, we’ll walk down to the local shop again, but we’ll leave here a little later than usual, because we want to stop off at the local marina for diesel and coal. We also want to call into the Farm Shop at bridge 23, for some meat, which they have a fair range of.

The weather out there is not looking too clever this morning, but we do need to move along to Stoke Golding and then, tomorrow morning, take up our moorings at Market Bosworth, because I have now arranged with Dave and Malcolm, to collect my car from Crick Garage on Friday morning.

I don’t expect much excitement over the next couple of days, so I’ll keep this blog going until we reach our moorings. It will be a long, final blog entry, but it will give you all some bedtime reading over the weekend.

Later……

Since we’re quite likely to be without Internet access for the next 8 days, as a direct result of me using too much data with my “Three” account, we decided to pay a visit to their shop in Nuneaton. Unbeknown to me, until the staff at the shop told me, their system was being updated yesterday, which is why I couldn’t access my account and change my password.

Now, if I had been told that in their onscreen message, I would have been aware of the problem. With the level and sophistication of 21^st century, this simple piece of advice should have been equally simple to include in that message. I despair of the ignorance and stupidity of big business these days. Mind you, the owners of “Three”, a company called Hutchinson’s, are Australian. Nuff said!!

Having sorted my Internet problem, by the simple expedient of purchasing a £10 SIM from the shop, I should be OK until my next month’s allowance pops up an about a week’s time. So, all’s well that ends well.

We are now at Stoke Golding and, after topping up with fuel and coal at the Ashby Boat Company wharf, we arrived here at about midday and will stay until tomorrow morning, when we’ll stroll up the hill for the Mail and then head off to Market Bosworth Marina.

Thursday 13^th October

Well, here we are at last our final day of Cruise 2016. If there are any downsides to this year’s trip, it’s been the weather. Watching the 6 o/clock news every weekday evening, and the Countryfile “Weather for the Week Ahead” on Sundays, we’ve noticed a distinct disparity between the north and south of the country. Lots of rain in the north and heatwaves in the south. Other than that anomaly, it’s been a pretty good five and a half months.

Up until yesterday; and we still have about six miles to go to Market Bosworth; we’ve cruised for 216 hours, passed through 235 locks and traveled 317 miles. During this time, we’ve traveled along parts of the Grand Union, Oxford, Coventry, Ashby, Trent and Mersey, Staffs and Worcester, Shropshire, Middlewich Branch, and we’re now back on the Ashby, heading towards our final destination.

Bearing in mind, the fact that, in years past we’ve left our winter moorings at the beginning of April, and returned to them at the beginning of November, I think we’ve done pretty well this year.

Now, just in case something untoward happens on today’s final leg, I’ll wait until later today, or maybe tomorrow morning, before I post this blog.

Friday 14^th October

Yesterday morning, at about 8.45, we set off for the final six miles to Market Bosworth marina. Thankfully, the weather stayed dry for us, because we had no choice, as I’m meeting Dave Hull this morning and going over to Crick for my car.

The only thing that struck us as odd, especially considering the really cold wind, was the appearance of a Painted Lady butterfly. This beautiful creature landed gently on the rear hatch and sat there, wings wide open catching the warmth of the sun. It stayed with us for about half a mile and then, having warmed its wings, off it flew. Sadly, with the weather so cold, I doubt if it would have survived for much longer. Nice of it to hitch a lift though.

So, we arrived at the marina at about 11 am and, after sorting things out at the marina office; card for electric, codes for the various security gates etc, we settled in for our coffee and then took Alex out for a walk. The rest of our first day here went as usual.

This morning, around about 9 o/clock, Dave should be picking me up and, hopefully, he’ll have room for Wifey.

And, that’s it. Cruise 2016 is over and done.

Thanks for joining us on our trip. Your presence is much appreciated. Naturally I’ll keep the blog going whilst we are here, although there probably won’t be as much to report.

Take care folks and enjoy your winter.

Kind regards from Dave, Sheila and Alex.

Cruise 2016 # 11

Monday 26^th September to Wednesday 5^th October

Monday 26^th September

This morning, before leaving Polesworth, we walked into the village and, on the spur of the moment, I called in to the Medical Centre, to enquire about these red patches that have been coming up on my arms. I originally thought it was just liver spots, as afflict many older folks like me. However, having taken the belated trouble to read the leaflets that come with my medication, I discovered that two of the pills I am taking for my diabetes, have side effects that can cause this problem.

Anyway, I was fortunate enough to have called into the centre at just about the right time, because a doctor agreed to see me immediately. Not only that, but the nurse was also able to carry out a blood test, the results will be texted to me if there is a problem. Otherwise, all OK.

We eventually left Polesworth at 9 o/clock and, after three miles and two locks, we moored up just past bridge 47, where we’ll stay today and, if the weather is OK tomorrow, we’ll go through another nine locks and two miles, which will see us at the top end of Atherstone.

Tuesday 27^th September

This morning has dawned quite windy and with the smell of rain in the air. Should the rain come down and/or the wind increase in strength, there’s a pretty good chance we’ll stay where we are. At 7 am it’s not looking good.

If we do go on, then we’ll be going through nine locks in a little under two miles, and will moor up at the top end of Atherstone. Normally, when we come through here, we would moor up about half way through. Unfortunately, there’s a railway track running just behind the moorings, which plays havoc with TV reception. So, just for a change, we’ll push on through to the top of the Atherstone locks. We’ll still be within striking distance of the shops, but we’ll have better TV reception.

I’m currently looking for a newer car. So far I’ve narrowed my choices down to just three, which are: Jaguar X Type, Mercedes C Class and SAAB 9-5. I’m still pretty much undecided but, if value for money was my only consideration, it would have to be the SAAB, simply because a 2007 plate would be the newest model that I could purchase with my limited budget. For style and sleek lines, it would have to be the Jaguar and, I could probably pick up a 2006 plate for the same money. However, this would come with pretty high mileage. Then there’s the Merc. Great cars, highly recommended by a very good friend, but I would only get a 2004 for my money.

Decisions, decisions!!! Now doubt something will turn up. Of course, there’s also the question of servicing and repairs, which does vary considerably between the three choices.

Wednesday 28^th September

Yesterday was rather blowy, so we decided to stay put and walk into Atherstone. Looking at our Nicholson’s guide, this appeared to be about 2½ mile round trip. In the event, after walking there along the towpath, traipsing along the High Street, stopping at two shops and then stopping off at the Co-op before returning the same way, the whole trip took us just over an hour and 45 minutes.

We have three puzzle magazines that we like to buy every month. I like Sudoku and Suguru, whilst Wifey prefers Killer Sudoku, which I simply don’t have the patience for. The Suguru magazine is always the most difficult to come by. Even Smith’s rarely have it in stock. So, since I hadn’t been able to find the latest copy anywhere, we tried a Newsagent along the High Street. Still no luck.

I also wanted a new external hard-drive, which I found at the local computer shop. This I need, in order to copy stuff that I’m not currently using, onto. Somehow, I just don’t trust the iCloud for saving my stuff securely.

Today we’ll be moving along to the top of the remaining nine locks, and we’ll be mooring up at the top end of Atherstone, rather than our usual spot, which is roughly in the middle of those locks.

Thursday 29^th September

We arrived at the top of Atherstone locks, none the worse for wear and, quite naturally, made ourselves a lovely cup of coffee. We then strolled into town, for shopping and to see if we could find some more T-Shirts; those with short sleeves and button-up collars. In the event, all we found were two such shirts for me, but nothing that Wifey fancied.

Today, if this rain desists, we’ll make our way to Hawkesbury Junction, which joins the Coventry to the Oxford canal. This is a 10 mile run, so the weather had better be in our favour. If we can make it to Hawkesbury today, then we can spend the weekend at Newbold, where we can catch the bus into Rugby, and where Wifey might be able to find her T-Shirts. We could also visit our favourite coffee shop.

Friday 30^th September

Well, that’s the end of another month and winter will soon be upon us.

After returning from the shop yesterday morning, the rain had already stopped, although the sky was looking a bit bleak. There were really heavy looking clouds scudding across the sky, but they were going our direction and, coming up behind were blue skies. So, we set off at about 8.30 am and had high hopes of reaching Hawkesbury Junction before lunchtime.

Now, one of my pet hates; and I do have a few where boating is concerned; is having to rely on the boat in front, to keep up a sensible pace. I know, I know, the speed limit is only 4mph on canals. However, when the berk in front crawls along at just above my tick-over speed, I do get a bit irked, to say the least.

Anyway, on a bright and sunny morning, and hoping to reach Hawkesbury Junction, 10 miles away from Atherstone, we had just reached Springwood Haven marina, when another boat pulled out ahead of us. We had only completed three miles of our trip by then, so I was somewhat dismayed at noticing the smoke billowing from his engine. So, not only was he just puttering along at a snail’s pace, we were going to be subjected to the stink of diesel fumes, quite possibly for the next seven miles.

Yes, you guessed it, we pulled in and stayed at Springwood Haven and will go on this morning. This means that, instead of spending the weekend at Newbold and going into Rugby on Monday, we’ll be staying the weekend at Hawkesbury Junction and Newbold on Tuesday.

We’re hoping to reach Braunston by the following weekend, giving us time to turn around and reach Market Bosworth by the middle of October. We have nothing else planned and we do need to register with the local GP and I do need to retrieve my car from the garage at Crick.

Saturday 1^st October

Well, the day started out dry and bright but, by the time we left, it was looking decidedly dodgy, weather-wise. However, we managed to get to Nuneaton OK, but, by the time we were part way back on the bus, down came the rain and it’s been raining ever since. Still, it is supposed to be brighter tomorrow. So, that’s OK then!

Sunday 2^nd October

A bright, but cold start to the day. Should be good to sit in The Greyhound pub garden lunchtime. Probably the last chance we’ll get before winter closes in.

We took the bus into Nuneaton yesterday, initially to find a new winter bed for Alex, which we did. It’s somewhat bigger than his summer one and, of course, much warmer. He did look a wee bit perplexed when we took the old one away and put the new one down, but he soon got the hang of it.

Wifey also wanted to find some new tops for herself, but, after visiting several shops, she came away with nothing. A wee bit fussy, methinks.

Tomorrow morning, all being well weather wise, we’ll turn onto The Oxford canal and make our way to bridge 26, which is well out of the way of any group of houses and we’ll stay there for just one day. Then, on Tuesday morning, we’ll make our way to Newbold, where we’ll stay a couple of days and take the bus to Rugby.

Ah, Rugby, where we know of a really great, friendly coffee shop. Latte and sticky bun coming up.

Monday 3^rd October

It’s getting much colder now. This morning we had the first frost of autumn, so it will be thicker coats when we get going later on. That will be after a walk to the local shop, for the Mail and milk.

To be honest, I won’t be sorry to get snuggled down at our winter moorings. It looks set to be a cold winter. Even sitting in the sun yesterday, in The Greyhound pub garden, here at Hawkesbury Junction, we could still feel the chill in the air. Still, I am getting a bit long in the tooth now and, having lost quite a bit of weight over the past five months; I have now cracked the 13 stone mark; I suppose I’m bound to feel the cold more. Not enough fat stores to keep me warm!!

Tuesday 4^th October

My daughter, Teresa, hasn’t used her laptop for quite some time. As a result; since she didn’t think to write it down somewhere safe; she’s forgotten her password and, since she’s also having problems with her iPhone, regarding the Internet and emails, I’m trying to help her sort out the laptop. With me so far?

Looking around on the Internet myself, I discovered various ways of recovering a password, none of which is easy. So, since she’s not desperate for the password; doing most Internet stuff with her phone; I thought I would sort my old laptop out first and, at a later day, loan her that while I endeavour to recover that password.

I, eventually, found a programme online, whereby I can get my old VAIO back to normal. At present it’s telling me that my version of Windows 7 is hookey, which it should not be, because I’ve had it for several years without problems. It was only when I tried; many months ago; to update it to Windows 10. But, that’s another story.

So, the first thing needed for my VAIO, is a copy f the 64bitISO, which I’m downloading now. But, trust me, I’m in a place where the download speed is a wee bit slow. Hopefully this process won’t take me past breakfast time.

Further news later.

Today we’ll be heading for Newbold, where we’ll take the bus into Rugby.

Wednesday 5^th October.

Yesterday went very well. We left bridge 26 at 8 o/clock and, with just one small problem, arrived at Newbold at 10am. That small problem? Well, just before entering Newbold, there’s a short tunnel. This tunnel takes two boats, side by side, one heading one way and the other going in the opposite direction.

Now, we’ve never had to go through this particular tunnel, whilst facing a boat coming towards us. Normally, this is not a problem with other, similar tunnels. But, where most tunnels; of whatever length; usually have boarding running along the sides, so as to avoid damage to paintwork, this one has, what appear to be, old railway lines. Either that, or just thick, steel strips.

As a result of this stupid system, we have now suffered considerable damage to the starboard side of the boat. So, next time we come through here, we’ll make sure nothing is coming the other way. If there is, well, we’ll just have to wait until they are through, before we proceed.

Right, different subject. As I mentioned earlier, I have an old VAIO laptop which gave me so much trouble, that I went out and bought this Acer Aspire, which, so far, has given me very little trouble.

My eldest daughter, Teresa, has a laptop that she hasn’t used for quite some time, and she has forgotten the password. So, since she’s not in a hurry to have it sorted, I’m trying to get the VAIO to behave, and then I can loan her that whilst I try to recover her password. This is all for a few weeks’ time.

The VAIO is almost beyond redemption because, since trying to get it to work properly, when I bought a programme that would reset Windows 7, I now have a message, telling me this version of Windows 7 is illegal. How this has happened, goodness knows. But it has, and so I have to do something about it. And besides, it gives me something interesting to do.

I have now looked around on the Internet and have found another programme which, when burnt to a USB Drive, should reload Windows 7, with the result that I have a legitimate version of the programme. Of course, any programmes already on the VAIO, will be wiped off, but that’s not a problem, because I intend to upgrade it to Windows 10.

Today we’re taking the bus into Rugby where, amongst other things, we’ll enjoy a latte and sticky bun at Brooke’s Café.

Tomorrow, on to Hillmorton, where we’ll either turn around, or go up the locks and stay for two days, proceeding on to Braunston on Saturday morning. That’s the plan anyway.

Meanwhile, with six pages already done, I think I’ll post this blog.

Take care folks. It’ll soon be Christmas!!

Dave, Sheila and Alex.