Boat Chores and Photographs.

Hi Everyone.

Sunday is drawing to a close and it has been a day of doing the boat chores. But first we had to wake up and this happened at 6.30am this morning, which for us was not to bad. I made us a brew and we sat in bed drinking tea and nattering about computers. Keith's laptop has thrown a wobbly. We are not sure whether it is a virus or it has died. We cannot do much about it until we get back to Market Harborough, so he is having to use my laptop for the time being. It is at times like this when you realise you should back everything up on the computer everyday. We are normally pretty good at backing up our files, but Keith had let it slip a little and now with his laptop poorly he has realised that his canal planner is out of date.
Once up and about. I took Paddy for his walk. Brrrrrr it was cold as we stepped off of the boat, with a cold wind blowing down the canal. With the last few leaves remaining blowing off of the trees, the towpath has a gold carpet, which hides nasty secrets in the form of dog poop. With many dog owners not picking up after their mutts, the poop gets covered up by falling leaves and ambushes walkers or responsible dog owners. This I found to my cost, I was so annoyed to find that I had stepped in another dogs mess GRRRRRRRRR.
Back on the boat, I made us some nice warming porridge for breakfast and then laid out my plans for the morning. 1st job of the morning was to wash the boat off. It was covered in soot from another boats engine exhaust, which came past us a couple of nights ago very late. With a bowl of hot soapy water and a sponge, I set about washing the cabin and roof off. I then rinsed it off with canal water. I realise the boat will only stay clean five minutes, but at least it looks clean for the time being. 2nd job of the morning was to make a sausage casserole for tonights dinner, which we will have with potatoes and veg. 3rd task was to sweep the saloon and galley floors and then to get on my hands and knees and wash them. The floor's looked like the army had trudged through with their muddy boots on, when in fact it was only Keith and I, oh and of course there were Paddy's paw prints everywhere. Thank goodness we have laminated flooring, I dread to think what carpets would have looked like. We had carpeting on our other boat and it was a nightmare at this time of the year. By the time all this had been done it was lunchtime. Keith had spent the morning loading his backups into my laptop, so that he can do his canal planner etc. I took a break and went out with my camera. I managed to get this photo of a European Nuthatch. It was knocking seven bells out of the tree trunk hunting for bugs. A very pretty little bird.
Lunch was cheese on toasted muffins and a hot mince pie, all washed down with a coffee.
As the afternoon has worn on, it has been getting colder and colder, so I was not in the least surprised when an ownership boat pulled in for some coal. Both gentlemen onboard look very chilly and were pleased to be able to purchase a bag of coal.
I enjoyed a lovely chat with a friend on the phone. She is not in the best of health at the moment and is under going radiotherapy for lung cancer. Cancer does not discriminate between the good and bad people in this world and I find it hard to understand why someone as lovely as my friend should be going through this battle, but I am sure she will win, as she is a strong lady. She has many friends and of course family behind her and a husband who adores her.
Time to wrap up my posting for the day and put my feet up. There are films on and of course the X-Factor result. I thought Mary was the best overall last night. Everyone else seemed very nervous and then of course their is Wagner, who made a fool of himself once again. After that it will be I'm A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here'. I sincerely hope that Gillian decides to walk, because I am finding it all a little boring now. I think the program makes need to change the voting format. Once you have done a task you are then taken out of the voting until everyone has done a task. This will stop people being voted for multiple times and would actually make for a better program. I find Gillian's situation very chringe worthy, but hey what do I know. It is all getting very much the same old as far as I can tell. Ok enough said I am off, so have a great Sunday evening.

Coal Sales and Chit Chat.

Hi Friends.

Saturday has been a lovely day. After a chilly old start, the sun came out which warmed the air a little.
After doing the usual morning stuff, which I will not bore you with again, I had a couple of bags of coal to deliver to a regular customer. So there was I man handling the trolley out of the hold, whilst Keith grabbed hold of it for me, the trolley that is. We then unloaded the two bags of coal and I wheeled them up the towpath, over the swing bridge and up the arm at the bottom of the Inclined Plane. With this job there tends to be a certain amount of walking, lifting and getting dirty all the things I love thankfully. I am sure I should have been born a boy ha ha ha.
Delivery made, I got back to the boat to find Keith underneath the galley sink, huffing and puffing. Having added a temporary "U" bend to the galley sink last year, Keith tried to replace it with a better alternative. It didn't work, so we will have to think about it again. Like all good ideas they very often come to nothing, when it comes to us doing a job.
Why is it some jobs take ten times longer than they are supposed too?
With the pipework put back the way it had been in the first place, I made us some lunch which included me toasting some of the Bara Brith I had made and very nice it was too with some butter on it.
After lunch I got a phone call from a new customer who was wanting to come and collect some coal by car, which happens quite a lot on our run. They arrived and parked up in the Foxton Locks car park and the coal was wheeled to them on the sack barrow. We got chatting about how people react to a woman delivering their coal and it reminded me of a gentleman we met 3 years ago whilst cruising.
We were on a sanitary point filling up with water and emptying rubbish etc, when this gentleman shouted across the cut "Could I have some coal please".
I replied "Of course Sir, as soon as we are finished here, we will pull over on to the towpath and unload some coal for you".
"ok" he shouted back.
So after we were done on the sanitary point we moved across the cut to the towpath and I went and enquired as to what the gentleman would like. He asked for two bags of Taybrite, which I unloaded. Just as I had loaded a bag of coal on my shoulder and begun walking up the towpath to his boat, he shouted "You can't do that".
I looked at him in astonishment and ask " What is wrong".
His reply was "You cannot do that, your a woman".
My reply could have been argumentative, but I just said "well sir this is what I do, I sell and deliver coal and yes I am a woman".
He really did not know what to say and so kept quiet as I put the 25kg bag of coal on the roof of his boat. I guess because he was a more mature gentleman, he saw it unfit for a woman to be lifting bags of coal, but it is what I do and as I come from a farming background I do know what I am doing. It is not about how strong someone is, it is all about technic and I have learnt that over the years I can carry heavy weights, if I do it correctly.
Another instance came about when we were on our other boat. We went to the Preston Brook National Festival back in 2005. Keith wanted to buy an anchor, rope and chain and luckily for us there was a stall selling just what we wanted. We were looking at a 25kg anchor, when the stall holder said.
"You will not lift that anchor my dear. Many a woman has tried today and failed"
I turned to Keith, smiled and picked up the anchor and put it on my shoulder. The stall holder looked at me in amazement and said "Bugger me, if I had not seen that with my own eyes, I would never have believed it". Like I told him it is not about strength, you just have to know the best way to do it. We did buy the anchor, rope and chain and it now sits in the front locker for when we do rivers.
Today has been a day of coal sales and chit chat. The chit chat has been with people we know and people we have just met, but it is always enjoyable. The canal is a small world and that was proven earlier when we were chatting with Malcolm and Barbara off of NB Pilgrim, it soon became apparent that we were friends with the same people and yet this was the first time we had actually met. it does make you realise though that you have to be careful what you say, just in case you upset someone ha ha ha.
I am now off to do our dinner, which is casserole and dumplings. Have a good evening, I am going to be watching the X-Factor and hoping that this weekend Wagner will be voted off.