First date

We've moved from the marina today, we are near Ufton, moored on the edge of a field with cows in.

We reached a lock just as another boat entered it, normally we would double up but as the boat in front was wedged diagonally across the lock we moored on the lock landing and went to help.
We recognised the boat, it's owner is a single lady named Maggie, this time she had a gentleman friend with her.

The gentleman had obviously thought long and hard about his trip on the boat and chosen his outfit with care! He was wearing an immaculately clean white top, highly pressed shorts and loose fitting moccasins.

This outfit maybe appropriate for yachting but for working the locks on a canal, scruffy is best.

By the time we caught up with them they were on their 3rd lock of the day and it was about 4 in the afternoon. He'd started off steering the boat but had got it wedged diagonally across the lock, so they swapped places, she went on to the boat to straighten it out, he went to work the lock.

Unfortunately Towney lock is a bit of a bugger, it's deep, the paddles are very stiff, the gates are heavy and one doesn't open properly. He was really struggling to work his side so CHS went to help, otherwise I'd have ended up doing both gates whilst he faffed around worrying about the gates being dirty.

CHS asked how far they were going, the gentleman announced that they hoped to moor in Maidenhead tonight! It's a bloody long way to Maidenhead by boat but each to their own.

As Maggie passed me I nodded towards the gentleman and asked her 'First date?'
'And the bloody last' she snarled through gritted teeth.

For fucks sake just go home!

As I've said before CHS's shift system is confusing and inconvenient, some evenings there is an added problem, people not leaving on time.

The school hires out some areas out of hours, until 9 or 10 o'clock usually, either for exercise classes, fat club and various other local groups.

I'm not sure if people assume the caretaker lives on site or, more likely, they just don't consider him being inconvenienced any problem of theirs.

Rooms are hired out until 9:30, if the room next to it hasn't been hired out then that room can be set up for 8am meetings the next day.

At 9:45pm CHS walks down to the room to find the classes still running. He has to persuade them to finish, CHS then checks the room next door, this has invariably been used and needs to be set up again. 

He sets the room up again for the meeting and then goes back to tidy the room the class had been held in. People still stand around chatting, and give CHS dirty looks as he picks up all the rubbish they leave scattered about and as he empties the bins, by now it's 10 o'clock. 

He turns off the lights and the people gradually walk to their cars, still chatting.
CHS announces that he is locking the gate and they needed to drive out if they unless they want to stay on-site overnight.

Some people always decide to sit in their cars and use their mobile phones so CHS and I drive to the gate. By now it is almost 10:30 and hour after his finishing time!

4 sets of temporary traffic lights, 2 honking cars and a punch up.

And all before 7 am yesterday.
A journey that normally takes 20 minutes took 40 minutes.
I've no idea why either car honked me, I couldn't go anywhere as I was in a queue of traffic. The temporary traffic lights may mean that some of the potholes are being filled in.
As for the punch up, a 4x4 was following a BMW, for some reason the BMW kept slamming on his brakes. I kept well back as it looked like an accident waiting to happen.
Eventually the 4x4 overtook the BMW, stopped in front of him and got out. I drove past and left them to fight it out, they looked pretty evenly matched.

Today the M4 was closed between junctions 11 & 12, an accident had knocked over a lamppost. All the traffic then piled on to the A4! It took me an hour to get CHS to work, I went to DD2's and got her four kids ready and dropped 3 of them at school. DD2 set of for a meeting and was an hour late but still got there before the rest of the clients. It then took me another hour to get to DD1's. 

CHS has tomorrow off, so a lie in and a leisurely start in the morning I hope. I've filled the water tank and tomorrow we will look for a new mooring place.

It's nice to be loved!

Childcare duties this morning, I asked my 3yo Dgd if she wanted to go to the park or come back to my boat.
She asked if CHS was on the boat.
I explained that CHS was at work.
Let's go to the park, says Dgd!

Thieving bastards

We are hiding in the marina for a couple of days, the local area is under siege.
Shops have hired security, a local boat hire place had the batteries stolen from all their boats and people have had their generators stolen.
As we moved away from our previous mooring we passed 3 boats heading towards it hoping to find a place of safety.

Accidents happen.

I was taking CHS to work on Friday only to find the A4 was closed due to a serious though fortunately not fatal accident, we had to divert through to Burghfield and into Reading that way. CHS was about an hour late for work.

Once I'd dropped him at work I parked my car and caught a bus into central Reading, I then caught another bus to the Royal Berkshire Hospital. CHS's hearing aid needed repairing.

There is a shortcut from the main entrance to the hearing centre. Unfortunately the flooring was being refurbished so I had to walk all round the outside of the hospital to reach the hearing centre.

After the repair was completed I caught a bud back I to central Reading and then another back to my car.
Unfortunately there had been an accident outside the fish and chip shop. So that part of the journey was also slow. Eventually I reached my car, did a small amount of shopping and then returned home.
I left home just before 11 a.m. I didn't get home until 5:30.

Oh bugger

About 20 years ago I got a speeding ticket, my kids thought it was hysterically funny as I am not a speedy driver. The road I was driving along had its speed limit reduced from 40 mph to 30 mph. I was unaware of the change and I was doing 37 mph in what I thought was a 40 area.

Last week I got another speeding ticket, this time my children and grandchildren think it's hysterically funny.
It was on a totally different road but once again the speed limit has been reduced from 40 to 30 and once again I was doing 37 mph in what I thought was a 40 mph area.
Oh well it's my own fault!