Spring?

What a lovely day!

Set all the clocks forward the hour last night which means darkness now falls at around 8.00pm. Wanted to wake up this morning at 7.00 as my father was on radio 4 at that time so set my telephone clock forward the hour and then set the alarm. Woke up this morning to discover that the phone automatically sets itself forward for daylight saving which meant it had now woken me up at 6.00! The sun was warm for much of the day although a stiff Easterly wind kept temperatures down at times. I did manage to sit outside the boat on the bank this afternoon with a glass of wine in hand, dog curled up asleep under the chair and Bill plucking away on his banjo which gave the gongoozlers something to chat about.

Had the delight of an unexpected visit from John and Elizabeth off NB Helen Louise this afternoon. The popped in to have a chat and see how I was which was lovely as they are shortly off abroad and then away cruising for 6 months. Marking tests this evening when Iain and Allison off working boat Gosty Hill pulled up alongside for a chat. It's always lovely to catch up and share the latest canalside gossip with friends as they pass and especially so when it's a beautiful working boat selling coal and diesel such as Gosty Hill. Unfortunately they were out of diesel but I did manage to get a couple of bags of coal from them before watching them, quite literally, sailing off into the sunset. The demise of red diesel as we know it seems to be the current talking point with all sorts of speculation as to what exactly will happen from October 2007 and on into 2008. They also informed me that Mr. Finch has been seen working in the Braunston area so he is certainly around the area! The fire still needs to be kept in 24/7 at the moment and the flowers on the roof are still struggling against the occasional frost.The last week at school to get through before setting off for my 2 weeks cruise but not before I, once again, play host to the national co-ordinators briefing and strategy meeting of the Save Our Waterways Campaign. I volunteered a while ago to host this meeting at my school as, being in the midlands, it was the most convenient location. I have once again volunteered to host it at my school next Saturday. It is a great privilege to play a small part in this organisation that is working so hard against the Defra cuts to BW and an equally great privilege to meet with some of the most influential people on the waterways.