Monday 6th November – Day 113
This morning I cracked on with my novel as I really need to make some headway with the Jersey story. By the end of the day, I felt like I’d finally made some real progress. I’ve mentioned before that it’s very tricky when you’ve already written a story to try and expand it and add to it and there is always that massive moment of doubt when you think it’s a complete load of rubbish, but then slowly the characters take over and show the way. ((Do you ever wonder if your characters are lying to you?))
In the afternoon we make the most of the clear autumnal skies and wander to the shops nearby. It really is a wonderful time of year as the leaves change colour and you feel the crunch of them beneath your feet; on the non muddy parts of the towpath that is! We intend to cruise tomorrow so need to stock up whilst we can.
I think I mentioned we are on our way back ((for goodness sake. You spend most of your time cruising backwards! How about moving forwards for a change)) We will, we will! I must admit we didn’t expect to be hanging about this area for so long although we have cruised quite a chunk if you look at the map considering we’ve had places to be and things to do.
Right, back to the dinette. Until tomorrow… x
Wordcount: 1,100 : Total: 7,681 ((getting better Peachy!))
Tuesday 7th November – Day 114
Today it’s up early and a cruise to our old favourite, Tixall Wide and we only have 1 lock to contend with where we encounter another queue the same as on our way up. There is a huge log which would have stopped the gates opening so I called on the muscle to drag it out. It was a massive log and could potentially have done some damage so good to get it out of the canal and out of the way on the grass verge so it wasn’t blocking or causing a problem on the tow path either. If we had a chain saw we could have cut it down for the fire but it would have had to have been dried first!
Really loved the cruise today. It is really such a treat to enjoy this time of year. It’s much colder obviously and you can really feel the temperature drop at about 3pm in the afternoon. We have now started putting the heating on for an hour before bed to get the boat fully warm. The fire is great but it doesn’t really warm the air in the bedroom. Then the heating goes on in the morning to get it toasty as we relight the fire for the day. All in all, very cosy though as the nights draw in.
I knuckle down once we’ve moored up and because I’m starting some new chapters, I mange to exceed the target wordcount today! ((Well done, that’s more like it. If you want this book out next year you better crack on!))
Miles: 3 Locks: 1
Wordcount: 1,808 Total: 9,669
Wednesday 8th November – Day 115
It’s a wet and windy morning so it’s back to the dinette to get some all-important writing done whilst drinking coffee and the time soon disappears but I promised to make some sweet potato and coconut milk soup; which goes down well. Nice to have warming soup this time of year.
Finally, the weather plays nice so we have a walk into Great Haywood for important supplies ((Not sure teacakes class as important supplies)) Hey, they are needed. I mean who can have afternoon coffee without something to snack on!
There is not much else to report today. Tomorrow will be a cruising day as we need the boat services and to get the boat moved near Great Haywood as we’ve hired a car for a few days as I need to go back to Newark. Can you believe it was cheaper to hire a car than go by train! Although I do have to travel back by train as Chris will be returning the car and I have plans to see all my friends whilst back in Newark. Also, it’s an annual Christmas Chatsworth visit with a friend which should by now be on YouTube. We are also going to try and find a laundrette whilst we have the car.
Until tomorrow. x
Wordcount: 1,688 Total: 11,357
Thursday 9th November – Day 116
Cruising day, which doesn’t take very long and we are at the boat services again. The flood water has receded a huge amount, I’m totally guessing maybe 3 or 4 feet since we last came through. It looks like it’s following its normal channel through the countryside now, whereas before, the fields looked like marshlands.
We take the opportunity to get some coal and kindling as we try to stoke the fire up at night, we are getting through the bags of coal now. The couple we were chatting to back at Penkridge are waiting for the fuel boat which sounds like it about £5 cheaper for a bag of coal so next time we need to stock up we will try and time it with when the fuel boat is coming through.
Chris does an amazing reversing job the boat from the service point and back along the canal as we need to pass four moored boat and we don’t have bow thrusters and it’s windy! But then we look like complete amateur’s trying to moor the boat as for some reason it just would not tie up properly! ((I wish you’d filmed that. Maybe you should start doing ‘re-enactments so we can enjoy your mishaps!))
Anyway, we finally manage it and then we gear ourselves up for a big Ebay selling session to try and get rid of the stuff we sorted out when we ‘faffed’ on the boat.
I emailed the manager at Waterstones to find out about the possibly of doing a book launch/signing for the Jersey mystery book so we will see what response I receive. It would be equally exciting and bloomin terrifying. I have done a book signing before at a very supportive gaming café in Newark called Letsxcape but I had lots of friends pop in to buy them as well as a few people I didn’t know during the Newark Book Festival weekend but to do one in Waterstones… eekkk!
Until tomorrow… x
Miles: 0.7 0r 6 furlongs ((from the dictionary… Old Englishfurlang, from furh ‘furrow’ + lang ‘long’. The word originally denoted the length of a furrow in a common field (formally regarded as a square of ten acres. It was also used as the equivalent of the Roman stadium, one eighth of a Roman mile, whence the current sense. Compare with stadium.)) Locks: 0
Wordcount: 1,877 Total: 13,234 ((good word count Peachy!))
Friday 10th November – Day 117
We faff around in the morning and I crack on with my novel as we wait for the car hire company to arrive. Can you believe it’s cheaper to hire a car than to go by train! Firstly, because it’s so expensive and secondly because you cannot rely on public transport here and they say they want us to help the environment… erm, me thinks that is not really a serious item on our governments agenda! But that’s by the by… ((Okay, I agree but less ranting please Peachy!))
We collect the car and then go back to the boat, parking in a nearby farmshop carpark which is near the junction at Great Haywood where we have moored the boat. We then grab all our washing, ((or laundry)) as we have towels, bedding and clothes to wash and our twin tub isn’t really up to towels and bedding. We find this amazing launderette not too far away with wonderful staff.
The chap who runs it tells me he used to live in Kenya and ran a business which hired out tractors to farmers and how he’d been now running this laundrette in Stafford for 30 years! That’s one of the things I love about this life, you just meet so many interesting people you would just never normally meet living in one area for a long time.
I’m lucky as I kept some change from selling my books back in July as the machines only take coins. Something to remember when using some laundrettes. Once done we nip to the shops and make the most of having a car to ferry things back to the boat. Just as it’s about to go dark we trudge over the bridge and back down the towpath to deposit everything back at the boat.
It’s so satisfying to get all these jobs done. I manage to sneak in a bit more writing in the evening and finally passed the 40k mark on the jersey novel so very happy with that.
Wordcount 1,527 total 14,763
Saturday 11th November – Day 118
It’s up early again today as we make the most of having the car to go on an early morning car cruise through the Cannock chase area. It’s simply stunning with all the beautiful autumnal bracken and trees and we are lucky enough to spot some of the deer and it was wonderful to stop and enjoy that. I did get a little video I will pop on my Youtube vlog at some point.
We also pop to the postoffice as after having the declutter we’ve sold some bits and bobs and it’s a lot easier taking them in the car. Then we put the boat to bed and switch everything off bar the fridge/freezer after running the engine for 30 mins just to top up the batteries as we are both away overnight. Chris is back tomorrow but I’m heading to Derby to see friends and then to Newark to catch up with mates and as mentioned before the very important annual visit to Chatsworth House, by then I will officially declare it Christmas.
I’ve writing this at my friend’s house, in my pjs at 2pm! I know! So indulgent, but she had to pop out for a bit and so I indulged in a bath! OMG so good to finally enjoy a hot bath rather than a shower. It’s the one thing I really miss about living in a house. I originally said I would have a bath on the boat but now I’m not so sure it would work. The cost to heat up the water and making sure you are near a water point to refill, I’m not sure we will now.
Right, that’s me done. I’m going to get some wordcount added to my Jersey novel before my friend gets back and we eat, drink and catch up. Another fabulous day.
Wordcount: 768 total 15,531
Sunday 12th November – Day 119
Today I achieve the grand total of zero words ((erm!)) I know, I know but I’ve been socialising ((That is not a valid excuse Peachy. You need to take this seriously if you’re going to make it as an author. Not just gallivanting around the country pretending you have friends! And don’t go telling me it’s ‘research’ or you’re developing characters through interactions with others because I’m not accepting that as an acceptable excuse!)) oh…
We go back to our Newark and visit some of our pals at the marina. We lived on the boat for a year in the marina which I would highly recommend for anyone thinking about getting a boat. It made things much easier getting used to boat life.
We catch up with Chris’s folks before Chris leaves me in Newark and returns to the boat at Great Haywood and I meet a friend at Costa. As most will know who read my blogs, I love socialising and I’m very lucky to have a lot of friends so it’s wonderful to be back and catching up with them.
Right that’s it for this week. Next week will be mostly about catching up with friends and then back to the boat at the end of the week and a cruise onto new water!
Until next week… xx
Wordcount: ((00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000)) hey don’t add so many zero’s! total wordcount: 15,531
C.L. Peache 