A final couple of days in Alrewas

27th & 28th April

I got an appointment to see my GP yesterday using the dodge we’ve developed over the last couple of years. This involves being outside the surgery at ten past eight, so as to be first in when they open at 8.15, so as to get an appointment that morning. In this case, I had half an hour to kill, and went and strolled round the village for 20 minutes.

It occurs to me as I type this that just having an old style free for all would work just as well from my point of view - turn up early, be first in to see the doctor. It’s no good for those who can’t physically get there straight away, of course, which is why we went over to appointments in the first place.

Anyway, all was well, 10/10 and all that – I’m to go on doing whatever it is that I’m doing, I’m told, which is good news for brewers of real ale and importers of reasonably priced New World wines.

Back at the boat, we pottered about until it was time for the walk; we coped much better this week, and had a good lunch to follow. The George and Dragon does a nice line in well filled baguettes, which are just as filling as the more expensive “Lite Bites”.

(We’re talking £3.95 instead of £4.95, and not encouraging horrible corruptions of English into the bargain.)

(Thank you, Mr Meldrew.)

After all that exercise and good food, we dozed in the sun rather, but it was very pleasant to have some decent sun to doze in.

This morning saw us make an early start after a decent night’s sleep for once. First task was to turn Sanity around by taking her down Bagnall Lock, winding her and coming back up again to the same mooring. This took a bit longer than expected, as three other boats (two up, one down) passed the lock in the intervening period, so Sheila, who was locking, got a bit more exercise than she'd planned.

No matter, Sanity is now pointing the same way as Sanity Again, ready for our convoy to Fradley tomorrow.

I went into the village afterwards, for shopping and drugs, and only failed to get a loaf of bread for lunch (Warburton’s doesn’t deliver to the Co-op until after half ten or eleven). Meantime, Sheila had run a washload, and I helped her hang it out on the whirligig on my return.

Being a touch behind with the laundry, as we'd changed the bed the other day, she ran another load straight away. Such was the power of the sun and wind, that the first load had dried by the time she needed to hang out the second.

Brass polishing was next, after coffee, whilst I trekked back into the village for bread. After lunch, it was Sheila’s turn to walk in, visiting Jane Howarth to collect a bit of NHS post for us that had turned up at their house. Jane’s had a couple of big operations this year, and is having to take it very easy, so the company was very welcome.

Meantime, I pottered about on the two boats, checking both engines and the like. Elanor is joining us for the night, and then will give us a hand with the locks tomorrow.