RAIN, SNOW AND SUN ON ROSY

Here in Rugby we are having all sorts of weather. Rain, wind (lots), snow, ice and sun - it's all here.

The rain is a bit annoying, especially as Rosy has a small leak associated with one of the windows. I have a temporary fix in place, so at least the water is kept outside. The full repair will occur on the first dry day, after a new bottle of 'Creeping Crack Cure' arrives on Rosy.

I get some exercise every couple of weeks when I take the ships wheelbarrow up to the coal yard to replenish the bunkers. Also, every day, Fanny needs some exercise. Tow path walking is not especially enjoyable, as the towing path is sodden, and only slightly less watery than the canal itself. Fortunately the marina is blessed with an extensive, grassed area, so Fanny gets to chase after an old tennis ball or an Aerobie - usually the latter which (for the uninitiated) is a disk which, if I throw it properly, flies away very much further than a thrown ball.

Once a week Derek or Sheila or the Haven Meister (Eric) kindly give me a lift down the food shops. I am getting a little concerned about my diet, as I'm in a bit of a food rut. It's a healthy enough rut, but it's getting a bit monotonous

Apart from that, I read a lot. I've been having fun filling the new (for me) Kindle up with new books. With a bit of patience it is possible to acquire a decent library of free books. I've read some proper books as well. I re-read the non-fiction 'Angela's Ashes', the auto-biography of Frank McCourt, who was raised in a poor family in Ireland with a father who drank most of his earnings. It's sequel ''Tis' sees Frank moving to America in time to experience the post-war depression.

Meanwhile, I'm twiddling around preparing to take Rosy back to France. She needs to have her Small Ships Register number re-applied - they were erased last year during the big re-paint.

For various reasons, I have not used Rosy's music system for quite a while. I have been trying to get it going again. At present, I can play all my CDs. Unfortunately, the ex-car radio that used to play my 300ish cassette tapes no longer wishes so to do. I'm hoping that this is because of a mere wiring fault - but how to fix it?