Whilst it was still spring, and the sun was warming our souls. We saw our first butterfly of the year, a bumble bee and a tree in full blossom. We were moored in Wolverton Park by the rather smart flats and rings to make tying up so easy.
John and Martina from NB Burnt Oak stopped for coffee as they went past. I foolishly forgot to take a photo of the two Braidbar buddies moored next to each other, but I’ll sort that out next week as we have plans to do some cruising together. They want to ‘hear’ Firecrest on the move, Ha, they’ll be disappointed cause we really do cruise silently with our electric motor.
I took advantage of being so close to civilisation and used the laundrette to give the bedding an extra good wash. And to refill the cupboards with staples from Tesco.
I also came across the Milton Keynes community Fridge. I’ve heard about these but not seen them in practice before. Surplus food is donated and made available to anyone in the community. I did my usual and struck up a conversation with a lovely lady called Lois. The first thing she said to me was “don’t tell me you don’t need handouts, the community Fridge is all about keeping usable food out of landfill, please help us by taking whatever you can use.” So I accepted and helped myself to a slightly stale but very edible baguette, 2 pears, 2 oranges, 2 tomatoes, a cabbage, courgette, and a bag of new potatoes, plus a packet of hot cross buns. There was plenty left for the next person. If you’re passing through Wolverton go along and help them out. It’s open over Thursday and Friday lunchtime and every evening from 7 until 9pm. I’m used to giving generously so it was quite a humbling experience to be given something for nothing. And I must admit it did make me think about how it must feel if you need to be on the receiving end of charitable acts.
We moved the boat in the afternoon cause we needed to run our not so silent generator and didn’t want to disturb our neighbours in the flats. Only 5 minutes away but it was out in the open. I got some more washing done, went for a walk and cooked a mash up tea that felt like I was taking part in the Masterchef store cupboard challenge. We both agreed it was a good day.
6Today we woke up to sleet and snow and howling gales. The temperature as forecast had plummeted and nothing could persuade either of us to even open the hatches let alone leave the boat. Saturday was designated a Duvet day. Lets hope Sunday is a bit more promising.