Thursday 22nd July

Millie wasn’t allowed out last night and boy did we pay for it! After breakfast Richard set too to put in the new inverter. I went to the laundrette to wash and dry the towels as there were so many of them. By the time I got back the new inverter was in and at long last I could use my new washing machine – WAHEY!! We set off down the river with the washing machine chugging along and me busy trying to get my data from my old computer to my new one. Four times the back-up failed until I discovered that the back-up drive wasn’t big enough! So I spend all evening deleting programmes that I’d downloaded over the last three years. Eventually at bed time the back-up was complete. The exciting part of the day though was that the Swan Uppers came past us. I knew that we should meet them at some stage of the day but we were moored up just below Cleeve Lock which was their last point for the day. I had been watching a swan family since we moored up but of course they had disappeared when the Swan Uppers came. It was colourful as they came up the river with their flags flying then suddenly came the shout “swan up” and they all turned round and rowed like mad down the river to a backwater. Unfortunately I couldn’t see what they actually did but the internet says that they ring all the baby birds and give each swan a health check. After the Swan Uppers had gone we had a visit from two horses whose field we were moored up in. One of the them was very interested in my washing and tried to nibble the top of the airer! So a busy day all round but also a very frustrating one for me – but aren’t computers always frustrating and big time wasters?