Row, row, row your boat…..

Well, like most people I could do with losing some weight and yes like most people run screaming at the mention of exercise. I have no excuse really as I have a perfectly good exercise bike and running machine at my disposal and all they do is gather dust. So to add a little interest to exercising I decided to go for a row. Luckily we live by the river and even more luckily we have boats at our disposal, one in particular - Nigel's own build 'Shoveler' a sailing gun punt.
He built this to precise personal specifications - it needed to be a traditional gun punt shape, able to be sailed, able to be rowed, big enough to transport, 2 humans, 1 psycho greyhound and numerous freight. Luckily it has lived up to expectations and delivers on all those counts. As it was such a lovely evening, after rowing home from work (Nigel rowing expertly), we fed the menagerie, pile ourselves and Tillie on board Shoveler and I rowed up river to Wroxham Broad, across the Broad and back home again, the equivalent of about 4 miles (next time must remember to take the GPS). We didn't see much birdlife, the usual ducks, geese, coots, cormorants and what Nigel thought was a Sandwich Tern but not sure on that. There were the last straggling dayboat hirers straggling back to base afte a days cruise in the sun. End result, one knackered female, one chilled chauffered husband, one still psyhco greyhound and two blisters! It remains to be seen whether I can walk in the morning or not!

Last week I made and finished these mallards which I hope to sell for my fund raising. I have now been commissioned to crochet a pair of shovellers for Nigel, to of course go in his boat Shoveler - I should get the male shoveler finished, stuffed and sewn up tonight, that's if I don't fall asleep first!

Last week Tillie and I helped Annie from Action for Greyhounds do a collection outside Roys. Annie was there all week with a selection of her dogs (Gemma, Zonda, Zulu & Jani) and Tillie and I helped out a few afternoons. The collection made over £1700 which was amazing – so thank you to all those generous people that stopped to chat and give so generously to such a worthwhile cause. Maybe one day the world will come to its senses and stop the needless exploitation of greyhounds for so called sport. Reggie (the woolly hound) was there also helping spread the word and after our last stint was finished, I said to Annie that I wanted to donate Reggie to AFG. So Reggie is now going to travel around with Annie and her dogs on the campaign trail – He has since been renamed T.E.D. - short for Totally Exploited Dog.