Showtime

I know we need rain, but please can it wait for another couple of weeks before the monsoon.

Our free weekend passes to the Crick Boat Show have arrived - one of the perks of being a Crick marina moorer.  We've never been before, but we never refuse anything free so we'll stay there on the boat and take in the experience. I have an idea of what it will be like, that is more of a trade show than a festival, and BIG.  Boating festivals like the ones at Uxbridge or Tring or the Braunston rally are excuses for a lot of boaters to get together and have a good time, whereas Crick is more for people wanting to buy stuff, including posh boats.

I'd better take my cheque book. Apparently they'll have nearly thirty shiny new boats for me to buy, and half of them cost less than £100,000 each.  I might buy a Steve Hudson tug and I might not. (in my dreams!).  Perhaps I might buy Herbie a present from one of the eight engine suppliers exhibiting. Now where did I put that seven grand?  More likely I'll buy a magazine and collect loads of useless leaflets and a few free carrier bags.

Nevertheless there will be a bar and lots of entertainment, and I'm  excited that Peppa Pig is scheduled to make an appearance.  (Please read that sentence again in a voice heavy with irony.)  It may be hard to avoid her, and I'm already up to my neck in her stuff. Our TV recorder seems to be full of Peppa Pig episodes and Grace has P. P. dolls, pyjamas, a scooter and goodness knows what else.  I wouldn't mind a few shares in the franchise!

There are some strange goings on according to the programme. I see that they have something called the water vole craft and food marquee.  I'm not sure whether the water voles will be demonstrating nest making, or whether people will be making handbags out of water vole pelts.  As to the water vole food, I don't fancy it.  Then in the  "Show Village" I see they have a stand for Bioflow Magnotherapy.  Will I be attracted or repelled?  I suspect the latter.  Or there's a company specialising in portable cycloidal massage systems.  I can hardly wait.  This is what boating is all about.

Actually I suspect it'll be all good fun and hopefully we might see one or two of you there.  I fear we may be in the bar during the evenings.

We plan to get in training for the bar.  On our way to Crick we plan a short (well two days in truth) detour to Cambridge for their rather wonderful Beer Festival which starts next Monday.  We're really going to Cambridge to visit our son Peter you understand but it would be churlish to miss the festival as they go to so much trouble arranging it, and we have free entrance to that too, on account of being CAMRA members.

It's a hard life.