NB Valerie Moved Today!!

"The greatest accomplishment is not in never falling, it is in rising again after you fall." ~Vince Lombardi, American Football player, coach and executive

   When I spoke with Les at hospital last night he warned me a storm was on its way and reminded me to check the water level. With all that has been going on I had lost track of the days, thinking we had only filled up last week. Half way through my second load of laundry this morning the water made an odd choking sound as it came through the washing machine pipes and I realized I was just about to run out of water. 
   I turned off the machine, threw on some shoes, loosened the ropes and off I went, cruising for water. Lest you think this was a long journey I will tell you the water point is only three boat lengths in front of where we are moored, still it is the first time I've moved the boat completely on my own without Les aboard to correct me.
   The wind was blowing up 22 MPH gusts back up the canal behind me and over towards the towpath side. I figured if I gave the engine some Welly to counteract the backward wind direction and eased off as I approached the water point, it would carry me into the side, and thus it did.
   The wind freshened my cheeks and ruffled my hair as the boat cut through the water. It felt MAGNIFICENT to be moving!! I only wished my best beloved was by my side and we were heading up the canal and back into our continuous cruising life. Soon, Goddess willing...
   While the tank was filling, I emptied the trash, straightened up the bow and stern areas, brought in three big, blue Ikea bags of wood off the roof, stacking it to dry near our stove and stacking yet more outside in the bow, under the gunnel. I hoisted another bag of coal off the roof and into the bow, filling the inside coal bucket, and when the water tank was full I rinsed out the cockpit and scrubbed the grunge off the roof where the wood had been drying through the summer. 
   My plan was to use the center line to walk the boat back to our mooring spot where the pins were still deep in the ground. With the wind blowing a hooley by now, I felt unsure of cruising in reverse on my own. Being dyslexic means left and right often become mixed up for me. I would not only be fighting my learning disability but also the ever growing gale, however a boat pulled in behind me shortly before I turned off the water spigot. Time to butch up and cruise backward with an audience. 
   Amazingly I did it! I didn't hit their boat, or anyone else's! I backed NB Val up the center of the canal, put the engine in forward gear and slid her gently right into the towpath side, slowed her down, jumped off with the center line and pulled the boat in!
   Feeling triumphant I tied up the stern to the pin, trod through the mud like a champion to tie up the bow and realized to my consternation I had tied the stern too tightly and the bow was making its way out towards the center of the canal. I ran back with center line in hand and quickly loosened the stern rope retying it loosely; as I turned to run back up to the bow I slipped in the mud and fell flat on my face! Quickly I climbed to my feet, pulled the boat in with the center line and grabbed the bow line, threaded it through the pin and tied it off. 
   With the forecast of hurricane force winds and the worse storm to hit Britain in 25 years headed our way this evening, it was crucial I tie the boat in extra tight and secure. I struggled as the wind tugged NB Val away from me. I am five feet one with vestigial limbs and the boat weighs 18 tons--but I am proud to say did it!!
   I took a moment to revel in my victory, sopping wet with water, gooey mud clinging to me from the tip of my nose to my ankles, but I did not care. I laughed triumphantly, loving the feel of the bracing wind on my face and the use of my muscles. Life is brilliant and I am blessed. I wonder now that I have been christened in good old English towpath mud, does this mean I am a proper boater???