YEAR 2004 - MAY
				We stayed in the Marina at Barton under Needwood where we had been since November last year until the end of April. Unfortunately Alan has had an ear infection since the beginning of March which resulted in hospital visits for treatment. I also had to go "south" to see my mother a few times and we went on a trip to Holland at the end of April. In the meantime we have not been completely idle, as with each winter I have joined Fitness First where I go two or three times a week to the gym or a class (I have done Tai Chai this winter!) and Alan has "done jobs". We were still disappointed that the hot water was was not staying hot in the tank for the next morning so Alan has taken out the old calorifier tank and put in a new larger and better insulated tank. The original put in by the boat fitter was cheap and nasty. The water now stays hotter for longer. He has also encased the built-in oven in insulation and now the oven runs hotter and more efficiently, but better still the kitchen and living area do not become like a sauna. Each March end we do a budget and each month throughout the year we say "we should not have so much expenditure this month", but boat maintenance and improvements gobble up the money! We have yet to keep within budget! - Perhaps this year. We are now on the Coventry Canal but I have to go south again to sort care for my mother.