Tonight the ducks are back, one strutting in a proprietary sort of way along the gunwale. The other perched at the back of the boat. When one of them flew up to the roof MasterB’s hunter instincts kicked in and he made to chase it. The doors are now shut. I am beside the only window open far enough to allow him out or a duck in. After our stroll last night I was sitting in the forecabin with my book.the lights were on as I thought all the windows were shut. Open windows and lights mean a boat full of flying insects. Not my idea of home comfort. Illoked up to see MasterB sauntering along the gunwale. I had left a window in the aft cabin wide open. Fortunately he responded to my opening the window loop window by coming in to say hello. I rewarded him with biscuits, shut the offending window and tried to still my pounding heart.
At the moment he is sitting on top of the back seating cushion looking out at th field. There aren’t any cows in sight, and now I come to think of it we haven’t seen much of them today, but there is a black bird bobbing about and one of the ducks is being very vocal at varying pitches. It sounds rather like it is practising a scale. The boy is definitely in hunter mode. He has walked stealthily along the top of the seating cushion to beside and above me where the window is open. Nearby some people are enjoying some drinks and we can hear their voices. Normally that’s enough to put MasterB off the idea of shoreleave, but I wonder tonight if he will be bolder.
I was in two minds for most of the day as to whether to go home and avoid being in board for the anticipated storm tomorrow and rain on Saturday. I bought provisions, including a bunch of cornflowers from the farm. That made me think of Aunt as she chose a bunch of them there the last summer of her life. But provisions can travel, and wherever I am I need to eat. As well as shopping at the farm I went to a big supermarket. There was hand gel, signs directing customers around a one way system, reminders to stay apart, but no one seemed that bothered. I think complacency has well and truly set in. This evening, for reasons I shan’t go into here, I decided to stay. If the storm does break over our heads MasterB is going to need a lot of reassurance.
I am missing the shared poetry evening organised by book group. I read to MasterB instead. That was before the ducks arrived. They have swum away now, but if they return there’s a Philip Larkin one I may read to them. The boy is having a wash, showing no imminent desire to go ashore, and I pleased to see has had a pee. A good pee. Yesterday his pee output was less than usual. I immediately began to fret he was a having a recurrence of the old problem, so this morning he had extra water with his breakfast, in addition to his bladder health capsule, and tonight one of the special diet sachets.
My angler neighbour tells me the big fish I saw was a carp, and that there are about a dozen of them in the marina. He realised this after spending fifteen hours on the river trying and failing to catch one there. I looked in the book and found there are lots of different types of carp. When I see him next I shall ask which type we have here. Apparently they are in the marina as the water is shallower here and they will spawn. Unfortunately that won’t make for lots of carp as there are too many predators. What a lot I am learning.
Isobel (and Cat)'s Blog 
I reckon you’ve made a good call not to come back. London is sweltering; it’s a little bit cooler after some rain this morning, but will get hot again this afternoon.
Same here, in fact it is very hot now, though there is a breeze. No storm this morning, though there’s a chance we’ll have one this afternoon. I’m doing my washing and other domestic chores.