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It has been a while since I posted on here and several members have emailed to ask what we are now doing. Long standing members will remember that I was once a moderator on this forum and a fairly prolific contributor. Back in 2007 we chose our mooring in Cropredy because it was equidistant from our respective ageing parents. Between 2016 and 2018, we lost both sets of parents and their respective illnesses and the immense task of making their final arrangements kept us occupied. The day after Jane's mother died, Jane was diagnosed with Cancer at the junction of her stomach and oesophagus. After nine months of Chemotherapy, the decision was made to try and remove the tumour - we were told that the chances of success were probably less than 50% because the tumour had grown through the stomach wall and had attached to Jane's liver and pancreas. The procedure took place on 25th August 2018 and the surgical team at the Churchill hospital in Oxford did a brilliant job. Thankfully, the tumour was completely removed but this also required the removal of Jane's stomach and some serious re-plumbing of her internal pipework. After a long period of recovery, Jane is now doing very well and is back at work as a medical receptionist. The long term outlook is now much better but it has been a very stressful time. Many of you will know that Alnwick is now moored at the Old Coal Wharf at Cropredy. We still live aboard but due to the circumstances discussed above, it is a very long time since we fired up the Kelvin K3 - which, for the avoidance of doubt, is an ideal engine for a heavy narrow boat - this opinion was expressed clearly to Alnwick's builder by none other than George Bergius, the designer of the engine and the son of the Kelvin company's founder. Back in 2012, we bought a derelict cottage in the village - just 50 yards from our mooring - and after years of planning, during the next six months builders will be on site to restore the cottage and make it suitable for occupation. However, we do not have any plans to sell Alnwick (unless the cottage renovation costs far more than expected) and we hope to resume our plans to the canal system as soon as the work on the cottage is complete. In the meantime we are still here and if any of our old friends find themselves tied-up at Cropredy, please come an say hello!