A day on a long boat

On Saturday we (me, michelle and simon) went driving to oxfordshire to hop on a long boat for the day...glorious weather and murky water...i didn't get into the testosterone stakes and just let the other boys drive the boat...we bobbed along the Oxford Canal for around 5 hours, broken up by a picnic in a paddock surrounded by nettles...it was very pleasant indeed...we also hopped off and went to a rather dodgy pub where orders for coke were greeted with pepsi poured straight from the bottle...masculinity was sorely challenged by having to negotiate the so-called locks which involved getting water levels right before being able to enter and exit the lock...the scenery was very characteristic...we amateurs felt a slight snorting-of-nose derision from the serious long-boaters who adorn their boats with all manner of potplants, decorative shutters and colour schemes...a couple of boats had satellite dishes for tv and dishwashers too...Michelle coined the phrase the "lock protector" when we came upon a lock with a house built next to it...