Feeding my Khaki Campbell Ducks
Feeding my Khaki Campbell Ducks

Aftermath of the Brighton bomb with four now confirmed dead as I spend much of the day on my duck and dove houses

A good lay in reading first The Financial Times and then, after the post had arrived, The Economist. I was pleased to see the continued upward progress of the Gilt-Edged securities – particularly the Indexed Linked type that I had recently purchased in good quantity. Also that The Economist has come out against the BT/IBM licences which I hope will be of influence. Full details of yesterday’s Brighton bomb blast and the aftermath of ritual and widespread condemnations. Graphic pictures of the damage as well. Diana brings my normal breakfast to bed and after I wash, shave, shower and dress and go out to check my office mail and let out the ducks. Nothing much of interest has arrived, except an Electronics Weekly, which I read whilst allowing the ducks a morning feed. They had managed one egg again, but their moult has nearly finished and I am trying to bring them back onto lay. They will also need their wings trimming soon as well. I emptied their house of soiled straw and later filled it again with our last supply of fresh straw. We will need to get 2/3 bails soon for the winter ahead.

By 11.30am Diana had made the morning coffee and was anxious to leave for St Neots, and so off we went to get the seafood for tea and trout for the freezer; and also Debbie’s sweets until we met Daniel at Readwells and went off  together for our Happy Eater lunch. I had onion soup and followed it with a diet burger and then ice cream. The onions in the soup continue to disagree with me for the rest of the day and I will avoid them in future. Back home for Daniel to play computers with Gaz and Paul whilst I put up the wall-mounted dovecote with a certain amount of difficulty but even more satisfaction. My prawn tea and then to sit with Debbie whilst she practised her writing, before tuning in to the day’s news on the television. Three of the four dead people are now named and, apart from Sir Anthony Berry, the wife of injured Chief Whip (John Wakeham), Roberta Wakeham was one and the Chairman of the N W Conservatives Eric Taylor the other. His wife, Jenifer, was also injured in the blast. A sophisticated timing device was used and 20lbs of commercial explosive was wrapped in cellophane to foil the police sniffer dogs. The pit strike talks are adjourned until next week after discussions that took place today. We have decided to chance the weather and travel to Alton Towers tomorrow