A long time to warm up today after a very cold night and then lots of correspondence before failing to get Daniel to buy a Valentine’s Card and then playing board games with the family as Thatcher faces parliamentary censure for deceit and more cold weather is forecast
Awake on another very cold morning with the same degree of frost, but the east wind has thankfully calmed down. A long time before the house warmed up while I read the paper in bed. My normal breakfast of toast, but with marmalade and tea to help warm us up. Then up at 8.30am for a session in the bathroom to get washed and dressed. Constant interruptions from the kids are rather irritating. Out to the doves and pleased to see them fit, even after the cold night. Then the ducks and eight eggs today and the river freezing slightly. A good day at the office, either side of lunch, completing a good measure of correspondence to ICL, the BMMG, Mr Robertson my Thurso Solicitor, Freda (on loan securities) and copies where needed to all and sundry. I also wrote to Alan Ball, confirming the terms of his appointment as BMMG consultant and made a few phone calls as well. A brief break for lunch, in the middle, of soup, crisp bread and cake to follow and a time to watch the teletext headlines before back to work. By 4.00pm I had checked that my £40K cheque had not been presented to Barclays and could have afternoon tea and drive into town to post my letters. Then to collect Daniel from the bus stop. Evidently only 8 pupils had turned out for his class today out of 24, due to the weather and cancelled bus journeys. Then to collect some cleaning and photographs before trying unsuccessfully to get Daniel to join me in buying a Valentine from the card shop.
Home to stock up the grate with logs and put the ducks away. The doves had come down readily to feed and take water at the bird table. Tea of sausages and apple crumble to follow, then a board game after with all the family and Daniel as Mr X, on this occasion getting caught! News today of a disaster in Germany as 18 British soldiers died in a double-decker crash involving an aviation fuel tanker. Good news for liberty as Clive Pontin is found not guilty of breaking the official secrets act. A political row has broken out and Clive Pontin claims a victory for justice, even though the Judge had summed up against it – the Jury had ruled in favour of Pontin and against the full weight of the state. On this day, ten years to the day from her appointment as Party Leader, Mrs Thatcher has received what Westminster has seen as a slap in the face. Junior Minister, Stanley and Prime Minister, Thatcher, will face a hostile Commons tomorrow as the details of deceit are discussed. Sterling fell below $1.10 today and traded at this value all day. At the Old Bailey, one Nigerian and the Israelis confess to the kidnapping of Dikko after he was intercepted last summer at Stanstead airport. A High Court judge has banned mass picketing at five South Wales mines and only six pickets will be allowed at coal fields in future. The Coal Board are disappointed by only 1,200 miners returning to work today, only half of last Mondays total. They cling at the straws of bad weather, the day of action. The liver transplant patient, Catherine Tierman, died today after being the youngest transplant student. The Iranian leader, Ayatollah Khomeini, is seriously ill and only has a reported few days to live, which is a blessing. More cold again forecast for tonight at -8degC and then still a few degrees of frost in the day tomorrow. Luckily the North East of Scotland is above freezing during the day, which is good for my Caithness forest plantation, where they are building the roads and fences.