A coolish day ‘working’ with Della and liaising with Cheeseborough and his large team of builders as they work on The Hayling View conversion and, the electricity being switched off, I work outside clearing shrubs and making a large bonfire before an evening editing videos of the work as Peter Walker, the last moderate in Thatcher’s Tory government warns of the dangers of such high unemployment
Slept well, but my back was still not up to sitting in bed when I awoke to my early morning tea. Out in my dressing gown to open the house next door (for I have taken to locking it again every night) and then to breakfast with all of the family. Washed, dressed and then, about 9.30am, out with Daniella who wanted to help me feed the ducks and doves. Waylaid in our long walk around the buildings by Mr Cheeseborough who, accompanied by a good half dozen builders and two electricians, resolved a number of queries with us about the work. From a position of slow progress over the last day or two, they are now leaping ahead and are wanting to know the colours and styles for room decoration, which is an encouraging sign. On after and Della, bless her, had a good run round and thoroughly enjoyed the outing, but it did slow things down somewhat and so I was ready for a coffee when we got back. No eggs today and the ducks have dwindled now to 11 in number and so, 1 by 1, two must have been taken through the lock recently by passing boats – I must go and look for them soon. A nice day, coolish slight breeze, but sunny spells and so, after coffee and with the electricity in my office turned off anyway, I decided to do some work on the riverside gardens. First, to cut a large overhanging branch from the hawthorne tree next door and start to make a pile of bonfire material from its debris.
Chris came out to investigate, she is at home with a cold today, but did not query my actions. Then onto my new plot (formerly Bill’s) where I demolished an old rotting rose trellis and removed the rose and lilac bushes it sustained; and then another flowering cherry tree. I left several feet of stump on each so as to allow the gardener some purchase when he is given the task of removing the stumps. On then to David’s plot next door (which I have not yet bought) and to secret one of the oak saplings into a wild patch in the corner – it is part of my eventual design for the Hayling View. Lunch with Diana and her parents, who come over regularly on Thursdays, and we stop the percussion of the hammer drills on the wall as the builders lay the service ducts that are to interconnect the two houses. Back to my endeavours afterwards and this time to cut down two conifers (on my original plot behind the ducks) and remove a lot of climbing plants, nettles and scrub. I am due to plant the other oak tree and some more box plants there in the next few days. More consultations with the builder – this time over the siting of some facilities – and I remembered the need to put a power cable duct out and under the front patio for eventually taking power down to the workshop on its new site. In to tea and just time to make a video of the builders progress before the light faded ever earlier again and I had to put away the ducks and call it a day. Inside and this evening trying to edit my films of the Hayling View, but I was getting too much sound interference and the job will have to be done again. I help Daniel do his homework as my only other achievement of this evening, leaving my journal to do early the following day. The cows are back in the meadow opposite for pasture as usual for this time of the year, but it is nice to see at last. News of a subdued Tory Conference today with unemployment dominating the event. As the last Tory moderate in the Thatcher government, it fell to Peter Walker, the Energy Secretary, to warn the government of the dangers to votes that the present huge unemployment figures represent.