A nice cooked breakfast after a night alone sand to the newspapers concerning the Tory Conference before some cruises and work on The Lady each side of Sunday lunch on our best china and silver as the Reagan/Gorbachev talks break up without agreement and HM The Queen arrives in China
Late last night I got into bed with Diana on a rapidly cooling night and she fled to the spare room complaining of my cold hands and feet! A while to get to sleep as a result, but then a lay in this morning, until Di brought my drink all sweetness and smiles. Completed my bathroom routine as if it were a weekday and just got downstairs in time for a nice cooked breakfast. All of the kids now eat a fried egg and bacon on Sunday and enjoy it immensely. As my legs have been strained and tired recently, after my exertions painting the house, I rested a while this morning, reading all of the sections of the Observer. There was much scepticism about this week’s Tory Conference therein, but I know that the bulk of the papers are Tory and will be singing their praises. As the ducks were quacking louder and louder, I went out after coffee and tended them and the doves, checking my boat cover in the process, which was still on the riverside lawn.
Decided to run up The Lady afterwards and rolled back the cockpit roof and managed to start it. Cast off and had a pleasant slow cruise up and around the lock island and then down past the gardens to the sewage form island, where I turned and came back. Not a breath of breeze and an almost non-existent flow on the river, which was very low as well. I moored then and ran the engine a while to both charge the batteries and clear the silt from the moorings. Time to prepare for lunch and I laid up the dining room table with our Rose Elegans and the silver from the safe. Debbie had come back from the St Neots Evangelical church service by now. I had received a call from Pat Law earlier, telling me it was Harvest Festival and we gave Debbie some apples and duck eggs from our garden to take. A pleasant meal, although the pork chops were rather thin and overdone, and we made short work of the washing up afterwards. Out with Daniel and his friend Steve to put the cover on The Lady. I took them around the islands again before and gave them a pound each, after helping me to put the cover on. Di and the girls came and got the curtains to wash and store for the winter. We then moved the day boat’s trailer onto the slipway and left the site ready to be cleared by Pete over the next couple of days. Quite tired once more this evening and, after tea, could do little more than watch TV and update my journal. Had to remonstrate with a number of boaters today about going too fast and stopped by the downstream moorings to chat to a retired chap there, who was equally upset by speeding cruisers. He seems to have a Dutch or South African accent. The news today is of the Reagan/Gorbachev talks collapsing amidst disagreement over the US abandoning Star Wars weapons research. They spoke longer than planned and were close to a deal that would have halved long range weapons and dealt satisfactorily with medium range ones. The Russians are complaining that US hard-liners have sabotaged a chance of agreement and now no date is set for the main summit, though talks between officials will still take place in Geneva. The next few days will see posturing for blame and intent, but at least the offers have not been withdrawn. Nigel Mansell got off to a poor start in the Mexican Grand Prix and could only get 5th place and must wait for his world car racing championship. The Queen has arrived in China, but will rest before her ceremonial duties tomorrow. The rescue forces are still dragging survivors and bodies from the wreckage of the San Salvador earthquake.