Some time chatting to the Paper Mill security guards and agreeing the new security fence is ugly and then spending time on the games lawn, which is growing and maturing nicely before I had a nasty fall on the slipway, tending the ducks. Francois Mitterrand is now leading the French Presidential elections, with Jacque Chirac in second place, The US navy seems to be digging itself into a more open conflict with the Iranians in the Gulf. Chancellor Lawson has acknowledged the ‘unfortunate disagreement’ with the Prime Minister over exchange rates before the Budget and now the government’s managers are trying to head off a further back-bench revolt over the new rules for Social Security payments
A bit of a lay in this morning and I got showered and shaved long before Diana had the customary fried breakfast ready. I drove out to check my election posters – which were all intact – then had ten minutes to get a gallon of two-star petrol for the lawn mower before the meal. Unfortunately, I got way laid at Samuel James Island Mill, talking to the security guards over the question of this new oppressive security fence that spoils the view of the old brick mill from the Little Paxton approach road and the river. The men are dead against it as well and the workers now call the Mill ‘Stalag 5’. Home a half hour late for my breakfast, but I recovered the meal, if not Diana’s humour. Then the task of cleaning the Range Rover, which took most of the morning, what with the vacuum cleaning needed as a result of fetching the timber for the poster board repairs. Then I mowed the games lawn, which came up nicely and took just a single bin full of grass from the Atco Club. Less success with the main riverside garden lawn. I started to mow it with blades set high before lunch and then lower this afternoon and it was a pain. First the mower has too small a grass box anyway. Then the weedkiller/fertilizer (‘Toplawn’) has stimulated the grass growth and delayed cutting, so that it was a drag emptying the bin dozens of times.
Mid afternoon, I was distracted to find a plastic litter bin cover on the Hayling footpath. Some drunks had obviously rolled it along last night. After ascertaining that it did not come from Paxton, I took it to St Neots police station and gave it in. Later tonight, I tended the ducks and doves. I had a bad fall on the slipway, cutting my left hand and badly bruising another of the ribs on my chest! I then cleared up my office and started working my way through a backlog of non-election problems. News tonight is of Francois Mitterrand leading the French Presidential elections, with Jacque Chirac in second place (35% & 20%). They will now fight a runoff between just them two on May 8th. In the P&O seamen’s labour dispute, the ferry company is now threatening to sack striking men if they do not accept the company’s terms tomorrow and return to work. There has been a climb down in international athletics circles over Zola Budd, as the British Athletics Association decides to hold an investigation into the charges, rather than sack her and the IAA changes its mind over expelling Britain. The US navy seems to be digging itself into a more open conflict with the Iranians in the Gulf, as they consider sending coast-guard boats. Chancellor Lawson has acknowledged the ‘unfortunate disagreement’ with the Prime Minister over exchange rates before the Budget, which is an interesting development. The government’s managers are trying to head off a further back-bench revolt over the new rules for Social Security payments and they are being pressed to raise the recipient’s savings threshold to £10,000, which would not cost the Inland Revenue very much