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Relaxing Sunday enjoying a full English breakfast and then siting nest boxes before I turn to the Comart telephone call monitoring system to view those dodgy staff calls as the Thatcher family’s construction share dealings come under scrutiny
Another lay in to read the Sunday Times, write up my journal and sift through many brief case papers. A good fried breakfast of duck egg, bacon, fried bread, mushrooms and tomato with apple juice. Up at 10.00 and out to clean out the duck house at 10.30. Only five eggs and the hutch is a fair mess. A good tour of the gardens to survey the land for nest boxes. Eventually I put one with a small entrance hole box on the largest tree visible from our dining room window; an open box on the old plot amongst the conifer hedge; and a large nest box of my own manufacture near the river. This latter masterpiece, from an RSPB design, is supposed to suit either the Stock Dove, the Little Owl, or a Jackdaw, but I don’t think there are any in the neighbourhood!
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Relaxing day reading my Interview in Computing about IBM, getting library books and visiting RSPB Sandy Lodge for bird and nest box publications before returning home to enjoy our first open fire in our new fireplace as Thatcher wins the GCHQ battle but loses the PR war.
A fair lay in until 10.00am punctuated only by rising for quarter of an hour to eat a breakfast of toast and apple juice. During this time, a full opportunity to read all of the computer journals and other papers that were brought home for the weekend. In ‘Computing’ a report from an interview with me where I am critical of the moves by the CCTA director to reduce its role and quoted as stating that IBM should be kept off of the approved list for microcomputer suppliers to government. Up at 10 and half an hour washing, bathing and generally getting ready and then out to release the ducks, feed them and collect 8 eggs. We had a new customer come to the door today as we are again displaying the ‘eggs for sale’ sign. Off with Diana and Debbie to St Neots and with Debbie to the library whilst Diana went shopping. A minor disaster as we discovered Di had my library ticket but I got out some books and a story tape for Debbie and looked at the local history books.
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Celebratory drink after record month for Comart Computers shipments on a cold and windy day as Tony Benn wins the Chesterfield by-election and Thatcher’s Tories are last
Up and to a boiled duck egg for breakfast and then on time to the office to review the mail from both yesterday and today. A full morning of office work before announcing that Comart would buy a round of drinks for all employees at the White Horse at lunchtime. We have exceeded £600K this month for CCL and with it the monthly record for shipments. This probably will equate to a net profit of £100K+. News this morning that Tony Benn had won the Chesterfield by-election with a majority of about 6000 over the Liberal/SDP Alliance candidate in second place. Short Brothers in Belfast win a US order worth £150M for transport aircraft for use between the Nato troops in UK and Germany that will secure the jobs of 7000 for the next four years and there are new peace moves in the Lebanon.
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Defending a prosecution in Cheshunt Magistrates Court for speeding and then a journey down history lane in Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire until home to find much building work complete as the Governments bullying of GCHQ staff apparently succeeds
Up as usual and my breakfast of toast and fruit juice and I get dressed in my lighter weight sports jacket and trousers. I leave at the usual time but make my way down the A1 and across to Cheshunt to make an appearance at 10.00am in The Courthouse, Turners Hill. I plead guilty to the summons and charge of exceeding the 70mph speed limit on the A10 bypass on Thursday 19th January 1984 and in mitigation point out that the weather was fine and sunny, the road was dry with little traffic and at no time was I accused of driving dangerously. I also claimed that the following antics of the unmarked black police car had increased my speed as I attempted to get out of its way. A stern Chairman of the Justices, a lady, admonished me for speeding a second time, pointed out that it was my duty to obey the speed limit, they often disqualified drivers for these speeds and it was not for me to criticise the police methods. They obviously took my points into account as they only awarded me 3 points. A stiff fine of £100 and £6 costs as well.