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Day in Cambridge shopping and seeking refreshment amongst hordes of American tourists before struggling to complete the house purchase and then home to work on my steamer chairs as servicemen fall foul of the law in Cyprus and starvation continues in Africa but Britain is ending the aid soon
A good night’s sleep and awake to my morning tea and another bright morning. Breakfast of cornflakes and milk, with apple juice, brought to my bedside and this allowed me to finish reading the paper before rising. Up to wash, shave and dress at 9.00 and not out to the birds until 9.45. The 13th duck seems to be recovering slightly and now feeds with the others, but stays close to the slipway during the day. Only 9 duck eggs today, which is not too good. A little time at the office, first phoning David Tebbut of PCW magazine to discuss writing a chapter for a book with my theme ‘Why Buy British’, countering another chapter on ‘Why buy IBM’. I agree to do it and will get a fee to pass on to the BMMG. Then to update my bank statements and work out my balances, before collecting Diana and Della and setting off to town. I was due to meet them in half an hour after they had been to the library and I had completed a few transactions, but the Abbey National gave such poor service that I was at least a quarter of an hour late. It seems they had not updated their computers for the new transaction rules and have to do my business over two days and keep the pass books in the meantime! Eventually, off to Cambridge and we park at a meter for an hour and go to the Copper Kettle for our normal lunch of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding.
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Stowing my new liquidation chandlery stocks and tending to The Lady on a sunny day that turned showery after selling lots of duck eggs and reading to Debbie as the enquiry about the Belgian football riot also holds the police as being culpable
Awake to my morning tea on a sunny day. To read yesterday’s Economist and the 125th anniversary edition of the Investors Chronicle, before the business headlines of The Sunday Times. Down to a splendid fried breakfast and, after washing and dressing, out at 9.30am to the birds. 11 eggs today and, before lunch, the ‘Egg Lady’ came to buy 2 ½ dozen. The doves still incubating the two eggs, but all manner of cats prowling around after fledglings. This, plus the continuous assaults by the Aylesbury’s on our ducks, makes me wonder if we should get a gun or something to ward them off. This morning continuing to clear out the shed and stow away the screws in ordered fashion. I had to use the wheelbarrow to cart the stock, it being so heavy and also the other bolts and fittings. I put a set of screw boxes on the shed shelf and packed away the additional stocks in a cardboard box, having made a full list of stocks of brass screws, chromium plated brass screws, zinc plated steel screws, stainless steel bolts, brushes etc. I had to dodge the showers, some heavy, as the rain returned again in what must be good growing weather. The river was well up, but just short of covering the main landing stage.
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Daniel enjoys my dinghies and outboards as a distraction from school before I go over to St Ives and spot a fine bronze weather vane and some SHDC spoons for my growing collection before a fine tea of prawns with Debbie and some evening boxing on TV as the Norland ferry runs aground avoiding a coaster
Awake this morning to a day with clear blue skies and a rising barometer. I tell Daniel about the purchases yesterday and he is very pleased about the new motor. His friends are coming round today to clean the dinghies and so he goes out to move the Blue Peter from The Lady’s davits to the garden plot, but ends up in a muddle with one craft adrift and unable to start the motor on the other. Diana is angry as he becomes late for school and I go out to help him. Back to bed for breakfast and then to catch up on two days journal. The news in the meantime has been that England football clubs have been banned indefinitely from all world matches (which I think is too harsh and precipitate an action) and the England national team may not be able to compete in the World Cup. The man trapped in the well, Romanus Girenas, was sadly found dead at the end of a herculean effort to save him. Enoch Powell’s embryo, Bill, was frustrated by its opponents after a ding-dong procedural battle and the weekend sitting of the House of Commons was therefore averted. The government is backing off a little from some of its controversial legislation and have decided not to press ahead with the scrapping of rent controls.
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To London and Birdcage Walk for my lively ESRC debate at the RIPA where I challenge Thatcher’s Chairman advisor before fielding press interviews and catching the boat chandlery auction at Ely to buy lots of fixings etc and seek refreshment at The Cutter Inn before home in the rain
Up early, washed, shaved, dressed and to breakfast with the family. Away by car to the St Neots station and by train to Kings Cross and by tube to St James Station. A short walk (still raining) to No.3 Birdcage Walk, opposite St James Park and the offices of the Royal Institute of Public Affairs. A debating group (the Public Policy group) of the ESRC had organised a seminar on High Technology and Public Affairs, and I was down to respond to Jim Northcote’s speech on ‘Diffusion of Hi-tech Investment’. A lively morning and tasty buffet lunch. Others I knew included Jill Hills and Philip Virgo, who told me that David Fairbairn is now leaving as Director of the NCC, which is a shame.