The Queen’s 60th Birthday – A timely start to the day, felling and then cutting up the awkward hawthorn tree with my electric chain saw before the hail, rain and thunder storm hit. This added to the sodden ground and raised river level which Daniel braved for a totally unsuitable boat trip to St Neots to collect Gary. A wonderful celebration today of the Queen’s 60th Birthday, with 6000 children carrying 120,000 daffodils, pushing a huge birthday ‘crown’ cake of flowers down the Mall to then sing ‘Happy Birthday’ in front of Buckingham Palace. The other news is all about Libya as Europe favours a diplomatic and sanction solution and the US undertakes another huge air exercise today
Awake to my morning tea, rested after yesterday’s exertions. Able to wash and dress in good time for breakfast and enjoyed Jordan’s wheat flakes again. A prowl of the house to keep the children on their toes and then out with Daniel to meet Pete arriving at 8.00am. We got out the electric chain saw and tackled the tree straight away. The saw was slower than anticipated, but I got used to it and soon had the Hawthorne tree down. It was growing at a rather drunken angle and was dead in line with our new path to the workshops.
The rest of the morning cutting it up and then getting most of our old logs that were hanging around the place and cutting them up too. Eventually, a heavy shower put paid to proceedings and I went indoors to read today’s paper for half an hour before lunch, looking after Della at the same time. Lunch of salad rolls with ham and pickle and sponge cake and single cream to follow, as a treat and to finish the cream up. To the office after lunch to sort out my papers and check our bank statements and Barclaycard vouchers, which I did until afternoon tea at 3.00pm. Quite upset by the money Diana is spending, which seems her main means of relaxation these days. Out again to gather up the logs and stow them in the inner garage, which was a half dozen barrow loads and needed much expenditure of care in the stacking and energy in the moving of them. In to a fine tea of topside beef stew, with pear halves and ice cream to follow. Out again after to finish the logs and then start the shed base once more. A large bank of dark black cloud from windward put paid to this last effort and I just managed to put my things away, feed and roost the doves and ducks, and put the two cars away in the outer garage, before the heavens opened with hail, rain and thunder. So much rain we have lately that the ground is sodden and the river as high as I have seen it in late April for many a year. In to a bath for the first time in a while and then a volume of the Country Companion for Debbie, who had missed them lately. The builders had returned today in the form of John, who did a number of jobs on the list. The pool man resumed the tiling of the pool sides and bottom, was grateful for my pumping over the weekend and worked under a layer of polythene sheeting that protected him from the rain. Daniel took the boats to St Neots, picked up Gary, and returned later in the day in weather conditions quite unsuitable to his experience as a novice. Later on, some TV and chance to catch up on the news. The principal story was the wonderful celebration of the Queen’s 60th birthday, with a pageant of vision and music. It started at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, for a morning service for the complete Royal Family and they arrived in torrential rain. It was a service of praise and thanksgiving for the Queen’s lifetime of dedication to the British people. By this afternoon the weather had cleared up and 6000 children carrying 120,000 daffodils, pushing a huge birthday ‘crown’ cake of flowers down the Mall. Once at the foot of Buckingham Palace, they sang a wonderfully rendered song for her birthday. This evening, she attended a birthday show in further celebration of her life’s work. In the wake of Libya, which still fills the front pages of the newspapers, the celebrations took place after an unprecedented security screening of the area. Britain and her EEC partners have agreed a package of measures against the Libyan ‘peoples bureaux’ and limitations on the Libyan Diplomat numbers. Even so, the Americans are not particularly impressed and these measures would not have stopped the bombing raid decision. Three big building societies have cut their mortgage interest rates to 11%. US air bases throughout East Anglia are taking part in another mammoth exercise for three days and the CND expressing public fears that it may be another screen for further action against Libya. More than 100 planes are taking part, including the F111s used in last week’s attack. More programmes on the Libyan crisis before I retire to bed. After today’s periods of rain and sun, tonight is forecast to be chilly and windy, before another showery day tomorrow.