A fair frost on a bitterly cold day with 40 league football matches called off whilst at home the heating kept failing and we were relying on open fires and fan heaters and I was ill with a worrying urinary tract infection and late to take Debbie and to see Peter Pan in Bedford as the Marcos regime claims victory in the Philippines as a blow to democracy but Murdoch pulls back from legal action against the NGA as they are within the law for once
Slept well and woke to my tea. A fair frost again last night and some time before our fan heater could take the chill of the house. I tried to light the failed boiler – even briefly – but the pilot light and thermostat seem to be getting much worse. Breakfast as usual, but conscious of a stinging feeling whilst passing water that normally means a urinary tract infection. Still, got ready as usual and went out to the birds, who were consequently appreciative. I noticed this morning that the dead thrush on our balcony had not died from the cold or lack of food, but had struck the window.
It must have assumed that the reflection was open landscape and left the mark and feathers on the glass. I lit the log fire, filled up the baskets and played with Della for a while, before finishing off the paper and taking morning coffee. Soon time for a nice chicken lunch. Di had opted to cook lunch today instead of tomorrow, as we are expecting the Tomblins for tea. Settled down in front of the TV after lunch to watch the England vs Scotland, Calcutta Cup, rugby union match. A game disappointingly lost by the English in relative goal kicking in the early stages, followed by a loss of heart and landslide after half time. A very rough match, with many injuries to the English and little done by the New Zealand referee or the French touch judges to stop it. A snack from Di and then got ready to take Debbie out to the pictures to Bedford to see Peter Pan. As we prepared to go, two men rushed into the garden pursued by uniformed and detective police and made their escape over the fence, which was a surprise. It was also a disappointment, as I was unable to get out quick enough to catch them. Rather later than planned, I took Debbie off to Bedford and we got there at 5.10pm, ten minutes later than planned. In fact, the performance started at about 4.00pm, but Debbie didn’t realise she missed anything. Home by 6.45pm to find that more logs had fallen on the lounge carpet and I begin to despair of the care that others take of a log fire. My chill seemed worse and so I went early to bed with bottles and the portable TV to watch the news and McGuigan fight. A bad day for repression as the Marcos regime announces that they have won the election and more deaths in South Africa. But at Wapping, Murdoch pulls back from the courts as he realises that the NGA might be within the law for once. The cold weather led to 40 football league matches being called off and only five cup matches played.