A morning in my office reading and filing as the builders and BT engineer work on and I read ‘County Companion’ to Debbie and listen to the growing print crisis as the Unions take on Murdoch who intends to move Fleet Street to Wapping behind barbed wire, North Sea Oil prices drop below $20 per barrel and four Concordes fly splendidly in formation
A poor night and tired start to the day. Down to a breakfast and Diana had prepared boiled eggs for a change from our normal toast. All the family enjoyed them. Showered, dressed and then to start my day’s paperwork in the office. Spent the entire morning clearing my desk and reading a backlog of computer journals. By lunch time I had also updated my family financial summary and added up the estate, which is tantalisingly close to £2 million. Diana was back late from shopping in Bedford with Della and brought a poor sandwich for lunch, but I had some of my favourite bread and some pie and ice cream to follow.
The builders finished off the internal plastering in the hall, built up the brickwork a few courses and took all the old tiles out of the toilet. Tomorrow is intended as a busy day as they form the rear opening and remove the front door. This afternoon I made a few phone calls and checked my bank and credit card statements. The telecom engineers are agreeable to start the phone changes on Monday, but there is a problem over the connection of my autodialer. It seems that a new system, ABC (Alarm by Carrier), is now approved by the Cambridge Constabulary and 999 autodialers are no longer allowed. At 5.00pm I go out to do the doves and ducks, but Marilyn has already fed mine and they refuse to come home. Tea of trout again and Debbie enjoys eating it with me, but I warn Di not to do it too often, as she will grow weary of it, as she did with prawns. This evening I supervised Daniel’s homework and gave him hell over not getting a new exercise book for his general work. Then to read Debbie another Country Companion edition – this one on the Highlands. At last I got down to my handiwork. I had to disconnect one door contact as the door is being turned round and also put the travel rack in the new bathroom. Then to watch TV. News today of the Stanley Royd report that followed the outbreak of food poisoning at the Hospital leading to 19 deaths. The investigation contained numerous conclusions of mismanagement, as the food poisoning was traced to cold roast beef. Farley’s Health Products, part of the Glaxo group, has been put into liquidation after the outbreak of salmonella food poisoning contaminated the Farley’s baby food factory and the loss of £4 million. A big print strike is in the offing, as NGA and SOGAT’82 members voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action against Rupert Murdoch's News International. He is trying to break the old Fleet Street rule books and may move all the titles to Dockland Wapping. He has heavily fortified the Wapping works with three layers of barbed wire! 28 people have died in a Beirut car bomb, in an incident that marks the height of inter-faction disputes amongst so-called ‘Christians’. The Royal Yacht Britannia has rescued another 15 Britons and this time the Russians have also taken hundreds of Europeans and a few Britons. City pundits are expecting a 1 ½% interest hike tomorrow, as market interest rates are rising and the government is weighing the cost of supporting sterling. North Sea oil prices are below $20 a barrel as OPEC countries produce more to embarrass Britain and Norway. The Westland row develops again as the leak enquiry traces the leakage of the Attorney General’s letter to a senior civil servant. The 10th anniversary of Concorde is celebrated by flight pictures of 4 flying in formation and special provision on today’s flights. Wind and rain is forecast for tomorrow, which is a pity as the builders are pulling out the front doorframe and trying to install it at the back.