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Overcoming boat problems whilst the children played and went to watch a film and then I visited an antique fair at Hinchingbrooke House and looked around the place before we locked The Lady downstream to Huntingdon for the night. News today again dominated by the escalating boycott of the Commonwealth Games, which now seemed doomed as ‘the friendly games’ and could be a white only event and Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson’s honeymoon plans are leaking out
Slept well for the first night on the boat, but woke early and a long time before the others were awake. In the end I light the gas to boil a kettle for our morning drinks and Di then got up to make them. Our refrigerator is not working and the water system pump is not holding the water to the right pressure. Lastly, we have a growing list of items that we had forgotten to bring. Apart from all this, we are surviving pretty well. Toast for breakfast and several croissants, which we all enjoyed and then the children went out to play on the riverside playground rides, which is the main reason that we moor at Godmanchester so regularly.
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Leaving for our boating holiday on The Lady after a trip to Bedford to collect Daniel’s BBC micro and locking up and securing The Hayling View before our voyage to our favourite stopping place in Godmanchester. Now 11 Commonwealth countries have pulled out of the forthcoming Games with more expected to follow
Slept well and woke to my morning tea a little later than normal. Wandered around a little, before reading the morning paper and mail at the front door. Breakfast whilst not having dressed and then up to my shower and shave after. Got Di to cut my hair, which had become quite long and then washed it after. Soon Di took Debbie for her last day at school this summer and then we got ready to go to Bedford.
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Back at home, editing videos and catching up on my journal before taking Debbie for her riding lesson and agreeing the sale of 39 Gordon Road as a mass exodus of countries from the Commonwealth Games mutes Thatcher’s rhetoric but she still holds out against all sides as the US is now turning. This as her massaging of unemployment figures causes outrage in The Commons and we prepare to leave on a holiday on The Lady
Awake to my morning tea on a much fresher morning and, Di having opened all the doors and windows early, it seemed cool, in spite of the sun. Breakfast of croissants and then, setting Daniel up to wash my car in the back garden, I went to my office to update my journal. I had to stick in the notes from my days away and it is quite a relief to have my journal proper back. Then to complete my toilet, feed the doves and settle to the long process of editing and cataloguing my video films.
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Returning home after a quaint flight from Wick to then drive from east Midlands to a mass arrival of our children’s friends for swimming after which I edit my tapes and catch up with work. A constitutional crisis is growing as Her Majesty the Queen finds Thatcher quite unwilling to listen to advice and now even Sir Geoffrey Howe publicly speaks out
A better night’s sleep at the Ladbroke Mercury Motor Inn, Wick, and awake to our early morning call and tea at 7.00am. Pity there could be no breakfast until 7.30 and then the breakfast room was full of a large coach party and other residents who wanted an early start to the day. We barely had time to eat our breakfast before the taxi arrived and we made Wick Airport by 8.00am. It was raining lightly, but steadily, this morning and we had to stand outside the terminal building until let in. The crew and a ‘one-man terminal staff’ arrives with the keys and the passengers – all six of us – get into a Piper light aircraft and sat with the single pilot, as he flew the plane down to Aberdeen.