Busy chilly and breezy day, tired after late night televised World Cup football, visiting St Ives for the auction viewing and then St Neots to collect Daniel before driving to St Albans to meet The Tomlin Family and collect David for the weekend; the boys enjoying the dinghy on the river and then everyone in the swimming pool after. Another South African security clampdown and appeals from Archbishop Tutu for peace, UK party differences over the Polaris nuclear deterrent and the Chileans being fingered for killing Olof Palme last year
Deadly tired after last night’s TV football and most reluctant to get up. A quarter of an hour late for breakfast and all of the family had already finished theirs. Put some seed out for the doves and then settled onto a veranda chair on the south balcony and started to read the Financial Times. Sheltered from this pesky north-west wind we have had this last couple of weeks, and in the sun, it was very pleasant and I would have insisted that we had coffee there, but Di wanted to set off for St Ives. The morning for the viewing for Tuesday’s antique auction, but, unlike yesterday, there was nothing of relevance and interest for me. Went to the farm and garden shop opposite and got an egg basket and new round feed hopper for the ducks, which is a great improvement on what I have now.
Met Di back at the car park and we drove to St Neots to pick up Daniel from the school bus. Also had time to take my two new Speed maps (of Beds and Bucks) into the framing shop, with my one of Hunts (already mounted) and to ask for them to mount them in the exact same way. All together to the Happy Eater in Sandy, then on down the A1 to St Albans to meet the Tomblin family and pick up David, who will be staying for the weekend. We stopped to chat to them and drank their coffee. John Tomblin seemed a bit quiet and tired – perhaps the World Cup is taking its toll on him as well! Back by 4.30pm and took the children into the swimming pool, which they all enjoyed. Debbie invited Amy round, as Dan had David to swim with. Then the boys went out on the dinghy after tea, whilst I watched Northern Ireland lose to Spain 2-1, which means both they and England only have one point out of a possible 4 so far, with one match to play. We listened to the first England test cricket match against the Indians during our car journeys today and the England team are also 50 behind on first innings here too. Later tonight I hung our two new Harraden paintings in the ‘Gallery’ and mounted the notes referring to them as well, for interest. The boys to bed after watching a video and then the TV news on teletext. South Africa in the news again tonight, as a great security crackdown is feared. 1600 people have died in unrest that started in early 1984 and continues to the present day. Archbishop Tutu has made an emotional appeal for blacks to stop killing each other, as he spoke at a funeral for such a victim. A widening rift is developing between Dr Owen and those who believe that Polaris should not be replaced and the US bases cleared of cruise missiles. The Liberals are annoyed at his outspoken comments in support of Britain’s retention of an independent nuclear deterrent. There is speculation that the Chileans were involved in the assassination of Sweden’s Premier, Olof Palme, last year and an investigation is in progress. The weather forecast is for warmer weather tomorrow, with the breeze veering to the south west.