Saving the dinghy from the flooding on a breezy and chilly day, too cold to use our 60degF swimming pool, after a relaxing day in Bedford and Willington Garden Centre researching water gardening. This as Nuclear and Chemical Weapons Disarmament in Europe took centre stage in the USSR/USA arms talks which led to a hasty plan for a visit to the UK for our input. Fears of a trade war with Japan depress UK shares and inflation is till at 4% and Ernest Saunders is fighting to save his assets from sequestration.
A restless night to start with and then dropped off after midnight and made up for it then. Awoke to a sunny morning, but the river was well up, with more rain forecast for later on. Down for breakfast in my pyjamas and then showered immediately afterwards and dressed quickly so as to shortly be ready to take the others to Bedford. Before we went I noticed Pete mowing the lawns and asked that he wash & polish the Daimler afterwards. Di actually drove us off in the Range Rover and I took the opportunity to read a water garden catalogue and also today’s paper on the way. We parked in Lurke Street car park and walked to Debenhams for morning coffee.
Di and Dan had hatched up a plan to buy a radio cassette player for her, but after we had visited a few audio shops, it was plain that the needs still had to be evaluated. As the others went shopping, I relaxed in the cosy chairs of the Bedford Library, reading my Stapley Garden Centre book. Lunch at Debenhams (of chicken, boiled potatoes etc) and then the drive home, stopping at Willington Garden Centre to look around. Dan looked after Della, whilst Di and I saw lemon, orange & grapefruit plants, ferns, fuchsias etc etc, and I think she is now taking an interest. This afternoon, Daniel & I saved a dinghy from the flood, then I went out with instruments to survey the site of the pool & conservatory. The layout still worries me and needs more thought. This evening, we all watched TV. The news today is of a new call for European nuclear disarmament talks by Gorbachev, this time aimed for European weapons rather than the USSR/US balance. It is also promising to destroy stocks of chemical weapons. No response yet from America, whose Secretary of State, Shultz, is leaving for Moscow soon and is now holding discussions with Geoffrey Howe, the British Foreign Secretary. The Japanese have announced a record trade surplus and London stocks are falling again for fear of a Japanese trade war. Former Guinness Chairman, Earnest Saunders, is fighting (in court) demands for his assets to be frozen. It transpires that he destroyed entries in office diaries and shredded incriminating records. The annual rate of inflation is still about 4%, having just risen slightly. The weather has turned out breezy and chilly tonight, which is a pity as the swimming pool is already in the high 60sF