To Walton on Thames on another cold day with Daniel to view, trial and buy a Viking 17, though we had to break Thames ice to do so! Home to ring baby doves, continue writing and editing my history book and spend a little time with Debbie. Two Irishmen are arrested for planning an attack on Margaret Thatcher’s son’s wedding; a riot in Wolverhampton over police violence, Jerry Hall is cleared of drug offences in Barbados
Despite my late night, I was awake by 7.00am and so got up as usual and showered/shaved for breakfast. A bit groggy, but otherwise OK. A little while reading today’s paper, before Daniel badgered me into leaving. A nice journey in the Daimler, although our navigation was awful. Being out of practice on the roads, having an out of date map book and being a bit disorganised, we probably doubled our journey time. Went through Bedford and witnessed an unfortunate incident, as an old lady collapsed twice in the street, with hypothermia or something. I stopped the car and went to assist, but fortunately a police car was passing and she was taken off by ambulance. We went round the M25 orbital motorway to the M3 and then east to Walton-on-Thames.
They got the Viking 17 out for us and into the water and we took it for a trip. The poor hull had to break the ice in the marina first, but then Daniel took the helm. The boat planed easily with a 25 h.p. and quite frightened Daniel at the controls! Back inside, we negotiated a 2 ½ % discount for cash and ordered one with a 20 h.p. electric start Mariner, which will be a good compromise for our river and sea use. Daniel was delighted. A rather late lunch, as the M25 has no service areas and we eventually ate at Sandy. Home in mid-afternoon and I was back to my printing. Finished off a couple of files and had done most of Paxton Park and I thought it was time to break off at 9.30. I had two days journal to write up and needed to catch up on some sleep to boot. Spent a little time with Debbie tonight, but not much. Di forgot to take the Range Rover into Marshalls today when she went into Bedford, but she says that I never told her to do it! How upsetting. The news today is of record damages of £850K for a victim of an industrial accident, who was completely paralysed by toxic gasses. There are arrests for two Irishmen, charged with planning a bombing of Mark Thatcher’s marriage – he is the Prime Minister’s son. There is a riot today in Wolverhampton, as a petty criminal dies in police custody and fellow blacks stone shop windows etc. The police say the man had a heart attack, following drug taking. Mick Jagger’s girlfriend, Jerry Hall, has been cleared of the possession of drugs in Barbados, after she claimed that a package collected from the airport did not belong to her. Another very cold day and no sign of a let up in this weather. Managed to ring the two baby doves today, but the other is too big. It left the nest today and I had to put up the ladder to return it before the cats realised. I am enlisting the small boys that have moved in to No 39 to watch over it, in case it comes out again.