A tiring but successful day repairing my ARDIC boat heater, identifying the garage door issue with the security system and then servicing the ATCO lawn mower which I used to cut the games lawn before the rain returned. The aftermath condemnations and defence of the SAS ‘execution’ of IRA members in Gibraltar and the Vincennes downing of the civilian airliner rumble on, the Church of England Synod has agreed today to the ordination of women as priests and labour attack the government for underfunding the National Health Service on its 40th birthday
Today was a day of tiring physical activity but rewarding in terms of the outstanding jobs completed. I had gone to bed very late, trying to write up my journal whilst watching TV, and was thus slow to get going this morning. Still made it to breakfast in time for my boiled duck egg and then made a couple of chasing phone calls from my office. I rang Marshalls to talk to them about today’s Range Rover service and then L H Jones to try to get them to come out and repair my ARDIC boat heater. I could not achieve the latter and so set myself the task of effecting a repair. First, I copied and edited the ARDIC handbook – it was in 6 languages, so spread out that it was a confusion to read and I could not cope with it. Then I went out and tried a few things and soon found that the fuel pump was not working. There then followed several hours of messing about with it, until I managed to find some dirty contacts and made it work on reassembly.
Then the task of reassembling the pump to the heater and was pleased to find that it worked when the job was complete. I staggered in for a late lunch of salad and rested for a little while after, to recuperate. The trouble is that the heater is mounted below decks and it is very difficult working below floor level, upside down! I had listened to some of the radio test match coverage this morning and the West Indies beat England easily in quite a humiliation. This afternoon, I tackled the security alarm system that had been failing to sense the ‘up-and-over’ door operation in the outer garage. I identified the actual door contact as the culprit and removed it for replacement when a spare one arrives. Tea of cheese omelette as I had started to service the ATCO club lawnmower now that the handbook had arrived. After tea I carried on; changing the oil, oiling the drive chains, adjusting the cutter by-pass, and adjusting the fuel mixture and slow running and cleaning the air filter. It ran much better as a result and I just managed to cut the games lawn before the rain returned. After tending to the ducks and doves, I sat quietly and wrote up my journal, before the TV news and an early night to bed. The main stories all about the results of violence and confrontation. The faces of the SAS soldiers who killed the IRA people in Gibraltar must be seen by the Coroner, Council and Jury in the inquest, despite the pleas of the British government that the soldiers should remain anonymous. It seems that the soldiers may refuse to go to Gibraltar, with the British government supporting conditions of anonymity being attacked. The dead men and women had no weapons when killed and were reported as trying to surrender at the time. The Vincennes incident is to be investigated over a 15 day period, but the process will be a whitewash. It now seems that the US are claiming that contradictory response signals were received from the Iranian airbus. Today in London, an Iranian diplomatic offensive is denying all aspects of the US story. The Church of England Synod has agreed today to the ordination of women as priests. Male priests who feel they have to leave the church will be offered £30,000 compensation as a result. On this 40th birthday of the National Health Service, Labour have been attacking the government for underfunding the serviced.