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There were very poor arrangements the swimming pool lessons today with many mothers queueing for more than three hours without success and so I have organised a protest. Lunch locally and then off to Cambridge to do some shopping this afternoon for exam textbooks and then to buy some monitors from St Neots and to choose a new bed for Daniel. A riverside barbecue with the law family this evening and time to complete my Council filing at last. A helicopter crash seriously injures two children’s TV presenters and a settlement to the postal strike is delayed
Slept well after a late night and then came down late to breakfast but I was still in time to see Daniel off to school who is desperate for a decent briefcase for his books. This morning, Diana went to queue up at the Ernulf Pool to get the girls into their next swimming lessons and had to queue up most of the morning. I stayed at home and, after feeding the ducks and doves, I tried teaching Della to learn to ride her bike. She was more enthusiastic than skilful, but it was the start. I tried to sort out more of my Council files without much success and I also spoke to one or two neighbours about the planning application behind Willow Close and then heard just how serious the Ernulf Pool queueing was. Mothers had arrived from 6:30 AM onwards for 10 AM booking session and the average wait was three hours. Even then, many came away without the places they wanted, and some mums were near to tears with anger and frustration at the end of it all.
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The children being back to school, Diana was off shopping leaving Della with me and so I settled into my office writing, organising and making phone calls before hand-delivering my correspondence in the Rolls-Royce because of the postal strike, as Diana delivered my campaign notes around the village. To the St Neots Local History society tonight talking to the County Archaeologist about the ‘Little Paxton Stone’ and then off to see Bill Walston at Thriplow farm to see his Apple Macintosh and I will now buy one for our use in St Neots before very late home to bed. Deep division at the TUC conference, more floods and plagues in Bangladesh and the Sudan and at home the Post Office strike still paralyses the Nation whilst India ban English test players who have played in South Africa
I was settling into our morning routine, now that the children are back to school, and things tend to happen earlier in these circumstances. Once Dan and Debbie were away, I read the paper and Diana went off to do the shopping in Waitrose leaving Della here – Friday being the only weekday now that she does not go to ‘Rising 5’s’. Then I settled into my office and wrote a letter to the Hunts Post in response to two stories that were attacking the County Council. A few phone calls organising and progressing things, and then to Huntingdon and St Neots (in the Rolls-Royce) hand-delivering my correspondence because of the postal strike. After lunch, I got Diana to deliver all my notes on ‘dog fouling’ and the ‘gravel pit road’ around the village, whilst I looked after Della and got on with the task of reorganising my files and generally getting up to date. Also put Pete right on a couple of aspects in the garden as well. Then the children home from school with their news, views and problems; tea, and then a couple of consecutive meetings this evening.
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I was first down to breakfast today after a poor night’s sleep and was working all day in my office printing out Gravel Pit Road and Dog Fouling letters and then collating them together for hand delivering tomorrow. A visit from Ros Smith concerning Little Paxton planning issues, a call from the Friendship Club about next Monday’s Village Hall crisis meeting and a discussion with Bill Walston about my purchase of an Apple Macintosh before taking Debbie horse-riding. The Crown pathologist at the Gibraltar IRA inquest reports 34 bullet wounds in a frenzied attack, the Cruise Missiles left Molesworth today to be flown off to the USA via Alconbury, the country’s mail is a complete standstill and the fast Customs and Excise cutter boats seized drugs worth £37 million.
After my very late night, I did not sleep too well at first and then only for a few hours before waking but, even so, I went downstairs early and managed to be the first to breakfast. I was working in my office all day, printing out my letters to the constituents on the first subject of the gravel pit road. It took the rest of the morning to photocopy the reports to go with it and then some time this afternoon to collate and staple the items together. Ros Smith arrived at 3pm and we discussed the three Little Paxton planning items were to crop up in next Monday’s planning committee so that I could be briefed on the history and the Parish’s view on the issues to be discussed. We also chatted about the problems of the Village Hall. I had been called by the Friendship club earlier and asked to intervene in next Monday’s crisis meeting over the Hall’s future.
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A ‘back to school’ day, with Daniel joining the Kimbolton 6th Form and enjoying its privileges, Debbie settling in well in her seat at the front of her new class and Della settling in well at ‘Rising 5’s’ with Di staying on as a helper there. I was taking advantage of this peace to work a full day on Council and SLD business, drop in to Pathfinder House and meeting up with fellow activists Percy Meyer and Michael Pope before an evening meeting of the St Neots Museum where they would like me to take over the Chairmanship soon. All postal sorting offices are at a standstill and no mail is being delivered, another large haul of drugs from the channel and police raid a large forgery factory in London
Awoke to a beautiful, dry and warm morning which was still rather misty. It seems that the season of foggy mornings has begun. Soon it warmed up and the day turned out to be very warm and muggy. After tending to my ducks and doves this morning, I spent the day working in my office producing letters on District Council business. I was progressing issues directly and trying to get certain of them onto the forthcoming committee agendae. I was able to do this, as that the children went back to school today. Daniel was in the sixth form for the first time and enjoyed the free timetable space and the more informal rules of the sixth form. They can have lunch at their convenience by joining the front of the queue and generally have the ascendancy of status over everyone else there. He was pleased to find out that very few others had ‘B’ in Additional Maths and only a handful with an ‘A ‘and so he has worked his way up towards the top of the year. Debbie settled in with her new teacher very well, found a place at the front of the class (for her poor hearing and eyesight) and was quite happy with proceedings despite some morning nerves. Della went quite well on her first day of ‘rising 5’s’ although Di was there as a helper.