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This mad day started with a heart-to-heart talk with Diana brought to a head by her very tight chest with her bronchitis as we took the Range Rover for service. She is very unhappy with our marriage and public lifestyle tied down looking after me but is even less happy when I am away!
Then Mum arrived at the front door having persuaded some friends, an ambulance driver and her an intensive-care nurse, to bring her over from Stanton to visit Dad's grave. I drove Di hurriedly into St Neots to get some ingredients for a sandwich and cake lunch! I then had a visit from two young boys from Mr Burgess's class at Little Paxton School who wanted advice with their litter project and then I rushed in to get quickly washed, shaved and changed ready to dash off to Southoe for a Parish Meeting.
The DTI has come in for criticism for its handling of the House of Fraser takeover by the Fayed brothers in 1985, Nato chiefs have agreed to start making armed force reductions because of detente and Gorbachev has agreed to hold a nationwide referendum on The Soviet Union becoming a market economy
Had a little trouble getting comfortable last night. Diana has a very tight chest with her bronchitis which is upsetting her and I could not get my temperature right after my time in the open air. I sat in bed for a while but then got up as I had a lot of gardening to do today. First, after breakfast I stayed in my office until Di was ready, and then we had to take the Range Rover to Sawtry to have a major service and overhaul. It was nearly 10.00am before we got there after Diana had been delayed. On the way back, I tackled Di about her latest depression and weight problems, and she ended in tears rather than really open out to me about what the real problems are. She says that she does not like being married to me or the rather too-public life that we lead, that she does not like me being at home under her feet, that she cannot do anything that she wants to do and is tied down looking after me all the time. I pointed out that she should therefore be happier when I make my trips away, but she seemed to have even more problems then. She then said that she does not know what the problem is, and I gave up.
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An early start cleaning on The Lady until Sally and Percy arrived to discuss our motions and subjects for actioning through the committees of the District Council in the year to come, after which I could then resume. Then the final cruise on The Lady to leave her on the St Ives sales pontoon. England lost 2-1 to Uruguay and thus ended an unbeaten run of 17 matches, beef sales have fallen 40% as a direct result of the "Mad Cow" disease.
British Coal has warned that 7,500 miners will lose their jobs with more pit closures and New Zealand ketch, Steinlager, sailed into Southampton to win the 33,000-mile Round-The-World Yacht Race. The inquest jury investigating the Boeing 737-400 M1 Kegworth plane crash have given verdicts of accidental death after the wrong engine was shut down
Not a bad night but all the family were still suffering from bronchial and chest complaints. The breeze had dropped markedly from yesterday, but the dryness and mild weather had, in my view, created a bumper crop of dust and pollen and everybody is wheezing as a result. I was up quite early this morning, and, after breakfast, I put in an hour and a half of exuberant cleaning on The Lady. I started from the roof downwards and scrubbed with a brush and detergent, rinsing off with a hose as I went. By 9.30am, I had just about finished this task and then Sally and Percy arrived for a pre-arranged meeting to discuss our motions and subjects for actioning through the committees of the District Council in the year to come. It was a particularly good session which I thought was a better way of proceeding than just putting up motions piecemeal in an un-coordinated way. We all had action items to progress as a result and knew what we were trying to achieve.
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Up after a restful night to feed the doves and fish on a dry and cool day with a strong north-easterly wind. A long session on my administration and paperwork, council and personal before hosting Alison Gray from L.H. Jones marina who agreed that £15,000 is a reasonable price for The Lady which I then commissioned ready to be taken down to St Ives read for sale. I arranged for a third builder to view the Heronshaw work and spoke to Mum.
Between 80 and 100 people died when Indian security forces opened fire on a crowd of 100,000 in Srinagar, Kashmir after their leader was shot and, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the Palestinians have now suffered 18 dead and hundreds wounded after protests over previous shootings and West Bank settlement.
I slept well again last night and was up in good time this morning. The weather continued dry but cool with a north-east wind that had strengthened to force 5 or 6 and so I am glad that I am not trying to go out of Yarmouth or cruise in the Wash! I fed the doves and fish and decided that I would continue with my administration and paperwork. I wrote all manner of letters about my financial affairs, boat insurance and repairs and then reconciled my Abbey National cheque account and credit card accounts and paid a variety of bills. I sent Diana off with a host of transactions to do in St Neots whilst I worked on yet more paperwork. I wrote letters on council business and made several telephone calls to arrange matters for the rest of the week.
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A late start to another day tending the fish and pond whist watering the games lawn before a nice fried breakfast and then the day working on administration and financial planning. Off at midday with the girls to the White Hart children’s' riding school in Great Gidding where Della had a lesson.
Percy phoned at great length with suggestions for forthcoming meeting agenda and then Mr Peter Frenette of Cock Audley came to complain speeding traffic that plague the road that goes past his house
I slept well last night and needed the rest and sleep after all my recent exertions. Di was rather late to get us going and, although I took some time to get washed and ready, she had still not cooked the breakfast by that time and so I spent a half hour in the conservatory. I fed the fish and watered the plants with a mixture of pond water and fertiliser. The plants grow so quickly there that they need feeding so regularly. A nice fried breakfast which I could eat with a clear conscience having been working so hard lately and becoming slimmer as a result. I toyed with the idea of planting out some of the Asters and Lobelia that I had grown from seed, but the ground is so dry at the moment and the nights cool that I do not think they are ready for that. Instead I put the sprinkler onto the games lawn and went into my office to work on my year-end financial summaries.
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