With Debbie taking Kate Smith to Staughton stables for a trial horse-riding session, I worked all day and night completing the latest Focus newsletter and circulating it to colleagues for comments. With the Pound Sterling due to enter into the EMS the next day, the stock exchanges are expected to soar at the good news.
A lay in this morning before our normal fried breakfast. We had a call from Kate Smith last night who arranged to go with Debbie to Staughton stables for a horse-riding hack. She hoped to buy or lease her own pony if she got on well with the arrangement and so we asked Debbie to look after her. I did my chores and found the swimming pool skimmer stuffed full of leaves when I emptied it. The conservatory heating was in operation last night and the floor warm after the outside temperature had dropped. I noted from my Fax machine (that resets to "auto" each time and prints a log) that we had four power cuts in all and so it obviously took the electricity board some time to find the offending fault close at hand whilst they switched in and out sections of line.
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It was mid-morning again before I had finished yesterday's journal and could get down to the task of finishing off the FOCUS. I worked all afternoon on this and then all evening as well until, at 11.00pm, I had finished and could distribute draft copies to my colleagues for their comment and correction. It was nearly midnight by the time I had finished delivering them and I retired, shattered, to bed. It had been another very good effort and the final FOCUS editions looked very good, but it had been very demanding. The news stories were all about the entry of the Pound Sterling into the EMS tomorrow and the stock exchanges are expected to soar at the good news.