St George’s Day – Working with the fitter and builder getting our heating working for a while and the roof flashing being fitted, the tiler making progress on the pool and then some office work after a nice lunch before Diana took the girls for a swimming lesson and I helped Daniel with his homework later on as the weather continues wet. South Africa are reforming the Pass Laws, Reagan is threatening more bombing on Libya to respond to terrorist action and many diplomats are being expelled and the video coverage of British journalist Alec Collett being hung by Islamists.
Slept well and woke to my morning tea, with aches again after yesterday. Chased Di out of the en-suite at 7.00am and was therefore ready for breakfast at 7.30am. Ready and out before 8.00am to get things set up for a morning with Pete and the electric chain saw. We cleared all of the old large logs, moved across to the workshop and then sawed up all of the brushwood that had been cluttering the place for weeks. Interrupted a couple of times on the matter of our boiler. First, the fitter came, yet again, to fit a new pilot light assembly and then, by prior appointment, the builder, architect and gas technician arrived a couple of hours later to review the situation. Surprisingly for us all, this made the boiler work for the rest of the day, which seems like a miracle, but we shall see.
A nice lunch of meat and two veg and then, as the rain showered on and off all afternoon, I went to my office and did some work. First, sorting out my desk and papers, I then paid all of our outstanding accounts and Di posted the letters later on. She took Debbie and Della for her swimming lesson and left a tea for Daniel and I of sesame seed rolls, ham and doughnuts to follow. Afterwards, I helped Daniel with his schoolwork and got him to do a few things before going out to tend the ducks and doves. The weather is milder than of late, but it has surely been the wettest month you could imagine and I have kept the winter cover on The Lady. In fact, it is just as well, because I am only now getting a number of household jobs out of the way. Now all three pairs of doves are incubating and we seem sure to expand the flock. The tiler nibbled away at the swimming pool today and it will soon be finished. Also Cheeseborough put in a few hours on the link roof flashing, the plumber returned to do a few things, and John worked all day and so the house progressed. TV from mid-evening and a good game of international football as England beat Scotland 2-1. News tonight is full of Libya again, as Reagan threatens more bombing in response to more terrorism. A Muslim group has released a video film of a hanging and claims that it is missing British journalist Alec Collett. The US Senate declines to help measures to aid extradition of Irish terrorists to Britain. Libya has told about 300 foreign journalists from the US and Europe to leave the country in response to recent expulsions of Libyans from the UK and Europe. However, after being first asked to leave today, they are now welcome to stay on until the end of the week. South Africa is pushing through reforms in the Pass Laws, but police will be getting new powers. Jim Laker, the former England and Essex spin bowler and recent BBC cricket commentator, died at his London home today, aged 64, a month after a gall bladder operation.