A friendly start to the day with the family with breakfast together and then TV boxing for Daniel, Steve and I afterwards with games of chess afterwards and then live football this afternoon before a sit round tea in front of the fire in the lounge later. This as survivors of the Herald of Free Enterprise start arriving back in England with tales of the Bow Doors being left open when the ship sailed. South African Archbishop Tutu was warmly received by a packed Westminster Abbey congregation.
A little late to bed and I awoke first this morning and went down to get the drinks. Little Della had been wondering around the house for some time and came into the kitchen to keep me company. She sat on the ‘warm spot’, where the central heating pipe-work crosses the kitchen floor. Found Di in the spare room and gave her a coffee, then woke Daniel for his morning tea and the girls came in to have some orange juice with me and Di. Washed and shaved and time to start reading the paper, before Di had finished cooking the fried breakfast. Fried eggs also for Deb and Dells, but poor Daniel had to create to get his and then was not offered bacon!
After breakfast, Daniel and I watched the world heavyweight boxing championship on TV and saw ‘Bone Crusher’ Smith lose to ‘Iron Man’ Tyson, but only on points, which was a surprise. Daniel's friend Steve had come round for the day and also enjoyed the fight. Then I challenged Daniel and Steve to a game of chess and we drew 1-1. Managed to bribe Daniel to feed the ducks and doves (for 10p) and then it was time to help prepare for lunch, by laying up with the best china and silver. Di had cooked a nice piece of lamb for us, but Debbie would not eat it, as usual. The ritual of washing up to the sound of Daniel's portable Hi-Fi and then a live football match on the TV this afternoon. Watford beat Everton 2-1, to provide some good entertainment. Out to the ducks and doves and then time for a sit-round tea in front of the fire in the lounge. An evening of further relaxation with the children and we also phoned my mother in hospital, to wish her wthing is still suffering with stiff shoulder muscles, after falling heavily the other day. The salvage work has started on the sunken ferry, but the day has been one of mourning the dead and sympathising with the grief-stricken relatives. The difficult task of recovering and identifying the dead bodies, but the large numbers of people missing has made this a very distressing experience. The church services take place in a number of European countries. The survivors are arriving back in England. The speculation still continues on the cause of the accident. It seems to me that the ship sailed with its cargo doors open and then the cargo shifted to send the flooded boat on its side. The modern commercial pressures are such that the sailing starts with water ballasting weighing the front of the ship down and the doors open to allow the exhaust gasses to escape. In other news, South African Archbishop Tutu was warmly received by a packed Westminster Abbey congregation. The Irish INLA feud continues, with another terrorist being shot through the head.