James Seipei known as Stompie killed by Winnie Mandelas bodyguards
James Seipei known as Stompie killed by Winnie Mandelas bodyguards

Tending to inside tasks on a rainy day, a trip to Mr Osborne who lectured poor Di about her dental care, to St Neots for morning coffee and a haircut all before arriving at Grove House for my meeting with Ian and Margaret James, of On-Site Training, negotiating my investment. This evening, I had to chair a meeting of the Little Paxton village Hall committee and learn that many of their activists were leaving.

Winnie Mandela was arrested on charges of kidnap and assault over the treatment of ‘Stompie’ who had his throat cut by her bodyguards. The International Olympic Committee have selected Atlanta Georgia, USA for the 1996 Olympics, even though it would be the centenary for Athens and the games were held in the USA eight years ago; it seems that money rules everything these days 

I had a fairly busy day ahead of me and so I awoke on time and got down to breakfast, insisting that Daniel also wake up and come down too. It was raining this morning, in fact teaming down, which was very welcome as far as the garden was concerned, but prevented the decorators from starting on the house again. I tended to such tasks that did not need me to go outside and then updated my journal to yesterday before it was time to leave for a dental appointment. My departure was slightly delayed by the gas board who were here again to continue the work on the heating system. They do not exactly inspire confidence, but I resolved to put the system to rights. Diana insisted on taking the wheel for our car journey to Kimbolton and says that she is not comfortable with my driving anymore. I drive as I always have, but she thinks that my reaction times may not be what they once were!

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We managed to get to Mr Osborne’s dental surgery on time, but had to wait a while before Diana was called in. As she expected he was most critical of the poor standards of care that she had been giving her teeth lately and saw problems of gum disease, plaque and all else to cope with. He is prescribing constant use of dental floss which we hope will start to cure the problem although it is really for Diana to take herself in hand. They were not expecting me at all, due to a mix-up with the appointments but saw me anyway and Mr Osborne gave me a virtually clear bill of health. We tried without success to get morning coffee in Kimbolton afterwards as the bakery in the high street stop offering the service and had all their tables and chairs up for sale and the place in the back Street was not open before 10:30am and  we therefore went back to Paxton to collect the ‘brownie chest’ from Sylvain close and then on to St Neots for coffee there.

I just had time for a haircut as well before Di had to drop me off to Grove House for my meeting about on-site training there was Ian and Margaret James, John Creswell and I and our meeting was to thrash out the terms for an investment on my part and money to the company had managed to get further franchises signed up in the summer and, although the training revenues decrease over the holidays, things were looking even healthier before except for the cash flow. We agreed a package of measures that would mean me putting in £50,000 of share and loan capital for just under 40% of the company, with mass putting in a further 12,500 to give them the same percentage in the James’s £6000 to give just over 21% now the option to increase that holding to 25% within three years. All parties will become directors and I would chair the board, providing up to a day a month for 18,000 a year would also be partly in lieu of dividends on the share capital. Ian and Margaret would sign service contracts covering terms of notice, noncompetition and be given sufficient of a pay rise to make their family solvent again and not have to go through with their presently enforced sale of their house. All parties declared themselves happy with the arrangement and I left in early afternoon to leave them to thrash out a ‘heads of terms’ agreement to be put into action.

I had to come home to a late lunch and then talk to the heating plumbers and electricians who were progressing the work but would not be due to finish until tomorrow. Some more paperwork and then, this evening, I had to chair a meeting of the Little Paxton village hall committee. The meeting went very well but the bad news was of the probable departure at the next annual general meeting of most of the officers and much of the committee which would set things back after the recent resurgence of morale and funding. Better news was the financial income of the fate which raised the best part of £1000 and the barn dance which was attended by over 100 and raised a few hundred pounds more. Home latest to find Diana quite grumpy and so I set up a little while as she went to bed. The news today was of Winnie Mandela being arrested on charges of kidnap and assault over the treatment of ‘Stompie’ for whom her bodyguard had already been convicted of murder. This will raise tension even more in South Africa, where the racial battles are already fierce.

The Liberal Democrat conference delegates backed the leadership over their stance on the Gulf crisis and is a ‘UN approval’ clause was therefore not supported. A rare victory for a local authority against the government as Lambeth is successful in a court hearing to keep their level of poll tax, increased to cover collection costs. The International Olympic Committee have selected Atlanta Georgia, USA for the 1996 Olympics, even though it was the centenary for Athens and the games were held in the USA eight years ago. It was the money that talked as it rules everything these days. The old Olympic ideals are out of the window. Manchester stood no chance, getting only five boats out of the 87. It rained well again today and cleared up this afternoon but not enough to let the decorators start work.