A very busy working day this second day of Daniel's visit with the demands of variety of tradesmen working on The Harnser together with the urgency of certain personal tasks had me busy all day.
Plumbing, roofing and cladding were all being undertaken at the same time as the family went off to Great Yarmouth. John Major was leading Britain into armed conflict, following US President Bush and the UK economy is stuck in recession
I chose to spend this second day of Daniel's visit working in Horning though choice did not really come very much into it. The variety of tradesmen working on The Harnser together with the urgency of certain personal tasks had me busy all day. The plumber was here putting in the drainage pipes for the domestic appliances and installing a main collection pipe under the floor. The roofers were still here cementing on the ridge tiles and running short of materials and the three musketeers were pressing on with the flooring and cladding some of the boat-shed interior. I woke early and got up and out by 6.00am, applying coats of wood-stain to the upper floor window frames after starting the day on my security alarm wiring.
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Then, once the frames had to dry and the workmen were monopolising the building, I got on with staining some of the outer cladding and re-organising the drying stack after yesterday's "help" from Andrew Bloom. The family went off to the Great Mouth of the River Yar to the amusements and had a whale of a time, spending lots of money as I worked through the day, unable to join them and contain their spending. We had to do two errands for the roofers who seem to have trouble estimating materials but at least they are doing a very good job with the roof and are real craftsmen and known for it.
After they had all gone this evening, I returned to the building and finished the carcassing of the alarm wires and then carried on in the garage after dark staining the upper windows until I was left with just one side to do in the morning. My legs and hips were aching by then, my having been on my feet for almost all of the time since 6.00am. I relieved this with a deep and warm Heronshaw bath but could still hardly stand except when using both legs equally. Mr Lincoln, working for us for three days via Arthur Edmunds, has made a very good job of cutting back the vegetation along Ropes Hill Dyke Lane and the result is a real transformation.
The news this evening was full of world civil war conflicts in which John Major is leading Britain (quite unwisely in my opinion) into armed intervention. The Irish example should be proof enough that we are best out of it but, with George Bush seeking U.S. Presidential re-election he leads, and we follow. Britain’s economy stays stuck in recession (just as I predicted) and will remain so (in my view) until there is a co-ordinated governmental plan (Keynes-style) to inject some demand. Major therefore probably feels that some foreign adventures will take Britain's mind of it, but he will be wrong. He should have stayed on his Spanish holiday with the family and done nothing.