Saturday March 23rd ...

We have very limited Internet bandwidth but enough to post a previously prepared entry - this seems like a lifetime ago but will keep my diary complete.  It is good to be back on-line and hopefully back up to full speed tomorrow.

 

I think we are all suffering from the constant reports of the threat of the island going bankrupt.  We keep being given a deadline for a decision and this then passes and the island seems to be no nearer a resolution to its financial plight.  I am not sure I know what bankruptcy would mean exactly but it doesn't sound a very attractive proposition.  As a community we are preparing ourselves for the anticipated rocky road ahead.  Even if a bailout is agreed this will just be the first step in a long and painful journey.  

We have heard reports that some of the ATM machines have run dry and that some garages and businesses are dealing in cash only and that when the pumps run dry there may be no money to pay for them to be refilled.  The one bit of good news was that the awful stormy weather from yesterday had passed through and we woke to a glorious day.  We had decided to go on a wood collecting mission as the boys had seen a lot that had been washed up on the beach the other day.  Trevor called for us early and was accompanied by Murphy who sat waiting patiently in the boot of the car.  Chivers had his first encounter but wasn't too fussed - Minnie Mou was not about but we couldn't guarantee she would have been so nonchalant.

John and Susan pitched up shortly afterwards and we drove off in convoy - we might starve in the winter but we are buggered if we are going to go cold and free wood is free wood (except you have to take into consideration the petrol etc!)

En route we encountered two trees which had been blown down during the storms of yesterday and which were blocking the road.  They had to be moved in order for vehicles to pass so this gave us our first opportunity to chuck a bit of what was cut off into the back of the truck.  The trees did not appear to be on anyone's land and one was almost completely rotten so we considered their clearance to be a bit of a public service.  We reckon that across the island that there would have been quite a few tree casualties as a result of the strong winds yesterday.

We managed to find the correct beach and all agreed that in spite of the current doom and gloom we were lucky to be out in the fresh air with stunning surroundings.  It was good to be away from the media because try as I might I couldn't stop myself constantly checking the news.  We had packed up a bit of picnic and were about to spend a pleasant couple of hours doing something constructive.  Running Susan asked me if this was how I had envisaged spending my retirement - I have to say it hadn't crossed my mind but there were worse things to be doing.

Sadly we encountered a not so lucky turtle which was on the beach - frozen in the moment.  It was a big beast which had either been washed up or had got that far and then expired.  Unfortunately it was covered with flies.  It was too big for us to bury and we didn't have spades with us anyway - it just seemed a bit of a shame to see such a magnificent animal just rotting away.  This beach looked like it was probably a turtle nesting area so we needed to make sure that Murphy was entertained with pebbles and not digging up the sand.  Having said that there was an abandoned hunting dog wandering the beach - pitifully thin poor thing - but even that was steering clear of the dead turtle.

We managed to fill the three vehicles with a wide variety of wood of varying quality.  Some you could tell would go up in a puff of smoke and some would need quite some time to dry out sufficiently to burn but we all agreed that we had enough to have made the trip worth our while.  The plan was to drop it all at John's, sort it and cut it and then divvy it up.  That would have to wait because the boys were off to ENAD's last game of the season this afternoon.  Well they thought they were and Trevor and John had just set off to pick up Running John when Running John received and email to say that the game would be played tomorrow instead!

Before Trevor had pitched up John set about getting the fancy dress ready for the charity race night being held at the bowling alley on Thursday.  Big Al's Arab Racehorse Owner outfit had been washed and needed ironing.  Unfortunately the last time John wore it he must have worn some pretty dark stage make-up and in places it was still clinging firmly to the white dib-dab.

We had asked Mum and Dad to come up and spend the weekend with us.  We thought it might be better for us all to be together whilst the island's future hung in the balance and decisions were made.  One lot of cooking and one lot of heating seemed sensible.

As football was postponed John and Trevor spent the time getting the wood all cut to size and returned knackered!  As it was clear that no decision on the bail out was going to be made today we settled down to a nice meal and a film which I had chosen with PS (Parent Suitability) in mind.  Amazon is great for suggesting films which you may enjoy if you have already enjoyed a film so having laughed at Keeping Mum the other week I opted for something called Mrs Caldicot's Cabbage War which those of us who managed to stay awake agreed was a good British Comedy.