Acquisitions of Chinchillas

My two new acquisitions.  No, not MORE cats – these are two Chinchillas.  They are grey and look rather like Guinea Pigs with Squirrels tails, and live in an enormous wire cage in one of the recesses in the front room and jump around all over the place.  They live on Chinchilla pellets and hay and water, with the odd nibble at the bit of apple etc.  They seem quite fearless and poke their noses through the wire cage to sniff at the cats noses – which really throws the cats as they are not used to such goings on, being more used to anything smaller than themselves being on the defensive when they hove into sight.

New Employment - Job Security

Things at the office are rather slow at the moment.  It gets rather boring first thing in the mornings before the work comes through.  Still, I am not really grumbling because I realise how very lucky I am to be in the job in the first place.  Have you heard about Molins?  If I had not left to re-join Ron Bradley and the motley crew here I would have fallen flat on my face because all the staff – 400 or so – have now lost their jobs.  I did know, of course, that the place was due to close down at the end of the year (1985) and that the management were looking for new premises as near as possible, but when I had the offer from Ron Bradley I decided to take it as Molins seemed such a risk at that time, not knowing exactly where the new premises were going to be and if I would be able to travel there etc.  What a good job I made the right decision – for once!  I have been speaking to someone who I knew when I worked at Molins and was told that all the employees have been offered their jobs, providing they go to either Multon Keynes or Saunderton Works in Peterborough – if they refuse, or unable to go, they just lose their jobs – with no redundancy – because their jobs are still there if they want them!  Whereas the odd few might be able to uproot and move lock stock and barrel to either of these places, for the majority it is just not possible.  I know the ‘modern’ way of thinking is to say if you want the job bed enough you will get on your bike etc., but, for example, a woman I know who works there – has done for 23 years – and would dearly love to keep her job BUT her husband and family also have jobs in this area so she is unable to do anything about it.  A fellow in another Department who has been there even longer is in the same position, in order to keep his job all his family would have to give up theirs!  What dreadful times we live in!

Oh! Dear! I really must climb down off my little soap box before I get vertigo!  But I do feel a bit better having got that off my chest.

Gentleman from Grimsby

I had a very interesting encounter on Monday evening with an old gentleman from Grimsby.   I had left the office just after 6pm and arrived at Charing Cross with a few minutes to spare before my 6.33 train.   As I was crossing to the platform barrier an old man stopped me to ask where he could get a decent cup of tea and a decent sandwich “None of that rubbish” he said, pointing to the hamburger place on the Station.  He was such a sweet, gentle old chap that I took him down the steps into Villiers Street to one of the many cafes there and, needless to say, ended up going in with him to join him in a ‘decent cup of tea and a descent sandwich’ and I was jolly glad I did as it turned out to be a most pleasant hour or so I spent with him, during which time I had heard most of his life history.  He was in his late 70’s and was excited because he was on his way to France.  Apparently the Sun Newspaper has been offering trips to France for only £1 and this chap had decided to apply, saving up the necessary vouchers etc., and last Monday was his big red letter day.  He also had a special voucher for a free bottle of wine, with which he was thrilled to bits.  His name was Fred Porter, as was his father’s name before him.  His father used to have a little Jack Russel terrier called Jack who used to know the time he was due home (his father) and would go to the end of the alley and wait for him and, according to Fred Jnr. Was the talk of the street (the dog, not the father).  Fred Jnr like his father, worked on the railways, but whereas Fred Snr was a real old fashioned Guard, complete with flat and whistle, Fred Jnr was on the maintenance side.  Fred Jnr is, or has, carried on the family tradition of spending most of his spare time on the allotment, but has left it long enough to travel now and then, whereas his father just stayed in the one area all his life.  However, this trip to France was quite exciting but by the time he met me he was getting a bit confused and was hungry and thirsty, having travelled down from Grimsby that afternoon and found his way across from Kings Cross to Charing Cross, and the thought of having to find the right platform and the right train for Dover was too much without having his cup of tea first.  The boat sailed at 3am Tuesday and he was to return on the boat at 12 noon the same day, a coach trip taking him and all the others booked on the tip for a ride round prior to their call at the Supermarket where they were to get their free bottles of wine.  I eventually caught the 8.33 train home – w2 hours later – but I didn’t begrudge my time spent chatting with the old fella as he was such an interesting chap.

Uncle Arthur
My Uncle Arthur (he stayed with me for a few weeks a couple of years ago when my Aunt was in the National Heart Hospital) well, he is now in hospital himself in Torbay Hospital.  He has been there about a week now and they have been unable to find what is wrong with him.  He had constant runs and was so weak he had got to the stage where he couldn’t get out of bed, but the hospital say they can’t find out what is causing this, apparently he doesn’t seem to have any bug or virus so they are all puzzled at the moment.

Grace Russ - 29th Jan 1986