(aka Bike) Part 1984 by Angharad Copyright © 2013 Angharad
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The dinner was well up to David’s usual standard. Danny had come down with bed hair and the girls teased him until he went and showered, so at least it wasn’t standing up in places after that.
Stephanie arrived and he regarded her suspiciously for a while, then Jacquie and Julie took off the baby while Steph and Danny used my study for their session. I had my iPad and did some emails using that while the girls settled down to do some homework. They were already on their Easter holidays, Danny should have been attending until Thursday but there was no way I was going to send him to school for three days of hell. I remembered my own schooldays when I stood out like a sore thumb and was frequently the target of gossip and insults.
Astonishingly, one of the things which shut up the gossips for a few days was being seen out with Siá¢n who was a very pretty girl. I remember Bates coming to me and I thought I was about to get a hiding. “How the f**k does a f**k-up like you get a girl like that?” he demanded.
I waited until we had an audience and said in a simpering voice, “Oh you know, on Tuesdays we do our nails together, on Saturdays we style each other’s hair and every other Friday we have a sleep-over or pyjama party.”
“A sleep-over? You mean you’ve slept with her?”
“And half a dozen of her friends, yeah, why?”
“You freakin’ poof, I’ve a good mind to pound you.”
“She ain’t a poof Bates, she’s got a girlfriend.”
“A pair of lezzies I’ll bet.”
“Yeah, well if she needs a good seein’ to, let me know, fairy cake,” with that parting shot he sloped off to raucous laughter,” which was when Whitehead broke it up–presumably concerned I was getting another hiding. He must have been pleasantly surprised when he discovered I wasn’t.
“Are you all right, Watts?” he asked shooing away most of the others.
Before I could answer a wag, who remained anonymous called, “She’s fine, just on her period, that’s all.” More raucous laughter. What I wouldn’t have given for them to have been right.
I had loads of silly little memories like that which were fired up by other thoughts, one which I think I could see the progression of the links–the kids each got chocolate for Easter. All us adults would chip into a fund and then I’d go off and get something like Lindt Bunnies for the girls and an equivalent priced chocolate bar for Danny.
Simon and I agreed we wouldn’t buy each other eggs or sweets for the holiday, instead we’d usually buy a small present of something which was a non-food item. Last year I got him some polish for the car–it was quite expensive but there was method in my madness–he does my car as well.
I had to think for a moment what he got me–oh yes, a box of assorted bulbs and tubers for the flower garden. I felt quite pleased with that, which Danny planted for me during the Easter weekend. A bit of a contrast from last year–they’ve got twenty foot deep snow drifts in parts of Scotland and it’s bad in parts of northern and central England too. Fortunately down here in the south, it’s not been as bad–except for the icy wind coming straight over from Siberia.
Last year we had temperatures in the sixties during March, at the moment the wind chill is about minus five or ten. It would strip the meat off your bones in minutes, or as my Mum used to say, ‘It’s a lazy wind–it blows straight through you, instead of round you.’
I know weather shouldn’t be confused with climate, which is a much longer view–but if this is global warming–it seems to happening everywhere but here in the UK. Perhaps we’ll have a summer eventually–yeah, probably brought by Father Christmas.
Eventually the two emerged from the confines of my study. Danny had red eyes again and he was still sniffing when he dashed off to his bedroom, hotly pursued by one kitten. He seems to have made a friend.
I indicated to Stephanie should I go after him and she shook her head. He needed time on his own to process what had just happened between them.
“Tea?” I asked and she nodded.
“I want to see him every day for the next few days–you’ll have to bring him over to my place and you can babysit while I work with him. He’s going to need some sort of notebook he can use as a diary.”
“I got one he can have–A4 okay?”
“Fine, but it’s to be confidential so he’ll need to keep it somewhere safe.”
“It’ll be safe in his bedroom, no one else goes in there except me to change his bed and collect his dirty clothes, and I won’t look at it.”
“Not even the teeniest peep?”
“No, Stephanie–I don’t even read other people’s postcards unless they tell me to.”
“Goodness, you are anal, aren’t you?”
“I thought Freudian theory was out of favour these days,” I fired back.
“Ooh, get you, Dr Watts.”
“Yeah, I am Dr Watts–thought you knew that.”
“No, I was obviously having a news blackout when that happened–when was it?”
“Could you believe my birthday?”
“I can believe ten impossible things before breakfast, so that would be easy.”
“I’d heard psychiatrists have rich fantasy lives.”
“So, Cathy Watts, PhD, is it?”
I picked up a business card from my desk and handed it to her. She read it and looked impressed. “So you have a bachelor’s, a master’s and doctorate as well as all these bits and bobs?” She was referring to diplomas in field biology, ecology and mammal studies. Okay, so I used to do a lot of courses–well, I wasn’t down the union blowing all my grant on booze and girls like most of the others. I was on my own, so I studied.
Fortunately, my parents funded most of the other courses on the understanding that I paid them back if I failed any of them. I had a certificate in field biology before I left school–doing my macabre study of hedgehog fatalities on the roads near us. I think I mentioned it before–the local paper came and photographed me doing my survey and got the name wrong–they had me down as Charlotte Watts–probably the long hair–well it was down past my shoulders and at that time it was probably auburn as it would have been about the time I played Gruach–Lady Macbeth to you.
“What time tomorrow?” I asked Stephanie.
“Oh poo, I left my diary at home–I’ll give you a ring when I get home–probably in the morning.”
“You’ll ring me in the morning or the appointment will be?”
“The appointment–I noticed you didn’t get a diploma for listening, then?”
“No, like yours in communication skills.”
“Ouch–have you been practising on Stella?”
“Meee? No, Simon. Stella’s far too dangerous–a real big cat.”
“Who is?” asked Stella coming into the kitchen to put some nappies in the washer.
“What, not who,” I lied.
“Eh?”
“We were talking about my car, Stella, a big cat.”
“A likely story,” she dismissed me, “Anyway, I’m only passing through, so you can talk about me as much as you like. Remember, dear old Oscar, told us that the only thing worse than being talked about...”
“Was not being talked about–I know, but that depends upon whether you have an ego the size of Australia, or not. He did, I don’t,” I called to her disappearing back.
I got an echo of, “Ha, a likely story,” from the depths of the utility room. Stella does like the last word.
Comments
Interesting About the Weather
Scientific discussions have brought out that if global warming continues, the Gulf Stream and the Atlantic Ocean in general will be seriously affected. One thing is that the Gulf Stream will move much further south, plunging Great Britain into an ice box. This has happened in the past, as recorded by Charles Dickens and others. Global warming yes, freezing the British Isles - that too.
Portia
Climate
In northern temperate latitudes in particular, it's thought the decline of arctic sea ice may be contributing to the Jet Stream's 'blocks' - usually it passes over Britain at about 60°N (over Scotland), whereas the past few years it's been around 50°N (over the Channel) - hence the icy blasts we've been getting from the North. I think it's also at a more Southerly latitude across the US, hence they've been getting above average snowfall.
Add on the effects of warming oceans and declining arctic sea ice, and apparently holding patterns are more likely - so fewer overall days of rain, but on the days when it does rain it will be more intense - so both droughts and flooding can be expected.
While it's certainly true the earth has experienced such effects before - and indeed more extreme weather than we've experienced recently; those were at times when the earth's human population was significantly smaller than at present and probably more mobile. If your home was flooded fairly regularly, it may have been possible to move further inland. Now, of course, you'd have to spend hundreds of thousands of pounds / dollars / euros to move and, as it would be difficult to persuade people to move into your former flood-prone home, you'd have to accept a substantial loss on it so you wouldn't recoup your expenditure. Add onto which many governments (local or central) are starting to think about the cost-effectiveness of flood defences and in coastal areas even considering allowing (smaller) settlements to succumb to the waves.
-oOo-
Meanwhile, on the story front, Cathy's quick thinking comes to the fore again: initially at school with her brilliant (but potentially dangerous) riposte to the bullies questions about her and Siân; then in the present day with Stella's appearance when Cathy and Stephanie were talking about her.
As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!
Not really.
More bloody annoying! We had a lovely Spring last year but since then it's either been raining, cold, or snowing or all 3 together. That's a slight exaggeration but that's what it feels like. I determined to start regaining a tiny bit of fitness a couple of weeks ago by going out on my bike but then the snow came again and just as we were trying to get our roof repaired after the previous snow fetched off a few slates.
I know overall warming can result in our climate getting colder (the British Isles is further north than the whole of the USA - except Alaska) because we get a good deal from the warming effect of the sea via the Gulf Stream. If that's disturbed as well as the jet stream moving south we get cold and wet when others are getting warm and dry. I'd like a bit of the warm and dry, please :)
Anyway, another good episode, Ang. I often wonder how much of you is in Cathy and I suspect quite a lot - in her character at least.
Thanks
Robi
Weather
This winter reminds me of the 62-63 winter in Europe and England. It could freeze a half formed thought in its tracks.
Surprisingly calm episode
Wonder what kind of storm is brewing.
Not sure ...
Not sure if I could keep such a diary/log of such intimate, private thoughts, leastways not at such an early age. Getting my most innermost thoughts out of me was like pulling hen's teeth ... bloody impossible. Thus it was until aged about 55/60. Indeed this site is just about the only place where I feel I can 'think out aloud' with little fear of censure. The only circumstances where I am comfortable discussing my issues is with tried and trusted trans friends. Even then, I am reinforcing my confidence by frequently ascertaining that I refuse to countenance bigotry, intolerance or censure. These past 10/15 years have been a revelation to me in coming to terms with my condition/conditions. Yes, thirty-five to forty odd years putting stuff right after a childhood of destruction. Don't know how much difficulty Danny's going to encounter but yes, he'll need help and no mistake. Can't collect my thoughts at the moment. This comment is all over the place.
The past still haunts Cathy I see
I don't think any of us can ever truly forget the feeling of those acute hurts and significant events in our lives.
It is a tension as we really rather not feel the hurt, embarrassment, what have you, of that event while at the same time, it is most of the time actually desirable to have some residual memory of that event to mark it as it IS significant and as such it is a part of our life story.
Kim
Cathy should buy a diary with
a lock and key and a box to keep it in for Danny. That way, he can feel safer in penning his thoughts.
May Your Light Forever Shine
agree
avoid even tempting sisters.
Back in the day.
I was in school for Oceanographic Technologies. We would be graded down if we called it Global warming. The better term would be Global Climate chaos. Yes the environment is trapping more heat energy energy, but the results are that the various tracks weather systems take alters and picks up power. Like a car going to fast to make turn it goes off the road and hits something. Hard.
So everything we once could predict about where things move and how fast it does it, has gone out the window. It was hard enough to predict the old climate movements. With the extra energy available, storms get bigger, move faster, and pack a lot more rain, wind and power. With the rising sea levels, higher tides comes flooding of where people live, Like Indonesia's many islands, which are becoming flooded.
The problem with the gulf stream is multy fold. The bigest comes from the salt water becomes more diluted changing the density of the water. This affects how some of the water sinks at the north and south poles. This feeds the other end of c the gulf stream. The rest keeps Europe habitable, and the lovely islands of Scotland, England and Ireland warm enough for people to live there.
It is very complex and a bit of magic how all the interlocked systems ballance aganst each other allowing us to be able to live as a civilised " relativity " people.
With those with open eyes the world reads like a book
Only one
Easter egg!... Not sure if we could ever have got away with that in our house, Even though we pointed out to the children the poor value of Ester eggs they sill expected one from us and one from each of the grandparents, My weak point in any argument to get them to have money instead usually floundered on the fact that i was a chocoholic myself , Its a little difficult to argue the point when everyone knew that put in a similar position i would have eaten all three eggs myself.
Can't let the fact that this is episode 1984 go by without a mention, If ever a book showed us what the future might hold then this was it ... Big Brother anyone?
Kirri