Wuthering Dormice (aka Bike) Part 749 by Angharad

Simon told me that he’d try to steal a weekend away from work. I pointed out that most people didn’t work seven-day weeks and he reminded me that most people didn’t earn as much as him, either. Point taken, but the money was secondary to me, I think it was to him as well, but it was the family business and had been for two hundred years, so he didn’t want to be the one who lost it.

I decided that I didn’t want to be in a family business, nor would I let the girls if I could possibly help it, although I could see Livvie and Trish enjoying the challenges and the rewards. Meems, I wasn’t so sure about. She hadn’t shown an aptitude for much except her dollies – maybe she was going to be mother, or a nurse or even a teacher. All of them were necessary, especially the first one, although we spend much time deriding it or undervaluing it as a role. If houses hadn’t been allowed to become so expensive, maybe more mothers could stay at home for a few years and look after their children. As it is, usually the only ones who do are those caught in the benefit trap and they’re usually single parent families. I felt really sorry for that much maligned group.

Stella had put Puddin’ down for the night and we had a glass of wine together. She’d heard some of my conversation with Si and concluded we were both mad.

“So you haven’t set a date?” she asked sipping her wine and savouring the taste.

“Not yet, haven’t actually decided to marry him yet.”

She waggled her ring finger to remind me I’d accepted his ring. “What was all that for then?”

“You told me to take whatever he offered, remember?”

“Oh yeah, I remember telling you to keep the ring. God, that was years ago.”

“Only a couple at most, probably much less than that.”

“Was it, doesn’t time fly when you’re enjoying yourself?”

“If you say so. He’s hoping he might be able to get home one of these weekends.”

“You’d see more of him if he was in the Royal Navy.”

“Oh yes and those sexy uniforms,” I joked, “just imagine him bringing his aircraft carrier into Portsmouth, with all those men and women in uniform.”

“Oh yeah, they have women on ships now don’t they?”

“Yes they do, although I suspect it possibly causes more trouble than it’s worth.”

“Possibly. Imagine it, a handful of women and all those men. Hmm, maybe I’ll join the navy.” She giggled and the blush on her skin suggested the wine was more than relaxing her.

“All those men – ugh, no thanks, I can’t cope with just the one.”

“Cathy, where’s your spirit of adventure?”

“Alive and well and waiting for a bike ride.”

“It’s shopping tomorrow, so you can’t go then.”

“I know, don’t rub it in.”

“What are you going to buy the girls?”

“Not sure, they’ll need new shoes and at forty or fifty quid a pair, I won’t need much else to have spent my allocation for the day.”

“Really?”

“Yeah, remember I have school fees to pay for Trish, and although Livvie gets an allowance, or I do on her behalf, she needs more than it pays.”

“Tell ‘em to pay more.”

“They told me how much they would pay and that was that, anything over that, I have to find or not spend.”

“Do you get an allowance for child benefit?”

“Yes, I get that for the three of them, but it would hardly feed them and certainly wouldn’t pay for school fees – not that it’s meant for that.”

“No, but surely the council ought to pay something, I mean, they couldn’t fit Trish in one of their schools, could they?”

“I can’t be bothered to ask, Stella, there’d be all sorts of reasons why they couldn’t, and they’d offer me something miles away in a rundown area, and given Trish’s little problem, it would raise all sorts of issues I’d rather not revisit. Besides, she likes it at the convent, they seem to like her and Livvie goes there too, so it isn’t much of a contest really; is it?”

“When you put it like that, I suppose not. Are you going to send Meems there too?”

“I’m going to take her there for the nursery, I’d forgotten they had one but when I looked on their website, I rediscovered it. So next year she can start the school like the other two.”

“How much is that going to cost?”

“Loads, but I’m hoping it’s worth it. I can’t send one to a private school and the others elsewhere, can I?”

“If you joined the navy, maybe they’d pay?” Stella giggled at what was hardly a joke, mind you she was on her third glass to my first one.

“No point in your joining, they don’t do the rum ration anymore.”

“Shame, maybe I could get them to reinstate it?” She yawned. “I think I need to go to bed while I can still climb your stairs.”

“I think maybe you’re right, Stella. Off you go then while I lock up, batten down the hatches and splice the main brace me ‘earties.”

“Arr, Jim lad,“ she said getting unsteadily to her feet, before falling over. “Oops, haven’t got my sea-legs, forgot to pack them, ha ha,” she laughed at her silly joke and I had to help her up and then push her upstairs and help her into bed. “Next time, I’ll wait till I get to bed before I drink.”

I got her a bucket and put it by the side of the bed – just in case. Then I cleaned up, locked up and went to bed myself. The wine helped me to sleep and I probably did dream, but I can’t recall any of them.

I woke up when the aliens came in and talked in their giggle language. They also have cold feet, but at the moment that’s all the field notes I have on them. Before long, John Humphrys was spit-roasting a politician and it was time to get up.

We’d done all we had to by nine thirty and we were in my car and heading for a car park near Park Street. Sadly, you can’t park on Park Street, so I used a multi-storey car park with exorbitant charges. I hadn’t been here for ages, I suspected I wouldn’t be back very soon again.

We did a couple of department stores and then at a shoe shop I bought all three of mine Startrite shoes, in a MaryJane style, which they all loved. I won’t discuss the cost, even Stella raised an eyebrow.

In Debenhams, she bought them all new dresses. Meems chose a pink one with frills around the bodice, the hem and the sleeves. Livvie had a navy blue corduroy one with some ties under the bodice, that tied behind. The hem was flounced in matching corduroy. Trish opted for a red dress with long sleeves, and a pattern of umbrellas in different colours all over it.

We had lunch at one of the stores and then wandered back to the car. Even Stella had had enough by then. She’d bought several dresses and tights for Puddin’ and a skirt and top for herself. Me? Well I bought some more blank CDs and a new memory stick – I know I could have got them on the internet probably cheaper, but then if I bought everything on the net, we wouldn’t have any high streets left at all.