May 10th (Sat)

Saturday is A day, and her driving is getting better and better. I take her onto the dual carriageway so there is much concentration and not so much chat today. Still an enjoyable lesson as ever, which is punctuated by the traditional stop at the Spar shop for pain aux chocolates. Malheureusement, today there are only croissants, but these are delicious all the same.
The afternoon is spent kipping, and getting on with the lesson plans, and then it is announced that we are going for a barbecue in the park. a lovely idea.
We meet up with A& G, P and kids, and a host of other friends of Dan, Sophie and Emma. Most of the food is burned on the outside and raw in the middle, but it is a pleasant couple of hours. The kids go off in all directions and ever changing groupings, and the soiree culminates in a riotously disorganised game of rounders.
JB is there. He has had the capacity to annoy me intensely from a very early age, and even without exchanging words, has lost none of his ability to do so. He is now apparently a Vegan, and mopes hopelessly around, eventually slumping to the ground and seeking solace in his mobile phone whilst all around are merrymaking. Apparently, his mother, the horrifically opinionated K, has brought him up with the ethos that he must never apologise for anything he says or does. Presumably by extension this means he can do or say no wrong. He's a little git. Always has been, always will be.
Dan is going home with J. Has he brought his duvet or pillows? No of course not, so again I spoil a good evening by going off on one. I think he should be told he can't go if he can't be bothered to make a little effort, but H says she will go home and then deliver them to him. It angers me, because it's the path to a lifetime of dependency. How do I know? It happened to me dear reader, it happened to me.
A white van trundles across the green sward. It belongs to what would once have been known as the Parks department, but now of course has some implausible name as the outsourced replacement for this august body.
The guy has just come to nicely ask that we take away all our rubbish. Apparently the masses have descended on the other park, The Rye and have left such an infestation of rubbish that it will take 3 men to clear it tomorrow. What an indictment of the "leave it for some other bastard to do" attitude that runs though the bloody world we live in.
I start carrying bags back to the car, as do H, A & G. Not one of the kids there offers to help or even asks if help is needed. I don't go off on one,but nearly.
I ride off into town for a pint. The Goblin is deserted, they'll all be in th garden, so I head for the Falcon. I sit with a pint and a group of yoovs bash into my table disturbing my pint about for pints. They can't even mouth the word sorry. The KB doctrine, and how we are better for it.