“Time is a circus, always packing up and moving away.” - Ben Hecht

Friday 2nd August

In theory today should have been a fairly easy day as I was well ahead with my packing and I didn't have too many jobs left to do before our holiday, but I hadn't taken Robbie into account. He has been working so hard recently and he had loads to do before he could think about the holiday. He asked me to take him to Marks and Spencer's in his lunch break because he wanted some more shorts and a couple of other bits and bobs. It was a fleeting trip, but he got what he needed. Then he had to get back to work while I went off to do a few more errands. 

I began to think that Robbie would never be able finish his work in time, but at last he closed his laptop and announced that he was ready to help with the packing. He packed his railway DVDs, an N gauge railway set with lots of extras, three Lego sets (Technic, Lone Ranger and Back to the future), a selection of railway books, a graphic novel, stacks of magazines, his jigsaw board, binoculars and assorted gadgets. He seemed to think that he had completed his packing and I had to remind him that he would probably need clothes as well as toys. He claims that he would like to be a naturist, but I don't think Norfolk is ready for that!!

Finally all the annoying little jobs were done, the car was packed and everything was ready for us to make an early start in the morning. Robbie turned back to his work to have one last attempt to solve an annoying planning problem that had chosen to rear it's ugly head at a most inconvenient moment from Robbie's point of view. I don't know how long he spent in search of a solution because I had gone to bed and I was asleep long before he came upstairs.

It is the false shame of fools to try to conceal wounds that have not healed - Horace

We are on holiday and we should be away from the everyday cares of the world, but the news over the last few days has been so appalling that it has been impossible ignore it. News of the rioting and looting in London and other cities has made me feel so ashamed of my fellow citizens. There really is no excuse for mob violence, they have made people homeless and devastated countless businesses. They don’t seem to care that people have lost everything, homes, livelihoods and jobs are gone and so many communities have been deeply scarred.



Robbie and I have reacted differently, I don’t want to look, I just want to cover my eyes in shame, and Robbie on the other hand can’t stop checking for the latest updates. His work place has been affected, other rail companies have been badly affected, nearby shops have been looted and damaged, big city centre shops have suffered serious damage and normal life has been brought to a halt. I am thankful that we are on holiday because I would be so scared for Robbie if he was at work, it may sound selfish, but because of his spina bifida if he got caught up in any trouble even a relatively minor injury to his back could mean he would never be able to walk again. I just keep wondering why such young children are on the street running wild, what on earth are their parents doing?


Apart from keeping in touch with the news we managed make the most of the day. We went to Mundesley, there were lots of people on the beach despite some rather impressive waves. The highlight of Robbie’s day was a visit to the Beach Café for lunch, their food is excellent and the portions are so generous that even Robbie can’t eat any more. I am making him keep his distance because he had onion rings with his lunch!


We visited Stalham on the way back, we had to pop into Tesco for milk and bread and supplies for our packed lunch tomorrow - Robbie is determined that we have to go to the North Norfolk Railway. Oh well at least there is a nice bookshop there!