Cocktail lounge executive

I paid the £101.25 electric bill for the vicarage.

Miles Beattie brought round a letter from Seeboard delivered to Jervis Terrace threatening court proceedings for recovery of the debt if we didn’t cough up by next Tuesday. Pete was in London, Lee’s only got £2 left to his name and Barry wasn’t in so, unfortunately, the money had to come from me.

Luckily I’d just got cheque for Christmas and Easter housing benefit and this morning I got another one, for supplementary benefit from the 2nd of July. So after paying off my overdraft, four weeks rent and the electric bill, I have £75 or so left.

In my stupidity I walked the several miles to the Seeboard HQ on Barker Road, nearly in Blacklow, and found it closed, so had to come sheepishly back and pay the bill at a showroom along Wessex Road. Then I went to the pier with Ian and Lee. We had to queue to get on and the weather was very warm. They both took cameras although they didn’t use ‘em.

Pete was back in Watermouth in the evening, so Stu and I met he and Lee in the Pembroke. The Pembroke has a new cocktail lounge executive image and landlord Joe has been sacked for not bringing in enough money and (probably) for attracting wrong clientele—skinheads and bikers, etc.

The new man is fat and well spoken and always in a suit and tie and has a Ronnie Kray-style barman, a Geordie. When Lee and I went to play pool, they demanded a £3 deposit on the cues. Previous bar help Donny was playing pinball in the corner as we stood there disbelievingly. He made some comment to Ronnie Kray as he asked us for money, and we could tell he was bitter, and towards the end of our game we glanced up to see Donny and the new barman pushing each other provocatively: “Come on then . . . outside . . .” etc., etc.

At the Grey House, Lee showed the 8-mm film he took in the 6th form autumn 1980 and Stu and Pete couldn’t believe Lee and I’s youthful tastelessness. We ended the evening at the all night café, Pete whining on and on because he wanted to go out and “do something,” although he couldn’t decide what (and also because he was drunk).