understand her parents are showing some improvement at last, though they are still very ill and will be in hospital for some time yet. Also from Jimbo, who has a severe cold. Pat has come in his stead. Give him our best wishes, Pat, please, when you see him. Now, you’ve all received a copy of the minutes of the last meeting. Are there any matters arising?’
Bryn asked about the hot-air balloon situation. Had anything been done?
Pat nervously spoke up. ‘In ’is notes Jimbo says the friends of ’is who ’ave the balloon are willing to come. They’ll charge £5 a head for a turn. It sounds an awful lot ofmoney, doesn’t it, but the cash they take will be donated to a charity.’
Michael Palmer thought that seemed very reasonable. ‘I’d give £5 for a turn. Never tried it, but I’d like to. I wonder how many passengers they can take at once?’
Pat studied Jimbo’s notes. ‘Don’t know – it doesn’t say. He’s given me a list of the food and the prices he’ll be charging. There’s a copy for everyone.’ She passed the pile around the circle and they each took one.
Sheila Bissett was horrified. ‘Fifty pence for a cup of tea? At our flower-arranging society we only charge twenty-five pence. That’s outrageous. You can see what he’s done. Paid a small amount for the concession and then he’s charging prices like this. Shameful. It is for charity, after all.’ She scanned further down the list. ‘And look at this – fifty pence for a sausage roll!’
Pat leapt to his defence. ‘Yes, and if you went into one of them posh cafés in Culworth, what would you pay there? Ninety-five pence for a small pot of tea. Nearly a pound for a scone with butter and jam. I think his prices are quite reasonable in the circumstances.’
‘And what circumstances are those, pray?’
‘Proper tables and chairs to sit at. Proper cups, not those blasted paper things that bum yer ’ands and make the tea taste like cardboard. Nice knives and spoons, not them blessed plastic things, and serviettes. And you’ve got to take into account the losses he stands from people nicking the cutlery. I reckon someone took enough for a whole set when we did the catering for a company “do” in Culworth. Six of each. Just wish I’d caught ’em at it. Besides which, you have nice smart pleasant waitresses serving at the counter and clearing the tables. I know ’cos I shall be organising ’em.’
‘And what do you, with your education, know about arranging such matters?’
Barry, who had been slowly coming to the boil during this attack on Pat, now rose to his feet, crossed the circle of chairs and stood feet apart, pointing his finger in Sheila’s face.
‘Any more lip from you and we’ll start talking about your education and your past, shall we?’
Michael quickly intervened. ‘I say let’s cool it, this isn’t right.’
Jeremy tut-tutted and suggested Barry sat down.
Bryn shook his head and Linda blushed.
‘I will when she’s apologised. I’m waiting.’
Pat, embarrassed at his defence of her when she was quite capable of defending herself, muttered. ‘It really doesn’t matter, you know. I don’t care.’
‘No, but I do. Well? I’m still waiting.’
Louise quietly said to her mother, ‘There’s no call for that.’
Linda, who had never liked Sheila because in her opinion Sheila always treated her like something that had crawled out from under a stone, piped up with, ‘I don’t know what education has to do with it. If Mr Charter-Plackett has asked Pat to be in charge then he must think she’s capable, and I myself think the prices are very reasonable.’
‘So do I,’ Bryn said, having grown weary of Sheila challenging every decision. ‘Sit down, Barry, do and let’s get on.’
Remembering that he wanted the meeting to finish in reasonable time so he could take Pat for a drink, Barry reluctantly agreed and sat down, putting his arm across the back of Pat’s chair again as though that was
Bryn asked about the hot-air balloon situation. Had anything been done?
Pat nervously spoke up. ‘In ’is notes Jimbo says the friends of ’is who ’ave the balloon are willing to come. They’ll charge £5 a head for a turn. It sounds an awful lot ofmoney, doesn’t it, but the cash they take will be donated to a charity.’
Michael Palmer thought that seemed very reasonable. ‘I’d give £5 for a turn. Never tried it, but I’d like to. I wonder how many passengers they can take at once?’
Pat studied Jimbo’s notes. ‘Don’t know – it doesn’t say. He’s given me a list of the food and the prices he’ll be charging. There’s a copy for everyone.’ She passed the pile around the circle and they each took one.
Sheila Bissett was horrified. ‘Fifty pence for a cup of tea? At our flower-arranging society we only charge twenty-five pence. That’s outrageous. You can see what he’s done. Paid a small amount for the concession and then he’s charging prices like this. Shameful. It is for charity, after all.’ She scanned further down the list. ‘And look at this – fifty pence for a sausage roll!’
Pat leapt to his defence. ‘Yes, and if you went into one of them posh cafés in Culworth, what would you pay there? Ninety-five pence for a small pot of tea. Nearly a pound for a scone with butter and jam. I think his prices are quite reasonable in the circumstances.’
‘And what circumstances are those, pray?’
‘Proper tables and chairs to sit at. Proper cups, not those blasted paper things that bum yer ’ands and make the tea taste like cardboard. Nice knives and spoons, not them blessed plastic things, and serviettes. And you’ve got to take into account the losses he stands from people nicking the cutlery. I reckon someone took enough for a whole set when we did the catering for a company “do” in Culworth. Six of each. Just wish I’d caught ’em at it. Besides which, you have nice smart pleasant waitresses serving at the counter and clearing the tables. I know ’cos I shall be organising ’em.’
‘And what do you, with your education, know about arranging such matters?’
Barry, who had been slowly coming to the boil during this attack on Pat, now rose to his feet, crossed the circle of chairs and stood feet apart, pointing his finger in Sheila’s face.
‘Any more lip from you and we’ll start talking about your education and your past, shall we?’
Michael quickly intervened. ‘I say let’s cool it, this isn’t right.’
Jeremy tut-tutted and suggested Barry sat down.
Bryn shook his head and Linda blushed.
‘I will when she’s apologised. I’m waiting.’
Pat, embarrassed at his defence of her when she was quite capable of defending herself, muttered. ‘It really doesn’t matter, you know. I don’t care.’
‘No, but I do. Well? I’m still waiting.’
Louise quietly said to her mother, ‘There’s no call for that.’
Linda, who had never liked Sheila because in her opinion Sheila always treated her like something that had crawled out from under a stone, piped up with, ‘I don’t know what education has to do with it. If Mr Charter-Plackett has asked Pat to be in charge then he must think she’s capable, and I myself think the prices are very reasonable.’
‘So do I,’ Bryn said, having grown weary of Sheila challenging every decision. ‘Sit down, Barry, do and let’s get on.’
Remembering that he wanted the meeting to finish in reasonable time so he could take Pat for a drink, Barry reluctantly agreed and sat down, putting his arm across the back of Pat’s chair again as though that was
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