8.35 a.m. It’s a beautiful day. This morning I shall head out to the flying club for breakfast. I am just back from my morning walk, this time along the banks of the Silverburn. I am thinking seriously of lifting Skipper’s asbo, as he has not chased anyone now for about a month. However, maybe I can’t quite trust him just yet and I will wait until I return from Clatterbridge. If he behaves himself over there and does not terrorize the caravan site or add anyone on Clatterbridge’s patient list, then I shall lift the asbo on his return.

Well, now to the third and final chapter on my time spent at the old folk’s home in Abergele North Wales back in the early 80’s.

I guess I did not exactly do myself any favours with matron by supplying the elderly residents with cigarettes and tins of beer, although I must say, I did not go on a fag and booze run on their behalf, I simply went shopping for them each morning and brought back whatever they asked for. The gas fire in my room also got me off to a bad start with matron. I simply could not figure how to get it working, so, one night in the local pub, I met a guy and after having a few beers with him I told him about my gas fire and how I could not get it to work. He seemed a very nice guy and offered to pop round the next day to sort it our. He was indeed a man of his word and at noon the following day he turned up at the home to fix my gas fire. The police turned up at the home about half an hour later and promptly arrested the most wanted man in North Wales. Well, how was I to know that this guy was a hunted criminal. My plea to the matron that I had in fact done the people of North Wales a huge favour, as I managed to find a guy the police obviously couldn’t locate and rid the community of this man. It fell on deaf ears. I got away light I suppose with just a warning to be more careful of the type of people I brought back to the home. Well, yes I did get off to a bit of a dodgy start at the old folks home in Abergele. However, things did eventually settle down, and I went on to spend 6 of the happiest months of my life there. I did eventually learn how to make cradles, although that was through an old man I met in the village, and there still might be one or two of them kicking around the island. I did try to get the home owners to put a cigarette machine in the home for the residents, and they were considering this request when I left. Whether it happened, I really don’t know. I met some fantastic people whilst I was there, and on the day I left I will never forget the small group of school children who stood on the pier at Llandudno and sung, “There’ll be a welcome in the hillsides” as the Manxman pulled away and returned the troublesome warrior back to the Isle of Man.

Well here we go again. Once again I am to leave the Island and head off on an unknown adventure. A week on Monday I head for Clatterbridge. I promise I will not be nipping out to bring the patients cigarettes or booze. This time it will probably be the other way round only without the cigarettes. I turned up in Abergele all those years ago with a highly trained guide dog ‘York’. This time I am turning up on a caravan site with a wild as hell collie. I cannot be sure what exactly lies ahead of me because they are uncharted waters. I have absolutely no doubt that just like all my other forages over the water, I will return all the better for my experience. I am about to dip my toe in the deep font of human kindness once again. I also hope that I too will leave something behind, even if it is only a packet of fags and a couple of tins of beer. I hope like me, they will throw the fags away, however that must always remain their choice.

Until tomorrow then folks, this is Tom Glassey with News at 9.15., on the banks of the Silverburn River.