Mum seems to be improving day by day. Tonight when I arrived Jamie was already there sitting by her side. He looked as bored as hell but then again find topics of conversation with someone who has been bed bound for nigh on three weeks is difficult at the best of times. Mum saw me and again that flash of smile greeted me. We didn’t stay long though as she wanted me to turn the central heating down in her bungalow after I said some kind but misguided soul had turned it up to 30! It felt like a tropical jungle inside. Since it wasn’t like the other day I can only presume Joyce across the road turned it up for some obscure reason. Mum has bundles of cards from all manner of people, mostly Salvationists. I find that ‘club mentality’ weird but it is probably me.


As things improve for Mum so my mind has been returning to the books, to Fekenham Swarberry. The first few chapters of book four have been written but the last one composed needs revising as I am not happy with it. The Fekenham books are, at best, a series of Comic adventures with a dash of romance thrown in. In view of that I have been, since book one, trying to develop the romantic story curves. Ralph loves Verity, Cybil (with a C) loves Cyril and all the rest but then there is Ruth Crabtree whose marriage has gone west, who had a brief fling with Frenchman David Vanderputte and who now is linked with Neal Beefshank. Trying to tie all the various story threads is becoming more of a challenge but it is the one thing I love doing.

If I get the time tomorrow I will phone Dave to see how the illustrations for books 1, 2 and 3 are going but also the cover for EB.

.
.
.
all words and art are copyright © of Russell 'C.J' Duffy. For another side of CJ go here: sOMeThiNg For tHE wEeKeND, SiR?