burning the candle

A busy morning at PEP as we move into the Autumn. It means a new learning programme for our adult learners, new programme for the Neighbourhood Group and a new programe for the Weekend Resource all of which requires a lot of planning and preparation ...on top of that we are moving our garaging arrangements to a temporary home while we seek a more permanent solution and are about to officially open the new neighbourhood garden...as ever a lot is going on and I am lucky to work with the staff I do who are able to rise to most challenges.

Later this afternoon I went to a party. Helen McQuade, Eric Milligan's secretary, who has worked with Midlothian Council, then Lothian Regional Council and finally the City of Edinburgh Council is taking early retirement after 40 years in local government. She is a STAR and will be a big miss. We are great friends and though I won't be seeing her quite so frequently I know we will continue to be so. Pat, her husband is a star too. His father was a Labour Councillor in Midlothian and though he has gone up in the world he has not forgotten his roots. There were many familiar faces at the party...Mr P Nolan, Mr J Gibson, Mrs P Herriott, Mr K Smart, Ms L Cameron, Mr A Jackson, Ms M Jackson aka Costello, Mr E Aitken, Mr M Hart, Mr P Smith, Ms T Gallo, Mr M Wilkinson to name only a few...conspicuous by his absence was Mr B Fallon. He was posted missing and will be in trouble when next we meet....

Tomorrow morning the Labour Party is holding a community conference where I am committed to lead one of the sessions then in the afternoon it is back to PEP to make up for lost time. This is called burning the candle at both ends and in the middle too.