Cleaner sacked over hacking allegations (Rousse)

All I asked her to do was to print an invoice that I had already prepared. When I discovered that the cleaner had spent most of the afternoon working her way through the contents of my computer, I had no choice but to dismiss her.

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Ghost and new-born compete for attention at school reunion (Rousse)

I was now so familiar with the T twins that I could tell that it was L (and not H) in the old-fashioned wedding dress.

“I am not dressed as a bride”, she said. “This is a nightie. I am playing a ghost at this Teesside High reunion”.

Intriguing though this was, we instantly dropped the conversation when JT walked into the room cradling a new-born baby in her arms. This was far more interesting!

Later on two of my sisters-in-law (SMcC and JLR) turned up. If they were admitted, I saw no reason why TPR could not be invited too. BD reluctantly lent me his mobile phone so that I could call my husband. Whether or not he ever joined us, I do not know.

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Daughter driven to drugs by parents’ divorce (Rousse)

Perhaps it was inevitable that G’s daughter turned to drugs now that her parents were in the throes of a bitter divorce.

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Preservation of a seventeenth century drugs hoard (Rousse)

DT danced down the hall to ‘oldies’ on my ancient iPhone 3. Then she boogied into the bathroom where she picked up a blister pack of tablets.

‘Oh, let’s try these!’ she called to WB.

‘Not so fast’ I said.

‘Why?’ she asked.

‘Because I am saving them for their rarity value. They were manufactured in 1629.’

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Sunblock and boat safety (Rousse)

TPR bobbed about in a wooden rowing boat in the bay without a care in the world – until he noticed that my arm was turning red in the sun. He remembered that he had packed sunblock and leant over to pull it out of the rucksack.

The boat tipped over and we fell into the cold water. After flailing around for some time we emerged close to the shore, relieved to feel the muddy sand squelching under our feet.

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Hexham hosts Downton Abbey cast (Rousse)

I was privileged to take part in a dress rehearsal of Downton Abbey in Hexham two days before it was broadcast live.

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Cooking with toddlers (Rousse)

It was a mistake to allow toddler N, who I had only ‘met’ online before, to use the blender to make soup. The orange gunge went everywhere.

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A quest for counterfeit coins (Rousse)

The friendly policeman hovered at the door and told me about his quest for counterfeit coins. I pretended that I knew nothing, even though I had stacks of the large silver ones planted outside as garden ornaments.

Then I got back to telling SC that he was a very lazy boy for taking a bus the tiny distance from Canonmills up to York Place.

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Homeless bed down in library lift (Rousse)

I thought that I would help BP out by collecting his finished job from the Print Room and taking it up to the meeting. The problem was that I was unfamiliar with the lift system on campus.

I couldn’t work out which lift went up which floors and accidentally ended up at the far side of campus in a lift that served the main library. Inside it a mother and her two small children were fast asleep under a couple of thin grey rugs. I later learned that they were homeless and that the library lift was the best shelter on winter nights.

I was also surprised to discover that the library was hosting book signings just like those in book shops. I walked past a famous author chatting to his fans as he put his signature to copies of his latest orange-jacketed novel. I had no idea who he was, but he appeared to be very popular.

I reached the meeting half an hour late. EH had instructed everyone to analyse a poem. I worked out that I was the only one there qualified to tackle this task. I was proved right when the work was handed in. I had written a mini essay, whereas my more technical colleagues had barely managed to scribble a couple of lines.

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An accident averted and a warning (Rousse)

I knocked an ornament off the table, but the owner didn’t seem to mind. At least it didn’t break.

My good turn for the day was to warn a student in a red jumper called Neil that if he continued leaving class early, he risked poor references from his tutors when applying for jobs later in the year.

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