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Dennis went from bad to worse, his flat was a mess. He had left a pan on his cooker and fallen asleep in one of his drug fuelled moments and the next he knew the fireman had laid him on the grass outside. Evedently there wasnt any flames just smoke.

I got a couple of telephone calls over time from hospitals asking me to pick him up, this was usually really late at night or during the night. He had been found by passers by completely out of it and been taken to the hospital by ambulance. Drugs again. On one occasion he woke up the following morning, had no recollection of the incident and asked me what the suction pads and wires were that were attached to his chest. I then realised he must have just walked out of the hospital. I did think it strange because he was waiting for me outside the entrance when I went to pick him up.

Since Lesley had been living in Milton Keynes I used go every saturday and we would go shopping the shops were amazing there. Jim would either be at work or watching sport on TV. They had got the house really nice now.

A couple of months had passed and Lesley rang me one evening and said she had something to tell me, my heart dropped, I wondered what was coming but it was the very best news I could have been told, she was pregnant, my first grandchild, I was over the moon, she said it was due in August 1988 I couldnt wait. Steve was thrilled to bits, he would be an Uncle.

Pregnancy suited Lesley she seemed to be taking it in her stride. We still went shopping on saturdays . I bought wool and started knitting things and we bought bits and bobs. Dennis used to go with me on saturdays to Lesley`s on condition he was drug free. He was also thrilled he would be a Great Uncle ,which was eventually shortened to Gunk.

I went to work as usual one monday morning in June and I hadnt been there long, when my boss said he needed a word with me, nothing unusual in that except he said we were going downstairs to another office, I started to get a bit concerned. I was shown in to this office and there was a lady I had never seen before , the Chief Accountant and my boss. He told me this lady was from somewhere called A.C.A.S as what he was about to tell me needed this lady to oversee it.

He said he was really sorry but I was being made redundant. I was shocked as I had so much work these days since Robert went. He went on and on saying if there had been another course of action he would have taken it. Like I believed it. I had worked there for 10 years it evidently didnt count for much. Then he said he was pleased to tell me that they had made a really good redundancy package for me . The lady from A.C.A.S confirmed this and said it was way above what they were contracted to pay. Because I had been such a good worker and this reflected that. I was in shock , the next thing my boss said was I would have to vacate the premises immediately. I knew from past experience this was how it worked in case you did something to the computer or saboutaged things. I could have reeked havoc, this was to avoid that happening.

My handbag and coat were brought to me and that was that . I got in my car and was out of work. Yes, I had a fair bit of money but I didnt have a job. It felt like my feet hadnt touched the floor.
Dennis only lived around the corner from where I worked so I went to him but surprise surprise he was out of his head so I went home.