Bust....

… and Boom.

Or so it would appear. It’s been a nervous six months for the denizens of Ambridge. Light industry hereabouts had evolved to serve the needs of the midlands car makers through the boom years of British manufacturing industry. Those few that are left are all teetering on the brink of the much bruited recession, resulting in increasing uncertainty, lay offs, redundancies, short time working, and downwardly spiralling incomes for the majority of folk.

Add to that rising fuel costs and the coldest winter on record (well o.k. not quite perhaps, but certainly one of the chilliest I can recall) and it all adds up to a pretty miserable picture. Or so I thought until yesterday morning.

You see, we Yeomen of Borsetshire are a sturdy breed. When the chips are down we rally round and make the best of things, and when, as this year, there’s no cash, no heat and nothing worth watching on the telly, we can make our own entertainment. And it seems we have been. Rather enthusiastically.

And the upshot of all this “entertainment” was made manifest not once, nor twice, but three times in the space of one surgery yesterday morning. On each occasion in strode a confident looking woman (one with sheepish partner in tow) with a particular half-smiling expression. These days I hardly need to ask, but do so, just to observe the formalities, thus;

“Now what can we do for you Ms….?”

And they reply “I’m” (or once “We’re”) “pregnant!”

There follows a round of congratulations, followed by one (well, yesterday three) of the most joyful consultations you can get in this line of work. With the obvious exception, I’m not sure there’s a better way of spending a morning ;-)