8 June 2023

"Trying to fix this alarm clock"

At Bryntirion, Dai is tinkering with something on the table, and Diane asks what he is doing.   “Trying to fix this alarm clock,” he replies 

"You should get a new one, Dai"

and Jason suggests that he should get a new one.

“That’s typical of this younger generation – if something breaks, they throw it and get a new one – waste of money,” Dai moans, but Jason explains that is to get a new one would probably be quicker and cheaper.

"Nefi wen!   We've only had this one for five years"

“We don’t need a new one – Nefi wen!   We’ve only had this one for five years!”   

"Princess Margaret got one like that"

Diane says that he is underestimating, pointing out that Princess Margaret got one like that when she got married.

"The accounts you wanted"

Mathew comes in through the back door with the accounts that Jason wanted;  “How are things at APD?” Dai asks him, 

"I hope you two aren't ruining the business"

“I hope you two aren’t ruining the business it took me years to build.”   

"We've got plenty to do today"

Jason assures Dai that they have plenty to do today, and the first job is sorting out the door in Mathew’s flat.

"Doors can be very awkward"

“Doors can be very awkward – aren’t you a good enough carpenter to do the job yourself?” Dai asks Mathew, 

"I'll fix it in a jiffy"

“I’ll pop over now to take a look for you – I’ll fix it in a jiffy.   Jason can concentrate on the big, difficult jobs – I am busy here, but not too busy to help the younger generation.   That’s the kind of guy I am.”

"What about this clock, Dai?"

Diane objects to him leaving the pieces of the clock on the table, but he simply says that he will fix it later.

"Are you able to go to the deli today?"

DJ is feeling a bit better after yesterday’s experience;  Sioned enquires if he is sure he is able to go to the deli today.   “I’ve got no choice – we’re opening next week,” he answers.

"The last thing we want is you spewing your guts"

“The last thing we want is you spewing your guts on the counter!” she rather tastelessly remarks, but he thinks that he is over the worst now.   “You said that last night, but you were cuddling the toilet at 3:00am, she reminds him.

“Ha ha – I like the fact someone enjoys seeing me ill,” he grumbles, but she insists that he has no one to blame but himself.   

"At least our bad luck has run out"

“At least, our bad luck has run out – it happens in threes – the van breaking down, the alarm going off, me being ill – it’s over now,” he maintains.   

Sioned tells him not to talk such nonsense;  

"Why don't you have a slice of toast?"

“Why don’t you have a slice of toast to settle your stomach,” she suggests, but he wants her to stop fussing, as he has a lot to do, including throwing out loads of Siôn White’s boxes.

Ffion is in her office

Ffion is working at her desk in the head teacher’s office when there is a knock at the door;  “You wanted to see me?” says Cai, 

"I can come back if you're busy"

“I can come back if you’re busy.”

"How are you, Cai?"

He sits down to wait for her to finish what she is doing, then she asks how he is, 

"I'm fine"

which he finds rather a strange question.   

"A couple of reports suggest you're not yourself"

“I’ve received a couple of reports that suggest you’re not yourself.”   

"Who's saying that?"

Of course he wants to know where these reports originated, but she is not at liberty to disclose that, so he demands in what way he is ‘not himself’.

"You're a little unfair with your pupils"

“You’re impatient, a little unfair with your pupils sometimes,” she continues;  he dismisses this as ridiculous.   If there is nothing else, he has classes to teach.

"You should take your mental health seriously"

I honestly think you should take your mental health seriously,” Ffion tells him.   He argues that it would help his mental health if his boss did not waste his time, 

"Just let me get on with my job"

adding, as he is about to walk out of the office, that if there are official complaints against him, they will be dealt with.   Otherwise he simply wants to get on with his job.   Ffion is obviously not happy with his attitude.

DJ has dropped one of the books . . .

DJ is carrying a box of books, which Siôn has left behind in the shop, when one falls to the floor.   

. . . of Welsh names for children

He picks it up and notices the title, ‘Welsh Names for Children’, which makes him think and he puts it to one side for later.

"I remember buying this plane"

Dai, complete with his tools, is at the shop flat and recalls, “I remember buying this plane in Arthur’s shop years ago.”   Mathew assures him that he did not have to come over this morning, 

"Everything arrives in containers from China"

but Dai goes on, “We don’t produce stuff like that in this country any more – everything arrives in containers from China.”

"You actually might get that door fixed today"

Rhys comes in and sarcastically comments that Mathew might actually managed to get the door fixed today.   

"The Lone Ranger has arrived"

“No problem – Hi Ho Silver, the Lone Ranger has arrived,” says Dai.

"You said that before I want to Cardiff"

“You said you were going to fix that door before I went to Cardiff,” Rhys reminds Mathew, which intrigues Dai, who wants to know what he was doing in Cardiff 

"Have you got s girlfriend there?"

and whether he had a girlfriend there.

"Don't trust Cardiff girls"

We’ve all been there – but watch out – don’t trust Cardiff girls,” he goes on, then appears to be getting down to some work.   

"Right, where's your tape measure?"

Rhys alleges that Mathew has been struggling to fix that on his own.

“Right, where’s your tape measure?   

"What sort of builder hasn't got a tape measure?"

“What sort of builder hasn’t got a tape measure?”   

"I've got an app on my phone"

Mathew explains that he has an app on his phone, and Dai exclaims, “App?   You can’t rely on an app!”   Mathew says that he has not used a tape measure for ages, and Dai demands, 

"Nefi wen!   You'll get the measurements all wrong!"

“Nefi wen!   What if it fuses or gets a short circuit?   You’ll get the measurements all wrong!   

"I'll pop over to APD"

“I’ll pop over to APD to get you a proper tape measure.   App, be damned!”

"I would have finished, but for him"

Rhys laughs, and Mathew maintains that he would have finished the job by now if Jason had been there.   

"If a job's worth doing . . ."

Rhys gives his impression of Dai, “But Math, if a job’s worth doing, it’s worth doing properly, right?”

Jason comes into the deli . . .

As Jason comes into the Deli, formerly bookshop, 

. . . where DJ has suffered a misfortune

DJ has managed to get some cleaning liquid into his eye,  and Jason wonders how he did that.   

"Does it matter?"

“Does it matter?’ DJ snarls, 

Jason takes a look

and Jason tries to take a look.

Ffion appears to be asleep

In Ffion’s office, she appears to be asleep with her head resting on the desk;  Cai knocks on the door but receives no reply, so comes in.   

"Listen, Ffion, I just wanted to . . ."

“Listen, Ffion, I just wanted to . . .” he begins, 

He can see all is not well . . .

but then realises something is wrong 

. . . and tries to rouse her

and attempts to rouse her.   As this is unsuccessful, he reaches for the phone to call an ambulance, 

"No, that's not necessary!"

but then she comes round, insisting that it is not necessary.   

Cai is very worried

She is obviously not well.

DJ's eye is improving

and Jason have retired to the Deri, where the eye is less troublesome;  DJ explains that he was distracted by something, which caused the liquid to get into his eye.   

"Come on, DJ, you can talk to me"

“Come on, DJ, you can talk to me – what was it?”

"I found a book of children's names"

“I found a book of children’s names that Siôn had left – something reminds me of babies all the time.”   Jason says that he is doing the sensible thing by putting the brakes on things,

"You can't even look after yourself"

 as he obviously cannot look after himself, let alone a baby.

“If it’s supposed to happen, it will happen,” is Jason’s advice, but DJ wonders what if it does not happen.   “That’s why it’s important to have other things in your life.”   

"The deli is a little project for us"

DJ points out that is what the deli is – a little project for them.   

"When's the opening, then?"

The grand opening is supposed to be next week, 

"I can't see it happening"

 he cannot see that target being met.

"You haven't got time to sit here drinking"

“Next week?   You haven’t got time to sit here drinking, then,” Jason recommends, “You’d better get on with it.”

"Still not finished?"

Rhys returns to find that Mathew still has not finished the door;  

"Then it was sandpaper"

After coming back with the tape measure, Dai said the sandpaper was too rough for this wood – then after ‘sandpapergate’ he broke one of the hinges and now he’s out looking for decent ones, 

"My hinges are too 'namby-pamby'"

“because mine are ‘namby-pamby’.”

"He'll be here all day"

Rhys predicts that Dai will be there all day, but Mathew fears that it may be longer than that;  “I’ve caught him looking around the flat for other jobs to do.”   Rhys can see that he is bored.   “I don’t want him here – he’s in the way.   He’ll be over in APD now, talking and interfering,” Mathew continues, 

Unfortunately Dai is listening

unaware that Dai is outside the door listening to them.

"The bloke is useless!"

“It would be something if he helped, but the bloke is useless!” moans Mathew.   Rhys suggests buying him a plane ticket back to Australia;  “It would be cheaper than wasting my time,” says Mathew.

Dai is very disconsolate

Dai looks very downcast upon hearing this and turns to leave.

Sioned arrives at the deli . . .

Sioned is walking along the street and comes into the new deli, 

. . . but DJ is not there

but finds that DJ is not there;  

Then she finds the book

then she comes across the book which he found, which concerns her.

"You ought to see a doctor"

Ffion insists that she is OK now, but Cai considers that she should see a doctor.   

"A cup tea and a KitKat and I'll be fine"

“I’ll be fine in five minutes – a cup of tea and a KitKat and I’ll be fine.”

"You might be in danger"

He wonders how she knows this and points out that she might be in danger;  

"It's happened before"

“Because it’s happened before,” she admits, “A couple of weeks ago – I blacked out, but I was fine afterwards.”

"Are you drinking again?"

He asks the obvious question, “Are you drinking again?” and she is adamant that she is not;  she is willing to take a breath test, if that is what he wants, as he obviously does not believe her.   “You have to take this seriously, Ffion,” he says, 

"I already have a doctor's appointment"

and she maintains, unconvincingly, that she already has a doctor’s appointment, hoping that is good enough for him, or perhaps he wants to accompany her there.

“If I find out that you’re drinking again, I won’t be coming back to talk to you – 

"I'll go straight to the governors"

“I’ll have to go straight to the governors,” he warns.   He leaves the office.

Sioned has taken the book back to Penrhewl

Sioned is back at Penrhewl with the book, which she hides away;  

"There's still a lot of work to do"

DJ comes in and says there is still a lot of work to do.   

"You weren't at the deli"

“I called at the deli, but you weren’t there,” she comments, 

"I went to flush out my eye"

and he replies that must have been when he went with Jason to flush out his eye, after he got some cleaning stuff in it.

“I’ve learnt that bad luck doesn’t end after three,” he adds, 

"I found this disappointing"

and Sioned  retrieves the book, remarking that she found it disappointing.

“I thought we were on the same page,” she says, 

"It fell out of one of Siôn's boxes"

and DJ maintains that they are.   “Then why are you thinking about baby names?” she demands.   He explains that it fell out of one of the boxes which Siôn left;  

"And you decided to keep it"

“And you decided to keep it,” she sighs, “Is that because you want a child now?”

He merely thought it would be a shame to throw it out, 

"It might come in useful – or it might not"

alleging, “It might come in useful one day – or it might not.   But that doesn’t matter now, does it?   

"It's the deli that's important"

“Because it’s the deli that’s important – our little project.

"I'd still want to run this business with you"

“Listen, even if we do have a child one day, I’d still want to run this business with you.   I got that stuff in my eye because I’m an idiot – 

"But I'm your little idiot"

“but I’m your little idiot.”   

DJ hugs her

He embraces her.

Dai is not saying much

At Bryntirion, as he and Diane eat their meal, Dai is looking depressed;  “This sauce could have done with a bit more garlic,” she complains, 

"Did you fix the door?"

“How did it go with Mathew today?   Did you fix the door?”

"No"

Dai grunts, “No.”   She was under the impression that it was a quick job, 

"Are you going to talk to me, Dai?"

and wonders if he is going to talk to her.   

"I want to go back to Australia as soon as possible"

“I want to go back to Australia as soon as possible,” he announces, “And this time I don’t want to come back!”   

This comes as a shock to Diane

Diane is lost for words.

"I can't believe he just didn't come back"

Mathew is still dealing with that door and moaning to Rhys, “I can’t believe Dai came over, made a mess and just didn’t come back.”   

"Probably going senile"

Rhys suggests that he is possibly going senile or something, but Mathew  appears now to have finished the job, stressing that there was nothing wrong with those ‘namby-pamby’ hinges.

Rhys is arranging small pieces of paper on the coffee table and explains, “I’m gathering evidence.”   

"Evidence against who?"

Mathew enquires who was this evidence is against 

"You'll find out soon enough"

and is told that he will find out soon enough.

Ffion starts booking an appointment

At Cysgod y Glyn, Ffion has just started the process of booking a GP appointment 

"Who's that at the door?"

 the buzzer sounds and Cai is admitted;  

She closes the laptop

she makes sure that the laptop is closed.   

"How did it go at the doctors"

“How did the doctor’s appointment go?” she is asked, 

"I thought our relationship was a professional one"

and replies that she thought their relationship was simply a professional one.

“A deputy doesn’t usually ask about the head’s medical details,” she tells him;  

"I found you unconscious at your desk, Ffion"

he reminds her that he walked in and found her unconscious at her desk.   He would not be doing his job properly if he did not check up on her.   

"Just low blood sugar"

“The doctor said it was low blood sugar – not diabetes, but he has put me on some tablets and everything should be fine.”

He is pleased to hear that and Ffion apologises for making him worry, 

"Thanks for your concern"

thanking him for being concerned.   

"We should both worry less about each other"

“Thanks for worrying about me, but it would be better if we both worried less about each other from now on,” he rather pointedly recommends and leaves the flat.

She does not proceed with the appointment 

Then she reopens the laptop, but, after a moment’s thought, decides not to proceed with the appointment

"Where has this come from all of a sudden?"

Diane wonders where this decision has come from all of a sudden;  “I heard Rhys and Mathew talking about me behind my back – 

"They think I'm a has-been"

“they seem to think I’m a has-been who is no use to anyone.   I just feel my age here, Diane.”

"You'll still be the same age in Australia"

She points out that he will still be the same age in Australia;  

"I'll be Dai Sgaffalde for ever"

“But I don’t feel the same out there.   Here I’m Dai Sgaffalde, and I’ll be Dai Sgaffalde for ever – out there it’s different.”

"You'd still get on my nerves"

“You’d still get on my nerves, wherever we are,” Diane groans, 

"This isn't where we're supposed tom be"

and he goes on to say that the weather is so much better for his joints over there.

“This isn’t where we’re supposed to be now, Diane.”   

"How about Jason and Ifan"?"

She wonders about Jason and Ifan, and he emphasises, “They don’t need us – we’re under their feet – no, I’ve made my decision – 

"Do you want to come with me or not?"

“do you want to come with me or not?”

"You would go without me?"

She cannot believe that he would go without her;  

"Not by choice, no – but . . ."

“Not by choice, no – but if you refused, perhaps I’d have to,” he says

"Well, if this place gets you down that much . . ."

“Well, if this place gets you down that much . . . we’ll go back to Australia,” she answers.   

"I knew you'd see sense in the end"

He clasps her hand and thanks her;  he knew that she would see sense in the end.

"I'm going to look for flights to Sydney"

“Right then, I’m going to look for flights to Sydney,” he proposes, 

He leaves Diane looking worried

and leaves Diane sitting at the table, looking very worried.