MY BIOGRAPHY. |
CHAPTER 48. Desperation. |
1. I needed help and I needed it badly. 2. I spoke to a guy who I knew had been in financial throuble, as he had told me so himself, and so I went to see him. He explained what his stiuation had been, which was a lot different from mine but gave me a telephone number of the firm in Hull that, he claimed, had 'sorted him out.' I spoke to a lady there, who claimed to be one of the principals and explained my situation. She listened and asked a lot of questions and said she would come back to me. She didn't and when I rang again later she said she was surprised as someone had been instructed to ring me and say, sorry, but 'No' on this occasion, and 'No' she could not recommend anyone to me that might be able to help. Had I tried a Solicitor or an Accountant or the Citizens Advice Bureau? 3. The accountant was the last person I wanted to talk to as his track record, as far as I was concerned was pathetic and I didn't want to invite him to pressurise me for the money I owed him. 4. Citizens Advice Bureau, much to my surprise and amazement, were a complete waste of time and offered nothing by way of help or advice. Another 'charitable' and public funded organisation that is great until it comes to the crunch where they are expected to deliver the goods. 5. Solicitors. There was the guy I had used, off and on, over the years but who, through my outside interests, I had met often and we had become casual friends and I considered approaching him. In between times there was one other person that I knew, and in whom I confided that I could do with some advice and she knew just the person. A friend of her and her husband, who had recently qualified as a Solicitor and was about to set up in practice, and she would ask him as a personal favour. I met him and he was very helpful and was, of course, bang up to date with the law but not particularly my area, as he had only covered it in passing and in order to qualify, as he proposed specialising in another sphere. He did his best and he was kind, when I was down, and I am grateful to him for at least talking to me and not charging. I then approached and explained briefly to the first Solicitor, that I had known for years, what it was all about and because I felt at ease with him told him point blank that I could not afford his services and that if he provided them then he would have to add himself to my long list of debtors. He laughed and said that if that were the case then he would meet me, during his coffee break, in the coffee bar next door to his offices. 6. We sat and talked for two hours or more and he explained the 'ins and outs' of everything, gave me good sound advice, wished me luck and said he would not be adding to my list of debts. 7. I went to the County Law Courts and got the necessary forms. 8. The forms were lengthy and extremely difficult to understand and to fill in, or they were in my, then, mental state. But that was nothing and would soon be a thing of the past, as armed with the knowledge that both my wife and I, having filled out these forms, as a partnership, would submit them to the Court and the Court would then rule as to who got paid what and when, and everyone would be off our backs and I might get a decent nights sleep and some colour might come back into my wife's cheeks and she would smile again, for God knows she didn't deserve any of this. Forms submitted and a hearing date set, we waited. |
MY BIOGRAPHY. |
