14 NOVEMBER 1987, Page 55

Alexandra Artley

PROBABLY four evenings a month I am a `committee widow'. While agenda are ploughed through and planning law de- ciphered, I put the children to bed. If there is nothing more pressing to do (washing- up, articles, laundry, throwing out old newspapers) it is nice to take a Very Late Breakfast up to bed. This is a free-range boiled egg, a few slices of wholemeal toast and a very, very large cup of tea. A bath, a book and a boiled egg are my idea of a three-course menu for one. Curiously enough, we discovered some years ago that in the Portico Library, Manchester, read- ers could have a boiled egg, toast or soup brought to them at lunchtime as they read (a service of which few other libraries can boast). After that, there is nothing more peaceful than lying in bed knowing that the children are breathing quietly in the next room and that my husband will be home soon.