Grandad – Snow very bad in Scotland. E & D went to Arthur & Rose during the evening.
Mum – P arrived back about 7.30pm. Bought turquoise mat from Garlands. FR rang about 5.00. Went to Church Council mtg – utter waste of time – very depressed afterwards. Took 2 Mogadon (Restless & dreamt a lot).
Notes
The Snow Was Very Bad in Scotland
Grandad noted that there had been very bad snow in Scotland, see Chapter 129.
Grandma and Auntie Dolly Visited the Elsegoods
E refers to my grandmother Ethel May Cecilia Parkin. D refers to Dorothy Rose who we knew as Auntie Dolly although she was my grandmother’s first cousin. Grandma’s father (Charles Cirket) and Auntie Dolly’s mother (Lois Rose née Cirket) were siblings. Auntie Dolly visited grandma and grandad often coming by bus from where she lived in Bedford to Norwich bus station, see Chapter 122. She had arrived on the 2nd.
Grandma and Auntie Dolly visited Arthur and Rose Elsegood who were good friends of grandma and grandad, see Chapter 122.
Tricia Got Back From Youth Hostelling
P refers to my older sister Tricia (Patricia). She had been youth hostelling in the Peak District with three school friends, see Chapter 122. They had been away for a week having left the previous Wednesday.
Mum Bought Turquoise Material from Garlands
While it is possible that mum bought a turquoise mat from Garlands, I think it is more likely that mat stands for material, see Chapter 125. Mum made a lot of her own clothes, see Chapter 126, although I am not sure exactly what she made with this material.
Garlands department store in Norwich was opened by Richard Ellery Garland in London Street in 1862. Garlands specialised in drapery but also were dressmakers, mantle makers and milliners. By 1920, it was a store with nearly 30 departments. According to Kelly’s Directories, in 1960, they were drapers based at 13-19 London Street and, by 1967, occupied 13-25 London Street. They were also based at 13-25 London Street in the 1970-71 Kelly’s Tradefinder but they do not appear in the 1971-72 version presumably as a result of a fire that gutted the building in August 1970. Garlands was rebuilt in 1973 following the fire but closed in 1984, see Chapter 112.
Rev Dowson
FR refers to Rev F R Dowson. Frederick Rodham Dowson entered the Methodist ministry in 1936. He was born in Haxby, York on 5 August 1912 and he died in Selsey on 4 September 2011, aged 99. I believe he was superintendent Minister for the Park Lane circuit from 1968 to 1974. He and mum were close and they spoke and corresponded frequently, see Chapter 114. On this occasion, he phoned about 5pm.
Mum Attended a Church Council Meeting
Mum attended a church council meeting, see Chapter 124. She described this as “an utter waste of time” but did not say why.
Mum Noted Being Very Depressed Again
Mum had severe struggles with her mental health during this period, suffering with depression and anxiety, see Chapter 116. She was on the tricyclic antidepressant doxepin (Sinequan) at this point. Based on her diary, it seems that her depression was worth following negative events, in this case a church council meeting that she thought was a waste of her time.
She took two nitrazepam (Mogadon) which she had been given as sleeping tablets. She noted that she was restless and dreamed a lot. I assume this was after she had taken the nitrazepam.