Grandad – S P & E came for dinner. They painted the windmill. Took E & Dolly to Southwold & Lowestoft for Tea. P drove all the way.
Mum – Went to Drayton for dinner. Then to Southwold & Lowestoft. P drove all time 98 miles in all. Period very heavy in aft. Lot of tummy pain in evening. Took S L & H tabs.
Notes
Grandma Was Keeping Grandad’s Diary at This Point
Grandad had not been very well, see Chapter 116. I think this means that grandma filled in his diary for him although he may have made the odd entry. The evidence that grandma was mostly keeping his diary is the change of handwriting, some of the topics discussed and also that, sometimes, she referred to him as Gordon and not as “I“. Grandma completed grandad’s diary quite a lot when he was sick, see Chapter 113. However, she was not always consistent. Sometimes, she referred to herself in the first person and grandad in the third person while, at other times, it was vice versa. On this occasion, grandma is referred to in the third person as E. It is potentially a little confusing as grandad’s diary also refers to my younger sister Liz (Elizabeth) as E! So, the first E refers to my sister but the second one to my grandma!!
Bank Holiday
It was Spring Bank Holiday formerly referred to as Whit. The change had been mad in 1972 and it was not a change of which grandad approved, see Chapter 112.
Mum, Tricia and Liz Went to Grandma and Grandad’s for Dinner
S refers to my mother Sheila May Drew née Parkin. P refers to my older sister Tricia (Patricia) and E, in this context, to my younger sister Liz (Elizabeth). It was our usual practice on Sundays to go to grandma and grandad’s for tea, see Chapter 122. However, I think they went for dinner because it was bank holiday and they were going to go out in the afternoon. Neither Alan nor I were there as we were both away. He was away camping with Boys’ Brigade, see Chapter 124, and I was youth hostelling with friends, see Chapter 122.
Dinner or Lunch?
On this occasion, both mum’s and grandad’s diaries refer to “dinner” which is interesting as, only the previous day, mum had referred to “lunch“. In their diaries, from the beginning, mum and grandad always referred to “dinner” and “tea” in relation to midday and evening meals. However, this changed from the 1960s in that they started sometimes referring to the midday meal as “lunch”, see Chapter 92. This was not completely consistent though as they also sometimes still referred to midday meal as “dinner” during this period.
Painting the Windmill
Grandad’s diary noted that “they” painted the windmill. I am not sure if this was all or some of mum, Tricia and Liz. Mum does not mention it. Grandad had, in fact, made three windmills in the sixties and, when he had been well, he had spent a lot of time maintaining and repairing them, see Chapter 109. I am not sure which of these they painted.
Southwold and Lowestoft
In the afternoon, they went to Southwold and Lowestoft. In this context, E refers to my grandmother Ethel May Cecilia Parkin. Dolly 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 the previous day.
Grandad’s diary notes that they went for tea but neither diary says whether they took tea with them or bought it somewhere. The former is probably more likely.
Tricia Was Learning to Drive
Tricia was learning to drive, see Chapter 127, so she drove to Southwold, Lowestoft and back. Mum noted that she drove 98 miles over the day.
Mum’s Symptoms
Mum complained of a heavy period in the afternoon (aft) and abdominal pains in the evening. Mum had such symptoms on and off from this point and finally this resulted in her having a hysterectomy in August 1978, see Chapter 116.
Mum’s Tablets
During this period, mum had severe struggles with her mental health, suffering with depression and anxiety, see Chapter 116. She was taking antidepressants and sleeping tablets and I think this is what S, L and H refer to. S refers to the antidepressant doxepin (Sinequan), L to long-acting amitryptilline (Lentizol) and H to the sleeping tablet clomethiazole (Heminevrin).
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