Grandad – Stayed in bed until tea-time then soon came back. Mrs Winspear went to the butchers.
Mum – Hair set 9am then to Chairmans. Worked 1.15 to 5.15. Mr A came in. Had N/L from FR. Typed GTE’s work at night – found s/h easier to read! V lonely at night. Alan went canoeing with BB again. P handed in her Cambridge application (not UCCA) form.
Notes
Change in Handwriting
There had been a change in handwriting at the end of June. Based on this, it seems likely that this, and subsequent entries, were made by grandma even though this is not stated explicitly. If indeed, the entry was made by grandma, she writes with grandad in the first person although the “I” is implied, e.g. in “stayed in bed“.
At Home
Grandad had come home from hospital two days earlier having been admitted a few days before that with symptoms related to a further urinary obstruction, see Chapter 116. He had had surgery to stretch the bladder neck. This was carried out by consultant urologist, Mr Ashken. However, the operation had not been very successful in terms of relieving his urinary obstruction. So, he had been discharged home with the catheter in place. Mr Ashken had explained to mum that the catheter would be in place for three weeks initially. He stayed in bed until tea-time and soon came back to bed after tea.
Mrs Winspear
I am not entirely sure who Mrs Winspear was but I assume she might have been a friend of grandma’s through church, see Chapter 124. It seems that, on this occasion, she helped with shopping by going to the butcher’s.
Hair Set
Mum had her hair set at 9am before going to work.
Mum Worked for Rev G T Eddy
The Chairman and GTE both refer to Rev G T Eddy who was the Chairman of the Methodist District. Based on her CV, see Chapter 105, mum did some part-time secretarial work for him between 1973 and 1977, see Chapter 121. On this occasion, she went there after she had had her hair set. She typed his work at home at night. She noted that (her) shorthand (s/h) was easier to read. However, I am not sure easier than what. It might mean his writing but I think she would have been unlikely to transfer his writing to shorthand. It might mean an audio recording. I am not really sure.
Mum Worked for Mr Ashken and Mr Stephens
About two weeks earlier, mum had started a new job as part-time medical secretary for the private practice of two surgeons, Mr Ashken and Mr Stephens, see Chapter 121. This practice was based at 41 Newmarket Road. She worked all day on Tuesdays and Wednesdays and half day on Fridays. As this was Friday, she worked in the afternoon from 1.15 to 5.15. She noted that Mr Ashken (Mr A) came in.
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. Mum noted that she had a newsletter (n/l) from him. I am not sure if this was just for her information or if this was something she was expetced to type and duplicate.
Very Lonely
Since my parents split up in 1973, mum complained of feeling lonely, see Chapter 114. On this occasion, she noted feeling lonely at night.
Canoeing with Boys’ Brigade
Alan refers to my younger brother. He went canoeing with Boys’ Brigade (BB), see Chapter 124. He had also been the previous Friday.
Cambridge Application
P refers to my older sister Tricia (Patricia). She handed in her application to Cambridge University, see Chapter 120. Mum noted that this was not the main UCCA form. Although UCCA operated a centralised system, Cambridge still expected individual, direct applications.
UCCA
UCCA stood for Universities Central Council on Admissions. It operated from 1961 to 1993 when it merged with the Polytechnics Central Admission System to form the Universities and Colleges Admission Service (UCAS). UCCA produced, and UCAS still produce, a comprehensive handbook to guide prospective students applying to UK universities.
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