R A E broke up. Bought red tartan long skirt. Went to GTE & work in aft. Period very heavy. P had offer from Cambridge. Very thrilled. Mum – not really interested. FR rang briefly in aft. Went to choir at night. 1L.
Notes
The Rest of Us Broke Up from School
R A E refers to me Roger (R) and my two younger siblings Alan (A) and Liz (E for Elizabeth). We broke up from school. My older sister Tricia (Patricia) had broken up the previous day. Often, the dates of her holidays differed from ours as we all attended state schools whereas she went to a fee-paying, direct grant school, see Chapter 118.
Red Tartan Long Skirt
Mum bought a red tartan long skirt, see Chapter 125.
Work for Rev Eddy
GTE refers 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, mum went to his.
Mum Worked for Mr Ashken and Mr Stephens
During this period, mum worked 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 it was a Friday, she worked in the afternoon (aft).
Heavy Period
Mum noted that her period was very heavy. She had been having heavy periods since May 1975. She continued to have symptoms over the next two years and had a polyp removed in July 1977. However, that did not resolve all the problems and she had a hysterectomy in August 1978, see Chapter 116.
Offer from Cambridge
My older sister Tricia (P for Patricia) was in the process of applying for university. She had applied to Cambridge and had sat their exam and been for an interview, see Chapter 120. She heard that they had made her an offer. Essentially, it was unconditional. She just had to pass two A levels at grade E or better.
Mum described herself as “very thrilled” but commented that grandma was “not really interested“. I don’t really understand this. I would have thought grandma would have been pleased by Tricia’s achievement. Perhaps she did not understand quite what a big deal it was or perhaps she did not see the value of university education, in general, and for girls, in particular. What is odd is that mum recorded how she felt and how grandma reacted but did not say anything about how Tricia felt about it!
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 rang briefly in the afternoon (aft).
Choir
Mum was part of the choir at St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church, see Chapter 124. She went to a choir practice at night.
Antidepressants
During this period, mum had had severe struggles with her mental health, suffering with depression and anxiety, see Chapter 116. She was on antidepressants. On this occasion, she took one tablet of long-acting amitryptilline (Lentizol, L).
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