Mum – Took mum to bus at 6.45am. Had hair set then to GTE. Then in city – bought sandals & toaster (3.99 & 12.45) from Bonds. Used Gift voucher. Roy came for tea! Self invited!! Went to Choir practice at night. P A & E went to anniversary practice at 6pm. Took Aludrox for tummy pain. Should I see Dr W? No S.
Roger – The Conservatives have made sweeping gains from Labour throughout the country. Mr Ames returned today. this lunch-time went swimming and sun-bathed as it was very hot. Got home about 6 after a group practice, did some work then watched tele & had an early night. Dad is going back to Birmingham tomorrow.
Notes
Grandma to the Bus
Mum noted taking grandma to the bus at 6.45 am. Although mum did not specify this, grandma was going to Bedford, see Chapter 122, presumably to see her cousin Dorothy Rose, who we knew as Auntie Dolly. Mum dropped her at Norwich Bus Station.
Hair Set
Mum noted having her hair set in the morning.
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 after she had had her hair set.
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. On this occasion, it was Friday but she made no mention of going to work. So, either she just did not mention it or she had the afternoon off.
Shopping in City
Mum went into the city and bought some sandals and a toaster, see Chapter 125. The sandals cost £3.99 and the toaster possibly £12.45 although the second digit is a little unclear. Both items came from Bonds. Mum used the voucher she had been given by Mr Ashken for the work she had done typing a thesis for his daughter Sharon. However, this voucher was only for £6 so presumably mum paid the difference in cash.
Dad Came for Tea
Mum noted that dad came for tea and that he had invited himself! While she does not say so explicitly, it seems fairly clear, not least from the exclamation marks that she was not happy with this! Interestingly perhaps, I did not note that he came for tea but that he was going back to Birmingham the next day, see Chapter 114.
Choir Practice
Mum was part of the choir at St Peter’s Park Lane Methodist Church, see Chapter 124. she went to a practice in the evening, see Chapter 124.
Sunday School Anniversary Practice
P A & E refer to my siblings Tricia (Patricia), Alan and Liz (Elizabeth). They all went to a practice for the forthcoming Sunday School Anniversary, see Chapter 124.
Tummy Pain
Mum noted that she had tummy pain and she took an antacid (Aludrox) for this, see Chapter 116. She wondered if she should see her GP, Dr Welch (Dr W), about this.
Senokot
Mum was taking Senokot (S) presumably for constipation, see Chapter 116. Senokot is a senna-containing medicine for the treatment of constipation. However, on this occasion, she noted that she did not take any.
Local Election Results
There had been local Council elections the previous day, see Chapter 129. I had noted quite a bit about these in my diary as I had gone to the count with dad.
These elections had taken place throughout the country except in London. I noted that, in six major conurbations, only one third of the councillors were being elected. Elsewhere, all councillors were being elected. In terms of Norwich specifically, I noted that there were 16 wards with three councillors being elected in each.
The previous day, I had noted the results in our ward and in Norwich but had not commented on the national picture. I did so on this day noting that the Conservatives had made sweeping gains from Labour. The Conservatives gained 1,745 councillors overall. These gains came at the expense of Labour but also the Liberals who lost 1,309 and 223 councillors respectively.
Mr Ames
Mr Ames was one of my teachers at the Hewett School, see Chapter 118. The previous week, his five-day old son, who I learned was called Andrew Christopher, had died, see Chapter 116. I noted that this was his first day back at work after this tragedy.
Mr Ames taught me social economics throughout years 4 and 5. From my reports, it seems he thought I would have got a higher grade but he was concerned that I had “some difficulty in writing a detailed essay”. I remember Mr Ames fairly well. He was my form tutor in fourth year. In his reports in that capacity, he noted that I was part of the basketball team, a table tennis club and had been made a Middle School steward.
He had been a pupil at Hewett, before it became a comprehensive. He still held some sports records when I was there. From memory, one of them was for 100m but that was broken by a boy in my class, Timothy Fisher. Based on a post on Facebook, it appears that he also taught PE and social studies. It seems that his first name was Paul, the subjects he taught included geography and he died suddenly in 1995 aged only 48. I also came across a school newsletter from October 1976 which noted that Mr Ames had become Head of Humanities. This newsletter noted that he had been a pupil at the Hewett Grammar School. Later, by the nineties, I believe he was head of Lower School. I think Mr Ames also features in the video “A Hewett Day” where he is seen (25.17) chairing an inter-disciplinary humanities group meeting.
Swimming
At lunch-time, I went swimming, see Chapter 118.
A Note on the Weather
I also noted sunbathing at lunch-time implying that the weather was hot. That year was a particularly hot and dry year, see Chapter 129.
Group Practice
While I was at school, I was part of a music group and was trying to learn guitar, see Chapter 118. However, I was never very good and was always on the edges of the group! On this occasion, I noted that there was a group practice after school. and I got home about 6 pm.
A Normal Evening
I had what looks like a normal evening including doing homework, see Chapter 118, and watching TV, see Chapter 122. I noted that I had an early night which was perhaps to compensate for the very late night I had had the previous night when I went to the election count with dad.