Autumn Term 1958
24 Sept 58
The mob came back yesterday so Cassy and I went for a walk and came back just before tea. Most of the weekend has been spent in scraping the girls changing room windows, painting the dispensary, scrubbing walls, and washing and refilling all the salt and pepper pots. However I did manage to listen to 'Down Your Way' - I was disappointed too.
Cassy, Judy, Ruth and Sam have been made counsellors and have taken the books to the VI form room across the courtyard. I am still in the old form room with Alan, Philip and Wendy. This change means that the others don't have any squad duties to perform at all and that they have 10.30 bed time instead of 10.0.clock. To me it doesn't seem fair because I have been at Wennington much longer than Ruth and Judy but I am the youngest and they couldn't keep Ruth back because of Cassy and the ill feeling there would be between them.
I asked Brian for my Eng Lang and Music results: 45 for both. I am definitely retaking French and History this term. My mark for French was 40 and Rog thinks I'll pass this time. By the way Roger has grown a beard!! He looks very distinguished and superior. Cassyand I went up to his room the other evening. We talked, listened to records and sipped piping hot coffee.
At the moment the school is the largest it has ever been. There are 120 to last terms 111. There is going to be a hut erected in the middle of the courtyard which will be used as two form rooms and a dorm. Kenneth has been asking some of the boys if they would like to sleep out this term so as to save dorm space and we have had to set tables for meals in the common room.
Ruth McColm has just told me that my handwriting is very adult. I was making a notice for the tuck shop giving the opening times and she asked whose handwriting it was. She was taken aback when she realised it was mine.
Well I must go and practise now. I will do the same as you and write a bit each day if pos.
Wed evening
Have just heard that the films for this term are 'Henry V', 'Pride and Prejudice', and 'Trouble in Store'. We are having 'Henry V' this Saturday.
Irene may be taking us to the Leeds Music Festival and Rog taking us to hear a French singer later in the term and we are going to see Hamlet and Julius Caesar.
Yesterday, at lunch, Ruth tickled Irene at the waist. Irene said "Hey you mustn't do that to me. It (meaning the baby) will all get dinted and come out a funny shape". She wasn't a bit embarrassed so we all laughed til we couldn't eat any more. Irene is going to teach us this term but we are having Dorothy in the Spring term: she is an excellent
teacher. Viv had her for one year (half the syllabus) and passed the exam with 65%: pass mark being 40%.
I have been bored stiff all day with only two lessons to ease the dullness. I have practised as well and made out General Aides lists. The form room is empty at the moment because everybody is over the courtyard. As I have said before there are only four here now and I don't know where they are. Well I must stop here: the Upper V will be coming in to make tea. Cassy has dropped Latin.
Thursday
Not much has happened. My sore throat has gone and I'm perfectly O.K.
Monday I December
Guess what Cassy and I did yesterday morning? We went to church! Originally we were going to go for a walk but we couldn't think of anywhere to go because Wetherby is out of bounds. They have an epidemic of measles. We looked at the map in the hall for a bit and then I hit on the brilliant idea of going to Kirk Deighton church which is about three miles away. At ftrst I thought Cassy was going to faint or say no but after about 60 seconds it penetrated his thick skull - his eyes shone with delight and he said that it was a good idea.
We had no idea of what time the service began so we just had to hope for the best. We cycled there and arrived at 10.40. The service began at 10.30. A chap came out of the church and showed us into our places. Altogether there were twenty people there, including us.
The service was killing. First they had a psalm and a few chants and things; then the Te Deum and the Litany. Cassy and I spent half the time looking for things in the prayer book. At one point we had to keep saying "We beseech you to hear us good Lord" which nearly sent us into giggles. The chap's sermon was about looking ahead and being prepared but he didn't say much.
After the service we went to speak to the organist. He showed us how it worked and played some Bach Preludes. All the little choir boys (about 8 of them) who were now disrobed came and asked the organist to play the Dam Busters March. He gave a marvellous effect of the aeroplanes coming nearer by putting two notes on and pulling out half a dozen stops. He said he spent most of his evenings mucking around on the organ. When he ftnished playing the Dam Busters we had to go.
On our way back we stopped in Wetherby for a cup of coffee. I was nearly having kittens because it is out of bounds - anyway I don't think we'll get measles or anything.
On Saturday we wanted to go to Harrogate but couldn't because of the crowded, smelly, hot buses. Anyway we are hoping to go this Saturday.
The Saturday before last was the middle of term dance - a bit late. The room was decorated with one of my ideas! ! !! It was that we had a corner for every special day in November, Bonfire Night, All Saint's Day, Rememberance Day, Halloween and St. Martin's Mass. The theme was quite effective.
Last Thursday Philip and I scrubbed and polished the form room. In the middle of doing it the fire alarm went. Unluckily for Philip I had just put a big splurge of polish on the floor by the door and as he dashed out he skidded on the polish and crashed into Frances. It was terribly funny.
By the way Dorothy intends to get me a lot more Beethoven Sonatas and we both think it would be better if I got a volume instead of seperate copies. The volume costs IS/and it has about 12 sonatas in it. This works out to about 1/3 per sonata and seperatley they cost 2/6 and 3/-. I thought perhaps I could have it as a Christmas present. She wants to get it at the end of this term so that I can do some in the ho1s. What do you think? Can you tell me soon because she wants to put her order in.
About a week ago I met Irene in the hall wearing bright blue, knee length, nylon socks. She said that wearing a suspender belt round the middle was too uncomfortable and ankle socks too cold. I noticed she was wearing slip on shoes instead of her sandals and she explained that she couldn't bend down to fasten them: she also said that the night before Brian had cut her toenails because she couldn't reach. Right at the beginning of term Ruth C- B prodded her in the waist and she came out with "Don't do that - it'll come out crooked and wiggly".
We had a house hockey match this afternoon. It was great fun. I managed to get the ball right down the wing within about 2" of the goal mouth about 50 times and every time one of the Sherpas backs whisked it away again. Anyway we won 4-0 - even though the great me didn't get any goals. Actually I just didn't feel like it today!
Cassy is taking assembly on Wed. Thurs. and Fri. on Canadian folk songs instead of the usual Brahms, Beethoven, Bach assemblies.
Dennis has decided to give me extra Maths lessons because I am so lousy. I had my first on Sunday afternoon of all times. He was quite surprised because I knew more than he thought I did - which isn't much. My next lesson is tomorrow night. This means Monday - choir, Tuesday - maths, Wednesday - Senate. What a life!!
Tuesday
Senate is quite chronic - nearly everybody speaks at once - some people stutter and others don't really know what they're meant to be saying anyway. It helps an awful lot!!!! The trouble is I have to decipher what they are trying to say. In the minutes I write down what I thought they were trying to say not what they actually did say. It makes life a lot easier for all concerned.
Well must close now and catch the post. Two weeks today - hooray!!!