Spring Term 1960
17 Jan
I am just waiting for the assembly bell. I am wearing my brown dress and my light shoes. Several people have said how nice it looks including John Woods and some of the boys who's opinion is worth knowing.
The term is going fine so far. We now get up at 7.30 instead of7.0 and breakfast is at 8.30 instead of 8.0 We only have a four period morning instead of five periods - it means we have a smaller amount of lessons per subject but we have longer periods.
By the way my maths results have come through - I've failed again so I'm not bothering any more. Am going to concentrate on English, Music, and Latin. G seemed most surprised that I'd dropped piano lessons but I don't think Barbara cares at all. The feeling is mutual. I find that now I've dropped it I'm doing far more practising because I know that I haven't got to worry about getting a certain bar right before the next lesson. G went to Leeds yesterday to borrow some clarinet pieces from Leeds library. Then he went to see Mr Lester (my clarinet teacher) showed him the pieces and asked him if they were OK for me to do. Apparently Mr Lester said I'd taken to the clarinet very well and that it's a pity I didn't start earlier. The trouble is G romances an awful lot and next week he'll probably be telling me that Mr Lester says I'm lousy so I take everything he says with a pinch of salt. I've managed to persuade Roger Gerhardt to play some duets with me. He started teaching himself the clarinet in the summer hols.
I've been looking at the clearing house catalogue and it says that Jan 20th is the first day of notification of acceptance so I may not know for a few days after but I will wring you as soon as I know.
21 Jan
What a day I've had! I was just coming down from a science lesson in the drawing room when May told me you had rung. It was about 12.10. I was so relieved. When I didn't get a letter yesterday or this morning I thought they must have sent my application forms on to the next college. Brian was in the hall so I told him that I'd got in and then we both went to Latin. After about 10 mins. I realised what had happened and I started to cry. Brian must have thought I was completely mad. He was the only one who could see that I was crying because the other four sit behind me. At the end of the lesson Brian asked me why I was crying and I said I didn't know, which was true but I just couldn't stop. I know I was a bit upset because you had rung and I couldn't speak to you. Brian was most concerned and said he thought it was probably reaction. I said it was stupid and he told me not to worrv about reacting in that way.
I realise now that since Tuesday I’ve been getting rather worked up about it all;waiting for the postman on Wed. morning, Wed. afternoon and Thurs. morning and being disappointed each time. I didn't think they would write home. Anyway thanks for ringing.
Thank you also for the socks. I am wearing them at the moment with my blue jersey and grey skirt. I am getting quite fond of blue again.
I believe Sam is going to a day school (grammar) at home to do his advanced exams. Apparently his parents couldn't afford to keep him on another two terms as they are already two years behind with the fees!???! I think they decided in the ho1s because they came up for a chat with K. C on New Years Eve - so Irene Hill says. They'd probably been to a dog show and were passing through.
Well I must do some work now.
24 Feb
Thank you very much for your letter and the £ 1.
I haven't seen Rosamond about going down to Dr. James (Dr. James Lodge alias Dr. James or plain Jimmy) - I meant to go this morning but I didn't want to miss an English lesson so I will go tomorrow and miss Music instead.
We aren't snowed under yet - it is terribly cold though and we have had lots of snow showers but it hasn't really stuck. However one cannot tell what conditions are like even twelve miles away. Last night we went into Leeds and although there is not a trace of snow here all the pavements were banked up high with icy snow and it was horribly foggy.
We don't watch anything other than the Third man on television apart from science programmes during the day. Quite honestly I couldn't care less about the Queen's baby - we listen to the news every day on the form room radio and for the last fortnight we have heard nothing e1sebut the Queen's baby. I was more concerned about the death of Lady Mountbatten.
I meant to write as soon as I received the £ 1 but I had a three hour English exam yesterday morning, hockey in the afternoon and at 5.o.clock the whole school had tea and trotted off to see the Merchant of Venice in Leeds. It was at the University - the students were performing it and the producer's son is at Wennington. the play was very well acted and as it progressed my part as Nerissa came back to me. In the interval Ruth and I were talking to Brian when one of the university types asked Brian if he would like to take coffee in the common room. Naturally we went with him! - as we reached the common room doors we noticed quite a few Wenningtonians staring through the glass doors at the students (bearded) lounging around talking and reading. The university type, Brian, Ruth and myself swept past the mob (in all our glory!) into the common room and Brian treated us to coffee. Needless to say I felt most important taking coffee with Brian in the university common room while the rest of the school continued to stare at us thru the window. It almost made me wish I was going to a mixed college – the actors were obviously enjoying themselves immensely – I doubt wether there will be much social life at R. Mc but perhaps it is as well. As we were passing the notice board I noticed that the debating society was next going to discuss wether the house believes in self control rather than birth control - I would very much like to have gone.
Brian has not yet marked the English papers but this morning he said that although my answers were brief they were at least in English! and contained a great deal of material. He also said that my answer on Howard's End contained some very mature ideas which pleased me. The only trouble is that whenever anyone praises me I always want to cry. I think I must be quite mad. I felt like crying this morning when Brian said my essay was mature. The question was this: E M Forster has said that plot in a novel is a regrettable necessity. (i) What signs are there in "Ho wards End" that it is a novel written by an author with this attitude? (ii) Judging by this novel, what things do you think interest the author more than or as much as plot? We had not covered this aspect of the book at all in lessons so my answer was my own thinking - I wrote about class distinction etc.
G has been playing Chopin in assembly this week to celebrate his bi-centenary. This morning he played the prelude from Les Sylphides and my Polonaise in A flat.
We also listen to the childrens hour program on Sundays from 5.0 to 5.30. For the last few weeks they have been giving the life stories of a great no. of composers and last Sunday it was Chopin. They told us all about Chopins affair with the novelist Georges Sands and about his T.B. and they played some of his nocturnes.
It's the mid term dance on Sat. and as usual I can't wait. One of the boys - Bart - gave me a calendar at the beginning of term so I can cross the days off until the end of term or the next landmark of the term. The week of March 14 - 19 the films 'Swan Lake' and 'The Constant Husband' (Rex Harrison and Kay Kendall) are coming to the Wetherby flea pit so Ruth and I are going to try and persuade Kenneth to let us go. We have to ensure him that it's educational first!
PS Did I tell you I have taken up Spanish with Rog. He's got the records from that linguistic place