Wednesday 27th June

Well here I am again. I went to my drama society last night its call T O A D S. and had a really great time. we are rehersing for Snow White and the seven dwarfs which we shall be putting on in October. Its good fun and all the members are such nice people. I haven't been out today - too lazy, and there was a really interesting programme last night on Bbc 2 about my favorite city - Paris which I had recorded and had to watch. Its a three parter so I must remember to record the next ones. I have made a list of some interesting places which I shall try and visit next time I get the opportunity. I said I was going to write about some of my childhood and I'm thinking just where to start as my memory flits around a lot so I will just put down things that spring to mind. I started school in 1946 at Robert Street primary school in Lower Gornal, near Dudley. It was a daunting time as the war although officially over was far from normal. We had little plots of garden at the side of the school where we grew radishes and a few flowers. I don't really remember doing much digging but I think it was to encourage us to keep up the slogan "dig for victory" which was one of the things that we used to see on posters and of course as things were in such short supply during, and after the war, the more we grew ourselves the more we had to eat. Rationing went on till the 1950s and I think most people today would be shocked at what little we could get on ration. When you think that about 25 grams of cheese was one weeks allowance and about the same of butter and heaven knows how little meat we were allowed its a wonder that any of us grew up to be fat. Our mothers and grandmothers were very canny though and they seemed to make meals out of nothing, so if we grew vegetables in our gardens it supplimented what we could put on the table. Some of our neighbours kept pigs and others chickens. I was lucky as one side of us had chickens, so I always had an egg on sundays, and the neighbour the other side kept pigs. This was wonderful as sometimes she would have sides of pork and would cut me a thick slice and tell me to take it for my granny or mom to cook for a treat. You weren't allowed to keep all the pigs, after they were slaughtered the government took their share, so as to suppliment the amount of meat for the butchery trade. Things were tough but folks seemed to help each other. Sometimes a neighbour wouldn't have any coal and they would borrow a bucketful until theirs arrived, and another time they would lend us some till ours came. About this time our dads were being demobbed from the forces and hopefully returning to their old jobs. My dad went back to T.W. Lenches in Blackheath where he had been working before he was called up. More next time.