My Granddad is Keeping Busy

My granddad died in 1983. For the previous 20 years, he kept a diary, recording his day as a farm worker and then through his retirement. We are lucky enough to have his notebooks, all the entries in block capitals, often in pencil. He always tells us about the weather, sometimes about what is going well at the allotment. We get updates of how Liverpool are doing and the occasional political thought. He suffered from rheumatoid arthritis, was always in pain, but you would never know from these entries. My mum once described him as a contented man. Who knows, really, but certainly, there is something soothing about these entries. So I thought I would share them with you. We have a few years to cover so buckle up.

Monday 2nd November, 1964

Fog at first but cleared later and some sunshine. Car washing. G,B2,A,K making 224 to date. Did Ts. Stayed dinner again. Knee very bad today. Told T I am going to get it locked*.

*I think this was arthrodesis , a process used before reliable joint replacements were available. The bones in joints, like Granddad’s knee, were surgically fused to create one continuous, stable bone. This permanently “locked” the joint in a fixed position (usually a slightly bent angle for walking) to eliminate pain and provide stability. Pretty brutal.  This is how I remember Granddad, with one leg permanently straight.

anneiskeepingbusy

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