Got up about 9.30 a.m. Another cold day. Ron came and took us to Heygarth* for the day. Jane with him. Dot a lot better thank goodness. Ron brought us back at 8. Snowing quite hard.
(*Heygarth Road, where my mum and dad had their first house)
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.

Got up about 9.30 a.m. Another cold day. Ron came and took us to Heygarth* for the day. Jane with him. Dot a lot better thank goodness. Ron brought us back at 8. Snowing quite hard.
(*Heygarth Road, where my mum and dad had their first house)
Day on today. Again a cold wet day. Got done about 10. Mr H brought some stuff to burn. Not fit to go to P. Stayed in and watched telly. Went to Wheat. Mick poorly.
Not quite so cold today. Rain last night and this morning. Car washing again. S.K.H.A.T.Mc.G. making 58 to date. Nell gone to see Dot. She is bad in bed with flu.
The wind still very cold today and no sunshine. Dot and Jane home today. Doing ring-a-roses. Lovely. Painted both pm lab bins. Waiting for oil. Did all the Ts. Cleared out the silage lab again.
The wind still from the East though nice and sunny. Sharp frost last night. Cleaned K car and did H windscreen. Cleared out silage lab. Oiled the valves on the pipelines. A.P. 1 ton.
Still a cold East wind but a sunny day. Did No.2 jet. The Nuway maintenance man called. Cleaned Shack’s car. Did all the Ts again. Not much in to burn. Nothing of note.
Not quite so cold today but dull with some rain. Car washing again. T.G.B. making 51 to date. Did all the Ts out. A fair amount to burn. N. gone to have her hair permed.
Still very cold, with slight snow in the night. Cut a few logs. Ron, Dot and Jane came for tea. Jane walks very well now. Went to the Sheaf about 8.30. Not many in.
A very cold day again with East winds and very slight snow. Too cold for any gardening. Never went to P. but stayed at home and watched the telly. Mrs won 25/- at bingo.
The wind still bitterly cold. Best said boiler wouldn’t be done until June or July. Bonus today. Only two cars making 48 to date. Cleared silage lab. Did all the Ts.