Day on today. Got done just after 10. Planted annuals in the borders at home. Went to P for a couple of hrs. Started on drive. Mrs P not there. Watched the Cup Final. Manchester U won 3.1.
(Man U v. Leicester)
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.

Day on today. Got done just after 10. Planted annuals in the borders at home. Went to P for a couple of hrs. Started on drive. Mrs P not there. Watched the Cup Final. Manchester U won 3.1.
(Man U v. Leicester)
Quite a nice day again. Car washing. H.A.S. and Bill Barnes. making 100 to date. Bill Barnes gets married tomorrow at 12 o’clock. Good luck, Bill. Did the toilets, and there was a lot to burn today.
A lovely mild, sunny day. Knocked boilers off at 9a.m. Forking the borders round the labs. Cleared a blocked drain outside Bernard’s workshop. Brushed steps round bins. 1 ton of coke. C.
A cool cloudy day but dry. Digging the borders again. Did all the toilets and brushed round the bins. Went to Bill Barnes’ stag party at The Harp lat night. Had a good night.
Heavy showers nearly all day but not so cold. Cleaned both the jets and polished all the copper in the boiler room. Cleaned all the toilets. One of the cisterns leaking.
Wind still cold and strong. Some showers. Mrs Harris started today. Car cleaning. S.B. making 96 to date. Did all the toilets. Fred Evans from Pud started here.
(Pud is Puddington, a village)
Still very cold. Got up at 9.30. Finished borders and did the mowing. Ron, Dot and Jane came at 12.30. Jane is lovely. Frank and Dora came in the afternoon. Went at 8.
(Frank was my grandma’s brother.)
Day off today. A bitterly cold wind blowing. Dug the border in front of the house. Went to P in the afternoon. Tough going. Got money for plants for B. Edwards.
Wind rather cold bu a lovely day nevertheless. Car washing H.A. making 94 cars to date. Did all the toilets. Machine back at P yesterday so do some mowing tonight.
A lovely warm day with no cold wind. Dug some more of the border and loaded trailer with rubbish. Did all the toilets. Gordon and Ted gone on trip to Ireland. Did Howarth’s axe.