A much milder morning and inclined to be wet but after midday it became sunny and very warm. Managed to cut hedge behind greenhouse and have made further progress with the plot between that point and the garage. Wonder how you have been getting on with the refusal of the Underground men to work the winter schedules? On TV last night one of the men out said they were sorry the public was inconvenienced but they were doing it for them – to increase the services – as much as for themselves. What cheek. Another case of ‘I’m all right Jack’.
A reply from Don this morning says they will come up on the 20th inst. as he has to go into Taunton for a check-up on the 22nd.
No more now. All the best June on Friday when you visit specialist. All our love to you both and lots of kisses for the girls. Mum and Dad.
P.S. forgot Mercury so posting it Thursday with letter.
Well we had a lovely day yesterday – the weather was perfect and we had no sand in the sandwiches at Burnham. Left here at 9:40 a.m. and arrived Burnham at 10:48 a.m. then a cup of tea at Fortes and looked around the shops to get the food for picnic etc. Left Burnham about 1.50 p.m. and at Highbridge turned left by the clock and ran through Mark to Wedmore thence via West Hay to Lyng thus reversing the actual run between Wedmore and Highbridge we did when you were with us. Found Don and Joan getting on very well and Don has been doing a bit of sewing (machine) and chopping wood for the winter. Not a lot at a time but taking things easy. He seems to have maintained the condition he was in when they came to Clevedon last week and is taking much more interest in things in general. Can only hope now he will get through the winter satisfactorily. Have made a tentative arrangement for them to run up to Clevedon again soon after we get back from number 84. So far this week we have had grand weather and it looks like another good day today. Shall have the morning laying more paving stones. No more this time so will close with all our love to you both and lots of kisses for the girls. Mum and Dad.
P.S. bought another bag of peat coming home at 4/- [£5 in 2024 money] this time – quite good.
Thanks once again for weekly letter and paper. I have a feeling that the chap we saw on Old Church Hill was the same man as in the photo, but I could be mistaken, it was only a second or two that we saw him. It was an interesting comment on his history with radio, but one or two of the facts were not true.
No sign yet of our next door neighbours. We do not know how long they are supposed to be away for, and they have had at least three weeks so far. No card of course ‘wishing you were here’. As you say the milk would not have been much good for anyone, and it appears we did not get it as ours seemed okay.
Plumber came and did the job for us. Toilet leaked at the back some years ago and I fixed it with Sylglas. It held fine, but June fancied the crockery was a little discoloured so we had a new one fitted. Plumber found that the new model was a little different from the old one, and the inlet pipe would not fit, so he had to come back again and put in a new extension there. He was looking out for a man to do the serving hatch, but so far no luck. We cannot get anyone lined up for the job. It appears it is a combined job for bricklayer and joiner. The joiner makes the thing and the bricky puts it in place. Our plumber friend says he can find a chap to make the frame, but not put it in place.
So far no attempt to carry out any interior decoration. June has some paper for the toilet which will be put up in due course. We await the work on the hatch (if it gets done bracket) before tackling the dining room.
We are all very pleased indeed to hear how well Don now is. It really seems as if the doctor has done the trick this time. The most important part of it all is that he now feels better within himself. The fact that he wanted to have a walk around the beach is astonishing, but in the circumstances of the strong wind he was well advised not to take on too much.
I think there must be some mistake in your comparison between the two sets. I would have said the new one is vastly larger than the old combo but we shall see. I still think the best thing is to keep the new one out of its case which is useless really. A simple wooden framework will do the trick. What are the bits and pieces that you do not follow in the book you got from Sealeys? Perhaps you could say what they are, and I will do best to answer.
We ordered our posts and fencing on Saturday last, and the whole lot were delivered on Monday. This is good business. Needless to say we spent the whole of this weekend at it and have done an immense amount. June did the shopping on Friday to leave a free morning for it, and by Saturday night we had got three posts in and two sections of fence up. Had a bit of assistance from Ronnie next door with the concrete mixing, and with the erection. 7 ft posts are supposed to go two feet into the ground, but try as we might with all the tools as our disposal we could not get hole any deeper than about 18 inches into the hard dry soil. The sites for the posts were all fairly inaccessible and could not let a good swing at them so finished up using the axe to try to break up the clay at the bottom of the holes but even that would not penetrate. However by mixing about thirteen good spadefuls of sand with four of cement and putting the lot round the post in one hole we managed to get a firm enough base. Today I used the last of the sand and cement to put in the next post, and we now have four posts in and three of the four lots of fencing in place. Unfortunately the next lot of fencing reaches right to Les’s post without the concrete post being in place, and I cannot do much about that until he comes home. If he is agreeable for the post to lie on his land (he can use it for any fence he likes to put up) then I shall remove the iron post and put up my last length of the fence. If he does not agree, I shall have to saw off a few inches of the fence and then put the concrete post on my side of fence. In any case I am out of material for the time being. The fence that is up looks quite good and very much neater than what was there before. I saw the lady down the bottom and offered our old asbestos fencing to them together with wire mesh as she had no fence on one side. They accepted and brought a van round in the afternoon and took it all away very gratefully, and he now has a really good fence installed down one side. When Doug saw the goings-on he promptly ordered posts and fencing for our common fence, and then proceeded to fell all his trees at the bottom of the garden. Today I fetched out all of the rose-hedge wire and all and burned the lot on a bonfire. Doug sawed up and later burned the trees and the neighbourhood now looks like a desert. The effect is to give the appearance of bigger gardens and much cleaner lines. We have removed a number of bushes and heeled some in for later replanting, and since we have put up some of the fence some of the bushes have been replaced in position. Have been at it all day, and now I have just got round to the letter at 6.30 p.m. as the last of the bonfire smoke dies away. Doug cannot take on the heavy work as a result of his operation, so we have fixed up for Peter to come over and do it for him. This will give him a bit of pocket money.
Sorry your visit to Tiverton is off for a while, but looks as though you may see rather more of them now if the job Lydia does is coming to an end. As you say you will have Mrs Baker with you for a week now, and hope the weather holds up and that you can get about. It would be most unlucky if the weather broke now. These last two days we have had outdoors have been really fine.
Bushell will have to try the Sylglas trick for his gutters.
Brown will almost certainly get into the next Parliament as Labour have a 10,000 majority at Shoreditch. He is about 12 feet high at the moment.
Our trip to Woburn Abbey was a washout. I know my dynamo although working is not charging the battery, and in fact when the speed of car was fast enough for the dynamo to cut in it promptly shorted the battery at the cutout. I had it in mind to get this sorted out in October when due for test, but thought I had enough in battery for our trip for stock. However we started out, and got through Rickmansworth and Watford and made for the M1. Just short of the M1 I had to consult map for route, and stop the car at the side of road. I could not restart for some time, but after messing around for about 10 minutes up she came on battery with no trouble. With this we carried on and got onto the M1. Kept at a steady 35 miles per hour – the speed at which the ammeter registered zero – and got past the Teddington service station. Our turning. Got about one mile off the M1 and within five miles of our destination when the engine cut out. Try as we might we could not get it to go, and made up our minds that if we could restart we could make for home at a gentle speed and hope to goodness that we could get there before lights were necessary. I suppose we stopped there for about half an hour waiting for battery to recover. I topped up the plates with some water the girls had brought for the dolls picnic, and there seemed some life in the cells*. Had another swing with the handle and up she came, so we all piled in and steamed off up the A5. Kept going at a gentle 30 through Dunstable and St Alban’s with the car still going, and made for Watford and then Rickmansworth and we were still going well. Decided to stop on the grass verge of the Denham Bypass and have our picnic and we stayed there for an hour. Had a job to start car again, but eventually it came to life, and with that we got home. The M1 is a good road – what we saw of it – and feels better than the M4.
Borrowed Doug’s charger and put 24 hours worth in cells and we are O.K. again for a bit. Charged up both batteries so have one in reserve.
A lot of people are looking over the property in this road, but I think they have all been sold long ago.
Pity we could not have had the gadget for making holes at this end this weekend.
To repeat about Don, his present condition is remarkable and a welcome change from that which we saw him in when last with you. Can only hope this will continue as will help to [illegible] the winter.
Well I see him to have nattered on about nothing in particular and now near the bottom of page again. Carol has a slight cold but otherwise we are fit and well. It was the girls’ Sunday School outing to Gunnersbury Park yesterday, and I was roped in for taxi service from church to South Harrow station in afternoon and evening. Got eight of us in our car for the return journey.**
Well will close now with love from us all, and look forward to your next.
*I have a very clear recollection of this day and had been looking forward to reading Alec’s account to see how he would describe it. In fact, what happened was that when we stopped the second time there was consternation in the car because we weren’t near any houses, and the parents were muttering about not having any water on board. I piped up that I had some in my ‘Dolls’ Picnic Set’, which was similar to the one shown below and contained two little white and red flasks. [N.B. it wasn’t ‘the girls’, it was me.] At first he said he didn’t think it would be enough, but was somehow convinced it would be better than nothing – it would have been at least a pint/half a litre as they were both full. Rather ungraciously he accepted my offer eventually and went off and poured the water into the battery, and returned my two flasks. I suspect the reason this has stayed in my mind for so long is that (a) it was reluctantly conceded that I had actually done something useful for once, and (b) Alec left an oily thumbprint on one of the flasks which was never possible to remove thereafter, and the poor things were very nearly new. No good deed ever goes unpunished, FFS!
**Yeah, and not a seatbelt between them! It was a short run and he would have been going slowly, but in retrospect this sounds extremely scary!
What a day – it has rained on and off for most of the time and the wind has been terrific. The Overlap fencing has had a severe shaking and I shall have to strengthen same as soon as possible.
Don and Joan arrived about 11:15 a.m. and we are surprised to note the improvement in Don. He seemed full of life and was not distressed in his breathing. In spite of rain and wind he had a look around garden etc. and even suggested a walk on front after dinner. Told him wind too much and storms come on so quickly that we had better go by car so got ours out and off we went about 2 pm. Went along the front and onto Portishead by the lower road and back coast road stopping at one or two places to enjoy the scenery. He thoroughly enjoyed the trip. He is eating better and has put on seven or eight lbs in weight already. Doctor has him on drugs which will be reduced shortly but he is much brighter and, Joan says, wants to be on the go all the time. They left here at 4:30 p.m. to go home Joan driving but Don drove up this morning a thing he would not undertake last time they came up. We hope to take Mrs Baker down to Lyng next Wednesday afternoon but also hope the weather will improve in the meantime.
Well I think we have exhausted the news for another week so will close with all our love to you both and lots of kisses for the girls.
P.S. Saw Don in Taunton hospital this afternoon. Seems much brighter than when we last saw him and the treatment – tablets and physiotherapy – is doing him good. Still not eating much and still very much underweight, and we think he may be in hospital for at least a fortnight. A nice run down and back but it was very hot most of the day.
Yes letter to hand this morning together with another budget from the girls. Congratulations Susan in getting into the prize-winning list and we must find some extra spending money when you come here as a little encouragement to have another go at any and every competition there is including the exams etc. Good show.
We had our first rain for some time today. It started about 7 a.m. and continued for most of the morning becoming dull during afternoon. Very welcome rain on the gardens. Can understand how you feel in the heart of London during the sultry days. I was always glad to get away even when I was only there for short periods in the summer.
Glad to hear the concreting in front of house now finished but apparently you had a hot time doing it. Noted Peter arrived in time to finish off whilst you relaxed. Neither Aston or Roy are fit to do any hard work nowadays, neither will they taste the homemade wine. Roy in particular is having difficulty lately in getting about and is only too glad to sit down as often as possible.
You have a point about the polythene sheeting but Heels relations at Churchill actually put this into operation with some success but it is a doubtful proposition over a number of years for the reason you give. With a smaller garden to look after I could give more attention to the watering of the greenhouse. Today I have fixed another shelf in the garage and another in the greenhouse the latter above the staging halfway up the back end of the greenhouse. Could not do anything outdoors for once.
No further news of Don but a letter from Geoff this morning says he called Don up on the evening of the 27th to offer him best wishes for his birthday etc. but Mrs Dobbs answered phone and said Don gone into hospital and Joan not yet home.
Bushell settled for a Ford Prefect as a temporary measure as no garage with other models would accept his motorcycle in part exchange. He will change the Ford before long and gradually work up by this means to what he wants. Glad you have had your car put right in time for the holidays as you do not want any mechanical difficulties on the road – bad enough getting along.
Yes it sounds as if your building people were taking a big risk in leaving such a big trench open for children to fall into. Assume all in order again. Nice to go over to the school and see the children’s work etc. – gives them a great deal of encouragement. Yes we remember the little garden Susan had in the lean-to and she must have looked after it well.
I liked the idea of the girls standing in front of concrete to keep the sun off it. How long did it last? Not five minutes I’m sure. I too was a little afraid of the heat in the greenhouse when putting down the path but it has hardened quite well. I sprinkled water over it two or three times some hours after it was laid.
Geoff says Rebecca is now looking for a job and had two in mind when he wrote. One was with an insurance company and the other with the Kodak people – both firms in the Harrow area which will avoid the journey to and from the City.
Nice to hear you have some good zinnias in the lean-to. It proves you can bring them on indoors whereas outdoors they are almost a failure. I have had the same experience – zinnias are most difficult to bring to perfection. It is however a very shy flower and worthwhile attempting to grow. Our roses in the rectangular plot on lawn have been a picture and in due course when the ground can be got ready we may have some more. At the moment that part of the former drive lying between new greenhouse and new garage looks like a builder’s yard. Timber, rockery stone, concrete pieces and blocks, hardcore and rubble are all mixed up and will have to be sorted out and moved. The far side of greenhouse much about the same but area not so big. Plenty to see when you come down even if total area very much smaller than heretofore.
How are you getting on with your remit from Butcher and Co.?
Hawkins’ people have made up the drive to the entrance of new garage with tarmac and the result gives a gentle slope into garage. The whole of the front needs a covering of tarmac but that will have to wait a while. When Bushell has finished putting up his new garage I shall have to take out the hedge running parallel with it and replace with five sections of Superlap fencing. Will look nice and clean up an odd piece of ground. I think he is off duty tomorrow (Thursday) and if so I shall probably give him a hand to get doors up and perhaps some of the roof struts cut out to new dimensions viz. 12½ ft wide.
Now I think this is the lot for another week – soon be seeing you all and we are looking forward to that. All our love to you both and lots of kisses for the girls.
No letter so far this week but with the improved postal position one cannot be far away and perhaps it will turn up tomorrow. Since last writing we have had continuous sunny weather but the atmosphere has been very heavy at times and slight distant thunder. I suppose now the fair is here and the Bank Holiday approaching it will start to rain.
I see in today’s evening paper you have had a bomb scare in London but probably some distance from Liverpool Street. Query were your train services upset.
Weekend motorists for the West of England had another slow crawl on Saturday last and the queues both sides of Honiton as large as ever. Just reaching the peak of the holiday traffic now. Hope you get on better when you start your journey to Exmouth. Guess the girls are very excited in anticipation of the caravan holiday. We have not been out on any long run since our trip to Ilchester and Lyng. Have been in touch with Lyng by telephone (Mrs Marshall’s) and Don was admitted to a Taunton hospital yesterday (his birthday) for observation. When I phoned Joan last night she said he was quite comfortable when she left him and the doctor there said they would be examining his throat on Thursday to start with. Had not heard of any trouble with his throat before but it looks as if they are going to give him a complete works at last to see exactly what is the trouble. He has lost a lot of weight but this could be the result of worrying. Joan will write me again after visiting hospital on Thursday. I forgot to ask his address so cannot write him direct at the moment but is it is anticipated he will only be in there for about a week. Am writing Geoff later to bring him up to date with the position.
Here at home we have been getting on with the equipping of the inside of the greenhouse. Have now erected the staging across the far end for a width of three feet and it looks very good. The middle upright supports are in position and the side pieces in place for keeping the uprights rigid. Next job is to fill up with earth and I have some to cart from just inside the fence put over by the bulldozers of some weeks ago. May not be enough but the levels can be made up as time goes on. The old garage is down of course and Bushell and I are trying to erect same (except for reduced width to 12½ feet) around his existing garage. So far we have the three long sections up i.e. the back and two sides and now having a go at putting up the front section including the swinging doors. Hawkins’ men have made up the approach to our new garage with tarmac and this also looks very nice. I had an old sleeper down for running into garage temporarily and this has now been dispensed with.
Building operations at the back of us is starting next week and there are thousands of bricks on hand already. This morning they were marking out the actual sites for the houses. Nothing further has been done with the pond on the Iron Curtain side of the fence and until they do this I cannot decide on what to do on our side.
I think I told you some weeks ago that Ted Caple had changed his job. Now Ernest has also given up the telephone exchange work and taken a job as postman in Clevedon. Perhaps he thought he might be in time for strike money.
You will be very sorry to hear that Mrs Buxton died last Friday following a collapse. She had however been seriously ill for a long time. Mum thinks she must be about 63 years old.
Plenty of visitors in Clevedon at the moment and as I mentioned before the fair has also arrived. Cornish still very much in evidence but I have not seen him myself. Mum has gone out this evening delivering her round of parish magazines.
We saw Norman Allen with Marion and the children last Sunday evening and he could tell me that for several weeks before Charlie Rust retired Titball was out on the station so-called learning the job for which he was an applicant. Perhaps his turn will come as he is very much younger than John Saunders. A bit of a come-down though to spend the time out there and then for somebody else to have the job. Norman Allen is now Class Two and seems more settled – at one time he was seriously thinking of leaving the railway but had no idea what he wanted to do.
I see Harold Bastin who retired from position as assistant to Hart earlier this year has lost his wife. Apparently they went to Midhurst, Surrey, to live according to press reports. I think he stayed until he was all nearly 65 years of age. Chief inspector Woolway has also retired from Temple Meads and local papers made a lot of it but he was not all that efficient as you may remember. He had however been 50 years at Temple Meads in the parcels and on the station. Will leave off now until your weekly budget arrives.
Since writing the previous page we have had a letter from Joan to say Don was very ill again – this time with asthma on top of his other complaints and asking if we could run down to see him. I phoned her from Mrs Marshall’s and arranged to go down on Thursday (yesterday). Both Mum and I have been hard at it recently so decided to make a day of it and call at Lyng after lunch. Left here at 9:40 a.m. and went via Wells, Glastonbury, Street, etc to Ilchester where we called at a small public house for a snack and shandy. Then on to Martock and Long Sutton* – where we saw that the station buildings had been demolished and only the edges of the platforms remained standing. Then on to Langport and through Stathe and Burrow Bridge to Lyng where we arrived at about 1:45 pm. Found Don downstairs but very rough. This very hot weather makes it most difficult for him to breathe and he has a machine on the floor in front of his chair working a fan to give him air. Apparently he had a very bad turn on Sunday night and doctor sent for. He turned up on the Monday and again on the Tuesday and calls again today. Joan takes him out in car every evening for a run of about 20 miles but he does no driving himself. Geoff does not know anything of this latest development yet but I am writing him presently. Don does not know that Joan wrote us and thought we had called as we were in the vicinity.
Following the postal strike yesterday we do not expect to have your letter this morning (now 6:30 a.m.) but perhaps it may arrive tomorrow. This one to you will obviously not arrive at number 84 until some time next week.
By the way Bushell passed the driving test yesterday and will now get a small car. I’ve started to put down the concrete blocks for the path edging in the greenhouse and hope to get most of the remainder in today but it is terribly hot working inside this weather.
No more this time but we hope to be able to reply to your letter next week. All our love to you both and lots of kisses for the girls.
*Properly known as ‘Long Sutton and Pitney‘ – or, in family parlance, ‘Long Suffering and Pity Me’ – this was also close to a signal box which had previously been operated by various relatives (possibly members of the Beacham family and therefore cousins or uncles of Leonard’s). It’s also possible that Leonard had worked here for a time as a young man, although the details of his early career are so far proving elusive.
Once more thanks again for weekly letter and paper. Last epistle from this end – we hope – before your arrival.
Slight change in procedure this end this week as I am just starting the letter at 6:28 p.m.. It has been a nice day and we have been out in the car. The girls had a picnic in Pinner Park, and in the last few minutes have been stuffing their faces full of ice cream.
Not surprising that you were able to get both the records for the girls. They issue a list of the most popular ten every week in the papers, and I suppose every stockist who has any sense stocks the ten most popular. The two the girls wanted were on the list. Of course Sealey’s do have a good stock in any case. If you did not get them played over never mind. You will think that what is one miss amongst so many after you leave here.
Has not been too bad this week for weather here. We had some rain in the early part of the week but now it is dry and oddly enough we want rain badly. The soil is either fine powder like ash or like concrete. The soil beneath the grass is hard and tending to crack. Should have cut the lawns this weekend, but although they begin to look as if they need a shave, nothing much comes off with the mower now. I did manage one lawn, but have left the others. There are several dandelions on the front lawn so at least we have some flowers.
Glad you managed to get down to Lyng again and do an odd job or to in garden. Odd for Geoff to have a meeting at Taunton. Funny place for a meeting*. Not much change to report from Don then, but your visits were rather close together so plenty of time yet. Dr. of his does sound a bit of handful. Re: visiting of course we should like to go down if everything in order at the time we have our holiday. We will leave the date open to be filled in as convenient.
Yes I know where to get records, but there will not be much popping out in the lunch hour for them if I can help it.
I do not know what I told you about my leave arrangements, but I shall be off duty all day on the Wednesday, so no point in going back until the Thursday unless you have an appointment on that day. Do not worry about the ‘harvest festival’ – all understood this time.
June’s tooth much better now out, but gum still a bit sore. Had a trip to dentist myself on Saturday with not too good results, but more of that when I see you. I also had a puncture in Greenwood High Street on Friday night after the club, but again more of that when you come up.
Still no news of Bristol TM but there is a rumour that Dent may be involved. I cannot believe this myself as he must already be at the same salary and would have been integrated for at least three or four years. I confirm that Jenkins who is now at Taunton is the man who used to be at Stapleton Road. The job certainly has been hanging fire a long time.
Some game with Bushell then, how did he propose to get home from Portishead? Or did you collect him too?**
No more earth from number 17 as yet and I understand it is going fast. However spotted a chap dumping earth on the field just before we went out this afternoon and told him we could do with it. Left our gate open, told him where to find the place and left him to it. On our return I find he has dumped me a barrowload, so it all helps. June is planning to grow some camellias and will tell you the tale when you come up. Note you have no details in your books.
Not a bad move to offer the garage to the builders men. They might find a good use for it, and it would save them the bother of putting one up.
Typical of Cornish to get himself in a row with the Surveyor. I do not know if he really knows what is going on at all. The birds have flown from Cornish’s then and all rods poles and perches gone with them. I wonder what old man Hicks would have had to say about it all.
The girls were only talking today about the ‘walk up and jump down’ (the old mounting block) and I had to tell them that it had been taken away***. However we have a photo of them on it. We shall not recognise that turning at all.
Well will cut it short this time, or will be out of news when you arrive??? So hope you have a good trip up and get here lunchtime Thursday. I will see you on Thursday evening. Love from us all once more. Alec
*Assuming there really *was* a meeting and Geoff hadn’t just manufactured it in order to check on his brother, of course. After all, he travelled by train free of charge and it was really only a question of arranging a day off and travelling in his usual business attire…
**Did Alec maybe miss the part where there was a bus service?
***It was later reinstated at a different location and is still an important part of family lore.
Yes, here we are once a once more replying to your letters and drawings received this morning – thank you all very much. Noted you now have music when typing your letter to us although a couple of doors separate you from the actual ‘noise’. However it is a nice pastime for the girls and so long as they are listening presumably they are not getting into mischief. Strange to say we got both of the records they have asked for at Sealey’s in Hill Road – had them in stock. I understand they keep a remarkable selection but of course this is the first time we have had occasion to buy. We did not have them played over so that treat is to come.
Sorry about your weather. We have been more fortunate this end and have had some really good days. Unfortunately the wind has been boisterous and rather spoiled some otherwise excellent days. Saturday night it rained heavily but cleared up fairly early Sunday morning. You must have had the rain that morning. Yes you were lucky to get grass cut and I might say I was also most fortunate having cut the lawns on the Saturday with motor mower. Grass very long and mower had to work hard to keep moving – in fact I had to assist for the engine would have stopped frequently. However it is all right now and a mowing later this week and possibly one middle part of next week will see us over the Whitsun.
Have not much further news from Lyng to date but am going down tomorrow (Wednesday) to do a few odd jobs outstanding in garden etc. and shall see how Don is after our earlier visit ten days ago. Geoff I think must have called there last Friday following a letter from me. He was telling Don he had a meeting at Taunton and would like to pop out to Lyng for an hour in the afternoon. We have not yet heard from Geoff although he said he would write as soon as he got home. A letter from Don this morning says he went to Dr yesterday (sorry – last Thursday) and again asked if anything else could be done for him and Dr apparently replied without looking at from his desk ‘No’. It is the warmer weather he wants badly and he may then pick up a lot. Before sealing this letter I will try and include a note as to how I find him on Wednesday. I will certainly pass on your sympathy and thanks for the game.
Yes the turning at Pawlett is at least six miles this side of Bridgwater and in point of fact could be a rather pleasant alternative route under normal conditions. By the way Joan mentioned that they hoped you would all visit them again during your stay with us in August and I said we would like to go down. Don was quite definitely taken with the car and mentioned it again in his letter when he wrote a couple of days ago.
So you know where to go for records then if any special ones are not available elsewhere. Pop out in the lunch hour.
Thanks for confirmation that Thursday 14th inst. will be alright for us to make the journey to Ruislip and we are certainly looking forward to seeing you all once more. Thank you June too for suggestion re: dinner and we will reach you about 1:00 p.m. all being well. Shall probably get away from here around 7:30 a.m. and have a good break at Marlborough including a call for coffee. If we go over to 169 on the following Tuesday evening for an hour we could then start the return trip on the Wednesday morning if that also is convenient to you all.
I’m afraid there will be very little of a ‘harvest festival’ this time or in the future as we are not producing the fruits or vegetables. Noted Alec how you will be working during the holiday or rather how you will not be working. Nice to have some time with you. Also noted to Friday does not clash with your radio night.
Sorry to hear June has some trouble with her teeth resulting in a wisdom tooth having to come out. Horrible jobs where dentists start probing about inside one’s mouth. Hope you will soon get over it.
Yes electricity people properly messed up the order but it’s surprising they never trip up in sending in the account. This arrived within a week of having the cooker installed.
Still no news then of Temple Meads. The quickest we shall hear will be by the appointment being announced in the Bristol evening paper. Time a decision was made. I think Charlie Rust finishes this month.
Glad to hear you have car put right with the odds and ends of jobs necessary. Price quite reasonable too. Ours is going fine. Had an unexpected trip to Portishead last Saturday. After dinner I thought I could hear a motorbike being revved up incessantly and went out to see and Bushell was there with his motorbike trying to put something right. Apparently he had started for work and got so far down the Avenue when the bike failed and he pushed it back inside gate and had a go at it there and then but without result. Meanwhile Mrs Bushell had gone to telephone to tell his mate he would be late as he would have to catch bus. I told him I would run him over to Portishead. It was then 12:45 p.m. and he had to be there by 1:00 pm. He clocked in at 12:57 p.m. and I got home at 1:15 p.m. He has been over this morning helping carry some heavy articles to a safer place this side of the Iron Curtain. Some of the plum trees he took earlier this year from our field are in flower but whether he gets any fruit is another story.
You mentioned strawberries going growing through from next door. If you want some please say next letter because I can get some real good rooted cuttings already in flower from our ground which we have to lose. No difficulty in bringing them up. Query anything else you can think of – now is the time to mention it. Pity about the rhubarb but I’m afraid ours is not suitable yet for splitting. Must tackle Geoff – they seem to have a nice lot.
Noted you have had another load of earth from Eccleston Road. Wonder what June has in mind regarding camellias. Have looked through my gardening books but have none on this subject. I have seen articles in various issues of the Amateur Gardening but these are not now available.
Jumble sales did you say. When I took Mum down with all the ‘stuff’ it just bucketed down and I had to park car some distance from YMCA. The net result I believe is about £17 [equivalent of about £425 in 2024 money] clear profit. Mum must tell you more about it and also reply to the questions on the Grandfather Fewingses.
Have had quite a good week on various jobs around here. Now got out all the hedge roots – some of the most difficult. Have also dug out one narrow trench 18 ft long x 6″ wide x 6″ deep for one side of the greenhouse on its new site. Today I have got place ready for runner beans i.e across the garden just inside position of new boundary. Have rammed in 8 iron stakes for carrying wires instead of using sticks and this will be the permanent home for the beans in future.
The surveyors from Robinsons have been here again this week and measured all the ground over again but no alteration in the measurements already available. I tackled Robinson’s chap and showed him the old garage and asked if the firm might like to buy it for a workshop on the ground during their stay in Clevedon. He looked garage over and noted the flooring was 1″ boarding and said he would mention it to the firm when he got back this weekend. I told him I was going to advertise it in local paper but if they care to make me an offer I would consider it.
These surveyors have found a flaw in the measurements on Cornish’s patch and there is another first class row going on with Cornish. Heel told me this over fence this morning. The extension of Tennyson Avenue is definitely on but Robinson’s man did tell Heel that if they had the dealing with the plots in the first instance they would have avoided such extension but it was too late now to alter plans that had already been passed by all concerned. We also understand that they will start work in August and commence at our end and this presumably to work outwards towards the road. Shall have to get busy after Whitsun with the rest of the move or shall find fence across garden.
A big lorry arrived outside Cornish’s yesterday and during the afternoon some fowlshouses were loaded up and taken away. Three of the five proposed houses on the Church Hill plot have already been sold and the old stable and mounting stones outside have already been removed and the place absolutely opened up. The house adjacent to The Nest occupied by Joe Reed has lost a lot of its garden by the road which will sweep round into the new cul-de-sac. Things are moving rapidly as you can see.
There was another memo in last night’s paper re: Yatton Furniture Co. to say a Mr somebody had been appointed in Mr R. Mogg’s place who had resigned to go into the furniture business on his own but it was noted he would be able available to the firm in a consultative capacity. Sorry paper destroyed so cannot send you cutting. Our earlier information (from Mrs Marshall) was that he had taken on a sweet shop.
Unless there is something special to tell you this will be the last letter prior to our arrival so until then you must assume we shall be on our way. Unless of course you may have to write us asking to put off visit but we hope not. Let’s hope it is nice weather so that we can enjoy ourselves together.
We liked the crack about only having a calendar with your cooker – perhaps you had to even buy that one. I have the old alarm clock in new gGarage so that I do not overrun the time for dinner – as if I ever did. I started putting up shelves in garage but where oh where am I going to put the rest of the stuff? The big table is now in shed with the floor underneath and the table top fully occupied.
All our love to you both and lots of kisses for the girls.
On The Track 