Winder House, Sedbergh.
Woke early, mulled over the state of my existence then went back to sleep. I’m aware how much brighter the mornings are. I have always woken with the sun. As the year progresses I wake earlier and earlier until 4:30am is the norm.
I think I’ve been allocated a cubicle or ‘cube’, a wooden partition around a steel single bed in a dormitory-like space of 16 or so beds. I don’t recall being in the junior dorm for more than a term.
Break. This is always back at our house – so a lot of to and fro between the main school buildings and Winder. Miserable in wet weather – it was often wet.
Went to band practice. I’m a flautist. I read music. I find band tunes far less onerous than playing the second flute in the school orchestra. OK. IG bishes conductor. I don’t know the meaning of this. IG was a 15 year old music nerd who played several instruments and wanted to conduct. The term ‘bish’ is very private school. Band practice was an evening thing usually.
Quick back, some sweets.
Church, dull, but without sermon. Lot of people. This was compulsory on a Sunday, woth Holy Communion earlier on the day for those confirmed. I think there was a morning service during the week. In the House we had an evening hymn, with a sermon. And roll-call.
Write letter to GV, Jane (my big sister) and Mum. Letter writing on a Sunday was a habit long established at Mowden Hall Prep: school. It was our only tenuous contact with the outside world. There was no House phone. To ring out there was a public phone box in town.
Do Geog: Prep which I had missed on Friday.
Lunch. Back at Winder. Formal sit down around tables allocated by year group.
Go to Project Centre.
Varnish guitar. The body of an electric guitar. Shave neck piece. The electrics were never purchased, let alone fitted.
Make a slab vase.
Have beans, bun, lemonade etc: these are snacks from my tuck box heated up on a gas ring.
Listen to R’s ‘Monty Python’. See how fellow inmates are referred to by their surname. Having had five years already of using surnames I couldn’t kick the habit.
C and M return from a long walk. Had they been gone to the point of being reported missing?
Odessa File. On TV I presume.
Listen to the tape-recorder of M Br. I have no idea what M Br refers to
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