Diary 19th of Jan

Ice cold, clear pink skies. Winter! 

M complained about Mabel smelling gross this morning, then said: ‘Nellie doesn’t smell.’ Nellie is A’s dog – he bought a puppy around the same time we adopted Mabel. Apparently, Nellie doesn’t chew/bite/tear/bark or destroy shoes or gloves. She always comes on command and can speak fluent Russian.

Over to Hastings on the train for meeting with B and 1066 team. Met B in Cafe Des Arts, great place to chat, no music, table service, everything ordered, good coffee – and cheese scones apparently.

1066 – Discussed the Spoken Word event and exhibition – Where to hold it? How can we make it so riveting people will sell their own blood for tickets? No clear answers yet, just some ideas worth exploring....need to share and find out what others think. 

MH told us he looked up 12^th May 1066 and came across the diary of a Dane who tried to invade England on that day. Got us thinking about doing spoof 1066 diaries: ‘Got up early to invade England, invasion repelled, felt v. depressed, went home, large glass of Glogg...’

According to BBC history, it was in May 1066 that: “Tostig made his first, abortive, attempt to invade England. Harold called out the English levy (the fyrd), which was an army of English peasant farmers obliged to fight for their king when required to do so, and kept it out. He wanted to be ready to face the invasion fleet that William had built and mustered at Rennes on the Norman coast. But William did not come.”

Slow train home, cup of tea and Marathon bar (I refuse to call them Snickers), show stopping sunset over Beachy Head.

Puppy class with Mabel. Mabel got confused. I got confused. Came home v. depressed, large glass of wine....

Photograph courtesy of Nitinit

Tuesday Diaries

After visiting the Keep and commenting on other people's diaries - we decided to keep Tuesday diaries during the project. Partly because it occurred to us that it's easy to comment on other people's lives, but it’s not until you have to write about your own day, that you realise you ain’t so different! We also thought it would be interesting to try out how it feels writing a diary when you know other people will read it - does it change what you write/how you write?

Here's my first attempt:

Diary Day Jan 6^th

Got up to walk Mabel before catching train to The Keep. She had diarrhea, so ended up cleaning it up and only taking her round the block. Got talking to a man who told me he gets up at 5.30 to walk his Golden Retriever for an hour and a half in Hove Park.

Mass Observations is like a secret treasure trove, if rather bureaucratic! We spent the morning trawling for different examples of ways diaries are completed to share with prospective diarists. Some are infinitely boring, but just as many are compelling, either it’s the detail of lives, (the man with yellow mucus and the Waitrose tissues), the quirks, (bank manager who trims foils on his model airplane before going to work, and also does a daily check of the family’s bank statements), the humorous and odd, (woman with fox lover and slightly racist views...) it’s all there. Lots written about food, weather, catching trains, shopping, health – usually ill health, and occasional frustrations with husbands or mothers – and a rumination on a best friend which sprang from a sentence about going out on the river.  Hard, not to think of  Thoreau’s quote that “the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation.”

Home – Mabel sick. J had cleaned up house (!!!).  Spoke to R about Speaker’s Corner Event – he wants controversy, off the shelf, delivered in 3 weeks. You wouldn’t think that would be difficult in Brighton, but it is! I suggested the Uni or councillors, he says they are all too timid not to toe the line anymore; everyone agrees with each other now. ‘We want Jeremy Corbyn.’

‘Do you have a contact?’

‘No, but he’ll need work soon, wanting people to speak up then sacking them for disagreeing with him, we are all too quiet and samey these days, we need noise, sparks.’

Off to yoga with sense of foreboding –  I haven’t been for six weeks.  

Stopped at Asian grocer on way home for coconut – only ones for sale in Brighton are shaved to white pyramid point – when did this happen to coconuts? Is there a coconut season? Didn’t buy it in the end after the last coconut episode.

The Keep and the Centre for Mass Observation

This is absolutely not my favourite photo - but The Keep is possibly one of my favourite places. It is just outside Brighton, close to Falmer train station and open to not just academics but the public.

I was fortunate enough to see a link last year to a guided tour, with a day course based around the Centre for Mass Observation so this wasn't my first visit. There will be much more information throughout the project about the Centre so I will not go in to its story and history here. You can follow the link here though to read all about their fascinating history and projects- Centre for Mass Obs.

Chris and I spent the morning at the Keep last week, I joined a few months ago so was able to book myself a seat, and order some day diaries, and some fascinating directives about holidays as a side read in advance. I also called ahead and booked their glass room so we could talk.

In common with many libraries and archives, the Keep isn't totally silent - but the archive room is a quiet room, and as any of you who know me will understand my voice isn't the quietest. We really enjoyed reading through the day diaries and picking through some to copy and use excerpts as inspiration.

Sadly, I forgot to bring any lunch so had a coffee and a packet of vegetable crisps purchased from their vending machine. I think we'd got so in to the protocols of filling in slips of paper, and ordering that the coffee machine was nearly too complex for us, that and not understanding the rubbish bin.

All in all a lovely research day.