Friday 21st December 1984

What a day!

It was the last day of term today so I was happy.

At the wall I had a chat with Huw and we were told to move a piano from the main hall to the Youth Wing* for a carol concert.

We returned to the wall and waited for others to turn up. Bev and Alison appeared without Rachel which made me happy. ** When Huw asked where she was we got the reply "She's at the doctor's" which caused much hilarity between Newton, Huw and me.

Then Howard, Spillers etc appeared and I was still happy at the non appearance of Rachel.

Howard and I went off to our form room (Room 6) and Mulrooney told us to take out a computer for Mr Garnet. So I carried a BBC Micro, Evo carried a VDU *** and Howard carried an apparently empty box.

Many people turned up and the newsletter was given out. I got my name in (at last) because of the Computers quiz. Rachel got her name in but I can't remember why. ****

We all went off for the carol concert in the Youth Wing which was hilarious. Howard and I sang out of tune on all of the hymns. He does it naturally - I don't. On "O come all ye faithful" I could hear a little squeaking noise which turned out to be Gareth Davis (German) singing. They then played "Feed the world" twice, the first time we sang along, the second time we "narrated" it. *****

Howard and I went back to Room 6 and wrote all over the blackboard. I was still happy over the non appearance of Rachel.

Then we used the computers for a bit and at 11:45 went for a walk around school. When we went past the New Gym ****** Howard said "There's Rachel!" I couldn't see her (typical me!) so he says "She's got a new hairstyle, with a pony tail" We both go away, and I feel very sad. Why did she have to spoil it for me?

We go for another walk around school and this time we meet Alison and Rachel going in the opposite direction. Howard chats to Alison while I go off and bang my head against a wall. ******* 

We realise that everyone else has gone home so we go and talk to Alison and Rachel. The only thing different about Rachel's hair is a ribbon and it looked stupid. ********

Howard and I go home but not before I mention about Debbie changing her hairstyle (I've got her address off Bev at last!)

While Howard and I were wandering, we met Holey, Cooper and Steve Jones. The latter said to me "Rachel is in the German room waiting to give you a Christmas present" but I didn't believe him.

Five sides on one morning!

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Playlist

"How soon is now?" - The Smiths b side.

"Lonesome tonight" - New Order b side

"Groove jumping" - 400.Blows 12"

On 31st December I'm going to review my year. In it will be top five singles, LPs, LP tracks, events of the year and anything else I think about during the time up to it.

I hate to bring this subject up again but Howard says Rachel is a really good singer. Thanks Howard.

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Footnotes

* The Youth Wing was a building within the school grounds which was like a youth club outside of school hours and available to pupils during school hours - lunchtime usually. There was a bar selling soft drinks and sweets, some video games, a TV with seating, toilets, places to sit around and relax. I spent many a happy hour there. There was also school discos there at the end of term. I missed my one and only chance to dance with Debbie at the Xmas 83 disco by being ill that day and staying home. 

** One of those weird things is I can still remember where all these people lived. Alison was in the Paddocks with me, Bev on Clinton Road, Rachel on Westbourne Road...

*** Christ that was very trustworthy of Mrs Mulrooney, Evo - Philip Evans - was a minor psycho and had spent most of the previous few years bullying me - until I smacked him in the face and gave him a nose bleed in a Physics lesson. I've just realised that Mrs Mulrooney was our form teacher that year and Room 6 was in the Old Bloc. 

**** "Can't remember why"? Liar. I've still got this newsletter somewhere so I could tell you why. 

***** Another memory as clear as a bell in my mind. One of my happiest times in school, you know. We sang every line of "Do they know it's Christmas?", even the Boy George interjections. And we absolutely screamed Bono's "Tonight thank God..." line. 

****** As opposed to the Old Gym obviously! The Old Gym was over by the cow sheds ... Jesus this doesn't sound good, does it? Maybe it's time to discuss the layout of the school. There were three main buildings, the Old Block, the Middle Block and the Junior Block. Both Middle and Junior were built around the same time, late 60s? Three storey buildings, each has a hall attached to it. Behind the Junior Block were the tennis courts and the playing fields. The Old Gym was built around the same time as the Old Block in the early 1900s. Between the old block and the old gym were the Chem and Physics labs, built around the same time. Next to the Old Gym were the cow sheds, named because they were actual cow sheds before the school was built, two classrooms there. So the New Gym was next to the Middle Block, and the Youth Wing was near the changing rooms for the New Gym and dotted around were loads of Portakabin classrooms which we called something else, and there were science labs over by the Middle hall too ... It's all been knocked down now apart from the Old Block and the original science labs according to Google Maps.

******* Yes I really did do this. No wonder girls wouldn't speak to me.

******** "It pleases me girl, how your hair never changes" ("Time well spent" - The Kingsbury Manx). When I was diagnosed with Asperger's in my late 30s I was informed that one aspect of it is that I like people's appearance to remain the same. If anything changes - a hairstyle, different clothes etc - it freaks me out and I can't handle it. I've learnt to control it - I still have aspects of it, I don't understand seeing people out of context and frequently won't recognise them - but looking back I can see it very clearly. When Debbie permed her hair in Autumn 83 I freaked out in my diary for about a month until I got used to it. See also the following paragraph in the main diary text. I knew, even then. A ribbon in Rachel's hair looking stupid is just a tiny part of that. But it still happens - someone in work this week shaved off his beard and it freaked me out all through my shift.