10 - 15 = 1974 - 1979

We are doing collages of images which represent aspects of each 5 year period of our lives. Today was the third session, hence we looked at the years from 10 to 15.

I didn't aim to be comprehensive. There is only so much I can do with back copies of the National Geographic and the weekend magazines.

The bits which got missed out were:

An amazing four poster bed I made for myself using huge blue curtains and some red ones for the interior, plus furniture stacked up dangerously. That was a high point of my childhood!

Various scrapes I got into at school, I can't imagine why I didn't get caught and soundly punished. Maybe they see everything and just sigh, waiting to see if it is a phase which passes.

The beggar I asked to photograph who sat looking glamorous on a brick wall for the price of a cup of tea. I liked negotiating with total strangers even then. I insisted on taking two photos to make sure one was good.

My wanderings through the old Tate. The mercury, the mirrored cubes, the bricks, the snail, the badminton game, Hockney, Warhol blah blah blah....lots of famous stuff just littered about for free any time it was the holidays because mother was at work and we were on a very loose rein.

The garages and basements of my grandmother's block of flats, Dolphin Square, plus the pool and all the gardens.

This has distracted me from being a good mother. T had to call me from the station to get picked up. This is not the first time I have forgotten to go down there for him. 

The attic of our house, where my brother and I split up the territory easily and used to sit happily chatting next to the water tank!

The other little place we made for ourselves beside the washing machine in the kitchen, with empty film cannisters for collecting money and upturned buckets to sit on. Mine was smaller because I was older and taller, so needed more headroom.

My radio went in there too so I could listen to Nixon's resignation speech live. Goodness knows what time it was, but I was into politics at some level even then. I bet he didn't imagine a 10 year old in London listening to every word! How did I even know it was going to be broadcast?

The tents and dens we made from the poor old sun loungers. I liked my comforts so rigged up power supplies and had the radio and a light in there.

That's enough for now. I will go on for ever if I don't stop, obviously.