August 22, 1938, Southwold*

By orwelldiaries

Cool this morning & raining most of the day. Most of the crops in & stacked. Blackberries in Suffolk much less forward than Kent, otherwise little difference in the vegetation.
When clipping fowls’ wings, clip only one wing, preferably the right (left wing keeps the ovaries warm.)
Cold tea is good fertilizer for geraniums.

*Because the previous diary entry was dated 22 August, it is likely that this was 23 August. Orwell had gone to Southwold to see his parents before leaving for North Africa; see his letter to Jack Common, 25 August, 476. The diary entry for 25 August indicates a return to Preston Hall; thus the two days at Southwold were 23 and 24 August. Peter Davison

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9 Responses to “August 22, 1938, Southwold*”

  1. JamesonLewis3rd Says:

    George~~

    What an odd sense of humor you have, sir, entertaining yourself with fowl flying clockwise in ever-increasing spirals.

    I would like to suggest, if I may, that you clip the left wing of a couple of those fowl–just for contrast.

    Oh, and so, you were only pretending all along that you liked my iced tea? Hmph.

  2. Allan Says:

    Clipping the right wing: sage advice.

  3. old.frt Says:

    For a humorous take on another great writer’s “diary.”

    “Dear Diary: ‘Exclusive’ Notes from Kafka”

    http://www.forward.com/articles/14055/

  4. Joseph A. Nagy, Jr. Says:

    Mmm, the right wing indeed, George. Although both sides can be extreme. Might I suggest a position toward the center?

  5. danielearwicker Says:

    “Blackberries in Suffolk much less forward than Kent”.

    Whereas in Suffolk a gentleman merely glancing wantonly at a blackberry might earn himself a stern reproach, rumour had it you couldn’t walk five paces past a blackberry bush in Kent in 1938 without being propositioned by a nice piece of fruit.

  6. Michela Says:

    Turning to this world, I had the pleasure to find you … not macherò to always read with great pleasure …. a smile …. Michela.

  7. Walker Says:

    It’s not that strange that he may have confused two days because he had great time and did not think about time and dates.

  8. adtech ile reklam 2.0 dönemi başlıyor ve Trkycmhrytllbtpydrklcktr r10.net seo yarışması. Says:

    what a man ha ?
    god bless you .. :(

  9. Rooftop » Clip only one wing Says:

    [...] George Orwell has some advice for clipping hens’ wings: [...]

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