Joan Whiteley's wartime diary: View pages

I arrange to move in with Miriam & Daphne.  Thank god for such a release.  We still sleep on the floor.

Several days pass and we are issued with camp beds.  Bread – 12ozs every 3 days – other days pastry of some kind.  The days pass very quickly & I am always tired which is very shattering.  Rumours in this place are much worse than they were in the hosp.  Miriam has started our interior decorations - 3 drawings on the wall - centre piece Brig Macleod with his umbrella.....end VAD & skill end Snooper & cig end.....Our room is now very comfortable, made more attractive by small curtain & homemade rug(2 sacks & old stockings) 2 meals a day 10a.m and 5 pm.  Rice, soup & spinach for one meal & either a pie or doughnuts for the other. 

We attend lectures:

• Monday Weds  -  4-5 – psychology  
• Friday – philosophy
• Tuesday – music

Nobody has g – interrupted and can’t remember what I was going to write

I am getting more home sick as the days pass.  Sometimes I think the noise in the place will drive me quite mad – next door we have a clarinet player & next door but one 2 small children & how they scream!  In the hall is a piano where they rehearse for concerts all day.  The clarinet player has a Chinese wife & 3 Eurasian children who clatter about in keks.

Money in from camps.  None for me – money doesn’t bother me but it is nice to feel contact & that is the only way as no note..........read diary......

The days are still passing very quickly.

Allowed to write a card to camps so naturally wrote to Forbes.  Only hope they can write back.  Longing for news of home.  Still have the awful feeling at times that all is not as it should be there.  Life goes on here.  I am trying to learn .......... shorthand & finding it quite difficult.  Miriam is most trying at times.  Heaven give me patience

Played my first game of baseball. Oh my and was I stiff afterwards!

Had picnic on rocks.  Molly.........Margaret, Freda & self. Enjoyable. Went to open air service at night.  The weather is marvellous, brilliant sun & quite a strong wind & consequently a burning & drying of the skin and hair which is very worrying & difficult to deal with.  There are few rumours now & no news at all.

Time marches on.  We have been told today that all the Canadians have been moved from North Point & that our people from Argyle St & Shamshuipo are to follow – gone to Formosa,  Such being the case the sooner we move on the better.  We are in the throes of a typhoon at least a big blow which makes life a little more trying as there is no sense in going out to get soaking wet with no facilities for drying afterwards.  We have had 2 loans from the Govern people here – very kind of them - one of 10$ & one of them 15.00 paid to us by Mr Pudney under terms of deepest secrecy   Approx dates 5.9.42 / 29.9.42

A day to be noted – not for any special reason only that one  year ago today Forbes & I had a magnificent time & realised what ailed us both!

We had news a few days ago of the sinking of ship carrying British & Canadian troops-Prisoners-probably from Singapore to Formosa!  About a fortnight ago Ms Thomas arrived from Canton to join her husband& evidently there has been no intensive bombing & certainly no Chinese army so yet again we have been fooled.  Oh for a letter from home.

Awful news that ship that was sunk had Hong Kong troops aboard naval & Canadian.  Nobody knows any details & the suspense is awful. I personally am comforted by the thought that not receiving money might mean that Forbes was in the advance guard which went in August – otherwise – half of 1800 are lost.

Received Yen 11.50 first instalment of Yen 25 As loan to Miss Dyson, Currie, Thomson & Davies.  Spent it all – not on food to be eaten immediately but to replace some of tinned goods so kindly shared with me by M & D.

Received $15 from Mr Pudney

Wrote I.R.C card, as follows:

Quite well.  Prefer to be working.  Please write – Mrs BIRT Bearsdene, Camberley, Surrey. Daphne well. 

We acquired a hot plate in our room & have great fun now, it is like a new toy

We cooked rice & a ducks egg on our HP & oh boy was it good.  Burnt some Soya Beans black-ground them & made coffee.  A truly excellent brew so much so that we had it twice

The weather turned bitterly cold. Temp dropped from 84 deg to 64.

Unidentified aircraft over at 3pm.  We heard bombs! Maybe it won’t be long now. 

Temp now 55.  We pile on more blankets at night but still go round in shorts all day.

Weather a little warmer.  Went swimming in afternoon. 

2am planes again heard & bombs also heard. Great excitement.  We are forbidden to look up or point skywards.

My birthday – Wakened 7.45 to see luscious looking cake!! Sitting by me.  Chocolate on top & 26 matches all round.  

A cake of soap from Daphne.  Soap toothpaste, flannel & little mug made of jelly packet from Miriam.  A hold all wall bag from Freda, book mark – Margaret.  Hankerchief from Molly.  I played softball at 9am & when I returned found a bouquet of Hibiscus & a choc mould (Happy Returns on top) from Mrs Seath & Mrs Wood.  How kind and nice everyone is, makes me almost happy, a word from home &  a word from Forbes is needed for that.  I wear today the pearls I got from him 12 months ago.  

We had a miahjong party at 3pm.  Kay & May gave me lovely presents.  Pants from Kay.  Stocking from May.  We took our supper into their room  - pasties – which were very good & they had a simply marvellous pudding.  After supper we went walking.  Miriam read my cup and foresees a meeting in a 1 3!!

Planes about all day. Bombs dropped on Taikoo, Holt's Wharf, Penninsula.  Intense excitement.

Red Cross parcels arrived in Colony some days ago but have not yet reached Stanley.

Miriams 1st Wedding Anniversary.  Got her a card made.  I think she was pleased. 

Money from Argyle St – my my – what a day 10 Yen from Forbes. So he is still here.

Janets birthday