27 May 1942, Barbara Anslow's diary

Mrs G back from x-ray today, and bought us food and a hotplate  ((a tiny plate like a hob which plugged into the socket in our room:  very primitive but very efficient except when, as often happened, the wires broke and had to be continually re-connected with bit of tin pressed together.))

We are so rich in food - So wonderful to have all that food, 'choko (21 oz), 1 lb Vitacup, 3 tins of cream and wheet, 1 lb porridge, pkt prunes, pkt muscatels, pkt table salt, raisins, 2 lbs wong tong, half a lb white sugar, 1 jar syrup, small tin treacle, 1 lb 'Mother's cocoa', and 6 small tins jam; 3 (12 oz) tins of butter, and a bunch of bananas.  Most of that was bought with Olive's $50 note, and we have a 5 lb tin of jam to come, and a tin of salmon to celebrate Mum's homecoming tomorrow.  These last 2 evenings Mum, Olive and I have been sitting outside hospital on the grass,eating our supper - Mum sitting enthroned in the rocky wooden invalid's chair. Almost every one who passed commented that it looked as if Mum was the Queen holding court and we girls the handmaidens draped around.