Tuesday 3rd November 1936

A drizzling, grey morning. The lab. Overalls again. Stood at the bench beside Mad Willy, with strange dirty cans, some metal panels and a palette knife. Took a deliberate look at my clean, white hands and started work. Painting crystalline lacquer and storing it. What it is and why it crystallises, I don’t know.

Maddison looked after me very well. Nice to be with him and nice to have decent people around instead of working men. (Although I was becoming quite friendly with the fanatic Harris.) That pleasantness is, I think, the sum total of the benefits I receive from being in the lab.