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Post by tony38337 on Feb 16, 2007 8:24:15 GMT -1
Hi Lisa & Lin,
I missed these replies, sorry. How indeed did we survive our childhoods? Yes I do remember bogies, pram wheels on the back and trolley wheels on the front were the favourite round our way. That fair at Daisy Nook I think was the last surviver of the old Victorian/Edwardian fair, bare knuckle prize fighting was made illegal as were freak shows (I think) they seemed to fade out in the 60's anyway. I remember as a kid going in a rowing boat on Crime Lake and nearly hitting the church steeple.
Whatever we ate or drank and whatever lurgy we picked up made us a lot hardier, I never remember the word Asthma or Allergy and I never knew so many kids with ailments, I guess it demonstrates the point.
Tony T.
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Post by lin on Feb 16, 2007 16:15:14 GMT -1
IT CERTAINLY DOES DEMONSTRATE THE POINT TONY.
LIN
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Post by Lisa on Feb 16, 2007 16:36:33 GMT -1
Hi Tony, You reminded me of Crime Lake and the rowing and the bare-knuckle fighting. Men were really MEN in those days, weren't they? No namby pamby mummy's boys then, were there Tony? Wasnt the Fair a real buzz in those days. Looked forward to it for a whole year and spent the whole day there and drank the tap dry when I got home. We stopped on the way back at a shop near a level crossing and begged her for a drink of water but she wouldnt give us one. I never forgot that or will I ever forget the THIRST and the heat of those summer days. Remember the smell of the pavements in the summer when it rained? Everyone walked everywhere. If you got a bus you were lucky. The soles of my shoes were worn down and cardboard was put on the inside to prolong their life. Today they chuck away shoes that are hardly worn and I still TUTT at the waste........  |
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Post by tony38337 on Feb 26, 2007 9:32:33 GMT -1
Aaaah, the smell of the pavements in the summer rain, remember it well, it was unique. There was a Mummy's bor round our way, his name was Martin and he used to part his hair on the girls side and occasionally his Mother would hold his quiff in place with a ladies hair grip. Boy did we extraxct the Aunty Mary. But generally I know what you mean, I can remember my friends Dad used to blow the tobacco out of his f a g end (He smoked Woodies) now that aint an easy thing to do. I vaguely remember that level crossing, wasn't it on the way to Droylsden? I seem to remember watching little Jubilee class shunting engined from the crossing gates. I remember those huge thirsts too, I bet we could have drunk Crime Lake dry.
Happy days huh? and nice that we talk about it, there is nothing in the world worth having if you can't share it and that's the nice thing about Manmates.
Tony T.
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Post by fluffymoat4 on Feb 28, 2007 23:58:20 GMT -1
STILTS: My younger brother hated the fact that we were small for our age. I expect that for boys it was worse than for girls. Anyway, in woodwork classes for weeks on end he grafted away and made himself stilts. Bet a lot of you blokes out there remember woodworking lessons at school eh? Would love to hear what you made.
So there was my brother with his "self-made" stilts. He mastered walking on them in no time and I seriously think that his friends that tried walking on them and failed gave him back his self-esteem. He soon realised he didn't need stilts to be as tall as them!
ICE-SKATING: How we loved this pursuit. We lived in Stretford at the time and were in our early teens. The nearest ice-rink was in Altrincham. My younger brother and I found it a great place to take potential boyfriends and girlfriends (he was my chaperone and I was his "what did she say about me in the ladies?" gauge of how well he was doing on a scale of 1-10). I just about made it round the rink without falling over but my brother went from strength to strength - he even bought some SPEED-SKATES and really went for it. He used to duck down and skate between other blokes wide open legs. Of course then their girlfriends would admire my brother's "moves" and I often wondered how he avoided getting a black eye! I took my first love to that ice-rink and it became too painful when we split up, to return to the rink! I never skated again!!
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 1, 2007 6:45:37 GMT -1
I made a table lamp and a fruit bowl, I seem to remember it was mostly practising cutting joints, dovetails M&T's etc.
Tony T
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 7, 2007 10:13:41 GMT -1
In the 1960's I came across a thing called a motor bike, it belonged to a friend of mine and it was a BSA but can't remember the model. He persuaded me to have a go which I reluctantly did and WOW! I was smitten. At the time I was 16 and absolutely determined to get one of my own. I eventually found a James Captain for £5 in the MEN, I went round to see it and it was a lot older than I thought I would like but the bloke knocked four bob off it and persuaded me that I liked it. The deal was done and I sat astride it ready to move off, I remember trying to work out what the bloke said about the gears, somethin about Sturmy Archer three straight gears so you had to be careful about not going too far with the lever, and then there was this clutch thing (All very confusing to the novice) Due to my hesitation I think the vendor was beginning to realise I hadn't a piggin' clue what I was doing. I took a deep breath and pulled in the clutch and (somehow) selected a gear and let the clutch out..... and what d'you think? Did I go riding off into the sunset dreaming of Easy Rider?............. Did I billocks, my front wheel rose and the whole rig leaped forward just like they do on the drag strip and the front wheel landed in a dust bin, you have to imagine me sat on this thing now with my feet off the ground and unable to do anything to help myself until this lad lifted the wheel out of the bin. Of course by now my dignity was well and truly dented and my knowledge of bikes was outed.
The BSA which I had tried was a modern up to the minute machine and so easy to ride. The James on the other hand was a pre war two stroke and the gear lever was operated from the handlebar just like a push bike and not by the foot. In fact the gears were the same as you used to get on a three speed Sturmy Archer push bike except that they were a bit heavier. I did get home in one piece and it was the start of many years happy riding. I think that bike would be worth a bob or two now, it was a museum piece then.
Tony T.
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Post by fluffymoat4 on Mar 7, 2007 22:59:44 GMT -1
Tony I so had to laugh at your story regarding buying your own motorbike. I remember my brother having a Lambretta scooter while I cycled everywhere. One day he said his mate was selling his Lambretta and asked if I'd be interested. Of course I was and so we "scooted" off to buy it. Luckily it had no petrol in the tank when we bought it and we lived near enough for me to push it home. Once I felt safe on my own "territory" we decided to "fill her up" and test drive her. Bear in mind I am only 4' 9" and my legs are very short - I got on her and my brother held me upright as I followed all of his instructions on how to ride her. I took her "round the block" a few times and was really enjoying myself BUT I couldn't stop....! Each time I tried applying the brakes I just couldn't find the road with my foot so I would have stopped and then fallen over!! I panicked and my brother chased after me, jumped on the back and helped me stop. I gave up after that and my dearly loved Lambretta just sat on our driveway gathering RUST!!!!
My younger brother was and still is my HERO! We've been through so much together. Mind you - he was also a PAIN in the rear sometimes. I remember when I almost got sprung smoking in my bedroom - I had only just lit up and was standing by my open bedroom window having a puff when Mum walked in behind me - I quickly threw the whole cigarette out of the window onto our garden path below. My brother, on just leaving the house, picked it up, looked up at my bedroom window and mouthed the word "Cheers!" to me. I could have screamed at him!! Grrrrrrr.
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 8, 2007 8:29:50 GMT -1
Know exactly what you mean Mo. I have never had any so called macho hang ups when it comes to women, any woman who wants to do something that has traditionally been a male pursuit gets my backing. Life is for enjoying and I didn't read in the rules anything about boys in that queue and girls in't other. It is true though that there are motorbikes on the market that most girls can't ride because of leg length. It works like this, boys have short bodies and long legs girls have long bodies and short legs and it often causes rows with the driving seat position in the car. Last year four of us travelled to Skegness on bikes, our little group was led by our friend Zena who rides a Honda Fireblade, though the model she has is now a bit old it still goes like stink with a top end of about 160 mph. There are more girls than ever riding now which means that manufacturers are catering for them which can only be a good thing.
Loved the Lambretta story. My mates brother had a Lambretta, the big 200cc one which I used to borrow occasionally. As most of my friends were rockers there were certain areas that I couldn't go into in case I was spotted. When Vinnie had to go to Rocker territory he used to borrow my bike which at that time was an Ariel Arrow.
Oh Happy days.
Tony T.
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Post by lin on Mar 8, 2007 10:50:16 GMT -1
NOT SURE ABOUT THAT LEG BUSINESS TONY...I THINK IT'S A CASE OF MOST WOMEN LIKE TO BE SAT RIGHT UP CLOSE TO THE STEERING WHEEL, THAT'S WHAT I'VE HEARD ANYWAY..I KNOW LOTS OF WOMEN WHO SIT THAT WAY, AND MOST MEN I KNOW JUST LIKE TO SIT STRETCHED OUT...MY LEGS ARE LONGER THAN ROG'S AND MY TWO SONS, AND THEY ARE SIX FIVE AND SIX SIX...MY ELDEST SON HAS ALWAYS HAD BIG CC BIKES, AND MY FEET CAN BE FLAT ON THE FLOOR WHERE HIS FEET CAN'T....I THINK IF ANYTHING IT'S THE WEIGHT OF THE BIKE. LIN  |
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 9, 2007 7:58:31 GMT -1
Hi Lin,
There are exceptions to every rule, the debate began as I recall in the 1970's/80, Honda noticed a lot of enthusiasm from female would be riders but the leg length was the problem, they couldn't put their feet to the ground safely with the bigger bikes. Honda designed the 400 four which became known as the classic ladies bike, though a friend of mine in the U.S. (now sadly deceased) used to ride one, George was about 6ft tall and weighed about 20 stone. To see him on this little 400 four was amusing.
Tony T.
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Post by lin on Mar 9, 2007 8:11:06 GMT -1
Hi Tony, I see what you mean...my son looked the same as your sadly departed friend on small bikes, he is as broad as he is wide, and solid...what is the saying, built like a brick...you know what?...lol! Lin |
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 9, 2007 8:18:16 GMT -1
Yeah,,,,,,,,,, a brick wotsit. Poor old George had quite bad emphysema, his breathing only ever eased in winter and he used to go camping all over New England in the snow, his favourite place was Cape Cod, not too far from the Canadian border, we still maintain contact with his cousin, in fact it was Sheila that informed us of Georges Death.
Tony T
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Post by lin on Mar 9, 2007 8:21:34 GMT -1
Poor guy, not a pleasant thing to have is it? it sounds as if it didn't stop him getting around though. Nice to maintain contact, bet there are lots of fond memories.
Lin
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 9, 2007 8:31:39 GMT -1
Sooo many memories and yes George was full of life, I can see him in my minds eye sat in our front room with Pip (Our Jack Russel at the time) eating Cheese. I don't know if your aware but there are not too many American cheeses that are what we would describe as good, George loved mature Cheddar and he used to say he liked it when it ate your mouth when you chewed it. He would buy a two pond block and eat it watching TV rather than sweets.
Tony T
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Post by lin on Mar 9, 2007 8:36:11 GMT -1
Good to look back fondly...Rog has been told not to eat cheese though because of cholestrol, he did well for a time but he eats it again now, it has to be his favourite thing to eat...any butties going and he wants cheeese on them Personally I think if we listen to what we can and can't eat we'd never eat anything. Lin. |
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 9, 2007 8:45:09 GMT -1
Know what you mean. Our old Doctor used to say "A bit of what you fancy does you good" and I am a great believer in that, like my Mam always used to tell me off She'd say "You can't have relish without roughage" and I still live by that too. I'm on the anti Cholesterol tabs but because I don't' eat anything to excess I reasonably have what I like, my danger point is butter or as our Mams used to call it "Best butter"
Tony T
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Post by lin on Mar 9, 2007 8:51:00 GMT -1
Yes a bit of what you fancy does no harm. I try not to eat much bread because of the butter(best butter)  ..I used to use it like doorstops, especially Lurpak...I used to hate maragrine though, especially Stork or Echo. Lin |
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 9, 2007 9:07:23 GMT -1
Yes Lurpak is my downfall too, in fact I've had two crumpets for brekkers smothered with Lurpak.
Tony T.
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Post by lin on Mar 9, 2007 9:14:04 GMT -1
Oh you naughty boy Tony...roflol! Well I'm about to go out shopping...think I'll steer clear of the Lurpak Lin |
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Post by frankwalsh on Mar 9, 2007 12:13:13 GMT -1
Hi Lin, TONY, LISTENING TO YOU TWO reminded me of fresh bread best butter Blackpool tomatoes,salt, the best butty i have ever tasted.My poor old gran used to sit mixing the margarine and lard ration together to make it go further ,there was never enough sugar in the rations, so she used to have to put a tea sspoon of jam in her tea, if we had any. Sorry i am abit older than you two , but these things really happened. The happiest times for gran were when two of her sons would pop in on a saturday night to have a drink with her, it would be my job to go to the Moston, with two jugs, she kept specially for that purpose, i can see them now, they were white , with a grapevine down them, one for mild one for bitter, when i got back she would give me a sip, i'd screw my face up ,and she would say the more you pull your face the more you like it. How did she know.regards,Frank Walsh.
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Post by marjorie on Mar 9, 2007 13:18:55 GMT -1
HIYA TONY, SEEM TO REMEMBER "BEST BUTTER" WAS BUTTER THAT WAS CUT OFF THE SLAB, MY MAM USED TO SEND ME TO HUGH FAYS FOR HALF A POUND OF PACKET BUTTER AND HALF A POUND OF BEST BUTTER WRAPPED UP IN PAPER, AND IF YOU WAS A GOOD CUSTOMER AT THE CORNER SHOP YOU GOT A PESTAL OR A HALF SHEET OF RIBS FREE WITH YOUR ORDER, NOW A FEW RIBS COST AN ARM AND A LEG FOR WHAT THEY ARE. WE WERE VERY LUCKY JUST AFTER THE WAR MY GRAN HAD A SHOP AND WE WENT SHORT OF NOTHING SHE COULD GET HER HANDS ON.I HARDLY REMEMBER HER BUT MY SISTER SAID SHE HAD MORE FRIENDS THAN ANYONE, SHE WAS ALWAYS GOOD FOR A FEW TOFFEES OR A LICORICE STICK, GRAN USED TO GO MAD WITH HER BECAUSE YOU ONLY GOT SWEETS WITH COUPONS, THE WOMAN WITH THE MOUTH SOON GOT SHUT UP WHEN MY MAM PRESENTED HER WITH THE BILL FOR MILK WHICH HER TWO LADS WERE ALWAYS PINCHING FROM THE SHOP, NOTHING MORE SAID ABOUT A FEW MISELY SWEETS. SOME PEOPLE WOULDN'T LET YOU LIVE WOULD THEY.
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Post by marjorie on Mar 9, 2007 13:30:58 GMT -1
TONY, KEEP FORGETTING ABOUT THE BOGIES, MY BROTHER HAD A BELTING BOGY, MY SISTER MADE IT FOR HIM OUT OF AN OLD PRAM WE FOUND IN AN ENTRY MY MAM WENT MAD BECAUSE SHE LOST HER WASHING LINE, IT WAS THAT GOOD MY DAD EVEN LET HIM KEEP IT BEHIND THE FRONT DOOR, AT NIGHT WE HAD A CURTAIN THAT PULLED OVER AND YOU COULDN'T SEE IT, THAT WAS TILL I FELL ON IT AND A NAIL STUCK IN MY KNEE, I WAS SCREAMING LIKE SOMEONE NOT RIGHT MY MAM SAID DON'T BE MARD, IT JUST GOT BATHED AND A PLASTER PUT ON IT. THEN IT HAD TO GO IN THE SHED IN THE YARDAND MY BROTHER SAID HE WOULD BATTER ME IF IT GOT ROBBED. WHEN WE WERE FRIENDS HE USED TO GIVE ME A GO IF I SAID I TOOK THE STALE OFF THE BRUSH SO HE COULD GIVE IT A GOOD START.
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Post by lin on Mar 9, 2007 13:40:48 GMT -1
Hi Lin, TONY, LISTENING TO YOU TWO reminded me of fresh bread best butter Blackpool tomatoes,salt, the best butty i have ever tasted.My poor old gran used to sit mixing the margarine and lard ration together to make it go further ,there was never enough sugar in the rations, so she used to have to put a tea ssspoon of jam in her tea, if we had any. Sorry i am abit older than you two , but these things really happened. The happiest times for gran were when two of her sons would pop in on a saturday night to have a drink with her, it would be my job to go to the Moston, with two jugs, she kept specially for that purpose, i can see them now, they were white , with a grapevine down them, one for mild one for bitter, when i got back she would give me a sip, i'd screw my face up ,and she would say the more you pull your face the more you like it. How did she know.regards,Frank Walsh. Hi Frank....certainly brings back memories doesn't it? I can remember my great gran who lived across from my gran in Collyhurst...she died in her 90's but every night she would toddle off across the road to get herself a jug milk stout. Lin |
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Post by fluffymoat4 on Mar 9, 2007 21:40:38 GMT -1
Hi Lin, TONY, LISTENING TO YOU TWO reminded me of fresh bread best butter Blackpool tomatoes,salt, the best butty i have ever tasted.My poor old gran used to sit mixing the margarine and lard ration together to make it go further ,there was never enough sugar in the rations, so she used to have to put a tea ssspoon of jam in her tea, if we had any. Sorry i am abit older than you two , but these things really happened. The happiest times for gran were when two of her sons would pop in on a saturday night to have a drink with her, it would be my job to go to the Moston, with two jugs, she kept specially for that purpose, i can see them now, they were white , with a grapevine down them, one for mild one for bitter, when i got back she would give me a sip, i'd screw my face up ,and she would say the more you pull your face the more you like it. How did she know.regards,Frank Walsh. Frank, I remember my brother and I asking for a sip of dad's beer once and then screwing up our faces as we grimmaced at the awful taste. Dad said, "See what us men have to put up with? There was you kids thinking us adults drank for FUN!" |
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 11, 2007 8:13:13 GMT -1
Hi Marjorie,
Now I do remember
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 11, 2007 8:19:11 GMT -1
Oops, don't know what happened above, must have pressed the wrong button, yes I do remember butter which came in wooden barrels Danish butter I believe, I remember Redmans up near Church St used to do a really good window display of some of their lines and I remember one with a barrel of butter and a great big whole cheese with just one huge wedge cut out of it, then there were glace cherries and sultanas and all sorts of exotic ingredients. You just wouldn't get a display like that these days.
Tony T.
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Post by tony38337 on Mar 11, 2007 8:41:06 GMT -1
Hi Frank,
Blackpool tomatoes eh? There were nowt likem! Of course The Fylde was always known as the Salad Bowl of The North. It was said that the blacker the soil the richer the tilth and Fylde dirt is as black as you get. When things were seasonal I think they tasted better but now, unless you grow your own lots of veggies have little or no flavour. A salted tomato butty now that's living. Interesting to note that the likes of us (Manmates) grew up with "The butty" where I live in the deep south it has just caught on and it seems odd to hear the Southern accent rattle off Battie? and they wonder why I sblack person, also interestingly Black Puddings have only become easily available in the last five or so years, cheese & onion pies too along with meat & tater, the nearest you could get to the latter was a Cornish Pastie (Or is it pasty Lin?) as nice as they are there is no comparison.
From my childhood memory treasure chest I can still remember Henfry's bakery on't corner of 10 Acres Lane & Oldham Rd. of a lunch time, people from Tootal's used to queue round the block and the pies came out of the oven thick and fast and the smell was heavenly. Remember the beer jugs too, I used to run errands and the off license of the Grosvenor known locally as "The Glue Pot" was always refered to as the bottle & jug.
Tony T.
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Post by fluffymoat4 on Mar 12, 2007 0:04:59 GMT -1
My brother and I were up early one Sunday morning but knowing that Mum and Dad would be tucking into their Sunday fry-up, knew we shouldn't venture downstairs until they'd finished. We were bored and decided it would be fun to rip up newspapers into small pieces and throw them out of our bedroom window - Mum and Dad, sitting by the kitchen window below, would think it was snowing and run outside to look. Well we must've been there for ages throwing out handfuls of torn up paper and no result. We quickly lost interest and got dressed. As we were getting our breakfasts Dad headed for the outside loo. He took one look at the mess in the backyard and demanded to know who had caused it. My brother and I quickly 'fessed up as we thought they'd see the funny side. All we felt after that was his hand on our backsides!! To add insult to injury we had to clean the whole mess up - even as it started to snow for real!
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Post by fluffymoat4 on Mar 13, 2007 23:12:08 GMT -1
Turning the kitchen table upside down at the top of our stairs we would clamber on (about two at a time) and someone would push us so that the table would slide all the way to the bottom. (So that's why kitchen tables didn't last long in our house..!) If it wasn't the kitchen table it was a tray carrying one of us at a time.
Sliding down the bannister...! Oh what absolute FUN! Especially in my grandparents house which had THREE FLOORS!! It was such a delight to slide down bannister after bannister and then climb the stairs again (no wonder we were all blooming skinny LOL). (It did bruise somewhat though LOL).
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..I used to use it like doorstops, especially Lurpak...I used to hate maragrine though, especially Stork or Echo.