General Chat

Morning all,

Elizabeth I am an only child too.

Well the sun is out here and there and I have put the washing back on the line.

OH is tidying up now as there are tools and bench saws all over the place.

Remember one potato etc. and ibble obble black bobble ibble obble out. Dipping!! I wonder if children these days still do things like that. Playing It and hide and seek. Do children still skip with ropes? I have'nt seen any doing it in the streets like we used to.

I lived as a child near the river Roding, Frank knows it. We used to go tiddlering with a jam jar with string round the top and a fishing net made out of a cane with a piece of wire made into a round shape with an old piece of net curtain sown round it and then it was stuck into the end of the cane. Played for hours with this. Sometimes we would see goldfish in the river. always tried hard to catch those and bring them home for the pond in the garden.

Dad being a builder would sometimes come home with a BIG cardboard box from a boileer or something like that. I would play for hours with this making it into a house and drawing flowers on the outside and cutting windows and a door in it. I already had a wendy house dad had built me out of fish boxes that came from Frank Martin's Fish shop in Woodford Briddge. These fish boxes were also used for seed trays by my mum when she sowed the seeds in the springtime.

Oh, Mel,
please don't start me off about my childhood in the Bridge. As I said some time ago, the things I got up too I could write a book. and probable get arrested for a number of unsolved CRIMES LOL

Yes Elizabeth the Winter of46/ 47 was realy bad, Iceicles hanging from the roofs to the ground, snow still on the roofs in April/May. The old Crittal windows had as much ice inside as outside. Frozen pipes were the norm. Cloths wise, whatever you could get on you put on to try to keep warm, indoors and out. Chillblains all around your knees, where your short flannel trousers ended. We would go out with the barrow to find wood, that dad would chop up for extra fires in the bedrooms. (you normally had to be ill) to get a fire in the bedroom. The little "IDEAL DOMESTIC" boiler was on 24/7 for hot water, and in the morning Mum would put the front down for us to get warm before setting of to school.

I can remember my mum putting the wet clothes through a mangle in the back garden. The Baby burco boiler for whites, towels and teacloths. Bri nylon sheets - yuk!
Spangle sweets, tom thumb drops and spearmint pips and some shredded coconut thing that came in a box, I think it was called pirates treasure or something, anyone remember that? Having my hair washed in washing up liquid, with no conditioner - I had long hair and it was painful.
Making daisy chains in the garden and sitting in wooden and canvas deckchairs in the garden, that you always managed to shut your fingers in.
Our first phone was a slimline thing in advocado green (to match the bath I think!!). Formica kitchens.
My first pay packet as a saturday girl I bought a bottle of shloer and a vesta readymeal - disgusting. The corona van bringing the fizzy drinks and money back on the empty bottles.

Hi Kim,
I don't think I remember Tom Thumbs.Was there another name for them?
When we trapped our fingers in those deck chairs we called them a Black pinch.They were devils to put up weren't they lol

Afternoon all
Tried to get on GR this morning before going shopping but it wouldn't let me on for some reason maybe they were fixing something, anyway I'm here now.

Welcome Kim
I remember our first BT Phone being cream and then we had a green one.Pink Bri Nylon sheets and blankets & bed spreads on my beds. I had twin beds in my room even though I was an only child my cousin used to come and stay for her holidays quite often, Never could use those Deckchairs I would always get the bars upside down and over the wrong way. Been raining most of the day but is still warm when the sun comes out.

Another young lady for my Harem.!!! Welcome Kim.Where are you hailing from. I'm in Northants, as is Jane.

The 1st phone I remember was black with a draw underneath, with telephone Nos, in. Police Doctor, Hospital etc. The Telephone books wern'y very thick, but in later years there were four for the London area, how many now I wouldn't kike to guess.

On a Monday after school, When mum had done all the washing, I would turn the big mangle, had three big cogs on the wheel side.Mum would fold the sheets and tablecloths, and put them through the mangle. Made it easier to iron, she said. Mum had a crushed finger on her left hand where she caught it between the rollers. They must have been 202 roung and it had a big wheel on a thread on top to tighten down the rollers.

Jellies were made and put in white dishes, put outside on the coal bunker with a plate over, you would wait all day to get your Jelly and Carnatio# milk.
My dad would make a Blancmange. One colour on top of another so when turned out it was multi coloured and none of the colours ran into each other.

Afternoon all,
Another sunny and blowy day here , have just got the washing in as there are many black old clouds about .
Got lots of odd jobs done this morning ,topped the swimming up ,should get really hot again next week 93!!!!! degrees ,now thats hot ,been and got some eggs ,£1-70 a dozen and some of them are huge and Double Yolkers

I loved playing Hop Scotch and skipping also French Skipping ...lots of elastic Bands looped together .
Did you play Mr Crocodile ?....Mr Crocodile can we cross the golden river ? only if you are wearing something blue ,if you had something blue on you could take one step forward .

I hated the old Nylon Sheets ....made your nightie stick to your legs with the static !
We only got rid of our Deckchairs a few months ago at a car boot ,they were always a devil to get up ,and after sitting on them for a while the piece of wood at the front would hurt your legs !

I remember watching someone at the beach trying to put a deckchair up and sitting giggling ,my Uncle said i'll go and help them....he couldn't do it either and that made us laugh even more !!

We also used to have those little fold up chairs too ,after a few years the canvas would wear out and weaken so that when you sat down you would drop right through LOL

We used to have some of those sunbeds that folded into three you pulled the legs out and then unfolded them.

Jane, you must remember Tom Thumb Drops ,those tiny little sweets in lots of colours .

I Mel I have had to delete some messages from your site
due the fact someone on another site I am envolved with and most be on genes too was making rude comments
about my postings and I had to complain I was trying to
come to terms with it days ago but did not like to say
can only assume its the person who was rude before
and said something about my age so took off any that
mentioned anything about my family and my work etc
It annoys me that a site devoted to ancesters and memories can be so abused it should not be allowed.
I think they have been reading the messages and saying things like I wrote rubbish about Mr T and my life .My
brother put me on this other site and I use it sometimes
not often found this one and have had no problem
but there was my messages on a chat section repeated word for word with rude comments. I at first just said that
I thought I was talking rubbish but it was because of this person. It really upset me. I was told by my husband to
come off both sites but why should I SHEILA.

just got 10 mins to chat before OH & I go off to the garden centre, OH wants plants, I like to tag along to look at the crafts ,maybe squeeze a cup of coffee out of OH in the coffee shop if I'm lucky,
sun's out now but for how long is anyone's guess.

Mel, My dad started off as a pattern maker for the shipyards in Sunderland but when he was made redundant about 1975 he started up his own building company , He was the Joiner, Bob was the plasterer and Geordie was the bricky, they did a lot of work for elderly people fitting Kitchens, bathrooms etc , some weeks It was a struggle for my mum to run the house as dad often had to wait for his bills to be paid by the customers, Being self imployed was no fun I remember some weeks I didn't get much pocket money so was glad when I started work and was earning my own money.

My memory of my mothers cabbage was cooked far to long no added salt due to my dad having kidney trouble
and left for ages in the pantry on a cold slab for weeks.
the water she expected me to drink was tastless with a
funny smell. my mum was a great cook but admitted herself
in later years she could not cook cabbage.I am now going to a Austin 8 motor raleigh .The old Austin factory was near to where we now live then British Leyland of course now gone just flattened ground but my brother loved my dads Austin eight he does have two made in 1939 and
a millitary model used in the war he goes to a friends
house and they meet up with some other proud owners
and I am going today we have loads of photoes of dad
standing by his car we could not sell it when he died. . .

Sheila ,I'm sorry you are having trouble with someone being rude aboutyour postings.How very dare they!!! Don't leave us will you.

Frank,Don't get too excited now ,just because we have another girl lol You will be getting a name for yourself !!!
The sun is out at the moment so I will put away the ironing and do some de heading.
Mandy those Tom Thumb drops aren't those soft things called Rainbow something are they.

Last night I watched The Undercover Boss programme I'd recorded about Great Western Hotels. OH and I were gobsmacked when Ullesthorpe Court near here was shown and they showed where we go to eat in their Lincoln's bar. It is where we made a mistake and went when the world cup was starting and there was a big screen and noisy youths last time. Anyway, it seems to be doing well with room lets 20% up and some nice staff were interviewed. It has a golf course with it and they used that facility to boost business. It is a place that fascinated me as a teenager as it was down a lane on it's own and about a mile from the village. It was derelict then and quite close to the road,but you wouldn't know it was there because it was surrounded by thick woodland with thick trunked trees growing in the middle of the drive. In the pitch dark at night we would park nearby, then dare each other to go up the drive!! We never got very far. lol If you are interested google Ullesthorpe Court history. The estate dates from the Doomsday Book.

Did anyone else watch Victorian Pharmacy? Yuk, Frank would have been given worm paste for his bruises.

Ann buy an early tpe of pea. I usually grow Greenshaft as you get about 10 pease to the pod. Early Onward would be ok but not so many peas to the pod.

Yes I playeed Mr Crocodile. I had a tarten skirt type kilt mum made me and it had loads of colours in it. Worn with a blue jumper I remember and a red cardy. The kilt was fastened at the front flap over with a proper kilt pin of which I was very proud.

Tom Thumb Drops were later called pips, or vicer verser. What about Florel Gums. I used to use those for jellies in my dolls house.

Always seemed to have a chocolate smoking set for Christmas with ciggies and matches and a pipe and a cigar all made out of chocolate.

Yes I said I watched it on Replay last night. I have enjoyed all the Victorian programs that they have put on the telly. More of the same please!!!!!!!! At least there is not much swearing in them!!

Love anything old fashioned, films, serials etc.

Glad also that the Yesterday programs are back on in the evenings. I have been watching Island at War on a Saturday. I suppose it is a repeat but it is one I have'nt seen before.

Off to Holsworthy now for some chicken food and river stones for planting pond plants in. The pond has turned a bit green now!! Still have'nt done the other pics yet but have managed to get some of the chicks and their mum. Also we had a huming bird hawk moth on the lavender yesterday and I tried twice to get a picture but it flew away each time I got there!!! May have just the one but don't know yet if it has come out.

What we need Jane is more BOYS too!! lol

I'll look for those early peas Mel. Thanks. I'd forgotten about floral gums and they would have been perfect for a doll's house.....only I would have eaten them!! I remember parma violets and some dark red crescent shaped gum floral sweet but can't remember what they were called.

Then there would be sweet cigarettes in my stocking Mel. I thought I was so grown up!

No Jane ,your thinking of those little coloured bits they look like Polystyrene balls ,Mels right they were called Pips ,i remember Floral Gums i used to like them.
What about Sherbet ! i like that too although it made your tongue sore !!

A few spots of rain here now .

Sorry Mel I missed your post.....speed reading to catch up. I've never even heard of those moths.....hope you managed to snap it. The scrambled egg has gone again and the little Robin was right outside the back door when I opened it this morning. He is wary and flutters off if you throw food down though, still wary yet.

Yes, I better go and look for some peas now. One thing I never had and would have liked was a pea shooter.......

Ann, don't put that idea in Franks head ...although i bet he had one !!! LOL

Afternoon All----
No Elizabeth your not the old Gran/Lady here your still the young ones --x
used to skip double rope UP & DOWN THE LADDER-IN A CARAVAN YOU ONLY PAY A PENNY TO SEE A FUNNY MAN--etc

Kim a girl after my own heart ''SPANGLES'' i just loved them my Mum sent them to me all the time (canada) untill they stoped making them----

As for nylon sheet's she sent me some also bed spread with sham--sheet's are gone --BUT I STILL HAVE SPREAD & SHAM---

OUR teach Ms Sutherland---had broken little finger that was bent in--which really hurt when she gave you a clip on the side of your head.--
We would get a tennis ball run a string/rope through it stand back to the wall swing it up& down & across/& between the legs Just hope not to hit you----
and swing the