Memories of Childhood

I think the Teasmade is making something of a comeback aren't they?

(03-07-2019 04:29 )babelover48 Wrote:  

(02-07-2019 21:20 )Carl-Gen X Wrote:  I know someone in this forum who doesn’t like being reminded about the Cresta ‘it’s frothy man’ adverts

Talk of the Vesta stuff...god I must have ate so much of that stuff in the mid-late 70s. Sitting in front of the telly eating the Chinese Vesta with the crispy noodles while watching ‘Kung Fu’ or ‘The Water Margin’ on BBC2..why we watched Oriental style shows while scoffing Chinese Vesta stuff I don’t know...whether it was by a strange sort of coincidence or whatever I don’t know.

At least I was behaving myself, not terrorising my neighbours by lighting bangers and leaving them on their window sills, or going on my bike and firing raw eggs at old biddies

You little tearaway!!

Seems hard to believe in these ultra health and safety obsessed times that I in 1974 was able to buy fags for my Mam, and in November of that same year, a bag of 10 bangers. Buy fireworks now and you get escorted to the exit, almost as if the shop staff are terrified the fireworks might explode at any given moment

A bag? I thought they came in a box? never mind too many bad memories might be stoked by that.
Recently there was a picture of a Witches' Hat, if you remember that particular contraption whereby it pivoted in the centre as you went round and round, sometimes hanging off the side and usually jam-packed with kids sometimes overflowing. I saw that they have invented a new version but whereas if you fell off it was onto solid ground, this new one will have some kind of cork padding to fall on. Surely that was the whole point of these things like swings, climbing frames etc the danger aspect that you might fall off and graze your knee or bruise your elbow etc. Hard knocks, that is what built our generation not the cosseted, pampered, wrapped-in-cotton-wool type today.

(03-07-2019 16:52 )GMach1 Wrote:  A bag? I thought they came in a box? never mind too many bad memories might be stoked by that.
Recently there was a picture of a Witches' Hat, if you remember that particular contraption whereby it pivoted in the centre as you went round and round, sometimes hanging off the side and usually jam-packed with kids sometimes overflowing. I saw that they have invented a new version but whereas if you fell off it was onto solid ground, this new one will have some kind of cork padding to fall on. Surely that was the whole point of these things like swings, climbing frames etc the danger aspect that you might fall off and graze your knee or bruise your elbow etc. Hard knocks, that is what built our generation not the cosseted, pampered, wrapped-in-cotton-wool type today.

Yep got bangers in a plain brown bag. Fireworks (Standard or Payne..which had a picture of Guy Fawkes on the front)were boxed

One of my favourite things as a child was go into the bakery we had across the road from us-the smell of baked bread is just otherworldly and just that alone would be ecstacy, plus the fact that we were going to get iced buns for tea that day. We also used to order bridge rolls for special occasions like birthday parties with egg and cress-lovely! Even today the smell of freshly baked bread is one of the best smells around, like newly mown grass and a new car!

Ah yes the witches hat.

Remember it well..skinned my knees and elbows falling off that thing more than once, who was the genius who thought of having the ride surrounded by unforgiving concrete?

I know we were a tough bunch of kids but that was taking things a bit far..

Couple of nasty ones...

First one comes from when I was about 7 years old, going in the car to town with my Mam and Dad and my sister who would have been about 3 years old. The trip was made because my sister had an appointment with a specialist, she had a whooping cough vaccination which basically messed her up and left her handicapped.

I was left in the car while they went in to see this quack, I clearly recall a sudden sensation of feeling like I was going to die...my family had only been away for about half an hour but returned to discover that yours truly had very very rapidly and almost without any warning, succumbed to the measles. God that was a vile time...spots were absolutely everywhere.

Other time was when I was about 8 or 9 getting a dirty stone thrown at me by a gypsy kid...which struck me in the eye, and left bits of dirt, and grit in my eye. I don’t know what they used at the hospital to get the grit and crap out of my eye but it looked and felt like a strip of reddish coloured sellotape.

Horrific experience. To this day I get edgy when the optician goes anywhere near my eyes with their fingers..

Posted two Witches Hat pics in the other thread to compare the original with the newer version.
I had a few mishaps, the worst one was whizzing down a hill in a street on my bicycle when I was quite young and not seeing an overhanging branch-whack! right in my eye and worse it was one with thorns on it. I was very lucky not to be blinded but it hurt like heck! My mother put some antiseptic on which stung but it seemed to do the trick. We could have prosecuted the person that plant belonged to but decided it wasn't worth it and I thank goodness it hadn't been worse.

Second time I was playing football with friends in another street and an older friend of ours had come bowling up a hill on his bike. Playing in a driveway suddenly the ball rolled into the road and I ran out to get it, didn't see him coming and next second BANG! his mudguard hit my left leg which had the effect of sending me flying. I was in absolute agony, screaming my head off, tears flowing freely, blood pouring out and that frightened my sister and the others to death. Luckily one of the kids' mothers(whom we had been friends with since very young) called my Dad round in his car and he rushed me up to the hospital. It turned out I needed a plaster cast on it and several stitches. If you've ever had any type of cast on a limb you will know that it can itch like hell and this was no exception. Later I had to have the stitches out and that was incredibly painful too but the relief was immense. To this day you can still see the scar that was made by the mudguard.

Do you remember the first time you were taken to a restaurant? My sister and I went with parents to our first proper, very nice restaurant in Worthing, southern England when we used to stay in my grandfather's flat that he had in Littlehampton. The place was just off the seafront and called the Parade Wine Lodge. Very posh and the fist time we experienced hor's d'euvres( pre dinner snacks) and the a very nice meal. It was the sort of place you went for a special occasion and at that time it weren't cheap either. Let's have your memories - note, it doesn't have to be a posh job, a McDonalds or other sort is good too.

Getting up for school on a cold morning, when they used to be very cold in Winter, was probably a real chore for us our parents. You were all nice and snug in bed, then the dreaded "come time to get up" rang through the house and you'd pull your blanket over your head and muffle "just five more minutes" thinking someone would hear you. In my case next second my Dad would open my attic door(my bedroom) and yell out ("name...)get up its time for school!" and because my light switch was on the side wall behind the door he'd flick it on half blinding me. There was never any real leisurely breakfast time so you'd wolf down some toast or a bowl of Rice Krispies or Corn flakes etc and then very quickly check you had all the stuff you needed for school(books, packed lunch etc) and then bolt out the door. Luckily for me the part of the school for higher pupils was just in the road from where I lived and I had a lunch pass so could go home and have a decent lunch afterwards.

Speaking of Winter one day at my primary school we had an amazing snowfall and that led to the MOTHER of all snowball fights. It was a massive free-for-all, snow flying everywhere and loads of us getting absolutely drenched. One of my friends came inside soaking wet he had been hit by tons of the stuff, but boy was it fun...until the head master came out and stopped it.

Finally pranks(the idiots that would set off the fire alarm) especially on April Fools Day - one great wheeze was someone, it was never discovered who, got to our flagpole and managed to get our flag down and then raise up a pair of bloomers!