Memories of the Past

[RoyalRegular 10]

That's brought back memories!

 

"Going across the yard" - I was terrified as a kid to go at night as the lavvy had loads of big spiders. The old man next door was scared too as my grandmother kept chickens and the cockerill had taken a real dislike to him. Every time he went across the yard, the cockerill would go for him. We used to have a little oil lamp that was kept constantly burning in the winter to stop the pipes from freezing up and the squares of newspaper on a nail on the back of the door.

Going down the cellar was scary too-more spiders! But one of my jobs was fetching the coal up in a bucket, so I had to get used to it.

 

And yes, you can still get Zebo black lead. My missus did our fireplace yesterday!

[saxon76tr 10]

Thank you for taking time to look at my pages.

Do you think that todays volume of waste going down the loo could cope with newspaper? i very much doubt it.

[owdlad 10]

That's a crap question

[Plain Talker 11]

Originally posted by RoyalRegular

That's brought back memories!

 

"Going across the yard" - I was terrified as a kid to go at night as the lavvy had loads of big spiders. The old man next door was scared too as my grandmother kept chickens and the cockerill had taken a real dislike to him. Every time he went across the yard, the cockerill would go for him. We used to have a little oil lamp that was kept constantly burning in the winter to stop the pipes from freezing up and the squares of newspaper on a nail on the back of the door.

Going down the cellar was scary too-more spiders! But one of my jobs was fetching the coal up in a bucket, so I had to get used to it.

 

And yes, you can still get Zebo black lead. My missus did our fireplace yesterday!

 

I well remember the "going across the yard" ritual.

and, as for those dratted spiders!!

I hate them.....

why was it, when you went across the yard to the "privy", and you checked thoroughly, that there were no spiders, they always used to wait, and hide, until you were actually seated, before they'd come out of their hiding places???

I'm sure they used to do it deliberately! (LOL)

 

I can remember my mother and I being half- paralysed with fear, by a mouse that had come out of the cellar. we couldn't move! we daren't!

 

We had this massive, massive cast-iron frying pan, that my mother kept on the cellar-head, when not in use. It was so large, that you could cook the bacon, the sausages, the egg and the mushroms together, in the same pan, and they would not touch!!

it was kept from rusting by a layer of fat. Then, one Sunday morning, the frying pan was retrieved, off the cellar head, and was found to have trail of mouse-footprints across the grease.

somehow, the Sunday-breakfast fry-up did not seem quite so appetising a prospect, after that.

(yuk!)

 

PT

[RoyalRegular 10]

That's where my grandmother used to hide when it was thundering in case a thunderbolt (whatever they were) came through the window!

[Plain Talker 11]

Originally posted by RoyalRegular

That's where my grandmother used to hide when it was thundering in case a thunderbolt (whatever they were) came through the window!

 

Was that before, or after putting sheets over the mirrors, and opening the front and back doors, just in case the lightning managed to get into the house, that made sure it could get out again... (mr PT's mother used to do that... or at the very least, she's insist on a window being left open, for the same reason)

 

Thunder and lightning used to terify me, (it still does!) i hate it, I really do.

 

I used to hide under the huge, oak drop-leaf table, which was lovely and dark, because of that thick, chenille tablecloth that used to drape, almost to the floor! (-remember the chenille tablecloths? the ones I remember were in ruby-reds, emerald-greens, and sapphire-blue, did they also come in a sort of rich tan/ amber colour?)

 

PT

[Guest poppins]

Yes Plain Talker

my grandma had a dark red chenille cloth on all the time, we use to sit and plait the fringe on it waiting to eat, speaking of clolors, remember when it was ok to refer to a brown jumper as ni**r brown, was just like saying bottle green, even the shop windows would use that word to advertise that shade od brown.

[depoix 11]

ladies,you forgot to mention the copper tub,dolly posh with three legs, and the old mangle...carbolic soap,the little blue bag you put in the wash,screwing newspaper up for firelighting, and the dreaded nit nurse at school... regards.....

[Plain Talker 11]

no, depoix, I have already commented on the nit nurse...

 

my mother had an old copper which was used to boil clothes up in, with the blue-bag, "reckitts Blue " or something very similar they were called.

 

My grandmother had two different "dolly posh" laundry tools

one was the standard three legged stool, with a stick on top , the other was really weird, it was like a metal colander, upside down, on the bottom of a stick. it was used the same way as the doly pos with the three legs. I believe the holes, like on a colander made the detergent and water go through the clothes with more force, which helped them get cleaner (IIRC)

 

carbolic soap? the school loos used to whiff of that stuff! it stank awful!

 

did it come in like an olive green and a sort of dusky dolly pink? i remember at school the bars were cut up into slivers for the toilets, We had "hand-washing parade" at our school, before lunch break. we had to go, under supervision to the toilets and wash out hands, and have them inspected before we could go to the dining hall for our lunch.

 

PT

[depoix 11]

Originally posted by Plain Talker

no, depoix, I have already commented on the nit nurse...

 

my mother had an old copper which was used to boil clothes up in, with the blue-bag, "reckitts Blue " or something very similar they were called.

 

My grandmother had two different "dolly posh" laundry tools

one was the standard three legged stool, with a stick on top , the other was really weird, it was like a metal colander, upside down, on the bottom of a stick. it was used the same way as the doly pos with the three legs. I believe the holes, like on a colander made the detergent and water go through the clothes with more force, which helped them get cleaner (IIRC)

 

carbolic soap? the school loos used to whiff of that stuff! it stank awful!

 

did it come in like an olive green and a sort of dusky dolly pink? i remember at school the bars were cut up into slivers for the toilets, We had "hand-washing parade" at our school, before lunch break. we had to go, under supervision to the toilets and wash out hands, and have them inspected before we could go to the dining hall for our lunch.

 

PT

yes your right about the colour of the soap,my mum used to scrub dads collars with it and we also had both of those poshes,we were living on the woodthorpe estate then and when my mum got her first electric washer from wigfalls i think she was scared to use the electric mangle

[vhopkinson 10]

Hello , Well after being of the comp for a few days what a great suprise to see such a lot of great memories have surfaced.

I can,t single anyone out at all Just have to say thanks to you all for sharing all these stories. Like living it all over again (no bl.....y) fear says me laughing. OWDLAD I remember the bit about shouting the steps had been done LOL.

Keep these letters coming in luv em all

Regards Vera.

[owdlad 10]

Vera, another one to add to the list is the smell of fresh bread cooling on the stone window sill, and no one dare to steal it.......but waiting until it was just cool enough to have lashings of dripping spread over it. happy days indeed.