Growing up!

[Buckman]

Someone asked the other day, 'What was your favourite 'fast food' when you were growing up?'
'We didn't have fast food when I was growing up,' I informed him.
'All the food was slow.'
'C'mon, seriously.. Where did you eat?'
'It was a place called 'home,'' I explained. !
'Mum cooked every day and when Dad got home from work, we sat down together at the dining room table, and if I didn't like what she put on my plate, I was allowed to sit there until I did like it.'
By this time, the lad was laughing so hard I was afraid he was going to suffer serious internal damage, so I didn't tell him the part about how I had to have permission to leave the table.
But here are some other things I would have told him about my childhood if I'd figured his system could have handled it:
Some parents NEVER owned their own house, wore jeans, set foot on a golf course, travelled out of the country or had a credit card.
My parents never drove me to school... I had a bicycle that weighed probably 50 pounds, and only had one speed (slow).
We didn't have a television in our house until I was 10.
It was, of course, black and white, and the station went off the air at 10 PM, after playing the national anthem and epilogue; it came back on the air at about 6 am. And there was usually a locally produced news and farm show on, featuring local people...
Pizzas were not delivered to our home... But milk was.
All newspapers were delivered by boys and all boys delivered newspapers --My brother delivered a newspaper, seven days a week. He had to get up at 6 every morning.
Film stars kissed with their mouths shut. At least, they did in the films. There were no movie ratings because all movies were responsibly produced for everyone to enjoy viewing, without profanity or violence or almost anything offensive.
If you grew up in a generation before there was fast food, you may want to share some of these memories with your children or grandchildren. Just don't blame me if they bust a gut laughing.
Growing up isn't what it used to be, is it?

 

[Dustydog]

Mum shopped for fresh food daily, baked her own bread , cakes and pies. We got to lick out the cake mixture bowl.
Roast beef top side was far cheaper than a chicken.
Remember the pea souper fogs walking a mile and half to school.
Cod liver oil poured down your throat each night and camphorated oil on the chest for a cold.
Our old Bush TV was 405 lines only BBC and ITV. No remote control.
Holidays spent working and playing on my uncles farm . We learnt to snare rabbits , shoot pigeons and cook on the open fire with wood we had collected

All those life skills of fending for yourself paid dividends when we started caravanning. 🤪
Takeaways? The Golden Palace at North Cheam opened in the 60s . The best large pancake rolls ever😋

 

[Mr Plodd]

I had an enjoyable 10 minutes explaining to my grandson about telephones that were attached to a socket in the wall, and how you had to book a "trunk" call with the operator. "How did you make a call if you were not at home pop-pop?" So I then explained about telephone boxes (which he really had trouble believing) So I didn't get into the "Press button B" situation.
Then I explained there were cars with bench seats in the front, with no seat belts.
If you misbehaved at school there was the slipper, or the cane!
Policemen were revered, not reviled.
Men opened doors for ladies, and gave up their seats on buses and trains for ladies and the elderly
Foreign holidays were fir tge very wealthy, "normal" people went to the local beach.
Aeroplanes all had propellers were slow and noisey (and expensive)
You could buy three gallons of petrol for £1
Deep down I suspect he thought I was spinning him yarns!.,

 

[Buckman]

I had an enjoyable 10 minutes explaining to my grandson about telephones that were attached to a socket in the wall, and how you had to book a "trunk" call with the operator. "How did you make a call if you were not at home pop-pop?" So I then explained about telephone boxes (which he really had trouble believing) So I didn't get into the "Press button B" situation.
Then I explained there were cars with bench seats in the front, with no seat belts.
If you misbehaved at school there was the slipper, or the cane!
Policemen were revered, not reviled.
Men opened doors for ladies, and gave up their seats on buses and trains for ladies and the elderly
Foreign holidays were fir tge very wealthy, "normal" people went to the local beach.
Aeroplanes all had propellers were slow and noisey (and expensive)
You could buy three gallons of petrol for £1
Deep down I suspect he thought I was spinning him yarns!.,

Back in the late sixties you could buy 8 gallons for £1 as fuel was 2/6d or less a gallon.

 

[RogerL]

Back in the late sixties you could buy 8 gallons for £1 as fuel was 2/6d or less a gallon.

I bet many people wouldn't know what 2/6d was !

It was 12.5 pence - to give an idea of money then I used to get 10/- (50 pence) for working 4 hours overtime on a Saturday

 

[Devonisheaven]

Someone asked the other day, 'What was your favourite 'fast food' when you were growing up?'
'We didn't have fast food when I was growing up,' I informed him.
'All the food was slow.'
'C'mon, seriously.. Where did you eat?'
'It was a place called 'home,'' I explained. !
'Mum cooked every day and when Dad got home from work, we sat down together at the dining room table, and if I didn't like what she put on my plate, I was allowed to sit there until I did like it.'
By this time, the lad was laughing so hard I was afraid he was going to suffer serious internal damage, so I didn't tell him the part about how I had to have permission to leave the table.
But here are some other things I would have told him about my childhood if I'd figured his system could have handled it:
Some parents NEVER owned their own house, wore jeans, set foot on a golf course, travelled out of the country or had a credit card.
My parents never drove me to school... I had a bicycle that weighed probably 50 pounds, and only had one speed (slow).
We didn't have a television in our house until I was 10.
It was, of course, black and white, and the station went off the air at 10 PM, after playing the national anthem and epilogue; it came back on the air at about 6 am. And there was usually a locally produced news and farm show on, featuring local people...
Pizzas were not delivered to our home... But milk was.
All newspapers were delivered by boys and all boys delivered newspapers --My brother delivered a newspaper, seven days a week. He had to get up at 6 every morning.
Film stars kissed with their mouths shut. At least, they did in the films. There were no movie ratings because all movies were responsibly produced for everyone to enjoy viewing, without profanity or violence or almost anything offensive.
If you grew up in a generation before there was fast food, you may want to share some of these memories with your children or grandchildren. Just don't blame me if they bust a gut laughing.
Growing up isn't what it used to be, is it?

Very, very similar, but nothing wrong with it, not at all. We did not have a bathroom until I was around 10, tin bath and outside toilet. Would not change a bit! 👍

 

[Devonisheaven]

Those were the days!

View: https://youtu.be/ue7wM0QC5LE?feature=shared

 

[Buckman]

I bet many people wouldn't know what 2/6d was !

It was 12.5 pence - to give an idea of money then I used to get 10/- (50 pence) for working 4 hours overtime on a Saturday

For the 10/- you could have a beer or two and still feed yourself for a week plus save some money. In 1968 my salary was £62.5s.0d a month before deductions and I lived quite well on that as could afford to buy a car and run it. Paid cash in hand and you took it to the bank to put into a savings account so use during the month. To draw any money, you went to the bank or building society and stood in a queue to get your money. The teller would check the balance in your little book and give the amount requested. You repeated this every Friday as we needed to travel 3 miles into town to draw any money. No public transport.

 

[RogerL]

For the 10/- you could have a beer or two and still feed yourself for a week plus save some money. In 1968 my salary was £62.5s.0d a month before deductions and I lived quite well on that as could afford to buy a car and run it. Paid cash in hand and you took it to the bank to put into a savings account so use during the month. To draw any money, you went to the bank or building society and stood in a queue to get your money. The teller would check the balance in your little book and give the amount requested. You repeated this every Friday as we needed to travel 3 miles into town to draw any money. No public transport.

I was still "on the clock" in the '60s and paid weekly in cash.

I recall borrowing money to buy a Lambretta and English law limited interest to 48% per annum - better than today's unlimited interest charged by money-lenders.

 

[Devonisheaven]

I think a real lasting memory, apart from sleeping and school, which I was never any good at unless with a cricket ball or rugby ball in hand, was hardly ever being indoors. My dad was a real countryman, fishing, shooting, rabbiting with ferrets or rifle etc, a love of all things country, especially birds. A tough man, Royal Marine and rugby player, and took no truck off no man, even in his 70s.

This most definitely rubbed off on me, I really dislike being indoors, and I thank him and my mother for that, but one of the biggest things I thank them for, was being born and brought up near where I live now. It was an amazing playground, and for me…….It still is!

It has everything I love, rivers, sea and lakes for fishing, 1000s of acres available for me to shoot and stalk over, numerous shoots to work my dog, 100s of square miles to roam and camp. Got a 12 miler planned for tomorrow, fishing for Gilt Heads on Thursday.

My wife and I have been fortunate to have seen a decent chunk of the world, and experienced and seen some amazing things, over the last 47 years. Still hope to see more. But when I drive home, and see our “coming home” view, we both get a warm feeling. The southern hills of Dartmoor, I can’t wait to get the dog and disappear for a few hours, then have a pint in one of the two villages I frequent.

Proper ansum tis! 👍

Edit: But I am only a youngster compared to you lot! Born in the 50s, but would not change it, growing up in the late 50s and 60s was rather awesome. But I do, to a degree, embrace modern technology. 👍

 

[Beardy]

I remember when you could go to the shop with 10p, get 3 bars of chocolate, 2 cans of fizzy pop, 5 penny chews, 2 packs of chewing gum, and a hand full of gob stoppers. You can't do that now with security cameras everywhere.

 

[Buckman]

This back in the late fifties, early sixties. I used the canoe at sea as no lakes nearby. The canoe was made from a beaten piece fo corrugated iron and had decking. In front and rear under the decking where two gallon sealed empty paraffin tins.

I virtually lived on the beach. I used to paddle out to the tankers during the Suez crisis. One time I tried to paddle to Robben Island which is about 7 miles off Cape Town, but had to turn around when about three quarters the way across.
In those days no such thing as wet suits or life jackets plus the water was very cold being the Atlantic and current coming up from the Antarctica.

 

[Devonisheaven]

This back in the late fifties, early sixties. I used the canoe at sea as no lakes nearby. The canoe was made from a beaten piece fo corrugated iron and had decking. In front and rear under the decking where two gallon sealed empty paraffin tins.

I virtually lived on the beach. I used to paddle out to the tankers during the Suez crisis. One time I tried to paddle to Robben Island which is about 7 miles off Cape Town, but had to turn around when about three quarters the way across.
In those days no such thing as wet suits or life jackets plus the water was very cold being the Atlantic and current coming up from the Antarctica.

View attachment 9031

Cold it most certainly is! 🥶

 

[Buckman]

Cold it most certainly is! 🥶

Funny thing is that aged under 13 you never really felt the cold? Later living in Durban the water was lovely and warm due to Mozambique current flowing down from equator. From our balcony we used to watch the sardine run and all the game fish, dolphins etc chasing the sardines. Below is a very small sample of a catch after after 30 minutes. We then used the sardines bait for larger fish caught from surf fishing.

 

[Devonisheaven]

Funny thing is that aged under 13 you never really felt the cold? Later living in Durban the water was lovely and warm due to Mozambique current flowing down from equator. From our balcony we used to watch the sardine run and all the game fish, dolphins etc chasing the sardines. Below is a very small sample of a catch after after 30 minutes. We then used the sardines bait for larger fish caught from surf fishing.

View attachment 9033

Love Sardines, our local port, Brixham, will land a couple of thousand tonnes a season, but Newlyn is in excess of 4000 tonnes a season. Sardines are doing well, no shortage of fresh fish in these ere parts. 👍

 

[toad a caravan]

I can remember when I didn't forget as much😵‍💫

 

[borderbilly]

I think a real lasting memory, apart from sleeping and school, which I was never any good at unless with a cricket ball or rugby ball in hand, was hardly ever being indoors. My dad was a real countryman, fishing, shooting, rabbiting with ferrets or rifle etc, a love of all things country, especially birds. A tough man, Royal Marine and rugby player, and took no truck off no man, even in his 70s.

This most definitely rubbed off on me, I really dislike being indoors, and I thank him and my mother for that, but one of the biggest things I thank them for, was being born and brought up near where I live now. It was an amazing playground, and for me…….It still is!

It has everything I love, rivers, sea and lakes for fishing, 1000s of acres available for me to shoot and stalk over, numerous shoots to work my dog, 100s of square miles to roam and camp. Got a 12 miler planned for tomorrow, fishing for Gilt Heads on Thursday.

My wife and I have been fortunate to have seen a decent chunk of the world, and experienced and seen some amazing things, over the last 47 years. Still hope to see more. But when I drive home, and see our “coming home” view, we both get a warm feeling. The southern hills of Dartmoor, I can’t wait to get the dog and disappear for a few hours, then have a pint in one of the two villages I frequent.

Proper ansum tis! 👍

Edit: But I am only a youngster compared to you lot! Born in the 50s, but would not change it, growing up in the late 50s and 60s was rather awesome. But I do, to a degree, embrace modern technology. 👍

No mention of pasties here

 

[Devonisheaven]

No mention of pasties here

Hate then, give me heartburn!

 

[Buckman]

Love Sardines, our local port, Brixham, will land a couple of thousand tonnes a season, but Newlyn is in excess of 4000 tonnes a season. Sardines are doing well, no shortage of fresh fish in these ere parts. 👍

I can remember one year when thousands beached due to running away from predators. They had to get JCB front end loaders in to remove them as the stench became unbelievable after only a day due to temperature in the high twenties.