A trip down memory lane

[tex]

Re: A trip down memory lane

Fireworks, the highlight of bonfire night for any young kid, its been a long time since i bought fireworks but the ones i remember best were normally bought in a selection box which contained (as we called them) pinwheels,roman candles,air bombs,helicopters, rockets, ripraps and a selection of fountains. Bangers and sparklers were sold seperately and eventually bangers were withdrawn from sale because people (me)would throw them,ripraps were also withdrawn because of there erratic behaviour and helicopters also were withdrawn because they went up at any angle usually into somebodys face

[tex]

Re: A trip down memory lane

BONFIRE NIGHT.
So its almost november 5th again (bonfire night) do you / did you ever celebrate bonfire night or guy faulkes night as it is sometimes known?
Although i dont celebrate bonfire night anymore i have fond memories of it as a young kid in Salford, there were few if any organised events in the 60s/70s and we would build our own bonfires on the nearest piece of wasteland or even in the back entry behind the back to back terraced houses that i grew up in. As always in those days there was absolutely no fear of the dangers involved, we would go door to door asking for any unwanted wood such as old floorboards, doors or furniture which were used to build the bonfire, soon as it went dark we would stuff the bonfire with old newspapers and light it, soon as the fire was raging an effigy of guy faulkes was thrown on the blazing fire, we would stand around it roasting potatoes and for some reason black eyed peas?.
Also toffee apples and treacle toffee were traditionally consumed in large quantities...then out came the fireworks!........

[Donald the Great]

Re: A trip down memory lane

that is what I like the most.. my beer cold and wet.

Anyone wanna start a new subject?

[tex]

Re: A trip down memory lane

How was sunny Spain tex.. good to have you back. Did you get a great tan or sensibly choose to stay out of the sun? Good idea that play street. We didnt need them as most of the back streets were rarely used for traffic. Besides there were so few cars on the roads.. even the main ones in those days.

Hi Donald, Ibiza was great with some really nice architecture in the "old town". The weather was hot and sunny and the beer cold and wet...good to be back

[Mulletino]

Re: A trip down memory lane

double post

[Mulletino]

Re: A trip down memory lane

That is very sad. Your mate died young did he?

He was in his thirties, had mental issues and tried to overdose. He changed his mind during this and called for help, he was revived but died a little later from a heart attack.

I looked up those horror cards.. Waddingtons were a UK toy maker of the time. We never had horror cards but I was a mad collector of footy cards at boarding school. I had every St George Dragon for at least a decade plus every other player who had made the Australian Kangaroos. I expect you had every England soccer football player.

I never collected footy cards, but did have the Star Wars, Black Hole and Kojak ones. I collected a couple of football Pannini Sticker Books with my bro, but wasn't into sports much so preferred the movie ones. I do remember us buying these little chewing gum packs from a local shop that had plastic shield shape club badges of football teams in, we had a few of those.

[Donald the Great]

Re: A trip down memory lane

We lived on what was known as a play street, it was illegal to drive down it unless for access, this was ofcourse to ensure the safety of any kids playing outside. We would play in the street all the time, usually footy but also cricket and games like tag or statues.

How was sunny Spain tex.. good to have you back. Did you get a great tan or sensibly choose to stay out of the sun? Good idea that play street. We didnt need them as most of the back streets were rarely used for traffic. Besides there were so few cars on the roads.. even the main ones in those days.

[Donald the Great]

Re: A trip down memory lane

That was in Essex in England mate, didn't move to Australia till my thirties.

Yeah they were special times, we were mad on Horror Cards (like scary top trumps) and i remember us making our own ones one day after coming in from the cold.
I found them 20 years later in a Yahtzee box I had and gave them to my mate at his wedding, he couldn't believe i still had them. He was supposed to keep them for 20 years then give them back, but he died a few years after.
His mum asked if she could bury some of the ones i remembered as his favourites with him as they'd meant so much to him seeing them again, I agreed. The rest I got back, some were all smudged from her tears, i'll never thrown them away.

That is very sad. Your mate died young did he?
I looked up those horror cards.. Waddingtons were a UK toy maker of the time. We never had horror cards but I was a mad collector of footy cards at boarding school. I had every St George Dragon for at least a decade plus every other player who had made the Australian Kangaroos. I expect you had every England soccer football player.

[Richard1978]

Re: A trip down memory lane

I've not heard of that many play streets over here, they are popular in American cites from what I've heard.

[tex]

Re: A trip down memory lane

We lived on what was known as a play street, it was illegal to drive down it unless for access, this was ofcourse to ensure the safety of any kids playing outside. We would play in the street all the time, usually footy but also cricket and games like tag or statues.

[Mulletino]

Re: A trip down memory lane

That was in Essex in England mate, didn't move to Australia till my thirties.

Yeah they were special times, we were mad on Horror Cards (like scary top trumps) and i remember us making our own ones one day after coming in from the cold.
I found them 20 years later in a Yahtzee box I had and gave them to my mate at his wedding, he couldn't believe i still had them. He was supposed to keep them for 20 years then give them back, but he died a few years after.
His mum asked if she could bury some of the ones i remembered as his favourites with him as they'd meant so much to him seeing them again, I agreed. The rest I got back, some were all smudged from her tears, i'll never thrown them away.

[Donald the Great]

Re: A trip down memory lane

Sounds like my upbringing before it was spoiled by boarding school.

Mulletino was that in England or Australia.

We'd spend hours playing in that stream and exploring the woods, coming home freezing cold and wet to remove our soggy boots and get warm indoors.
What fun you and your mates must have had to be living near such a natural environment.

[Donald the Great]

Re: A trip down memory lane

Sounds like my upbringing before it was spoiled by boarding school.

[Mulletino]

Re: A trip down memory lane

The woods next to my parents' place was where I played a lot, also the common through the path i previously mentioned. We'd play war with our toy guns or fly kites and go exploring in the woods the other side of it or ride our bikes down the lanes picking blackberries. Another local wood we used to play in backed onto a graveyard where we'd often explore and tell each other ghost stories.

My mate (rest his soul) moved to many houses as his mum was a nurse and worked in many hospital, but one of the houses they stayed in backed onto a massive field with a stream down it and woodland far off the back. We'd spend hours playing in that stream and exploring the woods, coming home freezing cold and wet to remove our soggy boots and get warm indoors.

You went out to play and came home for tea, absolute "in the now/moment" freedom that kids nowadays will never know thanks to Mobile Phones where they're constantly missing out on what is around them due to interacting with people they hardly know elsewhere.

Good times, lost in the name of "progress".

[Donald the Great]

Re: A trip down memory lane

We didn't play in the street as we were right on the edge of a very large forest with streams and ponds, so we would explore that and if we wanted to play football we would find a clearing and have a kickabout.

Sounds like fun. In our day the secret to a healthy upbringing was plenty of fresh air and exercise. We had to make our own fun. We were resouceful and innovative. Todays kids are spoon fed their entertainment. Usually of the hi tech variety. Ok todays gen may be smarter than us but they are missing out on the fun of really growing up that we tasted. Todays kids spend far too little time inside with their computer games and the like. My son was the same. Dont know how many times I would say to him " mate go outside and get some exercise". In the end I would have to drag him (not physically) outside to have a hit of street cricket. Very soon a couple of local boys would wanna join us.