General Chat

O Maureen do you think Alfie eats cheese and goes and breathes down a mouse hole with Baited Breath??? Ha ha ha :-D

Mel.Why is OH cutting down trees?
Maureen have a lovely meal out tonight.I hope you can find your way (if you have this dreadful fog.It hasn't shifted all day :-S

Dermot ,I was brought up to have good manners ,and I (hopefully did the same with my two).I never heard them be deliberately rude or nasty to anyone.Now they are grown up I'm sure when they have their own children that they too will be brought up with the same values.(saying that I think it is going to be some while before I am a Grandma)

Yes there is no bickering ,rudeness or the like on here :-D :-D.I read some of the others going on but tend to stay out of them.I sometimes can't believe the behaviour that goes on especially the 'having a go at an individual'.It's wrong :-| :-|

Right I now have to find my way through the fog to get our Fish and Chips.I hate driving in this weather and crawl along like an old snail lol with my nose nearly on the windscreen.Not that I can see any better :-S

Well said Dermot. I like to think we are all good friends on here and I know I speak for all of us in saying we hope you stay on my thread.

Have just baked a cake and am waiting for it to cool so I can top it with something. Maybe ginger and cherries with icing over the top.

Mmmmmmmmmm :-D

AFTERNOON ALL -EVENING KIM----

HAD A NICE BIRTHDAY--No 1 & No3 SON HAD GREEK DINNER TAKE AWAY ((No 1 SON))NOT COMFORTABLE EATING OUT-MONSTERS MADE CARD &ALONG WITH DAUGHTER GAVE ME BEAUTIFUL SCARF & AN UNUSUAL SCARF RING
WILL TAKE PIC--No 2 SON GAVE ME NICE BOTTLE OF WINE--AND JUST NOW HAD CALL FLOWERS ARE ON THE WAY DONT KNOW WHO FROM--WILL LET YOU KNOW --AND ALL YOUR LOVELY CARDS AND WISHES---MADE A LOVELY DAY THANKS EVERYONE <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3

FRANK HOWS IT GOING-- <3--GREAT EMAILS .

SNOW FLURRIES HERE AGAIN--I CAN SEE ROLLING SNOW BALL AT EASTER NOT EGGS :-D :-D

DO HOPE ALL THESE TUMMY UPSETS CLEAR UP--
TABLE CLOTH WAS A MUST AND SET OUT EACH MEAL AND ALWAYS HAD TO EXCUSE ONE SELF FROM THE TABLE--YOU MAY NOT HAVE HAD MUCH MONEY BUT MANNERS YOU DID HAVE TO HAVE.

That's funny Mel, as long as Alfie doesn't bring them in the house :-0

We should be alright tonight Jane, no fog this way.

Evening all, I just had to pop in after reading the "MANNERS"bit.

My dad being an old Victorian East End lad. (He was 53 when I was born), also a Chief petty Officer in the Royal Navy. "Manners maketh man". He was an absolute stickler, if you steped out of line i.e spoke at the table, laughed grabed at trhe Bread without asking. It was a belt round the ear, and off to your room. As there were 5 of us in 7 years, It was a case of DOG EAT DOG. lol lol we all tried to look after the one who was sent to bed. We would smuggle food from the table, go into the back garden, the one upstairs had a rope with a hook on it, It was dangled out of the window, and the ones downstairs would hook up the food and you would pull up the rope to recover whatever they could get. Sometimes Bread and butter another time a piece of cake. POP LUCK.

Dermot, I class myself as an Eastender, and very proud of it. I would hassen to say, I still pride myself with being a "Gentleman" I always hold doorts open for women, walk on the road side if out with my wife. and always say please and thank you to all who serve me, and treat me with respect.

Jane, Why don't you get Chris to walk in front of the car with a burning torch like they did in the 50s SMOG ??? Where do you get your F & C. there was a good one in Station Road Burton also one at the dip in London Road. !!!

Glad to see everyone is keeping well. I am starting to feel a bit like my oldself at the moment. Lets hope it lasts.

Was at the Drs yesterday. He wants me to get some phiso on my knee, if that doesn't work, it will be another keyhole job to sort out the cartledge. Will know in a few weeks.

Just a quick look in.......i've got the tummy bug now :-S both ends !!
Been tucked under the duvet all day .

Good to see you posting again Frank so you must feel better.

I do think that the East End is a bit different now to when we were children. Some parents just don,t seem to be bothered with teaching children good manners nowadays.

Enough on that subject anyway. Cake has turned out pretty well. I spread it with ginger preserve and then put lots of cut up cherries on the top and tried to drizzle icing on. It will go down whatever it looks like with oh anyway. I forgot to buy a cakes or cakes this week for his lunch. :-(

Glad to see you back with us Frank, my mum was from the EastEnd too a true cockney being born within the sound of Bow Bells.

Oh no Mandy, I hope this bug goes quickly and you feel better soon.

I'm all dolled up and waiting for my lift. Have a good night everyone.

Here he is :-D Hi Frank,I hope you are here to stay now.We have missed you,you know.

The F&Cs tonight ,I got at Belvoir Rd(that small row of shops by the Primary School).
I know the one in the Dip (London Rd) that always seems busy.

Shirl flowers and wine you lucky Gal :-D.I'm pleased you had a lovely Birthday :-D

The Broadband keeps dropping out :-| :-| and is driving me potty.So I am switching off for a bit and will just watch the Goggle Box

School Days - as I remember them, warts & all.

Our junior school - or as it was known in 1950s Ireland - National School - was a less than impressive-looking building. But, this is my opinion of the building when I last set eyes on it in 2006 when the building was being used by an Antiques Dealer. Teaching there ceased in 1970 through lack of students. My sister was a member of that final year.

The school was built in c.1870 in a place called Doogarry on a sparse patch of land donated to the Church. At that time & for many generations thereafter, the running of the Irish junior education was ‘out-sourced’ to the Catholic clergy who, in many respects, acted as local school managers. School committees did not exist - so, the Priest was the boss & the teachers knew that very well particularly when teaching appointments would be made. Our teacher was Miss Fox - known generally as Mary Fox. She was a spinster lady who I found out many years later that she once went on a date with my dad before he married. Goodness me - that snippet of information might have been of some use to me then - if only I had known about it.

Miss Fox was assisted by Miss Claire Fraine, a youngish lady who lived locally with her parents. She was a lovely singer & she used to be responsible for music & song teaching for the whole school - consisting of about sixty boys & girls.

The building consisted of two classrooms with side-halls for hanging up our overcoats & lunchtime if the weather was poor. Lunch consisted of a home-made sandwich with, perhaps, a bottle of fresh milk from our own cows. The little play area was divided into boys & girls just in case any hanky-panky took place - as if. Indeed, the playground was of poor quality & in no time at all, it was not much better than being in a mud bath.

We had the occasional ‘mud fight’ using the damp earth like you would snowballs. One such afternoon had some unforeseen consequences. One particular young chap seemed to have come out of the commotion very badly. His clothes were covered in an unmerciful coat of soft mud. Within minutes of lunchtime coming to an end, Miss Fraine marched him into our class room & accused one of us as being the main culprit. Surprisingly, our teacher Miss Fox stood up for us & a falling-out took place between the two teachers.

The result of this was that Miss Fraine refused to help our class anymore on the music/singing front. Poor Miss Fox was a really good teacher but, as far as singing was concerned, she hadn’t a musical note in her head. But, she was not for giving-up or, like Mrs Thatcher, she was not for turning or running away in a fight.

She did her best, nevertheless, to teach us a few songs. Most of them I have long forgotten & the only one I remember & can sing it poorly to this day is called ‘The Last Rose of Summer’. It’s a short song with words by Irish poet Thomas Moor composed in 1805 & was subsequently set to music by Sir John Stevenson. You can listen to it on YouTube by various singers.

It was an honour to our family that a past pupil of the old school sung ‘The Last Rose of Summer’ at my mum’s funeral service in 2004. Both Miss Fox & Miss Fraine have also passed on to their eternal reward & I doubt that the mud throwing episode all those years ago has any significance to them now.

Long may both teachers be fondly remembered by past pupils like my sister & myself.

Ahh thats nice Dermot. Sounds like you had some good days at that school and many memories follow you through the years.

Evening All,

Nice to see you here again Frank......we missed you!! :-) :-)

What nice comments about us Dermot and very true. Things become very personal on some threads but it doesn't happen here even if we have different opinions. It's all part of being polite and respectful of each other! ;-)

Oh no Mandy, I hope it soon passes, not nice at all!! We have been iffy this week with headaches and indigestion, I'm sure it's bugs OH brings back from schools!!

I bet your hubby is glad to be feeling a lot better Fiona.......I bet he will give prawns a wide berth now, especially when he's away!

Sounds like you had a nice birthday Shirl......look forward to seeing a pic of your pressie.

Hope you have a nice time Maureen, at least you are well enough to go now.:-D Yes I bet Harry is making the most of it!! lol. A bead loom is a small frame that you weave beads with to do patterns or pictures, similar to doing cross stitch. You can make boxes, belts, necklaces, bracelets, watch straps, that sort of thing.

As children we were always expected to hold doors open and let any adults through first. Also we were expected to give our seat sup on the bus to any ladies or elderly people.That applied to seats in any public place and it became automatic to do it. My brother started school aged 3 in the 60s and even at that age the boys in the class were not allowed to leave the class ahead of any of the girls. Heaven help us if we interrupted when mum and dad were talking.......we were expected to wait!!

Morning/Evening All
I hope you have finished with your D&V Mandy.You have only just got your strength back after that nasty virus :-S.
Ann I too have felt a bit like you for the last few days ,but I feel a bit more with it this morning.I went to bed at 9 last night and woke up at 7.50.That is quite something for me !

Dermot I loved your description of your school and teachers.It made me think of my Primary School.I started school at 4 in 1958 and it was a few miles away.My Dad would take me in the mornings on his way to work in Plymouth but I had to get a double decker bus home.The Conductor would make sure I got off at the right stop and see me across the busy main road,and I would then walk about a mile the rest of the way home.
When I was 9 we moved to a village called Wembury and my classroom then was what we called the Red Hut.It had a red corrugated roof.There was a plaque on the front of the building saying Reading Room.The other classrooms 2 or 3 were in the main school house,which has now been turned into accommodation.The Red Hut was freezing in winter.I can't remember how it was heated,but it could have been a couple of those mobile gas heaters.The Hut was also used for Scouts,Brownies and Guides.In my last year we moved to the Newly Built Primary School up the road.It felt like a Palace.Indoor toilets ,a huge playground with bars to swing on and the playing fields right next door where we would have sports days.
As most on the thread know I am still in touch with my old Headmaster (John) and the teacher who taught me to sew(that's a laugh) Ruth.She will be 93 in May .

It looks like the snow is on the way a bit later so i will get the grate cleared out and relaid .

Hannah and John will be on the Eurostar now winging their way to Paris for her 30th birthday tomorrow.

Time for another cuppa :-D

Morning all..evening Kim.

Hope you had a nice birthday shirley.

Welcome on here Dermot..Are you still on the games pages?
...I have only read a few of the postings on here..
I cant remember what I put in my last post...My husband and son couldnt make the stag do of my eldest son because of a sickness bug.. My son had to stay here until he was well enough to drive home..Im hoping we have missed it.

Monday night I spent a few hours up the hospital pulled the ligaments in my foot..
So dancing and Zumba are out for a few weeks.

After lunch we are off to my sons for the weekend for mothers day..We did put it off once as 2 of his childrens asthma was playing up last weekend.They had to use their inhalors..I thought the dogs may have agrevaited it..But their colds have cleared now..But they love the dogs.
We are waiting for someone to look at one of our fishtanks we are selling this morning..We have 3 at the moment.This one has all the male guppies we seperated from the other tank..

My grandparents on my mums side liked jelly eals...So I have tried these..You used to be able to buy them in some pubs..A man would come in selling them..
Talking of Pubs my granddad was a baker and when out delivering the bread with his horse and cart the horse would always stop outside a certain pub lol..
I remember my first school too.Always smelt of plastisine..Had outside toilets as well..
Frank ..I hope you are feeling better in yourself now..Keep the jokes comming..

Morning All and Evening Kim,

Nice day again today with sunshine. The chickens are still breaking eggs no matter what time I go out to collect them. Alays at least two broken and eaten. Brought in 5 this morning but it coud have been 7 and it makes me so cross as their feed has gone up greatly.

Mandy I hope you are over the worst of that nasty bug today and are feeling a bit better.

Perhaps only two days to wait now for my new specs. I can't even remember what they are like!!!!!! All I know is they are both a mauvy colour.

By the way the cake was a great hit with oh and we both had two pieces after dinner last night. I don't think that one will be left to go stale!!

Hi Pat...Oh that bug is doing the rounds with your family too :-S.It seems to have been going around for so long this winter.What a shame the Stag do had to be missed.
Yes the smell of Plasticine.There is something very distinct about it.It always got stuck under the nails didn't it.I remember rolling it out into long sausages and seeing how thin I could get it before it broke.

Just had to laugh.The post has arrived.Chris has had his first retirement card(bit early ) and a letter to say the kit for Bowel Cancer Screening will arrive in 2 weeks :-D :-D

Coffee now and then trip to Tes**