Awake and up all night

I much prefer your olden memories Ray, as they were much the same as mine.

Back then we didn't have anything other than what we knew so acceptance came easily. Add to that we were decades younger and robust - exposed to all manner of germs and beneath my mam's kitchen sink I can't recall any paraphernalia except Vim, Fairy, Daz and Cherry Blossom shoe polish. And my dad always owned a car.

In today's world we have no car, the supermarket's as stuffy as it is outside, the best local butchers closed down months ago and we're limited to two bags of shopping per trip as OH can't really carry anything and my personal pack donkey (me) isn't as strong as in days of yore. For all the potions and lotions stacked in the cupboards and other places, I still struggle to keep OH in one manageable piece and exposure to sprays and germs is a no no. I know which era I prefer and it's definitely not this one.

My dad had an Austin before I was born, but I've got a couple of photos with him proudly propped against it. The indicators flipped out at the side of the doors. Did you ever own a car with a column change instead of a gear stick, and no seat belts as standard? We did xxx

Kez. Totally fine. Was me being stupid. x

What lovely names uki.xxx

I agree with you. The picnics, trips to the seaside when we lived close enough to get there and back in a day and even shopping trips to big department stores all seemed like adventures when young and robust. Dad had a Ford Taunus 17m estate in Germany. Surprisingly, it had a column change and 6volt electrics...on a late 1967 car! No seat belts either. His Austin 7 was followed by a '54 Hillman Minx, '58 Riley 1.5, '63 Vauxhall Victor estate, then the Taunus. The Austin had semaphore indicators which occasionally worked but all except the Taunus had a normal gearstick.

I also preferred the earlier era. Life seems to suddenly become much more complicated after teenage years. Now, of course, we are mostly experiencing the limitations of our aging biological machinery. Memories of fitter, happier times are thus valuable. I try not to bore my son and daughter too often with talk of times before smartphones, apps and video games. I wish now that my dad and mum had spoken more of their earlier life but suppose my attitude when younger was also one of mild boredom when 'during the war' came up . xxx

PS: On reflection, I could not remember ever seeing indicators of any kind on the Austin 7. They relied solely on driver's hand signals.      

Yes I did loud thunder and lightning and a few drops of rain.

Those were the days my friend. I think that is a Mary Hopkins song.xxx

Kezdc16ad said:

Good luck at the dentist. x

Thanks. All done and my mouth is just starting to come back to life. The walk there was like having a fan heater in front of me all the way, thank goodness the dentist had air-con in his room.

H 

Ray, I like old cars and dad had a passion for ones with powerful engines. His Zephyr 4 had a column change as did his Zephyr 6. It was handy to have as it allowed for both cars being 6 seaters with no breaks in the upholstery.

I've never driven but my uncle, that lived next door to us, collected scrap so several old jalopies provided a veritable playground to while away the hours. So, I became a 'driver' from around 4 years old, steering the wheel, pulling out the choke and unable to reach the pedals. It didn't matter that I was going nowhere IRL as my imagination took me to wherever I wanted to go.

In real life I've now got to motor into the kitchen to make our tea, and yet another assignation with Mr Sink. Godammit!

Have a good evening, young fella me lad xxx

We thought they'd never end.

We'd sing and dance . Don't know the rest.