General Chat

"Caroline - you are probably correct, although I'm a bit puzzled by you saying half the elders make up most of the congregation. They must be the big half! "

Dermot I'm always right :-D :-D

Actually, I said half of them wouldn't want the emails etc I wouldn't dare assume all of the old dears wouldn't be online checking out their dodgy websites..... :-D :-D

Directory enquiries 118 118 is expensive

Caroline - you are probably correct, although I'm a bit puzzled by you saying half the elders make up most of the congregation. They must be the big half!

When I occasionally look around at our dwindling congregation on a Sunday, I believe I'm the youngest there.

I'm not divulging my date of birth here - but I have already outlived 6 of the 7 Popes - 2 of whom have been Canonised as Saints.

So, no complaints & I make good use of the free bus travel, winter fuel allowance plus other bits & bobs allocated to mature residents just like me, Saints or otherwise.

Why not half the old people won't want them via emails etc and they make up most of the congregation...

Despite all the modern modes of communication, I'm surprised that many churches still hang on doggedly to the outdated printed weekly newsletter. :-S

Makes the tin can phone on a string look good then....no phone taps needed :-D

Before STD came out only phones in large cities eg London, Birmingham had a number dial with letters. Out in the sticks the usual approach was to lift the handset and ask the operator for the number. 4d was the minimum and once connected you could not get a refund via Button B. You could add more cash during the call though.

If you have one of these phones esp Brum, Glasgow they can fetch a shedload of money from collectors.

I always disliked the phone box and got hold of a mobile (the size and weight of a brick) at the first opportunity. There was usually at least one broken pane to let the rain in, 1001 contact cards from tarts et al , a strong smell of no.6, pee/ganja and the page of the phone book you wanted was missing or often the whole directory. The box was like a Beetle or mini too small for anything but the stated purpose.

In central London and other such cities some boxes were more or less taken over by organised crime which discouraged others from using them. Quite a few had taps attached to them by GCHQ or the more recondite branches of the Met.

As a young man being friends with Capn Crunch could save a fair bit on long distance calls.

Phone boxes - button 'A' and button 'B' :-D

Trolley buses, coal men delivering. Lead water pipes, gas mantles.

Maggie, our first number was similar to yours. Also, on the dinosaur phones (now quite trendy among some) you had to use the letters and numbers on the dial.

Our first was also a shared line.

It was much easier to remember the letters and numbers rather than try to remember 11 or so numbers. Although my children and grandchildren remember the numbers so it may just be an age thing? :-S

AND - remember when Directory Enquiries was free!

I have very good memories of the 1952 smog as it wasn't only in London it was all over the Country.

Going to school in that smog was horrendous.We had to wear hankies and scarves over our mouths and keep a slow walk as it was dangerous.Walking into lamp posts was no fun I can tell you.
Did it many a time.

Annx, our first phone number was Fawley 583 - not a lot of phones there in those days!
Not only did we have a 'party' line, an elderly gentleman used to regularly phone from 43583, via an operator. This was misheard as 'Fawley 583', so was charged to our number.
We children were blamed for the high phone bill, until it was sorted :-|

Green Shield stamps - much appreciated by my late mum.

A Christmas 'box' from the local grocer.

Mum and dad's first phone number was Narborough 3269, which was one digit different from that of the local Mental Asylum as they were called then. (now demolished and gone) We used to get misdialled calls for them in the middle of the night.

Women would go out shopping with their hair curlers peeping out of their headscarves at the front and babies' prams had lovely tassell fringed canopies on sunny days.

https://www.google.com/search?q=london+smog+1962&client=firefox-b&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwi_8qbiifLbAhXFcsAKHRAoBaEQsAQIYw&biw=1280&bih=818

Apparently there was a Great Smog in 1952 as well but I have no memory of it.

Clean Air Act 1956

We had a phone in the house - both parents jobs required it (NHS, police).
I used to like the London dialing codes such BARnet nnnn. My GGF had one of the first biz phone lines in Essex and the number (at least the last 2 digits) is still serving the same business after just short of 100 years.

My mother always had a housekeeper who did most of the chores but mum liked to cook whenever she could. Great lemon meringue pie made from a US boyfrend mum's recipe. Sunday Roast and the Navy Lark.

RT buses with a platform at the back with a bit of luck you could jump on and off without paying. Conductors with Ultimate ticket machines whirring and pinging.

Playing in the street.
Fierce barbers.
Aunts and uncles and cousins not far away on the tube. Nobody gave a thought to safety London was a safe city unless you wanted to be involved in crime and even they had their rules.

Petticoat Lane market on Sundays all the capital's Fagins in one spot.
Pies, peas pudding, jellied eels.

My earliest car memory is of a venerable pre war Singer. It was replaced by an Austin Somerset which was very fond of going to Cornwall :-) once or twice a year. It was strange seeing my old man for several days at a stretch. We just got used to each other and then it was back to the smoke. When I was a bit older he and his cousin taught me how to play brag and poker and all sorts of stuff only Londoners know. My GGF bought a new bullnose Morris in 1921.

London was always very foggy in the winter. The chimney smoke rasped your throat. 1962 though was really bad and led to the Clean Air Act. At least then you could see the stuff that was killing you now you can't.

My mother was very expert in making clothes. She used to like to get the latest patterns and make them up with upmarket fabrics saving a fortune. She did the same for my sisters. I thought it v unfair as my father was v mean and I had no end of trouble getting stuff such as jeans. Good old Singer with a power pedal. I still have it.

We were not rich. Neither were we poor. Millions of families were the same.

Rubber buttons...who thought that one up :-)

Milkman with horse and cart with measures.Gill Half pint and pint .

How fresh and creamy was the milk .

Public phone boxes - we were lucky to have one two miles away.

The mysterious operator did all the dialling & we made sure we had a pocket-full of small change.

'Twas cheaper to make the call after 6pm & God help anyone if they extended their allotted time. The mass queue waiting outside in the rain made their intentions clear by banging on the door or gesticulating rude signs.

Smashing times! ;-)