Joe. All those clothing coupons, .........or was it the later years..utility stuff..?? Who was a "Naughty Boy then. !!! Its amazing.. You actually are still alive..to tell the Tale..!! bet you missed out on a sugar mouse that Christmas.???. betty...... Enjoying your Mem'oirs with a smile.. ----- Original Message ----- From: "Joe Connell" <jfc.public@virgin.net> To: <ENG-BANBURY-AREA-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Saturday, January 08, 2005 7:15 PM Subject: [BAN] Re: Memories of the 40s > It was the ultimate in adventure playgrounds. Immense mounds of various > sands, surrounded by a vast collection of scrapped iron and steel > collected from all over the City. Huge static water tanks provided > hazardous swimming pools; lengths of narrow gauge railway line and mineral > trucks allowed construction of rides to thrill the most jaundiced > youngster. The adjacent factory contained two large blast furnaces; these > worked continuously, launching fountains of sparks and fury into the > night. Every parent's nightmare. > > It was also the scene for the Great Treasure Hunt. It began with quite a > small incident. I buried my sister's new shoes. Very successfully. I > was aided and abetted by a cousin, who later decided that his tea would be > ready, and slipped away into the descending gloom. I was not ready for > tea, and suggested that my tearful sister return to base, report the > inexplicable disappearance, and my unceasing efforts to locate the shoes > that she had lost. > > My parents were the first adults to commence the task of moving the mounds > of sand. Mother holding the torch, trying to pacify the digger, and > attempting to persuade me to emerge from among the piles of condemned > machinery. They were joined by the night watchman, then by some of the > factory workmen [who seemed a very jolly group], and eventually by most of > the neighbouring households. The whole torch-lit scene developed into a > very festive occasion, only my parents failing to enter into the spirit of > things. It was a warm evening, and soon we were joined by patrons leaving > the nearby Lyric cinema. > > It was perhaps the final flowering of the community spirit engendered by > recent hostilities, but now the situation showed signs of deteriorating. > Some sections of sand had been moved several times, and not everyone was > even aware what they were looking for. When the newest arrivals clearly > proved that the local public house was closing its doors I was led away > [by the ear]. > > A memory that really should have been long forgotten, except that almost > every family gathering at some point is advised 'watch your shoes, here he > comes'. A supermarket has replaced the blast furnaces, and the scrapyard > is now a playing field, on which Irishmen attack each other with curved > sticks. > > No, we didn't. > > -- > Smokey > > Confirmed virus free by Norton 2005 before > transmission with Mozilla Thunderbird > > > ============================== > Search Family and Local Histories for stories about your family and the > areas they lived. Over 85 million names added in the last 12 months. > Learn more: http://www.ancestry.com/s13966/rd.ashx >