Strange things from your childhood.

MilesMorales1 · 30-08-2015 06:41PM #1

I was thinking about some weird stuff from my past and this came to mind.

The amount of freedom we were all given in primary school (elementary) we are pretty much unsupervised with power tools, saws in DT (woodwork class), we were allowed to walk to the local park with no supervision for an hour every day to play football, walk to the library unsupervised twice a week, lot of the time our teacher left the classroom for long periods and left us be, once in Wales on an adventure holiday the supervising teachers disappeared for a whole day and we didn't see them again till the evening.

And the fact there was no medical issue on the planet my mum didn't think couldn't be fixed by a ham sandwich, a cup of tea, and some paracetamol.

Mint Aero · 30-08-2015 06:54PM

MilesMorales1 wrote: »

once in Wales on an adventure holiday the supervising teachers disappeared for a whole day and we didn't see them again till the evening.

How much sex did they have?

MilesMorales1 · 30-08-2015 06:56PM

Mint Aero wrote: »

How much sex did they have?

Given I was only 10 years old at the time, I have no idea :pac:

PandaPoo · 30-08-2015 07:03PM

Ham sandwich, tea and paracetamol? Was she trying to kill you? Flat 7up is the cure for everything.

hairyslug · 30-08-2015 07:05PM

The absolute freedom allowed to me and my friends 25 years ago is completely different to today, we would be out of the house from after breakfast till when we where called in for dinner, all of the parents knew that another parent would sort lunch for us depending on were we where at that time.
Now whenever my eldest is outside, there is always one parent standing with them.

There was never an issue with using tools, electric lawnmower etc.

Oh, and the summers where always much better

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 30-08-2015 07:19PM

I'm amazed at times how some of us are still alive, with the diet we had. Suet was melted down and the resulting lard used not just for frying but to spread on our bread.

We were actually encouraged to walk the railway line, as the shortest route in to town and this at a time when a car on the road was a source of excitement.

The_Valeyard · 30-08-2015 07:21PM

Local haunted house, where it was said the devil appeared. Think every town had a story like this.

30-08-2015 07:44PM

Milena Low Sobriety wrote: »

I'm amazed at times how some of us are still alive, with the diet we had. Suet was melted down and the resulting lard used not just for frying but to spread on our bread.

We were actually encouraged to walk the railway line, as the shortest route in to town and this at a time when a car on the road was a source of excitement.

Health & safety was somewhat lacking in those days, I remember when they demolished the outside toilets at our school.

All they dis was to put a string across the playground, we were told not to cross the line. So the lads got onto the roof and started ripping off the slates and throwing them down onto the playground, the string should have been a few metres further out.

I was having trouble with some bullies at the time so I crossed the line.
At least one slate bounced off my head, but I didn't care the bullies kept away from me.

30-08-2015 07:57PM

Imaginary friends

Rubberlegs · 30-08-2015 08:04PM

I often wonder how did parents not crack up when we were gone from one end of the day to the other, and not contactable!
I remember not wearing seatbelts, never mind child seats. My sister who would have been about 18 mths at the time, fell off the back seat as Dad drove round a big bend. She ended up head down, legs waving in the air behind the passenger seat, and we thought this was hilarious! Also going to the dump with my friends Dad, and the excitement of sitting in the trailer all the way home. You'd be arrested on both counts these days!

Shelflife · 30-08-2015 08:05PM

They were doing up the lawn/green area in front of the school and got the sixth class to picks rocks for the day.

Whole class walking behind a tractor and transport box picking all the stones and throwing them into it.

Cant remember anyone dying or crippling injuries !!

Menas · 30-08-2015 08:06PM

Been sent to primary school with a flask of tea with my lunch (jam sandwiches anyone?). I mean what in gods name was that all about?

MilesMorales1 · 30-08-2015 08:07PM

Menas wrote: »

Been sent to primary school with a flask of tea with my lunch (jam sandwiches anyone?). I mean what in gods name was that all about?

Sounds lovely.

NachoBusiness · 30-08-2015 08:11PM

Aunties saying they'd take me home with them.

Also, did anyone else ever have to get changed in front of adults and when you complained get told: "Don't be silly, there's nothing you've got which they haven't seen before?"

Just me? Right so. I'm off to the Guards.

fineso.mom · 30-08-2015 08:12PM

PandaPoo wrote: »

Ham sandwich, tea and paracetamol? Was she trying to kill you? Flat 7up is the cure for everything.

TCP was the cure for anything to do with blood injuries.

MilesMorales1 · 30-08-2015 08:13PM

NachoBusiness wrote: »

Aunties saying they'd take me home with them.

Also, did anyone else ever have to get changed in front of adults and when you complained get told: "Don't be silly, there's nothing you've got which they haven't seen before?"

Just me? Right so. I'm off to the Guards.

No I think it was pretty common. Even in school like, I have a distinct memory of us doing this play thing, we all got changed in the one classroom, boys and girls together, with about 3 teachers in the room, parents coming in and out all the time, open door.

kfallon · 30-08-2015 08:14PM

73Cat wrote: »

I often wonder how did parents not crack up when we were gone from one end of the day to the other, and not contactable!
I remember not wearing seatbelts, never mind child seats. My sister who would have been about 18 mths at the time, fell off the back seat as Dad drove round a big bend. She ended up head down, legs waving in the air behind the passenger seat, and we thought this was hilarious! Also going to the dump with my friends Dad, and the excitement of sitting in the trailer all the way home. You'd be arrested on both counts these days!

Amazing how a trip to the 'dump' could bring about such excitement

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 30-08-2015 08:21PM

Being taken out of class to help a farmer move cattle.

Teacher sending you to the shop to get cigarettes for him.

Sitting the Primary Cert.

ElleEm · 30-08-2015 08:27PM

We had to wear slippers in school in case we ruined the good carpet!

Rubberlegs · 30-08-2015 08:29PM

Little shrines in every room at my Grandparents, and framed pictures of the Pope and JFK on the walls.

kowloon · 30-08-2015 08:31PM

My friends and I used to make 'inventions' out of pallet wood, barrels, old ladders and other stuff we would find. The day usually ended when someone got a splinter, hit themselves with a hammer or got a smack from a flying brick (the projectile of choice for the homemade catapult). These days the kids don't seem to be allowed do anything even remotely dangerous, and certainly not before they're in secondary school.

30-08-2015 08:33PM

Free (school) milk every day, then one day it suddenly vanished!
And a disused railway station as a playground.

Paddy Cow · 30-08-2015 08:38PM

73Cat wrote: »

I often wonder how did parents not crack up when we were gone from one end of the day to the other, and not contactable!
I remember not wearing seatbelts, never mind child seats. My sister who would have been about 18 mths at the time, fell off the back seat as Dad drove round a big bend. She ended up head down, legs waving in the air behind the passenger seat, and we thought this was hilarious! Also going to the dump with my friends Dad, and the excitement of sitting in the trailer all the way home. You'd be arrested on both counts these days!

There was no internet and very few tv channels, so the media hadn't stirred up the stranger danger frenzy we have today, where every man on his own is a potential kidnapping paedophile.

Paddy Cow · 30-08-2015 08:40PM

73Cat wrote: »

Little shrines in every room at my Grandparents, and framed pictures of the Pope and JFK on the walls.

Any don't forget about Red Light Jesus above the door :pac:

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1 · 30-08-2015 08:50PM

Throwing a sledge hammer in the back garden by rotating quickly like we saw the hammer throwers do at the Olympics. Climbing up to the chimney pot on the house to rain down arrows on the cowboys attacking from the house next door. Buying biscuits loose and by weight.
No television.

heldel00 · 30-08-2015 08:55PM

Having to have manners. This just isn't seen as important anymore.

deseil · 30-08-2015 09:00PM

School books covered in flowery wallpaper.

I used to be miles from home all the time from about the age of 5 playing in streams, woods, building sites and rivers but was always home for dinner.

Being sent out of the kitchen when anyone called because it was adult talk.

Lying on the sitting room floor with my toe on the tv channel button so I didnt have to get up to change the channel.

Being forced to drink a disgusting purple concoction supposedly for worms every couple of months, still makes me gag thinking of it.

Thinking tennis "2 lines and a ball" played on tv was the best thing ever invented.

Youngblood.III · 30-08-2015 09:04PM

Been allowed and encouraged to climb 60ft into a tree..
Allowed to burn anything in the back garden.....

Coopaloop · 30-08-2015 09:21PM

Had such fun growing up, before the town got built up there was tonnes of fields around our housing estate, at the end of every summer the farmer would come to cut the hay, and our whole estate (who all played together no matter what age) wound collect up the left over hay (and some of the not left over hay which could earn a chase off the farmer)and built a kick ass hay hut in the trees and a damn in the stream which you would take a running somersault into, so much fun. Stuff like that will never happen these days, partly because those fields are now housing estates and roads and because it's too 'dangerous'.

One eyed Jack · 30-08-2015 09:22PM

The_Valeyard wrote: »

Local haunted house, where it was said the devil appeared. Think every town had a story like this.

Yeah, that was our house, where all the windows were always broken or cardboarded up, because my parents got sick of fixing them every time myself and my brothers played hurling outside and put the sliotar through a window. People used suggest all the broken windows were because our house was built on a fairy fort and we'd upset the fairies...

Well you try keeping a straight face while making them none the wiser :pac:

Summers spent making cow pies, using cow dung and clay and water and a wheelbarrow for a mixing bowl. Get hit with one of them frisbees and you'd know all about it!

Fcuking off over the moors on your own for a few days on "adventures", turning up three days later with armfuls of apples hoping you'd appease the parents and they wouldn't be too pissed off at your disappearance (did that ever, work for anyone?)

Was there ever anything a good fist fight with your brothers couldn't solve?

Fcuking metal hospital beds, because they were cheap! Great for playing "turbo boost" though, catapulting your brothers across the room where they'd collide with each other in mid-air. The one who got up first was the "winner" :pac:

Capt'n Midnight · 30-08-2015 09:24PM

fineso.mom wrote: »

TCP was the cure for anything to do with blood injuries.

and for gargalling

kfallon wrote: »

Amazing how a trip to the 'dump' could bring about such excitement

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwILD1BjbQs

Strange things from your childhood.

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