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Re: Owd Pastimes
When we were kids we couldn't wait to get home from school, gobble down our tea and then go and knock on our friends' doors to ask them to play out. Games I remember in the school yard and on the street were May I?, Mary Mary, may I cross your golden water, Pins and needles, The big ship sails through the alley alley-o. We used to play tracking - chalking arrows on the pavement for others to follow. On a wet day, when you were little kids, your mum used to make you a tent in the house using the clothes maiden and an old blanket. Skipping outside was very popular, "turning up" with the big rope and chanting the months or the seasons. Going to the corner shop to buy sweets was a big treat. You'd go clutching your old penny (the one with Britannia on the back) and ask for the "penny box". You could get a penny arrow bar (different flavours), eight love-hearts, eight aniseed balls, two blackjacks, two flying saucers - the choice was endless. I also remember choosing my fireworks with my Dad - I think I got to spend half a crown but most of the fireworks cost no more than sixpence - there were golden rain, daisy fountains, roman candles, volcanos, rockets and so many more. Those were the days - the 1950s - I must be getting old now - can just remember the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth the Second and our street party.
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