Let's Knit Magazine - Your knitting, your style

knitternicky - 18 May 2008 08:06 AM

Gill you’ve never mentioned before that you’ve been to Brum, everywhere else but never Brum, never mind that you lived here!!!! Whereabouts in Erdington did you live and what school, thats not that far from me. The house I live in now was just being built 50 years ago.( Sorry that wasnt meant to make you feel old honest )
I haven’t really checked the bullring out since they rebuilt it, next time I’m in city center I’ll make an effort to pop down there.

So sorry, it was a very long time ago. I am a LOL now so these things take up room in the old brainbox so it only gets a spring clean occasionally!!!!

We lived in the top floor flat of one of those big houses on the main road. It is still there because I had to deliver some stuff to the new Tesco Express on the corner by the traffic lights so as I was on the way I had a look for the house. I was only 5 at the time so I can,t remember the No but it was up from school. Can,t remember the name of that either, but it was across the road from home.

I was in and out of Brum all the while when I was trucking and No2 went to the Birmingham Music School, after 6th form and got her music degree from there.

I have also lived in London,Derby, Nottingham, Hereford,Tidworth and Bicester, so you can see why I forget where I have been?????.....not to mention different addresses in those places AND overseas.....

I cuold sing that song...I,ve been everywhere man

I lived in castleBromwich/Shard End, and then moved to Tamworth, my Mom actually came from Erdington, and I had a saturday job when I was about 15 on the high st. My Mom got married in the church there, and my Nan lived near Gravelly Hill, x Janet

It really is a VERY small world. 

I lived in Tamworth too but only til I was around two or three, mom was originally from Ward End and missed her family as there were no bus links etc back then. Then we moved to Chelmsley Wood (Iknow I know) but I moved from there almost twenty years ago (mom and brother and dad are still there) and went to Ward End a two min walk from my nan and grandads old house where mom grew up and then to Bordesly Green/Small Heath. Moved to Shard End/Castle Brom almost 10 years ago.
Very small world. Jan did you used to go to Mothers the night club above the furniture shop in Erdington High St. The one where Led Zepplin and loads of other huge bands played before they became famous?

My god, I lived in Tamworth too. In fact my mother in law and my ex husband still live there.

Gill I live near Tidworth now and from what you say I suspect you are/were an army wife ???

Yes , I was an Army wife. We lived on Sidbury Circular but someone told me recently that it is all gone now. That was back in 1968/9. then we went to live in Germany for a couple of years. My two eldest children were born in the army hospital in Tidworth. That is when it used to be Hampshire but I think the powers that be have decided to call it Wiltshire now!!!!

I was an army wife too and I still live in the area, but in a wee place called Netheravon. I dont know if you know it.

Half of Tidworth is in Wilts and half in Hampshire I believe. I never lived there but I did have the misfortune of living in Bulford

I did the whole Germany thing and I actually loved it there, but unfortunately never actually fitted in with the whole Army wife thing.

I think because I married hubby later than most and I was actually older than most of the other wives, perhaps it made a difference. Either way they didnt like me much

Comfrey - 19 May 2008 04:34 PM

I was an army wife too and I still live in the area, but in a wee place called Netheravon. I dont know if you know it.

Half of Tidworth is in Wilts and half in Hampshire I believe. I never lived there but I did have the misfortune of living in Bulford

I did the whole Germany thing and I actually loved it there, but unfortunately never actually fitted in with the whole Army wife thing.

I think because I married hubby later than most and I was actually older than most of the other wives, perhaps it made a difference. Either way they didnt like me much

Yes, Iknow Netheravon and I also remember BULFORD yeuk.  You are not the only one not to fit in, as I had a similar problem. When we moved in I was invited to tea at the home of one of the officers wives house along with other new wives to the camp. The conversation came round to the ranks of their husbands and I told them that as far as I was concerned it was my husband who was in the army not me , and rank did not apply to the wives!!!! I wonder why I never got another invite to tea!!!!!!
I dont think they liked the idea that I wasnt in awe of them at all, I was ex wrac, and could see them for the snotty cows they were. They were also regimental wives but my hubby was in the R.A.O.C so we were just the two of us. His senior officer used to leave us alone as well.

I loved Germany and often wish I could have brought my house there back to Blighty as it was perfect. Big cellars with boiler and HUGE washtub and stone sinks with the drain to go straight out under the floor and then in the attic washing lines xcrossing the whole house with windows either end. On the wettest of days the washing would dry beautifully.

AAAAHH those were the days.

ahhhhhhh you had exactly the same problems as me. I wasn’t in awe of anybody, I’m still LOL and I never understood the wearing your husbands rank thing. I found it rather embarrassing actually.

Also I was a REME wife so similar problems I guess with the whole regiment thing.

I’m SO pleased to be away from it all now. Hubby did his 22 + 1 as a boy but I only had to put up with 15.

I cant believe I lasted that long without killing someone actually hahahahahaha.

Comf X

As hubby had his stripes on poppers I would stay schtumm about it anyway!!!!!.
I was cross because I never got to go Far East. He got sent back to Blighty and every one else stayed out there. Typical army...send you to the one place you did,nt want to go to.
My man did 15 and came out because he said it just was,nt any good any more. Plus he did not want the kids to be “army brats”. Oh dear!!!!! if only he had stayed put a bit longer, but I never advised him. It was HIS choice and there have been times when he has said he wished he had stayed in for just a bit longer. If only we all had a crystal ball eh???? 

hahahahaha
I have no idea what “stripes on poppers” means but I’m guessing he wasnt a grunt LOL.

I wanted my hubby to come out before then but as you say, it has to be their choice doesnt it.

He still does the same job actually and works for the civil service. He always loved his job, but he also never fitted in and that made life pretty difficult too unfortunately.

I should have taken up knitting then I reckon. At least then I could have been armed and dangerous

oooooo I knitted then anyway. Necessity being the reason as army pay back then was not as good as it could have been. You will notice I am being polite??!!!!
“HwN” (hubby) only made it as far as sgt. Hence the poppers!!!!! He never was ambitious, still is,nt. Nor me. If you are a minion you can always say...not me guv! teehee. 

minion eh hehehehehe

Nope my hubby was sergeant too. Way back when we were first married we worked out what rank he needed to be for us to be happy with the pension.

So we played the game until he got his third and then stopped. I didnt even go to the functions and he only went when it was ordered to attend, so you can imagine how well that went down .......... NOT!

To get further than staff in the Reme you have to go articifer (or tiffy as its “affectionately called) and hubby always said he wasn’t willing to have the necessary frontal lobotomy to do so hahahahaha.

Ah this is bringing back memories, the things I could tell you ..............

Comf XX

HwN has just been having a good laugh at our chat. We only ever went to ONE dinner and as HwN had to wear “blues” it was the pits!!!!! He used to get prickly heat, so you can imagine the discomfort he was in and I was about7mth pregnant and would much rather have been at home with my feet up!!! No1 has the dress I made for the occasion, as she would,nt let me throw it out. I still have a photo of us somewhere at the table and neither of us can remember now what the “DO” was for. It must have been important for us to make such an effort. I used to make evening gowns for the other wives as well.

Gill and Comf, your little convo has hit so many notes with me! My boyfriend is in the REME and currently based in Germany, Paderborn if you know it. I’m going out to visit on the 13th June. I so don’t want to be an army wife but he loves his job and I’ve told him that I’m never living in pads and no way are my kids being ‘pad rats’. I think I’d be shunned pretty quickly there, rank doesn’t hold much with me either. I’m me and not the rank of my boyfriend, not sure I’m made for the army wife role, but then again I don’t think he’s made for the army role anyway! But for now he loves it so I’ll just have to see how it goes. Looking forward to next year when he’ll be back in england after 2 years in Germany, that is after his 6 month stint in Afghan, I’m trying to avoid thinking about that one! Anyway, just thought I’d throw my two penneth in, it makes a change for people to understand the whole army relationship thing.