Tilbury again

Hurray, the district nurse has been and removed all 30 steel clips from my knee and already I'm feeling more mobile. Only 2 clips proved a bit troublesome to remove but hey, I'm a big boy, I just gritted my teeth.

I'm worried just how much Google blogspot is in control of the blogs on its site. When I go to its homepage to log on I look at the 'blog of note' and do a few random hits on the scrolling 'blogs updated in the last 60 seconds'. The latter is producing porn with no prewarning and pop-ups which won't take no for an answer and I have to turn my pc off in a panic and run an ad-aware scan. Fortunately no probs above tai 3 so far. Think I'll dump that habit to be on the safe side.

Back to Tilbury 1969 then to get it out of my system. In a pub one dinnertime I was standing at the bar when a big guy next to me decided he was going to have all my attention and and started bragging about how many yards of concrete he lays in a day and the convoluted method of piecework payment. He then paused for me to admire the income he was on with a smirk on his face. I could only nod agreeably. He obviously liked me. Next subject was the breathalyzer test which was much in discussion at the time. "Are you telling me I can't go out and have my 12 pints at dinnertime?". No sir, not me.

Back at the flour mill it wasn't just crazy fitters we had but one very crazy labourer who was an exhibitionist. By that I mean he constantly got his penis out at every opportunity. (Penis? does that sound a bit biology lesson? Perhaps I should do the red tops p***k. No sod it I'll go Guardianista- 'he got his dick out...'). One day he'd say 'Do you wear underpants?'. 'Errr yes'. 'I don't, look' and in a flash he was unzipped and it was hanging there. 'Do you shave your old man?'. 'Err no'. 'I do look', and there it was again. He was a constant source of amusement and I understand he was married with children. The last time I saw him was on the day I left. He'd just pulled this stunt on some new contract electricians and one of them grabbed hold and was pulling him up the iron steps of one of the walls with him screaming loudly. I suspect he lost the habit.

Saudi Air Force, Tibury and stuff

Tomorrow the district nurse arrives to take out the steel clips from my knee. Yup, really looking forward to that and will definitely load up on paracetamol before she arrives.

Feeling really embarrassed about the closing ceremony at Beijing. Whats with the bus and this stupid dancing and Beckham kicking a ball? Bloody hell.

To continue my story about Tilbury in 1969 I was very lucky to get lodgings in nearby Grays as there were all sorts of contractors sleeping in their cars on the roadside. The going rate for bed, breakfast and evening meal was £5 per week and we were allowed £6.10/- so a small profit was all we got for working away from home. It wasn't long before some idiot told his landlady what the allowance was and suddenly the rate went up for everybody and we got nothing for working away. After nearly 40 years I'm still looking for the bastard!

I was lodged in a house with another guy and we met an interesting character who would pop in occasionally. He had lodged there the previous academic year, being a student at University of London. He was a Saudi called HarnyHarny. Alright, I know the spelling is totally wrong but thats the way the name was pronounced and it was a huge joke as a group called the Archies had a hit that year called Sugar, Sugar (honey, honey etc). He was a member of the Saudi Air Force who were sponsoring him and he used to regale us with stories of crime and punishment back home, theft, adultery, alcohol etc. He also used to turn up with a bottle of brandy and here's the really strange bit, a bottle of coca cola! Who's ever heard of brandy and coke? Bizarre. Our wages were about £18/week and he got £20 for spends. He also said his father, related to the King, had just registered as a millionaire. Unbelievable!

Tilbury Docks

Getting to feel 'on the mend' and even went to a party on Saturday evening and consumed a little alcohol, first in 2 weeks. 30 staples to be removed from my knee midweekish, doesn't that sound joyous?
Back to the industry stuff. 1960 found me working on Tilbury Docks installing the machinery in a new flour mill. There were just a few of us fitters working directly for Carter Bros. and a few more employed by agencies and sent down from the Manchester area. It was quickly apparent that the agency guys thought they were the bee's knee's and even regarded themselves as self employed. And we were 'cowboys', they told us this direct, no whispering here. It turned out that they were the most hopeless bunch of whatsits I've ever worked with. One of them even admitted he'd been 'off the tools' for 9 years, as a petrol pump attendant! In fact he hadn't got any tools and bought a set from a catalogue at 5/- per week. It was the strangest thing I've ever seen. The square box had tools like calipers, punches and scriber hung round the outside and secured with there own lids while most of the rest were inside with a top lid. At every opportunity he would walk round the box opening the lids one at a time and smiling at the contents. I doubt he knew what most of them were for.
These agency guys were always kept together and one day one of them brought me a drill to sharpen as between them they had failed, big time. They had ground it up as if it was a pencil!! Crazy fitters. Let me add that some of the best fitters I've worked with since have been with agencies. Honest.