Remember When...

[Nanna52]

My father could play a tune with comb and paper, he used a cigarette paper.  Bullroarers were our favourite noise makers.  We made them with our rulers.  Great noise.  Stand clear when they are swung though.

http://timeout.watchprosite.com/show-forumpost/fi-686/pi-5769613/ti-850038/

[Treetotal]

Must have been a British thing!   

Did it sound like a wobble board, maybe?

Here you go...put your ear plugs in Wiggy 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WhaAScStg6k

Carol

[Wiggy]

Riiiiiiiiii---ght - umm - - -  thanks Carol!   

Doesn't sound as if I was missing much by not knowing about it!   

[Greensleeves]

It is interesting what diverse activities we indulged in when you read this thread.  We girls were out all the time when we had a chance, making dens, climbing trees, falling off play equipment,  being shoo-ed out of orchards where we went scrumping (I don't think anyone has mentioned scrumping yet).  But  when we went home we would be busy with french-knitting, making pompoms,  making cross-stitch table mats or felt egg-cosies before a roaring fire.  Then off to a cold bedroom with our favourite book, which we invariably read under the covers  when our parents thought we were fast asleep.

[Wiggy]

I did a fair bit of farming stuff as a child too - helping in the milking shed, separating the milk/cream feeding pigs etc etc. 

There was a creek which ran intermittently through our property - it was great fun playing in it after heavy rain - and we didn't even get swept away or drowned or anything - worst thing that happened was stepping in a deep hole and getting water up to our waists - thus filling gumboots -   We also made cubbies out on the back verandah when it was wet - so we could be cosy 'outside'.   Cubbies in the bush on our property too - and a tree with a low hanging branch which was really good for 'riding'!

As people have said we were so much less worried about weren't we - much more freedom - very lucky kids.

[Maggie.]

Talking of roaring fires brought back a memory of this.  The parents of one of my friends had a redundant vinyl record collection so we used to make containers out of them.  If you held them before the fire they softened and you could mould them into bowls and things.  They made very handy plant pots complete with ready made drainage holes in the bottom.

Bet no-one else did that.   

[Mike in Cumbria]

Talking of roaring fires brought back a memory of this.  The parents of one of my friends had a redundant vinyl record collection so we used to make containers out of them.  If you held them before the fire they softened and you could mould them into bowls and things.  They made very handy plant pots complete with ready made drainage holes in the bottom.

Bet no-one else did that.   

Oh yes we did
We used to call them fruit bowls though I never remember seeing any of them actually get used as such.

[Maggie.]

Ahh - a fellow Vinyl Melterer, Mike.  Perhaps it was a Northen thing, to while away the long cold Winter evenings. 

[Rishile]

Going back to annoying noises the most annoying of them all had to the the Clackers or Kerknockers.  Two balls hanging on the end of two bits of string joined at the top and them whizz them around.  An awful noise and I seem to remember them being banned at our school.

Also helped to break a few fingers I would imagine.

Rishile