18-24 Panic Attacks,Tattoos and Gigging!

When i was 22 i worked in a bakery as assistant manageress.I suffered with crippling panic attacks and seriously thought i was dying at times.When the Manageress went on long term sickness after an op i took over,i was pretty good ( Modest) i got the takings up every week,but when the manageress retired after i had been running the shop for a year the company said i was too young to have her job and brought someone else in!I left soon after.Looking back i was too nice anyway the staff used to take the mick a bit (one women used to pop home to get a slicer to cut one cucumber!she could have cut it ten times over with a knife-but she said it was quicker)
I had my first tattoo at 22,followed a few years later by another.I love them (thats for the american women in Cyprus who said "you`ll regret that in ten years time",)why is it always ten years?Made an agreement with my hubby not to have more if he stops wearing bubblegum yellow jumpers!
Went to lots of gigs in my 20s,as many as 10 a year! Metallica,Megadeth,Dandy Warhols,Def Leppard, Deus,Elliott Smith,Placebo,Suede,Pantera,to name a few.Those days are gone now!Still do the occasional gig,and not forgetting festivals.

18-24 Dodgy penpals and my first boyfriend.

When i was 18 i had 42 penpals,handwriting to them all! It was fun waiting for the postman,iwould get about 4 or5 letters most days. There were some great ones and some decidedly dodgy ones! I had two 15 year old boys who declared there love for me, sending very detailed accounts of what they would like to do to me,they soon got bored when i did`nt respond,and one 20 something man drew lovely pics of what he imagined i looked like naked (i did`nt send a pic,did`nt want to disapoint) he was very artistic!I did meet a few,they were great,not the dodgy ones though!
I met my first boyfriend from my penpals (a late starter) Dad called him Thatch,he had long hair all down his back (none on his head,just down his back!!!) I thought he was great with his long hair and leather jacket,did`nt last long!
Had some disastrous relationships in my 20s,one used to walk 2 paces in front,one was a deppresive who cried alot,one made a supposedly sexy outfit out of a bin bag (the funniest thing i have ever seen!) He really thought he looked good-i could`nt stop laughing! Men !!!!!!!

12-18 The one eyed tennis ball !

When mum got home from hospital her head was completely shaved,and one of her eyes was closed (caused by the op.)Dad said when he woke in the night she looked like a one eyed tennis ball bouncing to the toilet.Luckily mum did`nt lose her sense of homour! Mum did suffer for a while with depression,obviously from the head trauma.She openly admitted to suicidal thoughts,that was a scary time. Thankfully they did`nt last long and she was in better health than before-nothing like nearly dying to put things into perspective.

Michael Thomas is fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support

Michael Thomas is fundraising for Macmillan Cancer Support

12-18 The day of Mums Haemorrhage

I can remember the day mum collapsed clearly.I remember she had had headaches for several days and had just started to get about again.I went out in the morning on the bus to the next village and bought some new earrings.They were dangly with white tassles.When we got home Mum collapsed,we were told it could be several things.We were told there was a high chance of her not making it.She was in hospital in Whitechapel for i think 6 weeks after major surgery.She did make it she was a fighter!
I was never able to wear those earrings,they must have symbolised that day.I got rid of them.A few years ago someone offered me a pair of earrings just like them, i could`nt even touch them,it`s strange how things affect you!
I believe very strongly everything happens for a reason,even though it was a terrible time people learned not to take life for granted,Mum and Dad grew closer,making up silly names for each other,mum gave up smoking and was definately healthier for it.

6-12 cont...The strangest Doll Ever!!!

I`m still on 6-12 because i keep remembering things i just have to tell you about.One christmas or birthday,i can`t remember which,Mum brought me a new doll.This doll was brown skinned ,looked like tinytears,and had BLONDE hair.Am i the only one who thinks a brown doll with blonde hair is a bit weird.I think she must have brought it from Del Trotter!!! I could`nt hide my dislike for it and was very rude about it,which i deeply regretted (ungrateful cow!)
I`m glad i got that one off my chest,sorry mum if you`re looking down on me!I really loved the double pram you brought me(Till you gave it to the playgroup) so you got it right mostly.Not the doll though!

Grandads finger!!!

I remember my Grandad only had half a middle finger on one hand.He told me he had sucked it so much it had shrunk,i was gullible enough to believe him for ages untill someone told me he had lost it in an accident.It stopped me sucking my thumb though!
Another memory i have of childhood was finding dead animals(mostly rodents caught by cats)and burying them in the garden,and making a cross with lolly sticks!Then we would all go to church and pray to God to take care of them.We must have looked a sight a bunch of kids on there knees praying!
Mum used to cook everything homemade before she went to work when i was in my teens.I remember shepherds pie,toad in the hole and homemade pies.Mums pastry used to be about an inch thick!I would challenge anyone to eat mums pastry and try to walk after!!!

6-12 cont...The Sacred Orange

My grandad kept an orange in the glass cabinet! After he died his second wife dolly kept it there.The story goes that when his first wife died there was a bowl of fruit next to her bed and it sat there untouched,and all the fruit rotted except this one orange. They believed something a bit mystical had happened to it. It sat in the cabinet for years.I remember when we went to see Dolly we used to fight over who got to hold the orange!!!It was a grey colour and felt hollow.I dont know what happened to The Sacred Orange when she died maybe it still lives on!