Tuesday 22 May 2012

Sore head, coal and clay pits

22 May 2012

For the first time ever I have actually read a full article featuring the Puppet Person for North Warwickshire, true blue Dan Byles.  Why was this Dorktown News article of interest then?  Not far from Dorktown is one of the UK’s last remaining deep coal mines, Daw Mill.  It seems that they are currently working a rich seam of coal deep under the village of Corley.  Some of the houses in the village have begun to develop cracks and the owners are of course rightly worried about it.  The mine owners have accepted liability and pointed out that they have a responsibility in Law to carry out all repairs – but only after the mining has ended the ground had time to settle.  Good news and bad news.  The good is that the repairs will be done; the bad, it could take years for them to be done.

Rather pleased with myself today.  Last night I managed to get out of the rut and added 2000 words to Photo Finish.  Hopefully I shall be able to get on with it a lot better now.  I hope I’m not getting too ambitious with it to be honest.  It’s sort of two stories in one really.  Story one is the cops investigating a series of murders told in the third person; story two is a first person story of a man being persecute … or is he?

I’m not so sure I will get all that much done on it today though seeing it is a nice sunny day.  Jan is off down town now to get her hair done.  After lunch we will both go out down town for a ride around and get a few photos too.  No doubt we will end up in the Willy White as well.  Today looks like a Stella day – not a real ale day.  But knowing me, the ale will win out when the time comes.

Some time ago I began tracing my family history – yes  I know, me and the whole world – and in the process I came across a number of old photos.  Old photos are useful things to have around and should never be thrown away!  Have a peak at these two … 

two shots taken at the same place on the same day.  My Aunty Eva lived in Bed’th and at the bottom of her back garden was the Dorktown to Coventry railway line.  Cross that line and there was a large field and in there was huge great clay pit that was left over from the old brick works in the town.  As an aside, Norman Wisdom was a major shareholder on those brickworks.   

Anyway, on the day of the photos just about the whole family had turned up at and you can see the crowds there …  It was a popular place for the locals.  In the photos are gran and granddad Jayne, grandma Clark and my mother.  As family photos these two are great; as social documents they are priceless really.  They record something that can’t be done now, which is sad because a lot of people had a lot fun there.  Nope, not health and safety, but that whole area has been built on and now holds a large housing estate.  Progress doesn’t always improve things.          

And now slither funny …

A guy walks into a bar with a pet alligator by his side.  He puts the alligator up on the bar. He turns to the astonished patrons.
"I'll make you a deal. I'll open this alligator's mouth and place my genitals inside. Then the gator will close his mouth for one minute. He'll then open his mouth and I'll remove my unit unscathed. In return for witnessing this spectacle, each of you will buy me a drink."
The crowd murmured their approval.  The man stood up on the bar, and dropped his trousers, placing his privates in the alligator's mouth. The gator closed his mouth as the crowd gasped. After a minute, the man grabbed a beer bottle and rapped the alligator hard on the top of its head.  The gator opened his mouth and the man removed his genitals unscathed as promised. The crowd cheered and the first of his free drinks were delivered.
The man stood up again and made another offer. "I'll pay anyone $100 who's willing to give it a try."  A hush fell over the crowd.  After a while, a hand went up in the back of the bar. A blonde girl timidly spoke up.
"I'll try, but you have to promise not to hit me on the head so hard with the beer bottle."
........................................................And you thought it was an alligator joke.

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