One Friday afternoon my friend Karen rang to see if I was going out as usual that evening. I didn’t want to and that was unusual for me, but normally a crowd of us went out together and just two of us seemed strange. After a certain amount of cajoling I agreed to meet in in Bradford, 10 miles away from where I live during the early evening.
We went to several bars and then a night club. We had a few laughs but without the rest of the crowd the night out seemed like an anti climax. I was more than ready to go home when it came time to catch the late bus at two o’clock in the morning.
When I got home I felt hungry and also as normal wanted to eat something to soak the booze up to lessen the chances of a hangover the next day. As I hadn’t wanted to go out I hadn’t bought in anything to make a cold sandwich as usual so decided to put a beefburger under the grill. While I was waiting for my burger to cook I went into my sitting room and sat down on the sofa to take my shoes off.
The next thing that I was aware of was feeling groggy and rather disorientated. I was still sitting on the sofa, my shoes on the floor and I felt really tired. I stood up to go to bed and suddenly thought that I was hungry. It then crossed my mind that I had put a burger under the grill but hadn’t eaten it. It was at that point that I realised that I could barely see through the thick fog of smoke that was swirling around me.
‘Burning burger’ I thought as I rushed towards my kitchen. What I saw as I entered the kitchen would probably have alarmed me more if I hadn’t been half out of it. Flames were starting to take hold on the pine wood at the side of my cooker. The flames had spread from the blackened remains of a teatowel that had been on the top of the oven and hanging partially over the front of the grill. The flames didn’t take long to put out and it was easy enough to make the kitchen safe. I went to bed still hungry – the burger was cinders.
It took me a while to remember what had happened when I eventually woke up in the late morning. At first I thought that I had been dreaming until I looked in the bathroom mirror. My face was covered in black soot and there was even soot up my nostrils. There wasn’t much damage, just needed to replace a work surface and some of the wood in my kitchen and I was finding soot around the house for months afterwards.
I was lucky to escape unharmed, but what was really lucky was that I had forgotten to switch my alarm clock off for the weekend as I normally did on Friday mornings. You see it was my alarm clock ringing at 6.45 am that woke me up and saved my life. The burger had gone under the grill at 3.00 am so I had been asleep for almost 4 hours before the alarm went off.
I was then and I am today, 100% certain that I would not have woken up without that alarm, I was too far out of it. As my kitchen furnishings are pine I was lucky to catch the fire before it really took hold. How much longer would I have survived inhaling the smoke? I don’t know.
Not long afterwards I bought some smoke detectors and installed them. I check my smoke alarms regualarly to see if the batteries are working. I don’t intend to put myself at risk again knowing that my alarm going off and waking me up as it did was highly unusual – really a fluke saved my life!
Any parent with two children who are close to each other in age will know just how frustratingly difficult it can be to take a proper family outing whether it be a day out, trip to the park or shopping. The older child will usually tire of walking pretty quickly and want a place to sit down and rest their little legs. If you have a single baby buggy you will probably have had to trade off carrying one child and letting the other ride in the buggy. Especially difficult when you are shopping. If this is your situation, or if you have a youngster and are expecting another soon you should definitely look into up grading your single to a double buggy.
Luckily for parents there are more and more solutions to this problem coming onto the market every day. If you are thinking about getting a double pushchair now is a very good time to buy one. Just a trip to the park can be much more fun for the parents and the children alike. The extra storage space underneath the twin pushchairs can hold picnics, nappy sacks and toys for the little ones. There are even jogger friendly models for parents who like to take the opportunity to exercise while they take their young ones out.
If you’ve ever taken your kids to an amusement park with a single push chair, you know how difficult it can be to decide which child gets to ride and which has to walk. The youngest might be happy to ride but the oldest might get tired walking or simply decide they want a ride too. Also while you’re juggling your children you’re also having to deal with your bags, lunches, and all of the other things that you need to carry along to a park when you have children. Shopping can be a total nightmare with one child running around grabbing things off the shelves or knocking stacks over. You can make them hold your hand but with pushing the buggy you won’t have a hand free to collect any shopping. By using a double baby buggy you can solve all of these problems, by having places for both children to ride, and storing all of your belongings on the buggy itself.
These double travel systems are stylish and affordable. They are practical, yet full of safety features that can set any parents mind at ease. Many of the newer systems offer great features like being collapsible. You can unfold them when you need them and break them down for easy stowage in your boot when they aren’t in use. Also by using online shopping outlets you can find a double baby buggy that’s extremely affordable as well.
No matter what you’re going to be doing with your two children, we’ve seen how having a double baby buggy can really help make your family outings far more fun and enjoyable. Please consider purchasing one of these systems for you and your children. You will find some great examples and reviews at http://buggypushchair.com
Do you remember when you were a youngster and thought that anybody over 40 was past it? Indeed anybody out of his or her teens seemed ancient when I was a child. My how our perceptions alter, as we grow older!
Past what? I wonder now as I slip into my 50s feeling little difference in my head as I felt 30 years ago. I’m still the same person with wiser thoughts in the same body as I was in 1978. Back then I was strutting my stuff in the clubs to Saturday Night Fever, I can still raise a jig but now it’s more likely to be to a Dizzee Rascal track.
Just last week a 19 year old work colleague was astonished to hear that I have actually seen male strippers. Why I wondered? Did she think that I have always been this age and that anybody over 20 never has any fun? I promptly arranged a staff night out to see a male stripper soon – I just hope that I don’t get dragged on to the stage with him! My naive young colleague thinks that my generation are too old for sex – she won’t be thinking that in a few years!
We don’t have to stop enjoying ourselves, as we grow older – indeed I find that now I have more to enjoy and appreciate life better. My young work colleagues tell me that they sleep for 12 – 14 hour stretches. I remember doing that when I was their age – now if I sleep for more than 7 hours I feel as if I’m missing out on life. I have so much more to do and want the time to do it.
For those of us fortunate enough to have children and grandchildren life takes on a whole new focus. I have a 4 year old grandson and 3 year old granddaughter. A few months ago I was babysitting and my grandson looked up from playing with his cars on the floor and asked me if I was too old to play with him. “Never” I replied as I knelt down to play.
We both enjoyed half an hour of play and ok my knees ached when they wouldn’t have done when I was younger, but it was worth the knee ache to enjoy quality time with my grandson. I wondered where he had got the idea from or who had told him that they were too old to play – perhaps one of his other grandparents who are no older than me. Whoever it was they missed out. I will never be too old to play with my grandchildren and can still kick a football around even if I get out of puff quicker than I used to.
I have more interests now and am happy to be myself and not pretend to be somebody I’m not just to impress others. I don’t panic when things happen, age and experience has taught me to stay calm and in control.
I’ve often heard my contemporaries use the clichés ‘If I knew then what I know now’ and ‘If I could turn back the clock’. I don’t want to turn back the clock, sure there are things that I would like to change if I had the chance but I know that I can’t so the future is more important.
To me life is a great adventure where you can never predict what is going to happen, nor would I wish to. For all of us there are good and bad things waiting around the corner but at least with age and experience we learn to enjoy or deal with things better. Ok our bodies start to betray us even before we reach 40 but there are things that we can do to improve matters and slow down the effect of aging on our bodies. How I did that is for another article, right now I’m going to make it happen!
Having a positive outlook on life helps me to feel younger and healthier. I wanted to meet more like minded people and decided to start my own Over 40s Club – come join us and make life more interesting!
We all get propositioned with ideas of money for nothing or little effort. I didn’t believe it was possible until I met memorabilia collector Steve Ferguson who was the victim of an interview that I did for a magazine article in 2000. Before I continue please bear in mind that the memorabilia prices quoted are for then and will probably be different now.
Bravely I trailed the two miles to Haworth, suffered the freezing winds blowing off those notorious moors and spent a most intriguing hour chatting to memorabilia collector Steve.
Made famous by the literary Bronte sisters Haworth is visited by thousands of tourists every year. Very popular with American and Japanese visitors, it’s the ideal location for Steve who was a lorry driver for twenty years before turning his memorabilia collecting hobby into a business in 1998. My interest was captured after hearing about him making a very nice profit from litter.
Yorkshire Relics is based in a unit in an old mill building. A relic itself with its mould stained walls. Entering the unit was an eerie experience, shelves reaching to the ceiling stacked with thousands of items that we have all thrown away. If everything had been fresh and new looking I would have thought that I’d gone back in time to one of those corner shops that sold literally everything. I found it so odd initially that I felt like doing a runner, but my discomfort disappeared once I met Steve who was very easy to talk to.
If I attempted to list all of the items on display it would take all week, so I’ll just mention a few to give you an idea of the collectibles which have some value to people like Steve. I saw old talcum powder tins, aerosols, boxes of bubble gum, tins of shoe polish, displays from shops, butter packets, chocolate bars, chocolate boxes, coke bottles, biscuit tins, cereal and washing powder cartons, anything and everything that had held consumable goods.
How many of you have eaten a packet of crisps and thrown the empty bags away? Do you know that each empty Walkers crisp packet featuring photos of the Spice Girls (on sale in 1998)is worth £1.50 in America because they were never released there?
Steve has picked them up in parks, off the street, out of bins – he’s sold hundreds! Unfortunately they are no longer on sale or I would have bought a box or two, but I have a friend who’s young daughter collected them for the pictures. There must be many like Laura who have saved them and they are bound to increase in value. I shudder to think of how many I chucked away while working at the pub!
Spice Girl Pepsi cans are also worth money in the States. In fact anything featuring a popular group or famous sports person, especially footballers have a value and are worth hanging on to.
Part of Steve’s business is hiring out memorabilia to film and T.V. companies. When you watch shows such as Heartbeat you will see some of Steve’s stock on display in the shops. But the real money is to be made in selling what we throw away every day.
The good news is that there is a market out there for reasonably up to date things and once you are aware of it an opportunity for anyone to make some money very easily. Although tins have a value the best sellers because they perish easier are empty cardboard cereal boxes, in particular the special editions. Plain early 90s boxes are now selling for £4.00 each, special editions £25.00 to £30, then the price shoots up to £45 to £50 for boxes featuring Startreck, Dr Who and the Thunderbirds from 1993. With the plastic toys they are worth even more.
Plain 1975 Persil cartons sell for £5 to £7.00. With a picture of Morecombe and Wise on the front they go for £10 to £15.00. Steve’s advice is never throw away anything featuring a known character or face. Once you’ve used the goods flatten the boxes and store them, it’s surprising how many you can get into a small space. Within a few years or in some cases less you will be able to make money from something you would normally throw away as worthless.
As a child I was often given annuals for gifts. Many people save these for keepsakes rather than the value. Annuals which sprang from some American T.V. programmes were only ever released here. Happy Days, Rawhide, The Monkees, Bonanza, Wagon Train, the Bionic Man and Woman are a few. American collectors are crying out for them, how many of you have still got them?
Abba were very popular in the seventies and like many stars spawned products which appealed to their fans. One example is a jigsaw that sold for 15p back then, now worth £10.00 each. A huge profit for something obtained so cheaply.
Anything that is no longer available has a value. We all know that old cigarette cards are collectable, but you never think that cigarette packets might be worth something. Players No 6 and No. 10 are no longer on the market so are now memorabilia.
I couldn’t resist asking about some of the things I have in my possession. One was a print of two women dressed in fifties fashions which was rescued from the basement of a shop which used to be a tailors nearly 50 years ago. Without seeing it Steve said that yes it will have a value. In fact anything to do with past fashions is saleable.
He has an Italian customer who comes over every three months to buy fashion items from the sixties and seventies for her shop that solely sells fashions from that time. She is constantly surprised by how many of her customers ask for a garment in a different size or colour when they are all obviously one-offs. I wish I’d hung on to my bell bottoms and hippy gear!
I asked about records, something most of us have a collection of. The most valuable are the ones that flopped or didn’t sell many. Because for instance Beetle records sold by the million there are still plenty of them about. The original sleeves add to the value and especially if they are in good condition.
I’m still a bit devastated about the collection of rugby league programmes my mother threw out when I moved down south for a while. I had around 200 from the early seventies – now worth £7.00 each. The full set from 1937 when Keighley reached the cup final £50 each. I didn’t ask about the ones from the fifties or the Man Utd. Ones I was too gobsmacked – it’s a good job I love my mother!
I haven’t got a sweet tooth but I might be buying them from now on and in particular toffees. Because it’s difficult to separate toffees from wrappers without tearing them very few escape intact. When I buy them I will look for special editions and ask for the box the sweets are displayed in. Apparently, because you only get one box to 24 or 48 sweets they are rarer and worth more. The same applies for any display cartons or boxes, all of which will cost you nothing if you ask.
Steve gets most of his stock for nothing. He says that he picks rubbish up from streets, delves into skips and has even been known to go through rubbish bins. I like to make some brass but there I draw the line!
I wanted to know just who buys our rubbish. Apart from collectors here and abroad (America and Australia have the biggest markets), Steve says that many people throw away the things that they bought as teenagers when they get married and leave home. A few years later they become nostalgic for their teenage years and want to replace the items which bring back good memories – says a lot for marriage!
There are magazines aimed at memorabilia collectors on sale in newsagents and of course there are the internet auctions at Ebay, Freeserve, QXL and Yahoo where there are strong memorabilia sections.
Steve’s advice for would be collectors or dealers is to concentrate on one line and make that your speciality. Over the years he managed to fill a 27 room house before renting the unit and a shop in Howarth’s Main Street. Imagine what would happen if he’d had a house fire, listing and explaining the value of the contents to his insurance company – very difficult!
My memorabilia collection started the day after I met Steve. I just happened to see some postcards and posters from a Carling Rock promotion at the pub and rescued them from being used as scrap paper. So my line is going to be pub promotional material. I just wish that I’d rescued the Guiness displays a bit back, apparently Guiness is the most popular among collecters – next time!
It’s difficult to understand why our rubbish is so valuable. One explanation is that genuine antiques are out of the reach of most of our pockets, rarer and a lot have gone overseas. Memorabilia is the poor mans version of antiques, but if you know what to collect there is no reason to stay poor!
Patricia wrote for Money Master magazine for 18 months and then went on to publish her own magazine for several years. Now she owns and runs several websites including
What Your Spontaneous Reactions Can Say About Your True Character
One morning you are running late to work and decide to drive-thru your local Coffee Hut to get your morning caffeine fix. Traffic is so bad, however, that you don’t even get a chance to drink it until you get to your office. As you finally settle into your desk and take the first sip of your beloved Vanilla Latte, you suddenly realize that they must have mixed up your order and given you something that tastes vaguely like hot pumpkin pie.
What do you do?
A. Immediately call up the Coffee Hut manager and explain how his company has single-handedly ruined your morning and demand an apology as well as a full refund. Or better yet, you decide to get back into your car to give the manager a piece of your mind in person.
B. Understand that everyone makes mistakes and try to make the best of it by drinking the hot syrupy pumpkin beverage and moving on with your day.
C. Get the spare sugar and creamer packets from your desk drawer and try to somehow make the steaming hot pumpkin swill at least drinkable
D. Toss the steaming pumpkin pie beverage in the garbage and resign yourself to drinking the bland watered down office coffee.
Please choose one of the above options before reading any further.
As individuals, we all tend to play certain defined “roles” in our various relationships. Much like an actor, most of us have subconsciously assigned ourselves a part to play that is defined to some extent by our own personality and partly by the personalities of those around us (i.e. our friends, our family, our co-workers, etc?) and the roles they have chosen for themselves to play.
For example, are you a usually the leader and decision maker within your group of friends, or are you more comfortable having others take the lead? Are you willing to compromise your own ideals for the good of the group, or do you insist on standing up for what you believe is right even if it means that you may alienate some of your friends in the process? These types of subconscious behaviors and what they say about your personality, is a subject that I discuss throughout my new Mind Doodles course.
It is believed that the way a person chooses to react to unexpected (and often unpleasant) events in their lives can indicate the “role” that they generally play within their group of friends.
So what exactly does your reaction to the coffee mix-up indicate about your personality?
A. If you decided to call up the Coffee Hut manager to complain or visit him in person, you are probably known in your group to be its emotional leader. You are not necessarily the true decision maker of the group, but you generally see yourself as the “voice” and advisor of the group. You are the first to speak up when your advice is taken and things go right, but you are also the first one to complain and place blame when things completely fall apart. In other words, no matter what happens, you are usually the first person to step up to the plate with an opinion.
B. If you decided to make the best of the situation and drink the pumpkin coffee anyway, you are probably the type of person who doesn’t usually let things get to you. Within your group, you are most likely seen as the one who is generally willing to go with the flow. You don’t necessarily have to be the one making all of the decisions. Your easy-going nature allows you to make the best out of a situation no matter what happens. This also means, however, that you are often the one who is taken for granted simply because you aren’t the person who is making all of the group’s decisions or the one who freaks out when things go wrong. Among your friends, you are probably seen as the glue that keeps the group together and functioning.
C. If you decided to get out your “tools” and try to fix the problem, you are most likely seen as a creative spirit who is always thinking outside the box. You pride yourself on your ability to see things from every angle and then coming up with the best solution to any given problem. You tend to see any mishap as an opportunity and a challenge to your considerable intellect. At the same time, however, you sometimes want to fix a problem even if one doesn’t actually exist.
D. If you decided to simply toss the pumpkin coffee into the garbage and move on with your day, you are probably known for your ability to make quick decisions even though you realize that you’ll be wrong as often as you are right. This sense of confidence is seen as a natural sign of leadership and your friends tend to look towards you in times of crises or indecision. You pride yourself on listening to other people’s opinions, however when a decision is needed, you tend to rely more upon your own experience and intuition.
If you have found this exercise to be enlightening or simply entertaining, please share it with someone you think might appreciate its unique message and insight into the subconscious mind. I wish you all the best.
Author Bio: Anderson Fox is an author and teacher who has taught hundreds of students from around the world in his online classes and live workshops. His most recent course Mind Doodles is now available exclusively at MindWarehouse.com along with his previous bestselling release Mastering the Chaldean Star.
