Saturday 22 February 2014

My brother Sean, Cigarettes and Girls...


Hi all, sorry for the lack of a post yesterday, it was a tough day.

OK so where were we?


Lets talk about the little bundle of joy, Sean my little brother who is pretty big now.  My mother and Neil had a baby boy called Sean.  Apparently he was named after Sean Connery as my Mother and Neil loved the Highlander film.
This is Sean, he wasn't born this size....

I don't remember a lot about my mothers pregnancy or Sean's birth but what I do remember is that it was a difficult one and Sean was a very poorly baby.  The first time I met my brother, he is in an incubator behind a glass window.  I remember feeling sick at the fact I couldn't hold him and he might die at any given moment. Another thing that sticks in my head was the size of his feet.... they were no more than an inch from heel to toe and they had a purple tinge to them.  I remember seeing a junction of pipes, wires and tubes that looked like spaghetti.
Sean in the Green and my cousin Dean in the blue.  Take in the back lane of Stanley Street

When Sean come home I remember being a little disturbed and found that he was getting a lot of attention. This soon past and I loved my little brother very much.  I always found him a little odd, but that was Sean, I know i'm odd!
Me and Sean. Me being obnoxious.. 

I remember making a wooden hammer for Sean in CDT (Craft Design and Technology) in school.  It took me ages to make and I even bled over it.  Putting the head against the large blue metal sanding machine, I slipped and took the skin off my right index finger.  A big blood splodge stained the wood, so I coloured over it with coloured pens with a simple design.

Upon giving Sean my hand crafted hammer, he decided it would be a good idea to hit me over the head with it... Ouch!
This is me around 16 or 17.

It was about 4 years later when I started Jiu Jitsu, after a couple of years when I hit about 16, I started hanging around with some really good mates.  Me and Bruce met up with one of Bruce's friends, Christina who introduced up to Jimmy, Chucky (who I knew from school too), Rab, Joanene, Louise, Ann and another few who I cant really remember.
The height of fashion, what is that on the wall and look at
hat black and orange carpet!

I used to make really good friends with the girls, not because I was a stud or anything, simply because I wasn't like the other lads.  I wasn't tough or into football I was more into listening and talking, that in its self caused me a few problems as I was always the go to friend who helped them sort out the problems with their boyfriends.  I was never the boyfriend.


I really fancied Christina for ages only for her to ask me what would be the best way to go out with Jimmy. Don't get me wrong, this was years ago and I am so happy things turned out the way they did, I now have Susan who I love more than anything.   The funny thing is, I still think Christina and Jimmy are together although I haven't seen them for a few years.

My mother allowed me to take my friends into my room and it seemed like most of the time is was full of girls, it probably was but they were all just friends.  I wasn't experienced with girls and hadn't even kissed a girl (properly).

I remember one day going out to Linda's house and meeting up with a few friends.  There was a girl called Donna who was, lets say, more mature than us.  She had invented a game where each boy had to kiss a girl and the last one got the slap in the face.  Because the boys were only allowed in one at a time, everyone took their turn of getting a surprising CRACK across the face.   I had the slap and another lad came in, I had to kiss Donna, I didn't know what I was doing, as I went to kiss, she must have lost interest and I ended up kissing her ear.  I didn't hear the last of that one for months.

The first time I tried smoking, I was 15 and at school.  I thought about it for weeks.  I put my little plan into action, borrowed a cigarette out of Neil's packet, hid it in my bag along with a couple of matches.  In my break I ran into the burn on my own and lit up the cigarette.  I remember being really excited and new I was doing something really bad.  I inhaled the smoke, coughed a few times and inhaled again.  After smoking about half of the cigarette I realised I didn't like it.  My head was spinning and I felt sick, I remember feeling ill for about two hours.  I was shaking a little for the rest of the day.  I never tried it again until I was 16.

We all used to meet up an hang about behind a factory called "The Monitor".  The factory had a big yard in the back away from the road and it was a perfect place for us to mess about and spend time without getting into trouble.  We all used to drink Thunder Bird Blue and when we had extra money Red.  Looking back, I do not know how I could stomach that garbage.  Anyway, one time we were all getting pickled and Rab decided that he would take a closer look at the gas bottles that were stored at the far end of the yard.  He come back with an eager look on his face.  "They have helium", in his wisdom he decided he was going to inhale some and make his voice go high pitched.... Well this from the outset was a stupid idea, I remember him going over to the 6 foot bottle and attempting to turn it on, all of a sudden we all jumped as a screeching sound like an aircraft started hissing out of the top of the bottle. He had turned it on so much he had no way of turning it off, I don't know if it was the pressure or the shock, but the bottle fell over and with a clanking sound so did a few more.  We all ran and to this day we still don't know if anything exploded.....

I spent a lot of time at home with my Mam, Neil, Sean, my Aunty Jackie and cousins, Emma and Michael and Lauren.  Something that sticks in my head is a lady across the street.  This is a funny story and hopefully will make you laugh to yourself.  I am sniggering while we are talking.  Stanley Street was a number of flats that were terraced.  It was very easy to see into neighbours houses as the windows were not only opposite but it was also a very narrow street.  There was a lady who lived across the street.  I think she was about 20 - 25.  She was of medium to chunky build and she was not the prettiest of ladies.  What I do remember is she had very big boobs.  I know this as she used to get ready in her mirror which was on the windowsill.  She didn't have any nets or curtains and used to male sure I could see her topless.  I was only about 15 or 16.  Me and David used to watch her and she new this.

One day I thought I would get my mother so she could have a laugh too.  Not only did my mother walk in the room but if I remember rightly so did Neil, my Aunty Jackie, and her boyfriend John and also my cousins.  She was continuing to apply her make up in her bra, when she looked up and saw about 9 people in my room of all ages looking at her.  The adults were all shaking their heads.  This didn't even phase her, with a smirk she looked back in her mirror and continued what she was doing  The next night she does exactly the same show for me and David but naked.  She finished her make up, tweaked her nipples and walked out of the room.  We used to call her booby lady.... hahaha

My Mam, Me and my cousin Emma at
Scarborough outdoor pool

Here are a few random pictures.


Me, Johnny and Peter Sutcliffe.... ooops no its my Dad.... sorry Dad :p


Me in the middle on the left, notice how small I was.....


Me and my Granda Tom


Koo Stark who interviewed
me for the documentary.

My report card, notice how my Science results were very poor, this is because
I asked questions that the teacher could not answer... Thanks Mr Parker!!!


Aunty Jackie, Uncle Tommy's wife at the time Dot and Neil.


That's me in the paddling pool very young....
Holly as the Incredible Hulk, she got
bored half way through....
Notice the one eyebrow....



That's me...


That's Holly.... 




OK that's it for tonight i'm really tired.....  Hope you enjoyed it.








5 comments:

  1. Sounds like you are trying to burn the candle at both ends Tom, watch that. Enjoyed last nights story and yes missed you the night before. I can match a lot of your goings on with the pranks my five youngsters got up to, and like your parents only knowing about it much later when they got to be adults. I'm glad I didn't know at the time, I had enough worries in those days. You little Holly is gorgeous.
    Xxxxxxxxx

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  2. I missed not reading yesterday! Im enjoying these blog posts very much, isn't it funny that when you read someone else's life experiences it brings back many of your own memories?
    I can see the similarities in yourself and Holly's photos. Looking forward to the next instalment, thanks for sharing xx Zoe xx

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  3. as usual brilliant !!i didnt know that lady showed her boobs no wonder all the lads were never out my house!!tom keep them coming son and you should turn this into a book!!!
    looking forward to the next one xxx

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  4. Missed yesterdays post but you do really need to rest sometimes. Gosh the photo's of you and Holly are so similar. You wait until she gets up to some of the things that you did. Looking forward to next instalment. xXx

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