Inconsequential nonsense...

[IanA]

Idle googling around my granddad avatar brought up this reference to him in a local newspaper letters column. Sadly, the chap writing it was killed but my granddad, severely wounded twice, survived. What I'd give to chat with him now...

 

 Private Patrick Mackin, of the Irish Guards, writes:- "Having been born and bred in Bootle and lived in Canal Street for over twenty-five years, and having been a reader of your paper now for many a year, I feel it is my duty to let you know how popular your paper has become in my Company. Although the vast majority of them are Irishmen, they are always waiting for the arrival of my mail, and their first question is, 'Has the Times come, Pat?' There are two of us from Bootle in this Company, the other man E. Glendenning, hailing from Knowsley-road, so you will know how eagerly we await the Bootle Times. It strongly recalls me back to glorious deeds of football in the South Park."

 

[David26]

Yes, how lovely it would be to be able to ask all those questions about what they did and where they went and what they experienced and who was with them.  Ah well.  We do what we can to piece it all together from what we can find. 

[Steven Broomfield]

What a nice snippet, though.

[IanA]

A nice snippet indeed. Did Granddad know about it? Did he know his mate had been killed? No-one spoke about it. If I'd had the gumption to ask, I'd have been fobbed off with a silly answer. Dad was the same - in the Reconnaissance Corps, he lost an eye in Normandy. I asked (several times) what happened - "Forgot to duck" was all I got.

[depaor01]

I remember my granny giving me an Easter egg to die for when I was 12. I never had any sort of deep conversation with her. Her husband died the year I was born. Turns out they were both heavily involved in the Irish War of Independence.  I was able to glean some info from my dad, an uncle and official documents much later on.  

Likewise I was born way too late.

Great snippet indeed.

Dave

[Kimberley John Lindsay]

Dear All,

My late Dad was very off-hand about his MC (the campaign having involved a defeat and two evacuations), but spoke freely about his MiD action (a different campaign which was a huge success).

In other words, the former was traumatic, the latter less so...

Kindest regards,

Kim.

Edited 31 March , 2019 by Kimberley John Lindsay

[Ron Clifton]

I recall meeting the late Major-General Tony Jones, who was awarded the MC for making safe the bridge at Remagen Nijmegen during the advance to Arnhem in 1944. He also mentioned another similar job he was given which, in his opinion, was a harder job than Remagen Nijmegen, and for which he got nothing.

 

Ron

Edited 2 April , 2019 by Ron Clifton

[Steven Broomfield]

Have I ever told you about my vascectomy?

 

All I will say is that I never eat large over-ripe plums.

24 minutes ago, Ron Clifton said:

I recall meeting the late Major-General Tony Jones, who was awarded the MC for making safe the bridge at Remagen during the advance to Arnhem in 1944. 

 

Ron

 

Typical officer-style map reading though.

[Michael Thomson]

On 31/03/2019 at 01:07, IanA said:

 If I'd had the gumption to ask, I'd have been fobbed off with a silly answer. Dad was the same - in the Reconnaissance Corps, he lost an eye in Normandy. I asked (several times) what happened - "Forgot to duck" was all I got.

That's testimony to the calibre of men produced at the time. No time for self pity. 

 

The greatest generation. 

[Ron Clifton]

53 minutes ago, Steven Broomfield said:

Typical officer-style map reading though.

Oops! Nijmegen, not Remagen. Original post corrected.

 

Ron

[Ron Clifton]

55 minutes ago, Steven Broomfield said:

Have I ever told you about my vascectomy?

Have I ever told you about my hydrocele?

 

Let's say I never eat grapefruit. But there are other reasons for that, connected with some of my medication.

 

 

Ron

[BullerTurner]

I was so glad when my blood pressure normalised and I could eat grapefruit once more.  However after reading Ron's post, I'm going back on the wagon...