running out of change
In the early 1980′s student’s didn’t have mobile phones.
I lived in downtown Birmingham on the 18th floor of a towerblock full of students. The towerblock had one, ONE, public phone in the entrance way. Always a long queue and no soundproof surround. I rarely phoned mumsie. Only when I was near a phone booth that didn’t have half a dozen people queuing to use it. Normally this would be in the early hours of the morning at gig’s. I would use the change I had saved for the bus home to call mumzie. She wasn’t always best-pleased by my sense of timing. The calls went something like
Wendy: Helllllloooooooo mumsie!
Mumsie: do you know what time it is?
Wendy: It’s TIME to call mumzie!
Mumsie: Have you been drinking?
Wendy: could well be!
Mumsie: Oh Gwendolyn! Are you eating properly?
Wendy: Chips and curry sauce fresh, ahem, from the van, YUMMY!
Mumsie: we worry about you darling
Wendy: ARRRRR! You’re so sweet, there’s no need to worry mum, I’m nearly all grown up but I’m fast running out of change…
beep-beep-beeep-beep-beep-beep
Mumsie: goodnight dear, take care…
One such call happened after listening to the live version of this little gem…
Spear of Destiny sing They’ll never take me alive
March 16th, 2009
I sometimes wonder what my teenage years would have been like if I’d had access to a mobile phone. I’m sure I would have sent inappropriate texts. I’m quite pleased we didn’t have them.
Sx
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March 16th, 2009
Argh, sounds like too many calls to my husband these days. I was entirely sober at uni, at least in the eyes of my parents. I was very good at not having any change and avoided calls. Making up for lost time now though.
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March 16th, 2009
Thank God we didn’t have mobiles when we were students! I still haven’t lived down what little I did tell them at the time.
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March 17th, 2009
You was lucky, when I was at college we sent messages home by carrier pigeon and I was lucky to get a reply because one man’s postman is another man’s Sunday dinner.
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