Life Memories

Chapter one

Mr Curley

 

Through the alleyway  very close to where I lived in Manchester  was  a little shop called the off licence  which sold liquor, cigarettes, groceries and many large jars of sweets  lined the shelves of every type and colour of the rainbow.  Mum used to send me up the entry on many occasions when money was low before pension day to put some bread or milk and sometimes a bottle of Guinness on the book, which meant we pay later!  This was the method preferred by most people in Chorlton Com Hardy the suburb I grew up in.

I became quite a regular at his little shop and loved going in there as he would sometimes give me a sherbert lemon or a free ice block, so you can imagine my happiness when he one day suggested I go in a couple of days after school to help him out, this was a dream come true for a 9 year old kid  as I knew as well as being close to the sweets I would get to watch his television, as he was the only person I knew who had one, and it was more appealing than standing outside the local radio rentals shop and watching the pictures, only imaging what the folk on this funny little box were saying!!

Mr Curly was a very kind and elderly gentleman who travelled with his wife every day many miles to his shop so he was happy to have me helping him and I was so excited to serve most of the people  as I knew them all and I felt so important weighing up the sweets putting in their little white paper bags for my friends, who winked at me hoping I would give them a bigger serve than I should have!

It was really cold in the winter and one of my jobs was to go in the cellar and fill the coal bucket up and keep his fire stoked, it was a place of such delight that cellar as its where we kept all the boxes of stock with mars bars, milky ways, Cadburys chocolate bars, bounty bars, crisps, and all the ginger beer bottles Oh I thought I was in heaven, as part of my job was to keep the shelves in the shop stocked up, and fill the sweet jars too

After a while in my job I decided I was in need of some sustenance to help me up those many cellar steps, so I devised a naughty plan, I went though the boxes of stock choosing my favourites like walnut whip, mars bars, cherry ripe taking little nibbles from one bar in a box then putting it to the bottom on the pack!  As time went on I took more and more nibbles, till Mr Curley decided there must be a mouse problem in the cellar, and set about setting up traps so I then had to move on to another plan.  So it was sweets out of the big jars that lined the shop that took my fancy, and I became very good at eating midget gems, sherbert lemons, bulls eyes, hambugs with very little mouth movement.!

Oh how I remember in between  customers coming in I sat and watched a tv show called coronation st, all the kids in the neighbour hood wanted to be my friend and let them in on what was happening in that street!  Summer was my favourite time as Mr whippy used to come around and Mrs Curly used to have our glass bowls ready to go out and get some of his delicious ice cream with chocolate sauce, on really lucky days it was topped with a chocolate flake.

One of the things I loved so much about Mr Curley was that he sold ham, and if it was the end of the piece he would give it to me, all sliced up and I would run it up to my nan and papa who lived quite close in a flat, and I have vivid memories of shouting up to the 3^rd floor Nan Nan Its sheila and I have Ham, I don’t know why but I felt so happy to give this to her as she really appreciated it.

Then I would run home to my house and 3 sisters Colleen, Rose Eileen and brother Eamon.  They never got to work in the shop, I was the lucky one.  I cant really remember how many years I was there but somehow I think mum and dad thought I had worked long enough and maybe I should be doing some school work!

I am telling this story as when Ava my 8 year old granddaughter stays with me, we lie in bed at night and she just loves the story about Mr Curley and it makes her laugh so much, so nanny she said next time you tell me off for eating too much chocolate I will wag my finger at you and say remember Mr Curley!!!!

By Sheila