Things our parents used to say


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If anywhere, especially the house, was untidy, my Mum would say. it: 'Looked like Jackie Pownall's' (I believe Pownalls scrap yard was down by the old Vic baths?) Another variation was .'Looks like

My old mum, now passed, grew up in old St Anne's and knew hard times from being little until she met and married dad, one of her regular sayings was "If you can't afford it wi real money, you can

Tomlinson, In answer to your question #1387, I used to have some really good Tide Marks on my neck and running up my arms. The back of our house on Hardy's Drive, Gedling was a shared yard, I can'

Contrasts:

My mother was evacuated to Huknall from the East End during WW2. Subsequently, some London sayings often emerged: If things became grubby - face, hands, clothing - Mum would want them washed immediately because they were, 'as black as Newgate's knocker.' If the skies became darker (in Hucknall, 'tonnin' to rain') it was, 'a bit black over Bill's mother's'. An expression of surprise (Hucknall: 'well, I'll goo ter arr 'ouse!' or, 'I'll goo t't'foot of arr stairs.') was, 'Well, carry me in!' and when playing a game, a request for a break, or temporary immunity was, 'Fay Nights' (Hucknall: 'crosses'). If questions regarding someone's whereabouts were considered impertinent or downright nosey, Mum would respond that the person in question was, 'Up in Annie's room behind the clock.'

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Whenever I came up with what I assumed was something sensible, dad would reply " Don't talk wet" .

Why didn't he understand that at 18, I knew everything!

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when playing a game, a request for a break, or temporary immunity was, 'Fay Nights' (Hucknall: 'crosses').

Interesting - that would have been 'fainites'. I vaguely remember reading it in comics or childrens' stories years ago and working out what it meant from the context. Apparently it's (or was) in common use among children in London and the South East, so that fits in. Said to have originated in Old French or English (or both).

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If you had a quick wash, that didn't make much difference, mam used to say it was a cat-lick.

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If you weren't sitting up straight on the settee you would be slorming.

Not a parental saying, but if we wanted to impress on someone that we were telling the truth, we would say 'it's jonuk'. Where did that come from?

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I remember in another thread our discussion about "Orming" and thought perhaps it was a regional expression. I was a great "Ormer" in my teenage days, and sometimes still enjoy an occasional "Orm".

Is there a difference in "Slorming and Orming"? Or is "Orming" slang for "Slorming"? :huh::biggrin:

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