I am sure I have written about this before in some form, but it happens so often these days that I shall write about it again.
Little things happen and I am instantly transported back many years. Today, after several days of eating rather too much, I decided to cook myself a mushroom omelette for my lunch. The minute I whisked up the eggs (yes, I have read my Elizabeth David thoroughly) I was taken back 66 years to a cafe in Trafalgar Square - the first time I had been to London - on our first holiday after marrying.
I had a cheese omelette - how sophisticated I felt sitting there with my new husband (much travelled and very experienced). It was delicious.
Omelettes - in Lincolnshire?? oh dear no. We had our eggs boiled, scrambled, fried or poached and that was it. To start with it was a French word and that suggested sophistication - no good at all for us fenland folk still in the sticks.
There have been many more memory moments throughout my life as I am sure there have been in yours. Fancy sharing one of them with us?
I have been out for lunch today with several other ladies who live in 'my' block of flats. We reminisced at lunch as the conversation moved from one topic to another, and memories were triggered. One lovely memory I have is of childhood - I was possibly 10 or 11. My parents and I had gone to Eastbourne to visit a family friend and her two children, both several years older than me - they seemed like adults. They took me out one day and treated me to a knicker bocker glory - something you don't often see these days. I thought I was in paradise!
ReplyDeleteMy memory is of organising all my cousins (and I had lots!) into collecting wood for a family bonfire party. We made what seemed to us a huge bonfire and the adults cooked the food and organised a firework display. I must have been about 13 at the time.
ReplyDeleteBringing down the old vinyl records from the loft at the weekend instantly transported me back to visiting my friend in Liverpool when I was 16. She gave me a Marvin Gaye record and we drew all over the cover as a sign of our friendship. We live 200 miles from eavh other but catch up rehularly and have been friend since we were 5, 57 years.
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing this not unfamiliar experience!
ReplyDeleteDear Pat,
ReplyDeleteI have had many pleasant memories bubble up from nowhere but just yesterday i had an unpleasant one... I guess memories work both ways.. I had lunch out with an elderly lady that i have been helping for the past month move and settle into her new living quarters.. As we sat there and ate and talked.. she very suddenly very distinctly reminded me of someone i would rather not think of... This was the first time i saw her dressed up and put together to go out.. She had a wig on and big rings on her fingers.. and in the conversation it came up that she was a Capricorn and suddenly she was my Mother... who i do not have a good relationship with and have not seen or spoke to in years.. wow! Only happy memories Pat only happy ones allowed!! :) Hugs! deb
I had my 18 month old grandson this weekend and as he was eating he suddenly stops and give me this huge smile. It was like looking at my daughter when she was that age. It brought back wonderful memories.
ReplyDeleteThere are so many, it is hard to pick one! I like your omelette-related memory. How your life - and the times! - have changed since then.
ReplyDeleteTake today: I have been sorting out my wardrobe, swapping the summer things for the knit dresses, warmer skirts and so on. Among my autumn/winter dresses is the one I bought shortly before my 41st birthday. Steve died the same year, and I wore it at his funeral in Barnsley. This was nine years ago, but my memory of the events is still very sharp.
I remember the first time I saw a hundred dollar bill!
ReplyDeleteIn 1959 when I was 12 my family moved from our very squalid terraced house with one cold water tap and gas lighting, an outside toilet, to a semi-detached council house. I've never forgotten the joy of switching electric lights on, having hot water on tap, a bathroom and toilet and another inside toilet downstairs - we really felt like royalty!.
ReplyDeleteMy memory is omelette-related. The first time I visited Ireland was in 1994. We were staying at a pension of sorts in a modest home just outside Cork City for a few nights. The man of the house, an older gentlemen, served us plain omelettes for dinner with a few slices of tomatoes on the side. I had never had an omelette for dinner before; it felt rather exotic.
ReplyDeleteOur host stayed in the TV room with us for a chat while we ate. I can't recall how we got on the subject, but, at some point, our host said: Ireland is a third-world nation that thinks it's first.
That line has stayed with me since.
I love your omelette memory. Such memories are precious! I have many happy memories from when I visited my Grandmother. I loved playing with her button box and also just spending time with her on the porch swing after dinner.
ReplyDeleteCoal fires with no central heating
ReplyDeleteThe cold spot behind the sofa
I suspect it is age related but I frequently get memories long forgotten. Many years ago when I lived in Yorkshire I suddenly remembered from then Dickie and Dottie. Now you are going to have to google this as my computer is playing up. They were a couple who danced, burlesque? She was in the nude, they were hilarious.
ReplyDeleteLyons Corner House? My first call in London for a good breakfast just off Trafalgar Square.
ReplyDeleteSeeing milk bone dog treats brings me back to reading the Readers Digest in large print in my grandma's bed 35 years ago. Every time I crawled under the covers I ran into milk bone crumbs because grandma gave treats to the dog in bed.
ReplyDeleteSuch a wonderful memory.
ReplyDeletecheers, parsnip and badger
When I was at school, a small group of us (about 4) used to eat at an Italian restaurant near Victoria station. We went there at the beginning of every term, and at the end of every term, in our smart suits and boaters. We got to know the staff very well, and they looked forward to our visits. We ate Spaghetti Bolognaise, and drank pints of Red Barrel. On our very last visit the owner gave us a bottle of Chianti, and he managed to get the whole restaurant involved in our story. We were all very sad that it had to end.
ReplyDeleteCurrently in Hobart in Tasmania for a few days and remembered when I first visited Tasmania 45 years ago it was almost impossible to find somewhere to eat after 7 pm in the evening.
ReplyDeleteAlphie
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ReplyDeleteFood triggers many memories for me, as does its smell. I remember aged about 5, my mother serving tripe, deliciously cooked, with a mixture of vegetables. Everyone I knew HATED tripe and shuddered at the mention of it, yet mother cooked it to perfection. We were not comfortably off, and frequently ate offal, which was cheap in those days. Now it's very expensive, owing to the 'nose to tail' movement. For my 6th birthday I said I wanted Oxtail, so we had a late afternoon party and dinner to follow. Most of my little friends had never eaten oxtail, but once they got into it, everyone loved it. They're still amongst my favourite foods.
ReplyDeleteWhen I make my scrambled eggs in the morning,I always add cheese. I never liked my mother's scrambled eggs as they were only eggs and milk. Probably too much milk. In college, my roommates added things like ham or bacon or potatoes. What I loved best was the cheese. Been an addict for it ever since. And, of course, remembering that brings back the most fun days of college and those women, many of whom are still friends.
ReplyDeleteTalking of scrambled eggs, when I was young my grandfather taught me how to make them, you will always have a meal there was what he said. Then we had someone who looked after us and the house, and I was ill, she brought upstairs this terrible concoction of bits of egg in milk. Cried my eyes out, couldn't eat it;)
ReplyDeleteHow interesting to hear all your memories. Thanks for sharing them
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