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Showing posts with label 90s. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 90s. Show all posts

24 April 2024

50 Years of Cars

At a family gathering, we were trying to remember which cars we'd each owned in the past 5 decades. It wasn't conclusive but we remembered most of them. I'll kick this off with the fact that I passed my driving test in a Morris Marina.

There were four of us. At some point, everyone had owned a Ford. One was a Z-back Anglia which had so much rust that large stickers of Magic Roundabout characters were holding it together! There were also Cortinas, Escorts, a Ford Fiesta and at least two Ford Sierras. At one time, two of us drove a Sierra 4x4 to Cannes, Cรดte d'Azure; apparently this model wasn't available in France at the time and some local car enthusiasts stopped us to chat about it. Oh, and a Galaxy MPV.

We've all had Triumphs, too - in fact, three of us owned the same blue estate car. Other Triumph models included a Toledo, Dolomite and a TR7. Alpha Romeo's AlphaSud was another car that passed from one of us to another - at only 3 or 4 years old, it had more rust than the ancient Ford Anglia mentioned earlier. We followed this with an Alpha Romeo Giulietta. Another Italian car we had was a Lancia Thema, which was brilliant - they stopped making right-hand drive Lancias at some point.

We had a Saab Aero 9000. Whatever it was, it looked amazing but I hated it. The leather seats were so smooth that I kept sliding down, despite wearing a seatbelt. That didn't last long, either.

Our older cars included Austin Mini, Mini Clubman and an Austin 1100. At one point, I even owed a small generic van but couldn't tell you what make/model it might have been - I didn't have it for long. 

Onto Vauhall: the first was a Vauxhall Viva in the 1980s, which I owned for one week and it was so awful that I then swapped it for another car. It's been almost 30 years since I bought a Frontera repplaced by a top-of-the-range Vauxhall Carlton Estate (our second Carlton). More recently, I owned a Vauxhall Astra and a Mokka

MR2
300ZX
Lexus

We've had a few 'Asian' cars: Mazda 626 (also owned by 2 other familly members), Toyota MR2, Nissan 300ZX Sport, a Honda Civic, a Mazda RX7, Toyota MPV plus three Lexus SUV hybrids. We also ownedan American brand - a Grand Cherokee.

British cars not yet mentioned: We've had a classic Jaguar MkII, a very old Range Rover, a Discovery, and two Freelanders

I've only ever bought one French car, it's an electric Peugeot e208, my current car. 

German cars: we've had a couple of VW Golfs, a Scirocco, a Mercedes 300SL, an Audi TT, three BMWs (3 series soft top, 5 series and X5) and, yes, my other car is a Porsche (Cayenne). 

German carGerman carFrench car e208


06 September 2012

♫ Mailman - RTS - Postman - Pat

I can't remember the last time I sent or received a proper hand-written letter, 3 or 4 pages of news - probably in the 1990s.

Here is my selection of songs about postmen - and not one of them mentions dangerous dogs!

Mailman, bring me no more blues - Buddy Holly

Return to Sender - Elvis Presley
   youtube clip from the film: Girls! Girls! Girls!
   lyrics:
          Return to sender, return to sender
          I gave a letter to the post man, he put it his sack.
          Bright and early next morning, he brought my letter back.
          She wrote upon it:
               Return to sender, address unknown.
               No such number, no such zone.
               We had a quarrel, a lovers' spat,
               I'd write "I'm sorry" but my letter keeps coming back.
          So when I dropped it in the mailbox, I sent it 'Special D'
          Bright and early next morning, it came right back to me.
          She wrote upon it:
               Return to sender, address unknown.
               No such person, no such zone.
          This time I'm gonna take it myself
          And put it right in her hand
          And if it comes back the very next day
          Then I'll understand.
          The writing on it:
               Return to sender, address unknown.
               No such person, no such zone.
                   Return to sender, return to sender.
   written by Winfield Scott and Otis Blackwell
   guitar tabs

Mr Postman - The Beatles
'With the Beatles' album < youtube audio track with lyrics.

Originally written by William Garnet, apparently re-written by Georgia Dobbins of the Marvelettes, also recorded by The Carpenters.

And finally...
Postman Pat

sing along!
   Postman Pat. Postman Pat. Postman Pat and his black and white cat.
   Early in the morning, just as day is dawning, he picks up all the post bags in his van.
   Postman Pat. Postman Pat. Postman Pat and his black and white cat.
   All the birds are singing, and the day is just beginning. Pat feels he's a really happy man.
        Everybody knows his bright red van, all his friends will smile as he waves to greet them,
        Maybe, you can never be sure, there'll be knock, Ring, Letters through your door.
   Postman Pat. Postman Pat. Postman Pat and his black and white cat.
   All the birds are singing, and the day is just beginning. Pat feels he's a really happy man. 
        Pat feels he's a really happy man. Pat feels he's a really happy man.