Real Character

I don't think I have spoken of this but there was a guy called Ralph. He was a real character. I met him because he delivered solid fuel to my Parents and they told him to come over to mine for a cup of tea which he did.
From the first, you could see that he was an interesting man.
Anyway he did come in again to see me. He told me that he had come from Leicester. He was originally a miner but had been buried by a roof fall underground so had to give up the face work so he decided to come to the seaside.
He told me the first job he had was to work for a well known employer. He worked seasonal for him. The first time he met him, he told Ralph that the only job he could offer was to do the washing up. He then proceeded to tell me what it entailed. By the way, I guess this was around 1951. He told me that the man told him to get there early the following Sunday and he would show him what to do. Ralph then told me that he was given a sou'wester and some overalls. He was then shown the dishwasher. It was a huge machine. When it was turned on the water was everywhere. He told me that in the front was a spindle with a damp cloth covering and you had to get a cup and hold it so the the cloth washed the cup by spinning vigorously. there were 2 of those. On the side there were side splits, just enough to get a plate in, once again the inside was spinning. He had me in stitches giving graphic examples of how the machine worked. The cups when washed were put in a tray and pushed through a rinsing machine where the water was very hot so that when they came out at the other end, they were almost dry. The plates were treated similar. He told me that the place used to seat 200 people and the work was extremely hot, and of course wet.
When he eventually got home his wife asked him if he had been in the sea for a dip. He told me he was not amused.
He did this for a complete season and during the winter he was allowed to sign on the dole because he had not really recovered from his ordeal in the pit.
The next year the man who employed him last season contacted him. Ralph told him he did not want to do the washing up again.The man understood and told him he was not offering him a job like that but another job at the other end of town in a fish shop. He was offered the job of potato peeler. There were electric rumblers so all he had to do was to rumble them and take the eyes out. He thought that would be easy. Some hope.
He started off rumbling potatoes, taking the eyes out and as it was early in the season, life was O.K. However when the 6 weeks started, it was bedlam. He told me that often he would rumble and eye 60 bags of potatoes, he said that he would be asked if the queue had reduced. He told me that if he could see the end of the queue. If he could then there was at least a 25 yards of people waiting.
One day the chip frier didn't turn up so Ralph was asked if he would learn how to fry chips. He was all for that because although it was dreadfully hot, it was easier.
He hadn't been frying chips many days when the woman at the counter shouted to him. "There is an order for 160 bags of chips". He told me at first he thought she was pulling his leg but then he noticed 2 boy scouts with a clothes basket. He told me it was chaos. Trying to get chips for that many. As normal, one pan is for fish and 2 for chips. He had all 3 pans for the chips. I knew it would be true because I was told when I came to the seaside that at one time, there was a meeting of scouts on a piece of ground. Incidentally when I first arrived the Circus arrived for the 6 weeks. Now it is a housing estate. Mainly bungalows. A private estate as you would imagine.
After the season ended, he was told that the next season he would be promoted to fish frier. This never happened as during the winter of 1952/3 the sea came over and he was employed on the sea defences.
He told me a lot of what went on and about the lots of vehicles that were lost by falling into the sea. They were just left there and eventually covered with concrete.
The work was very hard and I think he used the term "Powder Monkey". He told me that one of the foremen told him he was to be the powder monkey. He told me that meant he was raised high and it was his job to make sued the pile driver was hitting the steel girders that were being driven into the ground.
He told me the local beachcomber was the official tea boy. Mind you, he told me he was no good at that job. Mind you, it led him to realise that he had recovered from his accident in the pit.
Tomorrow, I will tell you more about Ralph.