Silly things

I went to the bank this morning and in front of me was an old lady with a walking frame. Not what one knows as a zimmer frame but one with wheels to help, I presume with balance. Something that I am beginning to have myself. Balancing problems, not every day but sometimes. All they say is it's your age. Some comfort.
Anyway, she eventually went to the next free teller. I could not help but hear a few comments and one was that she was on holiday in Skegness. The teller remarked that she hoped she was not on that funfair ride that had many visitors stuck. The lady did not understand anything she said. Quite understandable to me because those funfair rides are mainly for the younger people. All the lady told her was that she had stayed in her hotel yesterday as there were too many people about.
It is funny as it bought to my mind a couple of incidents regarding my Father and as I stood tittering at the tellers remarks it bought back these two incidents.
The first occurred well over 50 years ago. My Mother was in hospital and my Father decided he would have some cheese. The cheese, as had other perishable goods had just started to be vacuum packed. Anyway I could hear my Father struggling and cursing so I went to see what he was doing. I was just in time to see him trying to stick a knife into the plastic covering and giving up, opening the fridge door saw me and said. "They don't mean you having the bloody stuff". I laughed and took the cheese, got a pair of scissors and snipped the end off. With that my Father laughed and thanked me. Then he had his cheese.
The other incident happened in the very early 1970s.
I had a dog and my Father said he was going to see the man in the Pet Shop. Yes that is what it was called. It wasn't a shop really, it was a wooden sort of shack with just a little alcove where he made some of his remedies up.
Off he went and when the door opened, there was a catch that rung a bell. In those days many shopkeepers had this sort of thing. It just told them that someone had entered the shop.
Well my Father entered the shop, there was one woman at the counter and he thought she said to him "Good morning" so he naturally replied. About 30 seconds later the same came again. My father answered once more thinking that perhaps she was a little deaf and had not heard him the first time. When this "Good morning" was uttered for a third time, he said to us he thought "Sod her I'm not wasting my time talking to her anymore". With that the owner came from his alcove, gave the woman some pet food medicine and told her the instructions were on the label. The woman paid, gave my Father a very funny look and left. Of course the bell rang as she opened the door and a voice rang out "Good morning". My father looked a little puzzled and the shop owner told him it was his pet Minah bird.
He came home and we were in fits of laughter when he told us. He was not as he thought he was made to look stupid not realising that it was a bird saying good morning.
It is funny how some things stick in ones mind. I still smile when I think of him in that shack talking to that woman thinking it was her that was talking. By the way I do believe that the Pet Shop is still going strong. Not in the shack but in a brick built property. More soon.