As I am a writin this (mid February) thas suffin cold outside, that got down’t minus 12 outside my old greenhouse last night, I dussant open the door t’have a look inside as that’l only let the heat out. We had sum cold old winters afor. I remember the fust year I started warkin arter I had bin to farming collage we had sum rum weather, I recon the freezin rain were the wust. The tractors we were a drivin had canvas cabs on with a glass windscreen, well, the rain that froz on the screen and the only way you see where yu were a’goin was to open the door and stick yar head out, yu cont do that f’long cos the rain holy stung yau face, still that were worsa for one o’the other tractor drivers I were a’warkin with, he were a wearing glasses so when he stuck his head outa the cab door t’see where he were a goin the rain fros on his glasses. That tractor driver, he were a master one for losing things, one year when he were a ploughin he lorst his leather Jerkin , (that were like a body warmer) he recon that must a’fallin orf the back o’the tractor and he ha plough’d in, du you know the next year when he were a ploughin the same field he ploughed it out agin it out a’gin……. and that were good enough for him still t’wear.
Yu ha’a put up w’the cold if yu ha’a drive a tractor w no cab on at all, thas how that was a’for they ha’a put safety cabs on tractors. Yu might have a canvas cab but they were drafty. I remember askin my Boss (in 1966) why he dint hev cabs on his tractors, he recon that yu shount be a warkin on the land when that were a’rainin so there wernt any need for cabs, he dint ha’a sit on the tractor when that were a blowin from the North Pole and all yu ha’a keep yu warm were an ex-army great coat: thas another one o’them ‘good old days”I dont want t’see back agin.
I hear that the Watton air field ha bin sold back t’local farms, they’ll hev a job a breakin up all that contrete and a’gettin rid on it, perhaps sum on it will be used when they start a buildin the new bit of the A11. One farm I were a warkin on in the 1960s had part of a old air field on it, when we started a ploughin on it we dragged up sum cables that still alive so when yu ploughed through um sparks were a comin orf the back o’the plough, we ha’a stop until somebody cum and turned orf the current.
I hope a lot on’yer took part in the bird watch at the end o’January, I did, well that meant I could sit down for an our t’do that with out the Missus a findin me a job cos I kept a’tellin har I were a concentratin on a countin the birds, I tried t’stretch the our out as long as I could an all. The trouble is w’this cold weather I cant get outside so the Missus keep a findin me inside jobs t’du……..the trouble is as fast as I knock the jobs orf t’list she keep a’’addin more on.
Fare ye well t’gether and du yu keep a’troshin.