Hermann, your post brought back fond memories:
When I was a wee tad my maternal gramma used to sit in her rocker and open a wooden box she had brought from England when they came over on the Mayflower (joke). Inside were coins of the British realm, shillings, farthings, ha'pennies, pennies.
She would explain what each one was worth approximately in Canadian money, and what she used to be able to buy with each, in England. This was facinating to this particular young'un (course I loved me gramma), and we would sit for hours and just talk, about money, the green grocer, the downs, buying rabbits for dinner at the butchers. Over the years I heard the same stories about a thousand times and never tired of them.
She and my gramps were working people from London who got tired of the class system and not being able to make a decent living even by sweating blood. He was a master plumber. They came over before WWl, started a plumbing and heating business, raised 10 kids, and were very involved in the church. Of course she was a member in good standing in the IODE (Independent Daughters of the Empire), and gramps was a Mason.
They wound up being working people in Canada, but they owned their own house and business, had a truck (for business), and could afford a doctor; things that we take for granted today.
She was a great, hard working lady, who, at the age of 84, would get up and go for a walk around "the block" talking to all her friends and acquaintnaces along the way. Needless to say, I used to tag along on occasions.
You sure did open the memory banks. Sorry for hijacking the thread.
Ugg
