I spent 2 hours chatting and putting the world to rights with the Precious Firstborn in Sydney today...goodness only knows what that would have cost on the phone. We are so lucky now to have Skype and be able to call free of charge - it takes away that clock watching that you used to do...always aware of how much it was costing to call long distance. Mind you, I think that the fat snowflakes must have been interfering with the connection today...in 2 hours the call must have dropped out 20 times...how frustrating! I found it much easier to remain mellow about it as it was costing nuppence...can't imagine that I would have been so laid back if I was paying for it. I wouldn't mind betting the charges from BT aren't that much different over the years.
I was thinking today about how pricing has changed over the years and some things aren't that much increased. I'm sure when the boys were small (so 20 + years ago) milk was about 25p a pint...well I can still buy 4 pints for a pound now! I'm sure that I remember being careful and shopping for 2 adults and 2 children for about £30 a week...now I know that I probably had nappies in that , but I'm pretty sure I could still meet this target now if I had to, and as we only had the one salary coming in at that point, I'm pretty sure I wasn't being extravagant. To be honest, I think that you can probably clothe yourself now for pretty much that same (or not a lot more)...when I say clothe , I mean but the stuff you NEED, not necessarily the stuff you WANT. Example..if I need a pair of jeans, I could probably find some for 4 or 5 quid...if I want a pair of jeans, I could spend over £100. Some things are a lot more expensive..housing, utilities etc , but not everything.
I too used to love those ads. Where I lived in Bournville there was a neighbour called Beaty ?
ReplyDeleteOr was it Beatey ? Or perhaps Beatie ? I don't even know what is was short for - perhaps, Beatrice?
Yes, that was probably it - Beatrice Morris.
When you mention being on the phone to your firstborn, I am reminded of Hyacinth Bucket (of Keeping up Appearances) talking to her son Sheridan, always on the scrounge for more cash!
Ah, those were the days of 'real' comedy.
Cheers....B x
Bernard, it's spooky that you should mention keeping up appearances...when Josh was little, on occaision he would stay over at Nana's and she would let him stay up to see it...it was his favourite programme when he was about 4 years old :o)
DeleteFunny how things change over the years. Electric and gas definitely cost more now. Houses are dearer, but if you've got a mortgage it's a lot cheaper than than the 80's. Ours went up to nearly 16% for a while, scary times!
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