Skipping school to run errands for Yanks

There was an American soldiers camp near where I went to school in Pontllanfraith secondary school and out of curiosity I went up there — I didn’t go to school I went up there one day…and said “any gum chum” and the American soldier gave me a packet of gum and asked me if I knew where he could get some cakes. And I told him I could get cakes down the bottom of the street so he gave me ten shillings and I went down and got these cakes for him which cost round about ninepence to a shilling — which was five pence today — and I took them back to him and he gave me the change which was a lot of money! So I went up the next day and the next day and the next day and I’m not saying that I had a lot of money every day…but every day I had money and of course, I was a naughty boy I used to smoke aswell and I used to have cigarettes — oh yes — and anyway it went on for about three months and one day the school bobbyman…who was about in them days….went to my house to see where I was and I had to go back to school on the following Monday. And I was pretty badly punished for it so..but it was worth it in the long run.

The American soldiers were very friendly, and I used to enjoy the way they talked. And they gave me cigarettes, not one, packets, packet of gum, packet of cigarettes. I mean the yanks that was the saying wasn’t it: overpaid, oversexed and overhere. Money was no object to them.

I also remember the powdered egg we used to eat. Powdered egg was wonderful — in fact we’ve got a tin of powdered egg in the house now…and its lovely. Powdered egg was beautiful …you just mixed it with water and it turned out like an omelette or pancake — I mean kids today wouldn’t want to know it I don’t think but we used to enjoy it…you had nothing else! I mean in them days if you had a banana that was a real luxury

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