Friday 30 October 2009

Halloween

The Borders turnip (Tumshieus Lanternus minor)
I its that time of year again at the High Wall. Tumshie lantern time! We nivir had any o them Pumpkins at the high wall, just yer good auld Borders tumshie. They started off life like the one in the above picture and after a couple of oors fartin around wi an auld tattie knife later they wir takin shape.
This could huv been the end result o five cut fingers and the need to hide a broken tattie knife!
All tha wiz required was a piece o string and a candle. If all else wiz in short supply candles wir always in abundance at the High Wall.
It wiz now a case o waitin until the street light went on and it wiz dark enough to set off through the street surrounding the High Wall, as the Boss would have said, had he had a tumshie lantern, Its time tae go boys I can see a Darkness on the edge of town!
So off we went dressed up as christ knows what as our fancy dress possibilities were a tadge limited, but we really did our best tae look real scary. We were always acompanied by the smell o burnt tumshie which got worse as the night went on.
Arkos reminded me of a slight accident Alien Orders had wi a tumshie that wiz meant tae look chinese and had a black wig on. The black wig and the candle were not a good match which led to a small conflagration and a wee bit o trouble wi a teacher. But that wid be tellin tales oot o school!
I think what am tryin tae say is this, we wir happy wi a smelly auld tumshie and a bed sheet wi eyes cut oot o it, wi wirrnae frightened o nae paedos or razor boys thit wir gaunae dae us harm, wi just lit up the tumshie and buggird aff doon the road wi not a care in the world and nae parents oot wi us neither! If they wir no the good auld days then ah will be buggird. If ah could go back tae the High Wall wi the boys and be that cheeky ersed bairn again, thir widbe nae stoppin me!
So ah um meant tae be workin the morns night boys but stuff the work, ah will meet yous at the High Wall when its dark and don't forget the tumshies!

2 comments:

Arkos said...

Hi boys! Found my password at last, & I'm back! Aye I agree with Bobrob, Halloween was a rare time for us lads back in the day! The smell of burning neep can still bring a nostalgic teear to my eye!
And we would go roound doors and up tenement stairs at all hours guisin' and never got any hasle at all. Changed days, eh?

Alien Orders said...

true stuff bobrob. Happy days at the guisin'.
Ye go intae ASDA noo and they ahve a whole aisle. Took the fun oot o it.
Just like the punk days, always better when to made yer ain eh.

Glad to see lazy boy Arkos back in the fold, look forward to some more of his High Wa' back catalogue