Wassup Grandad?

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Thursday 17 July, 2014 by Uncle Spike

My maternal granddad died in the mid 70s when I was still in short trousers at school. But I have very fond memories of the guy. He was a simple soul, an honest hard-working man who was a big part of my childhood. After his war service, that saw him suffer lung damage from the barrage balloons he tended over the skies of London, he went on to work as a gravedigger, and almost died doing the job, especially when digging a ‘family grave’ once.

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He then went on to spend many years working in a cigarette factory before semi-retiring as a gardener. Unfortunately the earlier damage was exacerbated by the ‘200 free perks a week’ of the factory toll; the combined result sending him to his own grave by 71 or 72.

Nevertheless, he was a kind man, and probably the one man who I’d like to think was proud of who I am today. This was lil’ ol Spike, back in the day, with the old fella himself.

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