HOUSEHOLD TIPS NOT FOUND IN WOMAN'S WEEKLY

[Cathy]

There are a few Multi-Temperature Kettles on the market these days that offer multiple brewing options for tea or coffee.

[Stanley]

Never seen them Cathy..... I think I may be peculiar with tea. I brew a pint pot of tea and when I have emptied that I immediately brew another, I always have some on the go but don't drink it all at once, I have no problem with cold tea. This goes back to the engine house when I did the same thing. most people recoil in horror at the idea of cold tea but if you are used to it and like it you soon find it is a very refreshing drink particularly in hot weather.

[Cathy]

I'm used to luke-warm / cold coffee, after working in offices for many years, but cold tea....no (no, no, no ) the tannings in strong tea gives me headaches.
Maybe in Summer you could make some iced tea when your brew cools down.

[Bodger]

I recall local in the 1940s miners taking bottles of cold tea with them down the pit

[PanBiker]

When I was a field service engineer, I was in and out of peoples houses all day so got used to having every kind of brew known to man offered up at one time or another. These ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous. Some would arrive on doylie festooned trays with three decker cake stands for the home made buns, biscuits and cakes and the best china cups. Delivered up with care and had to be drunk in civilised fashion whilst chatting with the customer. An example of the other end of the spectrum I suppose would be the lady in Colne. She was in her late 60's with bleached blonde hair made up face and red red lipstick, she was still living her youth in the 1940's I think and I don't think she ever washed up! You could always politely refuse a brew in most places but even if you did she still presented you with one in a chipped floral china pot which still had red lipstick all around the rim, the white inside of the pot brown with weeks of tanning. Not wishing to offend there was frequently a need to pop out (brew in hand) and "have a look at the aerial". I always returned having finished my brew. Tea, coffee, soft drink, weak, strong, hot, cold, drinkable or not, all accepted with a smile on receipt and a thank you on leaving, all part of the service.

[Tizer]

Bodge, the Cornish miners had access to only lukewarm water when down below so they put tea leaves in their jug in the morning and wet them with a bit of cold water. When brew time came they put the lukewarm water on the wet leaves and let it brew. They claimed that this gave much better tea than just using lukewarm water on dry leaves.

Ian, your post conjures up some lovely images! It reminded me of other types of visits. Someone was talking on the radio the other day about actors staying in lodgings and he said the worst landlady was always said to be Mrs McKye in Manchester. Apparently she once burst into the room of a lady visitor first thing in the morning, flung open the curtains and said: "Well! Your mother's dead!" Another story was one that used to be told by Lionel Blair. Each morning he would make his regular visit to the lavatory after breakfast before setting out for the theatre. One morning he was taking a long time, having some trouble achieving his objective. After a while the landlady came to the bottom of the stairs and shouted up: "Mr Blair! Mr Blair! You have to surprise it!"

[PanBiker]

Another tip I can suggest when handling customers valuables, always move and support with both hands. I learned my lesson with this in one of the large well to do occupants houses on Brogden Lane. Called to mend the large corner console TV I had need to move it out to get round the back. on top was a large expensive porcelain Georgian lady figurine in all her splendour. I picked her up just as the lady of the house re-entered the living room with a cup of tea for me and the figures head fell off! and rolled between the customers feet. "I see you have found that Flossie is a bit light headed", she said. Phew! there was a large hole already opening up in the floor ready to swallow me otherwise.

[Stanley]

Tiz, putting a drop of boiling water on the leaves is known as 'Mashing' and it works, you get a far better brew if you do that, leave it to soak and then top up with boiling water later.

[Stanley]

If you brew coffee to drink it later don't keep it warm, it destroys the taste. Let it go cold and re-heat in the microwave when needed. It will taste almost like fresh-brewed.

[Stanley]

Donkey stone the edge of the front door step. Gives a good impression to visitors......

[Stanley]

Don't bother asking a modern chemist for old fashioned white embrocation or liniment. They don't even know what it is! Go to the internet..... LINK

[Stanley]

I finished up by gathering all my rubbing oils together and mixing them with what was left of the white embrocation. The result is an oil based rub containing Arnica, Wintergreen, Oil of Terebinth, Po Sum On (An old Chinese remedy made of exotic ingredients), Olbas Oil and Comfrey oil. It smells lovely, is working and has solved my embrocation problem for the foreseeable future!

[Tizer]

Don't try lighting your pipe while you're coated in that multi-embrocation or you might light up Barlick!

[chinatyke]

Wouldn't J & J Baby Oil do just as well? My wife swears by it.

Corn oil is made from corn, and sunflower oil is made from sunflowers, and coconut oil is made from coconuts, so what is baby oil made from?

[PanBiker]

Modern equivalents are readily available in embrocations or pads.

[Stanley]

Not with the old ingredients I have found work best over the years Ian. Most of them depend on analgesic properties. I want the old fashioned sort that stimulates blood circulation round the injury. That's what helps heal in the end, not paralysing it. It appears to be working well.... Very little pain this morning but I have taken the aspirin and rubbed the oil in anyway. Another easy day today.....

[chinatyke]

Turpentine works well, Stanley, and strong enough for horses!

[Stanley]

That's the oil of Terebinth in mine China, pure, natural, original turpentine.

[Stanley]

In the olden days farmers often used animal medicines on themselves. When I had a carbuncle that my doctor couldn't cure old Mrs Hanson at Admergill cured me with a Diatherm poultice, a horse medicine. When I was at Harrods Farm after leaving school Lionel Gleed dosed me with Day's Red Drink (A popular cattle medicine) in hot milk when I had a particularly bad cold. It cured me but only after making me very poorly. I found out many years later that the main active ingredient in it was Strychnine. No wonder my heart was racing!

[Stanley]

Never underestimate the benefits of old fashioned rubbing with liniment and gentle heat when you are dealing with a sprain or muscle injury. The oil I mixed up is working wonders! Because I mixed together almost everything I had on the cupboard it has traces of a lot of different ingredients. The main ones are Comfrey and Arnica but there are some very exotic ingredients in there as well including Dragon's Blood! (LINK)

[LizG]

I stupidly planted comfrey in my veggie garden. It's more invasive than mint.

[Stanley]

If you plant Mint with it they fight and keep each other under control. But you end up with a totally green garden! The only things that withstand them in my plot are the Ladslove and the chives.....

[Stanley]

I've mentioned this before.... We all try to be as economical as we can be with energy and the washing machine. The modern detergents are so good at low temperatures but occasionally it's a good strategy to do a hot wash. Not only does it kill more bugs but it's good for the internals of the machine and as long as you have good soft water it will leave it cleaner. Not a bad idea to check the filter as well......

[Stanley]

The coffee grounds versus the cat muck is not working very well at the moment, Cats 2, Stanley Nil.....

[Tizer]

Time for a water pistol?