What's In The Bag DORIS

DORIS
In 1967 when I was 16 I got my first Job as an Apprentice, Instead of sending me into the Workplace they sent me to Salford Technical College on an EITB Training Course (Engineering Industry Training Board).
They paid me my Wages of £4 and 10 Shillings per week, which seemed ok at the time.

The College Bought a Big Victorian Building on Queen Street, Ordsall, Salford. Engineering Companies throughout Salford sent their Apprentices there to get experience in all the different branches of Engineering, Machine Shop, Welding, Electrical and Theory.

My first day, I got ready for College, My Aunty Gladys made me some sandwiches and a Flask of Tea and put it in a old Bag of hers, I wasn't very streetwise, I didn't know that you don't take Bags that belong to your Aunt to College. So walking up the steps into College, a Boy that was Sitting on the Wall at the Entrance said: “What's in the Bag Doris”. That was It, Two Years of College having a nickname of Doris and I accepted it.

TEA MACHINE
Still it wasn't as bad as one Boy, A Group of lads had decided to play a Trick on this Boy, at Break time we all Queued to get a drink from the Tea Machine, as we put our Threepenny Bit Coin in it dispensed a Cup of Tea then it was the next Boys turn, when this particular Boy put his Coin in it just came back out again, he tried it a few times then gave up his place and sat down, It worked for all the other Boys except him, Cursed.
The electrical Cut of Switch for the Machine was on the other side of the room, as he put his coin in they switched it off until he walked away, then switched it back on again.
He never figured it out, someone would always get him a drink though.
12 months is a long time to keep it going.

As you got older and went into Work, being an Apprentice became More Interesting when someone else was put in Charge of you, They had lots of Mean Tricks that were played on them in their youth, now it was your turn.
Of course I played a few on my Apprentices.
Golden Rule: Just Bring them Back Alive!