Wednesday, October 25, 2006

P.S. to previous entry

A couple of my American friends, having watched the video I posted in my main today's entry,  have commented that we drive on the wrong side of the road.  Yes, we drive on the left.  But who is right and who is wrong.  Could it be that you are driving on the wrong side? lol.

Susie left a comment about her mother and an unexploded bomb and she reminded me of something that happened to us.  When we moved to this area and into the haunted bungalow I have written about before, it took time to settle in.  The removal men had placed some items in the loft for us.  One weekend my father went up there to get something. It was quite dark so he was shining his torch around when the light fell on an object.  It was a bomb.

My father, having served in the forces during WW2 saw immediately that it was intact and unexploded.  How it got there we will never know.  He immediately phoned the police.

Well, we expected the army bomb disposal squad to arrive, screaming sirens, the area cordoned off.  You know, the whole works.  A couple of hours went by before a Bobby (a policeman) knocked at the door.  Just him.  Somehow he and my father got the bomb down and out into the street and then..........................the policeman calmly placed it into the basket of a bicycle and slowly cycled off!!!!!! We imagine he got wherever he was supposed to take it safely because we never heard any explosion although with the weight of the bomb at the front, he did wobble very badly.

Can you imagine something like that happening if a bomb was found today?

26 comments:

Anonymous said...

I think what ever area you drove in is what you feel comfrotable driving on that side of the road.  I wonder what the reasonings are for the diffreences. that would be intersting to know. wow that is weird can t believe they sent ONE cop and that was it!!!!!!!! ON A BIKE!!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

I noticed the cars driving on the other side of the road from what we do but I knew it was like that in England. It did look odd to me though. I was wondering about how odd it would be to have to learn all over again to do that. That was something driving off on a bicycle with a bomb in the basket. Since we live near an army post that has closed the facilities they find quite a few unexploded shells there during the cleaning up of the area. They are still hunting them. Luckily not one has went off and hurt anyone. Helen

Anonymous said...

LOL Jeannette one policeman on a bike ~ I hope he delivered his cargo safely ~ Ally

Anonymous said...

Oh, my gosh, this entry made me laugh!  What a charming story.   LOL, I can just see the Bobby trying to manouver his bicycle with that bomb in the basket.  It sounds like a scene out of a Mr. Bean show!  LOL  Thanks for writing about that!  Made my day.
Hugs,  Kathy

Anonymous said...

This sounds like a script from Dads army Jeannette ,gets better and better lol ,.,.,Jan xx

Anonymous said...

If that happened today the whole police force etc would be around and the place closed off.  How times have changed.  'On Ya' - ma

Anonymous said...

Well...being from the USA....and having some friends from England...and the fact of which side of the road we drive on always comes into the conversation....but don't think we ever thought one of us was wrong LOL...just different LOL...but will have to say...it does make me a bit anxious when riding in the front seat in UK and all the mailboxes are coming at me LOLOL.....and will have to say that was one brave Bobby carting off that bomb.....hugs from ky...Ora

Anonymous said...

Hope the policeman carried the cargo safely!

Leigh :-)

Anonymous said...

LOL! That's mad....typical that it would happen in England though...our bobbies dont like to make a fuss do they! Glad he was alright though (well...I assume so if you did hear an explosion)

Take care, Amy :)

Anonymous said...

Hi Jeannette
I really enjoyed the story in your last entry. It is amazing that Eric planted that mine so casually, knowing that his father, his intended victim, might not be the only one killed in the explosion. Truth is definitely stranger than ficiton! The story about your own Dad and the local police man calmly removing the unexploded bomb is amazing - it could not happen today. Imagine the policeman cycling down the road with the bomb in front of him, nodding and smiling to the locals, 'Mornin, not to worry, just a bomb, I'll take care of it' (LOL!!!)
Kate.
http://journals.aol.co.uk/bobandkate/AnAnalysisofLife/

Anonymous said...

Hello again Jeannette,

I can`t imagine that happening today.  I can just picture the bobby on his bike carrying an unexploded bomb...as you do of course...lol!  I always thought we drove on the `right` side of the road.  It`s everyone else who is wrong...lol! ;o))))

Sandra xxxx

Anonymous said...

no way would they do it like that today, lol

Anonymous said...

((((((((((((((((((((((JEANNETTE)))))))))))))))))))That would scare me.But glad you all was ok.Did you get the link to my pirvate journal?I sent it to you,dont know if you got it.SOrry about the wait.I still have some work to do in it.Have a nice evening.

Anonymous said...

I had quite a few unexploded mortar bombs in my garden where i used to live. I was forever phoning the bomb disposal squad. They were a great bunch who always came up. One group asked me how I knew it was a bomb. I said it was because they had fins on, he replied that it could be a fish! They used to tell me to cover it with a turf before they arrived then they'd just pick it up and drive off with it! We lived on an old army training ground, Eventually the army came round the whole area with their metal detectors and dug up a hundred or more from peoples gardens! Jeannette xx  

Anonymous said...

As I told an American friend once... We drive on the left side which is the right side, you drive on the right side which is the wrong side! Jeannette xx  

Anonymous said...

No way!  Jae

Anonymous said...

LOL,  I knew that would get you.  What really amazed me is when my Australian friends came to visit about 6 years ago.  They flew into New York, eventually ended up in Las Vegas where they rented a car and drove to San Francisco.  We don't even really like to drive in San Francisco.  They did fine, he said it didn't bother him at all.  I guess we humans can adapt.  If I get over there, I'm going to try and drive a car the way the English do.  Linda in WA    

Anonymous said...

wow! Jeanette
that really staggers the mind doesn't it?:)
isn't it funny how the circumstance sof the present seem to trigger how we respond and in what category we put events!
love,natalie

Anonymous said...

How funny! What a fuss there is nowadays if a bomb is found! love conniex

Anonymous said...

My dad tells me that he used to play with the munitions that the Germans left behind after the war. Said there was a blown out tank on the side of the road below his house that had some live ammo in it, and a bunch of mortar rounds. Nothing like the thought of the sunshine, butterflies, birds chirping and little boys playing with live mortar rounds.

Fred

Anonymous said...

What a vision of this policeman on a bike no less, toting off an unexploded bomb like it's not an issue at all. Today-you would have had to had the bomb squad, the rescue squad, and numerous emergency people. Unbelievable. I don't know that either drive on the wrong side. I think I would forget if I ever made it over there-I would have to get a driver LOL.
michele

Anonymous said...

Thats a old fashioned bobby for you they just did what was needed.  Glad it turned out OK. LOve Joan.

Anonymous said...

It would be a bit of a challenge, driving in another country after being so used to driving on the right side here in America.
What a story about the bomb!
Penny

Anonymous said...

Amazing, Jeannette, but as I think back over the years, I can remember that our local police and firemen did so many tasks that would now warrant the FBI.  I remember my brother carrying home a WWII grenade that he and his friends found in a field that was intact.  My dad called our local police.  We only had two; one evening cop and one daytime cop.  The policeman put it in a box and drove off.  Have a lovely Friday. xx  Chris

Anonymous said...

What a story about the bomb!! OMG I can't believe it!!  WOW!
And you're absolutely right....who's right and who's wrong?
Pam

Anonymous said...

How nonchalant and innocent!!  I really enjoyed both stories Jeannette.  I wish I could watch videos without losing my connection or AOL freezing up.  -  Barbara