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Thursday, 20 March 2014

A little bit of nostalgia.

Moving on from the brief  cobbled together post from yesterday, here is me putting a bit more effort into it. A little bit of nostalgia today, it doesn't hurt to look back once in a while. It's good to reflect on what has gone before, but best not to get hung up about the bad bits. I like to remind myself how lucky I am, that I have come through the shit relatively unscathed. 
Scanned pics take no time at all to upload, the editing takes a bit of time due to cropping all the unwanted bits from the outer edges. Sadly this leaves them a bit grainy, but as I haven't the expertise to tart them up further, apart from tweaking the contrast and colour density, these are the the best I can do. So, in no particular order, come take a stroll through the past with me. 
Six Flags theme park at Darien Lake, this was one of 17 theme parks I visited in the USA, on a Roller Coaster Club trip in 2001. I can honestly say it was the best holiday ever. It was manic, dashing from park to park with 100 other people, on two coaches. I was with my boyfriend at the time, he took the pic. 
Yonks ago I did a sponsored hitch for charity. Me and a friend hitched lifts all over the UK, raising money for Great Ormond Street Hospital. The Kernel Hotel gave us free accommodation, it's no longer there now.

I was truck mad for years. Everywhere I went I looked for big trucks to photograph, the bigger the better. This one belonged to GEC at Stafford.

My friend drove this one, he would ring me up and tell me where he was parked so I could go out and meet him. It belonged to Abnormal Load Engineering, at Stafford. These two were big push and pull jobs with a massive low loader trailer in the middle.

This is me helping out as a marshal at a truck show. Trucks were my hobby as well as my job.

Hey, look at me getting my hair done. I was invited to go to London for the day to take part in a makeover for Chat magazine. It was great fun.
A bit of larking about here. A sunny Sunday afternoon with nothing to do. My friend came to show me his new bike, so I said, lets take some photo's, I will be the model. I had my own bike at this time, but my Honda CX500 Custom was not as big as this beast.
There was an interlude in my driving career when I left full time employment and became self employed. I didn't buy a lorry, but hired out my services to drive for other people.I joined the Business Club in my town and we had an exhibition in a hotel. This is my stall laid out displaying my certificates, touting for business.

In my spare time, when I had any after working 60 hours a week, I took the Lady Truckers stall out to the truckshows. I had a small caravan hitched up to my Ford Cortina which was my base for the weekend. By this time I had become quite famous so there was a steady stream of visitors calling in to chat. It was great fun.

There was a firm in Derby called E & A West that I worked for, it was a British Road Services contract, we delivered chemicals in tankers. They had an open day and invited all their bigwig customers. They took me off the road for the day and I had to dress up and look smart, stand in front of my lorry, meeting and greeting.

Ha ha, this shunt vehicle was no looker. Me with the tight jeans and big hair. Not your average beer bellied hairy arse trucker. 
Two best friends, Carol and me, in the street outside her mum's house.

I'll finish off with this one. Look at the platforms, and the suntan,  real I might add. These young lassies today think they are so so in fashion, sorry, but they are forty years too late. I was just back from Majorca when my sister got married. My dear mum looked lovely. 
So as I end this post I pay tribute to my dear mum, as always I thank her from the bottom of my heart for giving me this life. Today is the anniversary of her passing away. Thank you mum, I love you.
Back tomorrow. Toodle pip.

20 comments:

  1. Such wonderful photos and fabulous memories for you, thanks for sharing. Looking lovely might I add, not at all like a trucker as people might imagine, but very glamourous.

    It will be 19 years since my dad passed next month and I still miss him terribly. I am sure your mom is very proud of you hun.

    X x

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  2. lovely set of photos and really interedting memories...great tribute to your dear mum...my nan wore a hat like than to my mums wedding...must have been the fashion

    all the best tessa

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  3. Wow i love these photos IIona .. im sure your'e lovely mum would be very proud of you :) Lots Love AFM xx

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  4. Love your blog and love your photo's. Keep up the good work!

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  5. Thanks for sharing your memories! So fun to see you at different ages...different hair styles...but always the same happy smile. I had some of those, too, but I'm too chicken to share them on my blog.

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  6. Brilliant trip back through the years Ilona, you were quite a fashion queen before you became the mean queen! A colourful and interesting life, your mum must have been proud of you :0)

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  7. I adore your yellow shoes!!

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  8. Thank you for sharing your happy memories. '....but best not to get hung up about the bad bits.' So true. I love your hair when it was long, it really suited you...and that picture of you with George Michael ;o). Debbie.

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  9. Great pics of some highlights in your life and a touching tribute to your dear mom.

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  10. What a lovely post. Thanks for sharing. Sarah

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  11. Thanks for sharing your wonderful photos Ilona, our mums are always with us in our heart.
    AussieCheryl xo

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  12. Great pictures! Looks like you had some fun times!
    Thanks for sharing!

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  13. Oh what lovely photos! So nice to look back! My Dad has been gone now fow 14 years, and I still think of him every day, and miss him so much! Thank you for sharing!

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  14. Wowser! Look at the dolly bird in the makeover pic!!!
    Jane x

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  15. Ilona, have read your blog on and off for a couple of years and i find your blog to be interesting and entertaining. I enjoyed this post very much and thank you for allowing s a glimpse into your life at different periods of time.

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  16. Love the platform shoes. Had them in a tan color back in the day lol...

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  17. Loved seeing these past images of you,gorgeous inside & out!

    X

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  18. What a lovely post and I love the photos :-)

    I had shoes just the same as your yellow platforms, only mine were bright blue :-)

    AND very coincidently my Dad worked for BRS in Manchester in the accounts offices my Lovely Hubby wears the watch Dad was given for 40 years loyal service (he was there for over 44 in the end).

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  19. I'd kill for those yellow platforms and I believe I have the twin of your dear Mum's hat in my stockroom! xxx

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  20. I like the GEC/A.L.E heavy haulage tractors, i've seen them parked on the roundabout at junction 16 of the M6. They're more interesting than the run of the mill trucks.
    Your self employed driver idea looks interesting and could have been the start of a driving agency. You seemed to have a lot of certificates and qualifications, was it a success? Theres a guy in truck and driver magazine who is self employed and drives for a few different firms. Its probably safer for the firms than taking pot luck with agency drivers.
    Dave.

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