Thursday 27 January 2011

The newspapers were

late this morning. When they finally landed they were tied together with a rubber band instead of rolled tightly in plastic. I rather suspect they had problems with the machine that rolls them so as to make them easier to throw.
Newspapers are just one of those things that happen. I doubt many people think about how they are put together, printed and passed out to readers. We had the same newspaper delivery man for years. He finally packed the job in when his shoulder would no longer allow the throwing action. It was his second job, one for which he had to rise early in all weathers. I doubt it paid well.
I doubt anyone delivers milk any more. We used to get it in bottles. Now it comes in cardboard or plastic from the supermarket. When we lived in the country we would get it straight from whichever local farmer was prepared to supply it. No, it was not pasteurised either. We seem to have survived that.
Our bread used to be delivered too. When I was in the early years of school we lived just around the corner and down a narrow lane from the small field in which the local baker kept the carthorses he used for delivery. The bakery itself was a bit further down our road. When the wind was blowing the right way we could smell the soft, warm yeasty smell of bread being baked.
I also remember "the Faulding's man". I am not sure what else he sold but he had a wooden display case with things like vanilla essence, lemon essence and cochineal displayed in small glass bottles. There were also junket "tablets" - plain or flavoured. Now those things come in plastic bottles in the supermarket - and it is no longer possible to get junket tablets at all. I am told that "people no longer eat junket".
You can go supermarket shopping "on line" now. I have yet to venture into that murky world. It will probably be delivered by the same pleasant but awkward teenage boys who deliver the 10kg bags of bread flour I cannot carry on my tricycle. Friends who have tried this tell me that they might - or might not - get what they have ordered. Somehow though "on line" supermarket shopping does not have the same appeal as getting the papers, milk, bread and vanilla essence delivered. I think I might go and look at real food for myself this morning.

2 comments:

Judith said...

Oh Junket, brought back memories for me. I have not had junket for years but my father worked for Chr Hansens in Reading UK and so we always had Junket though it was in liquid form then. Hansens are stll around, I'm not sure if they still make Junket tablets and though my father is long gone they are a good company for my Mum, now nearly 94, still gets a pension from them.

catdownunder said...

I think Faulding's made the tablets under licence from Hansens. I believe you can buy a powder form here - but it is apparently quite expensive and hard to come by.