Golden days..

I was lucky enough to have a metal-work teacher at school who enjoyed electronics as a hobby, and had a real passion for sharing it. He was also an ardent militant trade unionist.

Peter Knight ( I know, some parents are cruel - Pee Tonight, a gift to a schoolboy) also offered the incentive that if you stopped the full two hours at his weekly after school club, he'd cook unlimited giant chip butties with salad cream.

Bit of a no-brainer really. Even now, I can't look at a chip butty without recalling the smell of hot flux and chips, and vice-versa. Three guys went onto the then almost unknown job as electrical engineers, one went on to run his own TV repair shop, one a Veg shop, and another still runs a chippy, repairing consumer goods on the side.

Me? I spent my holidays as a jobbing repairman to supplement my education, and spent the first three years of my working life as a metallurgist ( £19.35 a week!), left to work in the health service as an admin, then a couple of years at a now defunct designer electronics firm.

Defunct because the admin, working practices and wages were crap. (£1.35 an hour when the industry standard then was min. £2.40) This shop steward took umbridge, led them out on strike, (err.... umm..) and they went wotsits-up in three days. They were getting away with low wages by taking on skilled people for 6 months 'assessment' and then continually extending the 'assessment period'.

Metallurgist, Electrical engineer, Admin, Trade union activist? I look back to the 1970's, and Peter Knight with fondness.

In case you're wondering, I've sometimes been asked do I regret 'being responsible' for losing 100 people their livelyhoods? Heck no. Sleeping overnight on their workbenches, cold, no heat or cover? up at 6, but being paid for 7 hours minus going to the toilet and meal breaks? Nah.

My life has changed lots since then. I retain a sense of social justice, and I'm less vocal - seriously, I am:) and I've learned the value of thinking before I say what I think. Mostly....