Around 1985 me and my mates started going on holiday together. This usually involved being cold, wet, tired and hungry in the Lake District. In fact it got to the point where if one of those elements were missing then we would go out of our way to make sure that it was put in place as soon as. Not soaking wet yet? Well falling out of a dingy into a lake should do the trick. Not tired yet? No problem - just ride your bike up this mountain carrying a video camera. Sorted. What? You're not cold enough? Well let's go and sleep rough on an island in the middle of Coniston Water. Without food. If all of these states could be met at the same time then it was Nirvana.
Preparation for these adventure holiday usually occupied our time for several months beforehand, as if we were planning an assault on Everest. But with more compilation tapes. Anyway for one particular trip we had decided that it would be a good laugh if we were to leave the comfort of our tent in Coniston, jump into inflatable dingies and row down the lake to the island at the opposite end from where we were staying. There we would..... well sleep in a plastic bag, eat some crisps and come back. What was not to like about that? Recognising that perhaps a little more warmth was needed from our usual attire, in preparation for the trip we went out and bought check lumberjack style shirts. Unfortunately the choice in the indoor market in Hartlepool was limited....to one style. So dressed in identical shirts we set off for our island retreat. We must've looked like a particularly adventurous rowing team. But, sensing that these were not going to offer the warmth I needed, I was also sporting a double knit arran style jumper. Handmade of course. By my Nana. There was no way that I was going to freeze on a pile of rocks in the middle of Coniston Water. I had this trip sorted. Fate, though, had other ideas. As we were stepping off the craft onto dry land, I saw the gap between the boat and dry land grow and, as my left foot waved goodbye to my right, I started to lose my balance. Eventually I got to the point where straddling the dingy and land was no longer a serious option.........SPLASH!
If you ever wondered exactly how well a double knit wooly jumper and lumberjack shirt would act as a bouyancy aid I have done the research. Not at all. They floated exactly like a brick doesn't. My jumper, rather than act as a buoyancy aid, instead sucked up water from miles around. I've heard that the locals five miles up the lake in Coniston Village still wonder to this day what caused the water level on the lake to drop by so much. I dragged myself onto dry land and realised exactly how a beeched whale must feel. Pinned to the floor by gravity I managed to wrestle myself out of the jumper and lay panting and shivering on the rock. But on the plus side I'd done it! I'd met all of the criteria; cold, wet, tired and hungry.
The checked lumberjack shirt became a permanent fixture; almost as if it had become fused to me. Eventually it wore out but was soon replaced by others. Oh so many, many others. So by the time grunge came along I already had a wardrobe of suitably fashionable attire.
'Nevermind' is one of those album that entered the public consciousness and became a benchmark for future rock albums. Sure the Pixies template was borrowed but since when did that stop a landmark rock album from being made. 'Smells Like Teen Spirit' is a great single but to stop at the first track would be missing the point. And some of the best examples of grunge. Check out 'On A Plain' which is, in my opinion, Nirvana's finest song. Hell, the album even has a closing ballad (of sorts) in 'Something In The Way'.
And what about the knitwear? The jumper could no longer accompany me on trips; its submersion in the cold Cumbrian water of Coniston was brief but fatal. Enlarged beyond recognition, it was least seen being used as a blanket - for the entire England cricket team!
No comments:
Post a Comment