Knitting socks requires the use of multiple knitting needles all on the go at the same time. You need great skill to knit socks. Ma used to knit socks and she also knitted jumpers. She knitted a special one with no sleeves just for school wear.

She also made school jackets and shorts out of flannel or something. They were ok when the weather was dry but they stank when it rained.

The shorts used to come up a bit on the long side so there was plenty of room to "grow into". As a result, the backs of my knees had a red, sandpapered look to them and stung like mad, especially when it rained and the trouser legs got wet.

Some of the boys noticed my specially made trousers and used to call out,"Hey Milt - Those long shorts or short longs?"

When I told Pa, he explained that the time to worry was when people didn't notice at all. Then he went out and bought some boxing gloves and hung his army kit-bag, stuffed full of heavy old curtains and blankets in the shed and showed me how to knock Hell out of it.

Not long after that, on account of me being a snappy dresser, the girls noticed me too. I liked that.

A group of them came round me one morning in the school yard. They were asking all about my jumper and I was spouting on about how it had been specially made for "growing into".

One of the girls found a thread down there at the bottom and gave it a tug and after a while I was spinning round and round and the jumper was getting shorter and shorter and we were all laughing and having a really good time.

By the time I got into class I was wearing what looked like a wooly bra.

The girl who did most of the pulling was Lorna. I think she must have liked me. She was a very pretty girl except she had a runny nose.

When I got home, I went in the shed and punched the bag. I probably owe most of my bag punching skills to Lorna.