Nitty Nora ? Did your school have one

[anonymous-user]

Inspired by this fine piece of nostalgia inducing fiction: thread starter:

https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

It gave me thought to remember back on odd things at my own school. The sort of things that probably now are not done for various reasons

First up Nitty Nora the bug explorer
I remember this well checks for head lice
Then there was the milk firstly in half pint bottles then it moved onto this triangle design:

[C&C]

Yes - we certainly had Nitty Nora visits.

Also milk in 1/2 pint bottles although I seem to remember it not being particularly cold - probably one of the reasons if I have a glass of milk now, or milk on cereal, it has to be really cold.

Also if I remember correctly they used to do vaccinations with what seemed like a big needle and you were given a pink sugarlump afterwards (or did I imagine that?).

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

I'm pretty sure that school milk was in 1/3 pt bottles.

IIRC the sugar lump was how the Polio vaccination was given.

[anonymous-user]

For accuracy, the milk bottles had to be kept on the radiator under the window so they could heat up and go off prior to forcing the kids to drink the rancid semi cheese fluid

[davhill]

Yep, the nit nurse and her shiny steel comb. And the doc looking down your shorts to hunt for a hernia.

At primary school, 'miss' and I wound up doing that both moving aside the same way to get by dance.
Her solution was to clout me on the side of the head with 1/3 pint milk bottle (empty).

It hurt but I'm betting she's been underground a while by now.

[toasty]

Watch out, there’s a Humphrey about!

[21TonyK]

Nitty Nora. Balls checked at 12. School dentist. Warm milk at morning playtime.

My kids miss out on so much!

[anonymous-user]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

I'm pretty sure that school milk was in 1/3 pt bottles.

IIRC the sugar lump was how the Polio vaccination was given.

I think she's right !
I thought half as its a more obvious measure but I think your bob on. I certainly remember the swap to the triangle cartons from bottles
Think your right about the Polio thing sugar cube.

I also remember the vaccinations in secondary (High) school.
Something like an initial test that was a stamp type thing. It left a circular pattern on your arm with lots little spots in a pattern and depended how it showed up a few days/ week later you got the big injection . Can recall lads rubbing it (the circle) and some rumour that if the dots showed (or maybe if they didn't) that you got the follow up the big one
I swear I'm not making that up though I know it sounds odd

Edited by anonymous-user on Saturday 10th March 19:25

[C&C]

CandC said:

Milk in 1/2 pint bottles.

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

I'm pretty sure that school milk was in 1/3 pt bottles.

Yes - you're quite correct - 1/3 pint bottles. It was a long time ago (+40 years), and they probably seemed much bigger to me then!

[C&C]

21TonyK said:

Nitty Nora. Balls checked at 12. School dentist. Warm milk at morning playtime.

[Fastshow mode]
You just missed out "Jumpers for goalposts"!
[/Fast show mode]

[anonymous-user]

TVR Moneypit said:

Did anyone else’s school purchase a load of BBC computers when they first came out?

No way too old for that. I do remember trips to go and see the TV in the dining room to watch the schools programmes.
The excitement as the curtains were closed and the TV's wood cabinet doors being opened. Then the on screen clock ticking down as we counted.

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

techiedave said:

I also remember the vaccinations in secondary (High) school.
Something like an initial test that was a stamp type thing. It left a circular pattern on your arm with lots little spots in a pattern and depended how it showed up a few days/ week later you got the big injection .

That was the Heaf Test to see whether you had been exposed to TB.

If you hadn't then you got the shot in the left shoulder that left a rather large blister.

My Heaf Test showed I had natural immunity to TB but they jabbed me anyway (bds!).

I still have the scar on my shoulder from the jab.

Edited by Ginetta G15 Girl on Sunday 11th March 13:13

[anonymous-user]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

techiedave said:

I also remember the vaccinations in secondary (High) school.
Something like an initial test that was a stamp type thing. It left a circular pattern on your arm with lots little spots in a pattern and depended how it showed up a few days/ week later you got the big injection .

That was the Heaf Test to see whether you had been exposed to TB.

If you hadn't then you got the shot in the left shoulder that left a rather large blister.

My Heaf Test showed I had natural immunity to TB but they jabbed me anyway (bds!).

I still have the scar on my right shoulder from the jab.
[/quote

THANK YOU

Can you recall the process was it red dots you needed the injection or the other way around ?

[Ginetta G15 Girl]

They hit you in the left lower wrist with a 6 needle gun.

If you got 6 distinct red spots you had TB Immunity, if not you got jabbed.

I had the red spots but my High School Matron (bh) decided that they weren't red enough so I got jabbed.

[Dogwatch]

The nit nurse had been sacked by the time my two were at school (80's/90's) but I still remember the disgusting disinfectant we had to apply if we found any evidence of the pesky varmits. I think it was tar based and really stank .

thankfully medical science seems to have moved on.

[anonymous-user]

Ginetta G15 Girl said:

They hit you in the left lower wrist with a 6 needle gun.

If you got 6 distinct red spots you had TB Immunity, if not you got jabbed.

I had the red spots but my High School Matron (bh) decided that they weren't red enough so I got jabbed.

Again thanks its coming back to me now. The lads rubbed them to try and agitate them.

[vsonix]

wsurfa said:

For accuracy, the milk bottles had to be kept on the radiator under the window so they could heat up and go off prior to forcing the kids to drink the rancid semi cheese fluid

Yup. I'd say there was a 50% chance of school milk being off. Ours didn't come in bottles though, it was cardboard boxes like juice, and even more annoyingly it was served chilled out of the fridge so you expected it to be nice but you got chilled lumpy cheese fluid instead, of course it had been sitting out in the sun all morning before put in the fridge.

[vsonix]

techiedave said:

Something like an initial test that was a stamp type thing. It left a circular pattern on your arm with lots little spots in a pattern and depended how it showed up a few days/ week later you got the big injection . Can recall lads rubbing it (the circle) and some rumour that if the dots showed (or maybe if they didn't) that you got the follow up the big one

The Heaf test, aka 'The Daisyprick'.
Iirc it was if the dots didn't show up that you had to have the full injection.
I think I was meant to have it but managed to avoid it by being out of the country at the time they were being carried out.
Still alive so that's OK.

[vsonix]

TVR Moneypit said:

Did anyone else’s school purchase a load of BBC computers when they first came out?

I think we had one (on a trolley) to share between three or four classes in our year. The first computer game I ever played was "Granny's Garden" on the BBC Model B. Also my first ever computer program "10 PRINT "BOOBIES" ... 20 GOTO 10". Then I remember when I was about 11 our school got a load of Acorn Archimedes computers but only the really nerdy kids were allowed to use them. They were really decent computers actually, it's a shame they never took off outside the world of Education - lack of software to buy for them.

[Huntsman]

toasty said:

Watch out, there’s a Humphrey about!

I remember that, but have no idea what it was about!