Reserved occupation WW2

[medpat]

More likely to be pumice than sand 

[mumjo]

The whole system for calling up men seems to have been a bit unclear and inconsistent.
I do wonder how much resentment it caused amongst people when they saw, for example, a 30 year-old with 3 kids called up to fight when his neighbour a unmarried strong 20 year old stayed at home in relative safety.
I do recall that my dad always emphasised the fact that he volunteered the day he was old enough and had no respect those those who "piked about at home, waiting to be called up". He hinted that his volunteering remained on his record and CV and accounted for his being promoted and making great progress in his job when he returned.
Particular criticism was directed locally at the son of a market gardener who "fiddled about in greenhouses whilst his mates went to die for their country"

my father worked nights in an engineering factory during the war. In the afternoon before going to work he often used to go for a cycle ride. It upset him greatly when people called out to him, decrying his ability to serve in the armed forces. He also used to do the fire watching when he wasn’t working, so rightly thought he was “doing his bit”.

[Kiltpin]

"They also serve who only stand and wait."

 John Milton (d. 1674) 

Regards 

Chas

[Viktoria]

Bykerlads, you and I are talking about the same film footage of WWI.
The teeth were really awful weren’t they!.
It was common practice for a young woman’s wedding present from her parents to be total removal and full set of false teeth on the basis that
she would have no more trouble from them.
Although drastic it was perhaps the better of two evils.
An old belief was that you lost at least one tooth for every child,well Queen Victoria must have lost a few,but of course her diet would be so very much better than ordinary women’s.
Tooth abscesses were very common and a gum infection, pyorrhoea
due to infected teeth sockets was almost commonplace.
Imagine those men and lads with toothache etc never mind the Germans,shells and all!
My O H had a tooth abscess once and it went right down into his jaw and came out through his lower cheek. He had a mark there everafter.
Of course with him work came first and he ought to have  done something about it before he set out on an international business trip.Ouch ,oh the pain he was in.
Perhaps the toothache gave our lads the impetus to go and bash the Boch,
well they would want to bash something,probably a wall with their head but there were no walls standing ,well not in Ypres!
Viktoria.

[Malcolm33]

my father worked nights in an engineering factory during the war. In the afternoon before going to work he often used to go for a cycle ride. It upset him greatly when people called out to him, decrying his ability to serve in the armed forces. He also used to do the fire watching when he wasn’t working, so rightly thought he was “doing his bit”.

    My Dad worked at Acton Bolt in Acton where they made bolts and screws, so vital for the War Effort.     Very often after he had come home for dinner - and it was a long journey in the train with a half hour walk at each end - he had to go back and stand on the roof of the factory putting out the incendiaries.   One night they hit the factory next door which he said processed butter and the fat splattered all over their factory roof causing them to slip and nearly go over the edge.

     This will give you an idea of the intensity of the raids trying to hit all the factories in Acton - Acton should be about the middle of this bomb map - http://bombsight.org/#13/51.5055/-0.2727

[Regorian]

Yes Malcolm, when I commuted to Paddington in the early 1960's, I passed the factories in Acton to the right with steel cuppolas for fire watchers.