Water-Fight!

On Sundays throughout the 1960s our family traversed Edinburgh from Oxgangs to Portobello to spend the day at our grandparents.

In the cycle of the year each season had its place and come the warm days of July coinciding with the school summer holidays and when our grandfather (Gaga) collected his Sunday Post and Sunday Express from the newsagent's at Milton Road Crossroads we usually accompanied him.

Whilst hanging about outside the shop we spotted water-guns in the shape of a space-gun  tantalisingly hanging up outside with the sun shining on them, then the rest of the afternoon was suitably programmed.

Gaga was so generous that it would never need any persuasion from us for him to treat us; the space-guns probably cost five shillings for a pair.

Once back to 45 Durham Road, in a flash we were stripped down to our shorts, straight into the sink in the kitchen to fill them up and then out to the garden to begin chasing each other around having a ball of fun.

Of course as the afternoon wore on, with the kitchen floor getting wetter and wetter, not to mention hiding in the house where we were (supposedly) safe from getting hit and then others getting squirted too, before end of play the guns were usually confiscated.

Simple pleasures.