Big Shug & Wee Mamie - 1 The Accumulator

Mamie knew as soon as she saw Big Shug’s torn face, as he put his head around the door, there was something wrong.

“Where hiv you been ya big scunner? These weans urr starving and you should hiv been hame at five o’clock and its hauf eight noo.”
She said, her voice rising an octave.
“The shoaps urr aw shut noo, ahll hifty get thame something oot of Mario’s chippie.”
Shug, who by this time had stoated into the room, and plonked himself down on the fireside chair, said
“It’s biddy freezing in here, how is the fire no oan?”
Mamie replied
“Yir a big waste of space, the fire isny oan coz ah couldny piy the coalman.”
“Whit, surely Big Joacky wid hiv gave ye wan oan tick”
Shug said in an incredulous tone.
“Naw, he widny, coz ah stull owe him fae last week, and ahll tell ye something else ya big eidgit if ye don’t hiv a single shullin the light is gonny go aff in a minute. Which might no be a bad thing, at least a wulny see yir big rid drunk face in the dork”.

Mamie hid met Big Shug on a fateful Friday night in the Barrowland ballroom. She had been sitting with her pals when this big fine boy came towards them with a gallus swagger, dressed immaculately in an army uniform, his hair flattened into submission with a coat of brylcreem. Mamie was hoping he would ask her to dance, and to her shock he made a beeline for her and said
“Urr ye dancing?”
She resisted an urge tae say ‘naw it’s jist the wiy ahm stauning’ instead she said nothing and just stood up and they both walked together to the dance floor. She was thinking
‘ah hope he is a good dancer, ah don’t want a showing up in front of mah pals’.

It was a whirlwind romance and they were married in Martha Street Registrar’s Office three months later. Big Shug had gotten another weeks leave from the army. He was stationed in France, but everybody knew the war would be over soon so leave was easier to come by. Three months later Big Shug was de-mobbed and Mamie was pregnant with her first child. After his discharge Big Shug had gotten a job with his uncle in the scrapyard and was earning good money. They had rented a lovely room and kitchen through Mamie’s Mammy’s factor and had furnished it from Grant’s Furniture shop at Bridgeton Cross. They put a deposit down and bought a three piece suite, a sideboard and a kitchen cabinet. Big Shug’s Mammy bought them a new double bed, one of those divan’s with the drawers underneath, and Mamie’s Mammy hid given them a big heavy walnut wardrobe and chest of drawers. She also made them lovely brocade curtains and Mamie had insisted on tie backs for the bedroom curtains. She had seen curtains in a magazine with tie backs and she had thought they looked brilliant and was determined that her curtains would have them too.

At first everything was great, Mamie was working in Lairds on piece work and Big Shug was earning good money at the scrapyard with his Uncle and life was good, and with the baby on the way everything in their wee room & kitchen was Rosy.

When Mamie was seven months pregnant she gave up her job and became a full time housewife, with all of the ‘privileges’ that brought. Cleaning the house all day, going to the shops for messages with her Mammy, making Big Shug’s dinner for him coming home from work. Fur the first few months it was just like playing at a house, which she had done often enough in the back court with her pals. Then two more children followed in quick succession, a boy, wee Shug and another girl. Mamie named her Lesley after the actress Lesley Caron, she had seen Leslie Caron in Gigi and thought she was lovely.

The night she went into labour with her first. Big Shug was in the Clachan Bar with his pals having a pint. Mamie sent for her Mammy and her Mammy went straight to the Clachan telling Big Shug to get home pronto. By the time the midwife had arrived Big Shug was at the door trying to find the keyhole and shouting through
“Mamie open the door ah canny find the keyhole.”
The midwife came to the door, told him to go into the kitchen and she would let him know when anything happened.

Roberta was born at half past ten on the 25th January a big bouncing baby with a mop of black hair. She was called Roberta in honour of being born on Rabbie’s birthday. Mamie’s Mammy had a big influence on naming the baby due to the fact that she loved Rabbie Burns and was over the moon when the baby was born on his birthday.

Big Shug rummaged around in his pocket and produced a single shilling for the meter.
Mamie said
“where is mah money, ah neety send Berta doon the chippy.”
Big Shug said
“Noo Mamie hen, ahm a wee bit shoart this week, naebuddy wiz throwin oot any scrap, ah wiz jist saying tae Tam in the Clachan that the boattom hid fell oot of the scrap and there wiz nae money in it noo”.
Mamie looked at him with a withering look and said
“Yiv loast it tae that bookie again, hint ye.”
“Naw Mamie, a swear oan a stacka bibles, ahv no been near the bookies.”
Shug said in his best pleading voice.
Mamie had heard it all before, and before he could say another word she said
“How much hiv ye goat left.”
“Three quid.”
He said.
“Gimmie it then, we’ll hifty miss the furniture this week and ah wulny be able tae get yir suit oot of the pawn”.
She pawned Shug’s suit every Monday and lifted it out on a Friday so he could wear it to the pub on a Saturday.

Mamie took the money, two pound notes, a ten shilling note and four half crowns. She walked over to the window and opened it and leaning out she shouted,
“Haw Berta”.
After a few seconds a girl’s voice answered
“whit is it Mammy”
“Here away ower tae Mario’s and get me two single fish and a big poke of chips, and hurry up aboot it ahm putting the kettle oan noo, and bring yir sister and brother up wi ye.”
She threw one of the half crowns out of the window and watched as Roberta ran towards Mario’s chip shop.
“She’s a good lassie.”
thought Mamie.

Mamie turned around, picked up the kettle and filled it with the best Loch Katrine water from the brass, swan neck tap and put it on the cooker. As she opened the kitchen cabinet she could hear Shug snoring. He had fallen asleep on the chair in front of the unlit fire. He had left his jacket on the back of the chair. Mamie crept over and gingerly eased it out from under him. She went through his pockets and found another three pounds and two ten shilling notes. She took one of the pound notes and one of the ten shilling notes, she was just about to put the jacket back when she felt something in the inside pocket. It was a bookies slip. A three horse accumulator, with the last race being the 2:30 at Lingfield the next day. She put the betting slip down her bra, and thought
‘Ahll piy the factor and get mah messages wi the money and if his line comes up ahll piy the furniture and the coalman wi the winnings.’
and smiled to herself.

She busied herself putting out plates, salt and vinegar. She buttered four slices of bread and opened a tin of peas and put them on the cooker. She could hear the children running up the stairs shouting ‘whoo whoo’, the signal to open the door. In they bounced shouting and squabbling with each other.

“tell her Mammy.”
“Ah never touched ye.”
“Aye ye did.”
“Didny.”
“Did.”
“Didny.”

“Shut up the lot of yous.”
Said Mamie,
“urr ye wull waken yir Da”.
They all sat down quietly still nudging each other and kicking each other under the table, all the time stifling laughter at their Da’s face, laid back on the chair with his mouth wide open and snoring like a hog.

Mamie cut the two fish into four pieces and put it on plates together with the chips which she also divided into four, a few spoonsful of peas, bread and margarine and four cups of sweet tea completed the meal.
“kin we go tae the pictures the morra Mammy.”
Said wee Shug.
“Ah don’t think so son, yir Da’s goat shoart wages this week”

As they say eating and talking big Shug stirred in the chair, he woke up and turned to Mamie saying
“Did ye get me a fish supper Mamie hen”
“Naw yi wurr sleeping and ah didny want tae waste gas keeping it hoat.”

“Never mind hen, ahll away doon tae Mario’s and get masell wan.”

“Ye mean ye wull away doon the pub and get another pint.”
said Mamie

“Naw, naw hen ahm coming straight back and we kin hiv a wee night in and listen tae Radio Luxemburg.”

Mamie shrugged her shoulders, she knew he wouldn’t be back this side of midnight.

She let the children out for another hour while she did the dishes and tidied up again.

Once the children were in bed she sat down, wrapped a quilt around her and started reading her book and listening to the wireless. She was still sitting there when she heard big Shug’s key in the door, she glance at the clock oan the brace
‘hauf eleven.’
She thought
‘he’s early.’

She lay down on the couch pretending to be sleeping. Shug entered the room and sat down on the recess bed and within five minutes he was fast asleep. She crept over, took his shoes off and lifted his feet onto the bed. She lay down on the couch and fell fast asleep dreaming of what she would do with the money the next day if the accumulator came up.

She woke up the next morning early, big Shug was still lying where she had left him with his clothes stull on. She put the kettle on and made some porridge for breakfast. She got the children up and gave them their breakfast and said they could go out to play for a wee while, warning them to stay nearby as she had to go into town and they would have to come with her. They all groaned, they knew that they would be walking into town if their Da’s wages were short.

She washed the dishes and tidied up the children’s bedroom and made their beds, one double the girls shared and one single for wee Shug. As she spread the pink candlewick bedspread she thought
“ahm gonny kill thay lassies, there wulny be any candlewick left in this blanket if they keep pulling it oot”.

She was just putting her coat on when she heard
“Coaaaaal.”
She rushed over to the window and shouted down
“Joacky kin ye bring a bag up fur me.”

“Aye Mamie ahll be up in a minute.”

She opened the front door and waited in the lobby fur Jocky to come up with the coal. Jocky Watson wiz a nice chap, and had let her off with a few bags of coal in the past. When he goat there she said
“Here Joacky there’s the money fur this bag and if it’s aw right ahll piy ye fur last weeks next week.”
“Aye yir aw right Mamie, ahll get last weeks next weeks then.”
He said giving her a wee smile and a wink.

She took a last look at big Shug still snoring and went out of the door and down the stairs behind Joacky. When she got there she called the children and they began walking down Dalmarnock Road towards Brigeton Cross and the town to pay the factor, whose office was in Stockwell Street just along Argyle Street from the Trongate. She would get her messages in Curlys at Bridgeton Cross on the way back. By the time she got back from the town, Big Shug had gone out. She put away her messages and chased the children out to play in the back court. As she went down the stairs, she shouted around the back close.
“Berta, watch they two weans ahll be back in five minutes.”
Archie the Bookie did his business from a single end three closes along from Mamie.

She was standing at the bookies close blethering with two men at the front of the close, they were always there and warned Archie if the police were coming. At quarter to three, she went in the close and knocked on the door. The bookie didn’t live there. He used the single end to take his bets and pay out the winnings. The door opened and Archie says
“Hello Mamie, where’s big Shug, he wiz in here aboot hauf an hoor ago saying he hid loast his bettin slip and that he hid two winners oan it.”
“Aye ah know”
Mamie said, trying to hide the lies in her eyes
“He’s fun it noo and asked me tae come doon and see if the thurd hoarse hid won”.
“Aye, it won.”
Said Archie
“he his goat a good few bob comin.”
“Here’s his slip Archie, he telt me tae pick up any winnins fur him.”
Archie took the slip and checked that it wiz OK and had the right nom-de-plume on it. He went into his pocket and pulled out a big wad of money, all five pound notes and started peeling off fivers. Mamie counted them as he peeled them off. Five, ten, fifteen. He went into his other pocket and pulled out some coins, two half crowns, a two bob bit and four big pennies.
“There ye go Mamie, fifteen pounds, nine and four pence, a good win fur big Shug, make sure he gies you a bung”.
Mamie laughed,
“aye that’ll be the day”.

When she got back from the bookies, she could see that Big Shug had been back. He had left his working trousers on the couch and his workin jacket was on the floor. The drawers on the sideboard were all open and the bedclothes were all on the floor. Mamie was laughing to herself.
‘he his been searching fur his betting slip’
She thought.
She could feel the lump of the money at her breast and was thinking that she would treat the children to some new clothes at the Barras the next day.

Mamie woke early on the Sunday and got the children up and dressed, as she opened the door she shouted into Shug
“Ahm away wi the weans tae ma Mammy’s ahll be back this efternin.”
She could hear him shouting.
“Haud oan Mamie, kin ye len me ten bob tae next week.”

Mamie rushed downstairs pretending she couldn’t hear him.

She almost ran down Springfield Road dragging the children behind her. She got on the 18 bus to the Barras. She bought the children a new rig out each and new sandshoes. She bought herself a new blouse and some new cups, the ones she hid were cracked and chipped. She also bought the children a comic each and a cheap toy. Then they all went into the Loch Fyne seafood shop and the children had a poke of whelks and Mamie had a plate of mussels. On the way home the children were all laughing and talking on the bus about their day out at the Barras.

When she goat home big Shug was sitting on the chair at the, now lit, fire.
As soon as she walked in the door she knew what was coming.
“Where hiv ye been, ye wurny at yir Ma‘s ah wiz roon there?”
He said non-chalontly
She knew. that he knew that she had collected the bet. Archie would have told him by this time.
“Did you take mah bettin slip oot of mah poacket last night”
“Whit bettin slip, you hivny been at the bookies, so ye canny hiv a bettin slip”.
“Stoap actin it and gie me the money yiv goat left”.
“Ah telt ye you didny hiv a bettin slip, you swore oan a stacka bibles that ye hidny been near the bookies and if ye hivny been near the bookies then ye couldny hiv hid a bettin slip noo could ye?”

Big Shug sat back down on the chair. He knew he would never see his winnings again she had out manoeuvred him and he knew it.