When I was young
Cash was the only form of money we used
Nobody had a credit card
We did not have bank accounts or check books
Weekly wages were brought home as cash
Our electricity and gas meters were fed with coins every day
Men came round regularly to empty the meters
The rent man came to the door every week to collect cash
The insurance man would do his weekly rounds
Collecting cash for life insurance policies
He was almost like a family friend
Selling a new policy when he saw a need
We had milk delivered to the door every day
Once a week George the milkman called for his cash
Coal was delivered once a week in sacks
Carried on the backs of black faced men
The boss man carried a satchel to collect money
When he gave you change it was covered in coal dust
Groceries were bought from the local CO-OP store with cash
They would share profits with each customer
In the form of a cash dividend
Your spending was tracked against your divi number
Which you called out when you paid cash at the till
Our divi number was 76785
Budgeting was not at all complicated back then
The weekly wages were put on the table
The cash was split into piles for rent food coal and other bills
Surplus cash was put into a post office savings account
It was very easy to know if you were overspending
There would too much week left at the end of the money
Cheeky Monkey Poetry 