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Can You Come Back Next Week ?
Synopsis
A nostalgic, evocative look back at life as a Collector
Salesman in the Glasgow of the 1950s and 60s.
This is a calling that has disappeared in the ‘mists of time’.
Nowadays people ‘sell money’ and no longer sell goods to people who
in the main could afford weekly payments, but could not afford to pay out lump
sums for clothes, furniture and other goods.
The book describes my own experience as a Collector
Salesman in various areas of Glasgow. This
gave me an insight into people’s lives and certainly broadened my own outlook
on life. The term ‘University of
Life’ is a very apt description when applied to this job.
I experienced first hand how various families coped or
didn’t cope with what life threw at them.
I was ‘accepted’ in most cases as a member of the family and
eventually looked upon as a ‘Father Confessor who’s opinions were highly
valued. I can’t think of a better
compliment than that.
The book I hope will stir up memories of people
who brought up families in those days and depended on credit to enable them to
survive.
It is in the main a humorous attempt to recall those
days although it is not all funny, but has its share of sadness too.
You will find the door opened into people’s homes,
their life’s and the conditions that existed on certain Glasgow Housing
Estates. You will meet some very
nice funny people, and also some not so nice.
Shady characters that lived by their wits, it was a constant battle of
wills to gain any measure of success to try and get money out of them.
I will take you through the various chapters like ‘The
Balcony Scene’, ‘Terror on the 21st Floor’ ‘The Black Hole of
Calcutta’ in Glasgow’s Plantation, the man who came to life in a Glasgow
Pub, and many more very funny but sometimes life threatening incidents.
Why the title ‘Can You Come Back Next Week’ this was
the expression most often used by people who couldn’t or wouldn’t pay you
when you called and was guaranteed to give you that sinking feeling in your
stomach, as your wages depended a great deal on what you collected plus of
course you had to sell to keep up the level of collections in order to survive.
Various well known Publishers have described the book as
‘well written’, ‘funny’, ‘evocative’ and ‘The Narrative Flows’.
Sadly none of them have been able to publish it.
Now through the medium of the Internet I hope many
people will be able to enjoy my ‘Experiences as a Salesman’, which brought
me a great deal of pleasure and enjoyment.
I trust you will find the same pleasure and enjoyment from my book.
Click HERE To Open Sample Chapters
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