Great-Granny
My Great-Grandmother was a tough old lady from Chesterfield. She died in about 1987 aged 96 and I remember meeting her and hearing all about my layabout Great-Grandad who left her for another woman and how she had to work hard all her life to provide for her children.

When she was 88 she decided that the living room in her bungalow needed re-wallpapering. Rather than get someone in to do it for her, or getting her son or my father or uncle to do it for her, she decided to do it herself. She got a stepladder, the wallpaper, and did three walls fine.

She was just finishing the last wall when the accident happened. She hadn't secured the ladder properly and she fell off and broke her leg... potentially a death sentence for a lady of 88. Apparently she crawled to the phone and called my grandfather who lived in Derby at the time, then whilst waiting for him to turn up drank whisky to keep the pain away.

She was in hospital for a while, recovered fine, and moved back into her bungalow.

A few days later my grandparents went to visit her. She was up the damned stepladder again, wallpapering the ceiling and steadfastly refused help or to stop.

That is dedication. Or stupidity. I'm not sure which.
(Zapiola zip-zap-zop, Fri 4 Apr 2008, 1:23, 1 reply)

I have an 80-something grandfather
who is still working as an electrician despite his age and having fallen off a ladder a few couple years ago. Every year he says he will retire soon.
( flirting with badgers What? It sounded good at the time., Fri 4 Apr 2008, 5:33, closed)