Just Janet

This first chapter is dedicated to Maxine for designing me an awesome front cover and Lou for letting me use her photo :) mucho gracias xx

Chapter 1

That's not my name

The Ting Ting's

“JANET!!!”

My mum bellows across the playground, Jesus that woman's voice can go straight through your ears like it were knives! Her high pitched voice cracking glass as it travels. All the other parents turn to look at her as she bounds her way across the car park heading straight for her very embarrassed and distressed daughter who once again, is in a sticky predicament.

In faded Adidas track suit bottoms with a no go elasticated waist, complete with 3 stripes either sides and a plain coloured polo t shirt, she looks every part of a stressed out mum with a full time job and 3 kids.

7am-3pm Monday to Friday my mum packs CDs in a factory for a company called MP Mailing Ltd. Its a huge factory in the centre of a small town called Hoddesdon. Inside this factory there is a production line of mammoth per portions, solid wood benches the length of the factory with cardboard boxes piled as high as one could reach. each workstation had 4 boxes; 1 of CDs, 1 envelopes, 1 leaflet, 1 to put the finished product in and 1 roll of double sided tape. At the tender age of ten I was convinced by all accounts I was not to end up like my mum! This was where all the mums on the edge worked! Every mum on a stall here had a story to tell and many kids to feed. It was the kind of job you could leave at any time if you kid was sent home from school sick because you didn't get paid hourly, only on the work you did. Unless you filled 2000 envelopes then you weren't really going to last long there.

It was the same mundane thing day after day, month after month thing that really did my head in seeing my mum work there.

I guess you could block the chit chat of gossiping parents out by the radio. MP mailing really was like a giant sand pit, but for parents. The work was so was simple, that’s probably why when we all came back from school we were roped in to help.

AOL was massive in its hay day, it was the first internet provider that was trying to get America On Line (excuse the pun) They had brought the world wide web to Americans homes, now they were after world domination. This is where MP mailing get involved. AOL would send out CDs to every home offering the fastest dial up in the land. This was junk mail and 9 times out of 10 thrown away once dropped on peoples door steps, if only the great British public knew how much effort went into their junk mail! After seeing all this effort I now have a new found respect for junk mail, it may be shit offering me half price double glazing for the flat I don’t own but at least I take the time to open and read it!

1 CD would be put into an envelope followed by 1 leaflet explaining how to set up the internet on you computer. Next it was sealed with a piece of double sided sticky tape, breaking this and fixing a 5inch piece to the envelope was no match for anyone's nails! Mum permanently had really worn out run down hands that made her look years older than she was. She never wore nail varnish, but with a nemesis such as double sided sticky tape no varnish stood a chance.

Finally, it was placed in a box ready for shipping. At the best part of 9p an envelope it was daylight robbery, no wonder mum switches off when I start moaning at my £5.10 per hour occupation I’m like a sultan compared to how she had it. I do have a respect for my mum, I don’t know how she did it but she did, and for 8 hours a day. All that mixed up and that explains the physical and mental image of my mum Sheila Dawson.

"What have you done now!!?"

I'm 10 years old and have managed to get my average shaped head stuck in the railings at school. How did I get there you ask? looking for a fruit salad? The boys told me to do it? probably a mixture of both. By this point all the kids in the playground have pulled my skirt up and laughing profusely, covering there mouths and trying not to laugh. No one rushes over to to help, its another one of those moments of 'just Janet'!