The New Boys By Abbey Molyneux

The New Boys

By Abbey Molyneux

The time has finally come, much to mine and Jakes relief we are no longer the new kids on the block! I’ve always had the reputation of collecting up old tools that everyone else writes off as rubbish, much to Charlie’s amusement. Not a day goes by where he doesn’t run through the door with a rusty old spanner he’s dredged up from an old bilge shouting “ Ere Abbey, du want this? You like all this old rubbish don’t ya!”. Not only that but I seem to have been labelled as a bit of a pikey as well, which I suppose is fair enough. If there’s a pile of off cuts or some rusty metal lying around I’m usually not far behind with a bucket collecting up anything vaguely useful. As for Jake, well, it can be hard not to take the mick out of Jake, even I participate in this. When he first started he was a bit like Dopey from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, living only 2 streets away from the Pioneer he drives in every morning with his music blaring and still manages to turn up late most days, despite living the closest to work out of all of us. Me n Aidan concocted a plan just last week after Jake had brought in £30’s worth of Sharpie’s (marker pens) he had won in a raffle. He was adamant that we weren’t to try and steal them but by the end of the day we had hidden the whole lot in a deflated dust extractor and after much persuasion we managed to lure him up stairs and get him to flick the switch on the extractor, launching all the pens into mid-air and scattering round the workshop floor like a broken rainbow…he didn’t look to pleased but after 5 or 10 minutes he looked at us both with a smirk on his face and said “Banteeerrrr!”. Although just so you don’t think were being mean…Jake is never short of snidey comments about my recycled skateboard shelves and the 60’s fridge I have proudly placed in my dining room as a drinks cupboard.

Now The New Boys have arrived it has finally taken the pressure off me and Jake, we’ve got new people to include in the Banter. Little Charlie didn’t make it easy for himself, on his first day here he practically jumped in the skip and started hoiking out copper wiring with a cheeky pikey like grin on his face. On his second day he had bought and old catalytic converter off Big Charlie and within 2 days had doubled his money down the scrap yard. So Little Charlie has certainly taken my place as resident pikey…now

I can sneak round filling up my ruck sack and know body notices. When Jake and Liam left the gig workshop to make their oars there was a silence…I couldn’t believe it. It was like music to my ears, no more South Park quotes or bad willy jokes, all you could hear was the rain pattering on the roof it was lovely. Then Tariq and Tyler started and the silence was gone. Now the room is filled with commentary on who killed who and who drove what on Grand Theft Auto last night. And of course Tariq FM Tune in any time between 8 and 4 to hear the bad renditions of bad 80’s songs with a hint of Taylor Swift (if you’re really unlucky)

Although we all have a moan now and again, the banter in this place is what keeps it so entertaining. It wouldn’t be the same without the willy jokes and bad karaoke and lets face it if Jake turned up on time every day, we’d have to think of a new morning joke. Its great having new people on the team, were constantly rotating and constantly learning and that’s why we’re all here.