WE OFTEN say "nowt's as good as it was" but of course that is far too sweeping. Perhaps what we should say is: "Lots of things aren't as good as they were."

Something we tend to take for granted is the difference in the reliability between present-day motor vehicles and those of the past.

The recent short wintry spell really brings those sort of things home to you. Nowadays, with a few exceptions, you go out, turn the key and your car, van, tractor, wagon or whatever usually springs into life. Believe me twer not always so.

I wish I had a pound for every time I've had to take out the spark plugs, clean them with a wire brush and heat them on the kitchen fire on the coal shovel. It was always said that when you were screwing hot spark plugs back in you should sing because if you didn't you might learn to swear.

Often warm clean and dry plugs would do the trick - if it didn't there was nothing else for it, you had to tow the vehicle off.

Then began the search for a chain or strong rope. If you were having a job finding one that was perhaps another occasion when you should be singing.

Of course, you also needed another vehicle that was already running before you could tow. Before 9am you could rely on the good nature of the milk wagon driver to "Give us a tow".

If all else failed we had a white shire mare called Dolly who could be relied on to give a gentle steady tow without trying to bolt when an engine flew into life.

Towing with a brash sort of horse would be a bit like having a tow from a brash kind of driver who let out the clutch too suddenly - perhaps pulling off a front bumper. So I give thanks for the engineers who gave us today's more reliable vehicles.

Having lived in the hills for more than 40 years I think we can say we have served our time to dealing with conditions of snow and ice. When we'd had a warning of snow we would open the fell gates and sheep that were used to it would make their way down and others would follow. At least you knew you had them fairly safe and if there were many missing you would check the places where sheep had been buried in the past. If there were none there it was a pretty safe bet any others would have dropped down into the wood seeking shelter.

Before hoggs went to winter we would often fasten them inside a building to teach them to eat hay because, when they became ewes and spent the winter on the fells, if they'd never learned to eat hay they might well refuse it and even stand back and die before they would eat.

Once you knew your sheep were safe, you looked after your cattle inside and then concentrated on trying to clear the road of snow as it was pretty sure you would be blocked in.

Next time I'll tell you how Westmorland County Council dealt with the snow and ice without the modern equipment.

Dialect word: Smittle meaning infectious.

Thought for the day: The noon and the weather may change together. But a change of the moon does not change the weather.