Our dog would let the coalman in because he was bringing something into the garden.......the dustbin wasn't quite so fortunate when it came to 'stealing' our rubbish and taking it away......:o)
I remember the coal man coming,with dad working at the pit we got 10 loads a year of 19cwt each,the 20th bag going into a pool for the pensioners and men who were unable to work due to mining injuries.We were lucky in having a corner house with a seperate drive so the wagon could get right up to the bunker but the wagon couldn't get down the shared drives so the coal was drumped at the end of the drive and would have to be barrowed the rest of the way.