A Blast From The Past
Brother Rick & Me about 1964-
The idea for this posting comes from a fairly recent post by christian v.. It also incorporates some thoughts from an email I received several years ago.
Some memories of growing up in the early 1960s:
You could play outside, or just sit on the curb, until either a meal was served, or it was time to get ready for bed. (Yes, we were taught about strangers with candy but it wasn't a common reality.)
We built tree forts, played hide-and-go-seek and freeze tag. There were hula hoops and skates that required keys to affix them to your shoes. Penny candy really cost a penny! A run through the sprinkler was a treat. Playing cards were clipped to the spokes of one's bike to make a cool sound.
You could go home for lunch during the schoolday, and bring friends. Mom's (mostly) didn't work, and usually didn't drive. Why bother, there was only one car!
Girls had headbands and bobby pins, and a bit later there was lip gloss!
You were wary of the dangers of the wringer attachment on the washer. Television was a sacred thing... only Mom & Dad were allowed to touch it.
You might not like your teacher, but you respected him/her. One's parents never ever took sides against a teacher.
On the downside, freezers needed a weekly defrosting, unless you were the type of people who only needed ice.
TV dinners tasted of cardboard... well some things never change.
Restaurants were all closed on Mondays, and grocery stores were all closed on Sundays.
Sunday morning broadcasting consisted of only religious programming. (I did love "Davey and Goliath.")
Jello salads were plentiful, and (I believe) considered one of the food groups.
Telephone lines were shared, and called party lines. This was only a good thing if your neighbor was a gossip.
Lunchmeat was either bologna or olive loaf. Don't offer up Spam, that was baked with a pineapple slice atop, and served for dinner!
Women frequently wore both curlers, and a mumu to the store.
Smoking was allowed everywhere. People even smoked in the grocery store! This was another good reason to wash your fruit and vegetables upon arriving home.
Last, but not least, if you were real bad, there was the belt!
posted by SierraBella | 11:14 AM
6 Comments:
Lovely piece! It's interesting to get the 50's perspective form someone who actually lived it. That picture takes me back...sort of. I am reminded of rummaging through Grandma's pics when I'd visit in NY and seeing the old sepia and black and white's of my dad and my 2 aunts when they were kids in Brooklyn and later on Long Island.
I love your writing, have I mentioned that? You were a cute kid. I don't think I've mentioned that either.
A few questions though: What's the difference between "freeze" tag and normal tag? Sure it was a penny but was it good (How many seconds did the flavor last)? Even skinny women wore mumu's?
Oh, allow me, all size women wore mumus, or "floats," or "housedresses."
SierraBella, this really took me back. I started first grade in 1966, I think. Can you imagine being in the grocery store with curlers or mumu now? We'd be taken away by nice men in white coats. I still love the sound of a card in bike spokes. I went "outside to play" in the morning and would not be seen at home again until lunch or maybe even dinner time. I may have been in the woods, in a "fort." My daughter knows nothing of that kind of freedom and independence; it's just not safe.
BTW, I just tried to post this, and your blog isn't accepting me as a "blogger," I had to do the "other" thing. Don't know what that means.
Hello christian!-
My father's family was from Rochester NY... I remember swimming in Lake Ontario (before pollution.)
Guess I was cute. Just yesterday, though, a 22 year old boy asked me for my phone number!
If I remember correctly, freeze tag went something like: If IT tagged you, you'd have to freeze in place. But if someone made it to the earmarked safe spot, all the frozen kids were unfrozen, and could continue the game. I'm pretty vague on this, it has been a looooong time!
Yeah, even skinny women wore mumus!
susie!
I'm hoping the problem you encountered was temporary. Maybe it was because I was posting my reply to christian at the same time?
I remember my grandmothers wearing those belted housedresses, and they always had a hankie or a Kleenex stuffed under the belt.
I did recently see a woman at the local market in what appeared to be pajamas!
I liked Davey and Goliath, too. I also remember party lines. Those were a drag.
squirl-
Our party-line was shared by the neighborhood's biggest gossip, so it was sometimes interesting...
But being the biggest gossip required her to be on the phone constantly!
Hope your birthday (yesterday) was great!
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