her post got me to thinking. People who design and buy upscale houses, perhaps had also grown up in one of those "little pink houses," (John Melloncamp, i think sang that song) where 6 or 7 people shared one bathroom. And in some families, kids shared bathwater - that's just gross! Bet i'm not the only person who adamantly believes that what's good about the old days is: they're gone ;) Some things ya don't forget.
Dad had a thing about having steak two or three times a week. Had asked Mom what was up with that, she told me Dad detested casseroles, because as a boy, there were times when real food for a real boy was ... eh, rather scarce.
But anyway, concerning the 1960s suburban houses, Dad was telling me, some years back - and i didn't know this - that in the development we lived in (after 7th street) that several neighbors would (evidently quietly) stretch out hoses, on wash day, to let out the used laundry-water, because those tiny 3-bedroom ranchers were connected to tiny septic-tanks. Think Dad said 1,000 gallons was the standard - think of 20 barrels.
That 'el fill up fast, from a household of half a dozen people, if not more, taking baths or showers. Oh wait a sec, back then, people generally didn't bathe every day..."splish-splash, I was takin' a bath, all along a Saturday night..." Imagine, a crowded commute bus on a july thursday afternoon, and no air-conditioning. Lovely :/
Almost got into it, offline, with someone starting in with the Americans-are-spoiled hogwash. Uh NO! Americans worked to acquire the nice stuff - and not only that, Americans have donated alot of money (they could have kept for themselves) to help other people. Americans enjoy the longest, healthiest, most prosperous lifestyles. And this American, isn't about to apologize for that.
No comments:
Post a Comment