Gaye Levy
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There is a tendency in all of us to compare the old to the new. This is especially true in the preparedness community where in anticipation of hard times ahead, we look to our parents and grandparents for ideas for living a self-reliant and sustainable life.
I have been thinking about that a lot lately; even to the extent that I have considered sewing up some long skirts and pioneer-style aprons that will hold up to a week or two of wear without laundering. Seriously.
Anyway, the following piece has been circulating the web for awhile. I thought it was worth bringing back since it describes a not-so-long ago time when the term “green” referred to the color of your grass or the money in your pocket (green stuff).
As I was reading this, it occurred to me that many of these old-fangled ways of doing things fall right in line with what each of us would be required to do in a crisis or emergency with limited sources of power, few goods available on the shelves, and a cost of living so high that there was little left for discretionary spending.
Perhaps it is time to redefine “green” in old-fashioned terms as we strive to live our lives the old fashioned way.
The Old-fashioned, Old Fogey Rules of Sustainability
In the line at the store, the cashier told the older woman that she should bring her own grocery bag because plastic bags weren’t good for the environment. The woman apologized to him and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”
The clerk responded, “That’s our problem today. The former generation did not care enough to save our environment.”
He was right, that generation didn’t have the green thing in its day. Back then, they returned their milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.
But they didn’t have the green thing back in that customer’s day. In her day, they walked up stairs, because they didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building. They walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time they had to go two blocks.
But she was right. They didn’t have the green thing in her day.
Back then, they washed the baby’s diapers because they didn’t have the throw-away kind. They dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts – wind and solar power really did dry the clothes. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right; they didn’t have the green thing back in her day.
Back then, they had one TV, or radio, in the house – not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief, not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen, they blended and stirred by hand because they didn’t have electric machines to do everything for them.
In summer, they slept with the windows open, perhaps even out on sleeping porches, because most homes and apartments lacked air conditioning. Some people still live in those archeological relics in most cities today. When they packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, they used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.
Back then, they didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. They used a push mower that ran on human power. They exercised by working so they didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she’s right; they didn’t have the green thing back then.
They drank from a fountain when they were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time they had a drink of water. They refilled their writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and they replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But they didn’t have the green thing back then.
Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or rode the school bus instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. They had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And they didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.
But isn’t it sad the current generation laments how wasteful the old folks were just because they didn’t have the green thing back then?
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The Final Word
To use a cliché, there is some serious stuff going down. My tin foil hat is rattling itself as it sits on the shelf, and I am at full-time alert waiting for the next shoe to drop. Because of that, I chose to lighten things up today. Stay tuned for more of our regular programming on Wednesday!
Enjoy your next adventure through common sense and thoughtful preparation!
Gaye
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48 Responses to “Living Life the Old Fashioned Way”
I regret that there was no one in my family to teach me the old ways. Knitting, making soap, sewing, etc. The only people that will survive around me will be the Mennonite families.
You don’t have to regret, find out where you can learn then use that as part of your preparing. You might be surprised who also knows or wants to know how to do these things.
You may want to check the local nursing homes. The people there would love to have someone come by and just talk about old times!
O you got that one right. Take video too because you’ll learn a lot in watching and reviewing not just their words but their body actions.
I love this article! I grew up learning the frugal ways of my grandparents. I have many friends who think I have a screw loose for doing things the old-fashioned way, such as reusing, repurposing, etc. They also think I am crazy for wanting to live more self-sufficiently. One day they will understand and then it will be too late, I’m afraid.
LOL *In my best ole lady voice crackling with age*
“Why sonny, I AM that former generation. It’s not about generations, it’s about where you live or have lived…citified or country. You see, in the country, when we went to town we took baskets for the small items we needed. Usually those baskets contained produce and eggs we exchanged for ‘store bought’ necessities like thread and needles or a sharp bladed axe.
Bags? That’s what flour, feed and other items came in because we bought those by the 10, 25 and 50 pound bags which when emptied, we turned into dresses, shirts, quilts and other things we used. We didn’t call it “green” we called it “surviving and practical.”
I am an ole woman (64) but I don’t get upset or offended when I hear remarks like the young man made. I simply laugh because as the oldest daughter of 10 children, I learned to teach others. I still do that. Now I teach how it used to be done, how I do it now, and then ask how the student would change it.
Dee, I can almost hear you talking. Of course, since I’m 65 I may just be getting senile! 🙂
And you all know that I am a crazy OLD prepper lady, right? Emphasis on the OLD.
What a wonderful post today. Thank you for all the memories it brings back. I am one of six children. Our family went through a lot of milk. I remember walking to the store about a mile from the house. I had an empty gallon milk bottle in each hand, swinging my arms back and forth. Can you guess what happened? Yep. Both bottle arrived at the same spot behind me at the same time…and hit. That bottle deposit for new jugs came out of my 13 year old allowance. I never did that again.
Things are supposed to be easier now, and I grant you that some things are. But I do not have pleasant memories of going to the store or putting my wash into the dryer, do you? It seems we are either hurrying to get somewhere or hurrying to finish something.
You would think Hurricanes Sandy and Katrina would be enough for people to at least stand up and take notice to be a bit more prepared. I guess not.
not necessarily, my friend. it was katrina that made me realize that the government won’t necessarily rescue people (especially if they’re poor and black, but that’s another issue). by the time sandy blew through long island, and we couldn’t get gasoline for 2 weeks because of spotty power outages, i just stayed home, nice and comfy with enough food, water and meds to last even longer. and i’m sure i’m not the only one.
My favorite example of “old fashioned” skills being beyond the ability of many younger people nowdays is one that happened many years ago…post Hurricane Hugo in 1989! We were not nearly so electronically attached to the world then as we are now!! I can only begin to imagine how stymied some of these people would be today under the same circumstances.
We were many days without electricity, but when grocery stores finally opened up, selling only non-refrigerated goods, I ventured out to the local Piggly Wiggly. I collected the few items I needed and went to the check out. The poor young girl checking the groceries was in way over her head. She not only couldn’t add the purchases up without use of her calculator, but even with it couldn’t do multiple purchases of the same item (ie, 3 cans of beans at $.89 each) without many restarts, but had to ask for help figuring out how to come up with “2 fer” prices when I only bought 1. There were 2 people working in the store, both older men, who could add with pencil and paper! Very sad and very frightening on many levels!
I can only imagine how few stores have employees who can operate without their computerized equipment … especially with frightened, agitated, and armed shoppers standing in line to get their items and get home.
I have known a couple of people that could go through the store, tossing things in the buggy, seeming to not be paying any attention to what they get. But when they went to check out they had the correct cash, to the penny, waiting before the cashier was halfway through ringing everything up!
I usually have a general amount figured up, but not exact. Why not? Because I’m lazy and will let the register tell me the exact amount. Maybe I need to quit being lazy!
I was one of those who knew to one or two cents how much my groceries would be. Life got in the way and sometimes we must let go of some things in order to get others things. My way of saying a major car accident with TBI shut that down, but allowed me to discover other things. We are never too old and for sure, just because a shoe drops, doesn’t mean we can’t find a use for that one if or when that ‘other’ one stops by. 😉
so true. i saw a piece online where someone made a couple of simple modifications to an old tennis shoe, then nailed it to a tree trunk, and birds nested in it!
I love this! So true! Wish I knew the clerk and could hand deliver a copy to him!
I’m hoping there is only “the other” shoe to drop…your “next shoe” reference is disquieting; though looking around, I suppose ‘next’ makes more sense. I always look forward to checking in here…keep up the good work!!!
Great timing on this post Gaye.
I’m up in central Minnesota visiting my older relatives who were farmers. Their parents were homesteaders before them. The stories have been coming fast and furious about what life was like back in the day and I have been gobbling them up with a spoon taking notes.
My family is making the transition back to that way of living and it’s been wonderful to see how our family did it and thrived.
It’s ironic that I now work at a big gym where people pay money for the chance to lift heavy things. On our Homestead, hard work will be a part of our daily life instead of something we have to schedule between work and commuting. I can’t wait.
Take care!
The attitudes of the ignorant, protected younger people is, sometimes, amazing. In the event of a grid down situation, or economic collapse, or any of a dozen other disasters that reduces life to what their parents lived, they would not be able to survive.
Sometimes I have to shake my head and give a chuckle, other times I want to give them a good shaking.
But then, I guess there have always been people like that.