I GUESS I'm.....

[olddawggreen]

OLDER THAN DIRT

:eek: :eek:



'Someone asked the other day, 'What was your favorite fast food when you were growing up?'

'We didn't have fast food when I was growing up,' I informed him.

'All the food was slow.'


'C'mon, seriously.. Where did you eat?'

'It was a place called 'at home,'' I explained.. !

'Mom cooked every day and when Dad got home from work, we sat down together at the dining room table, and if I didn't like what she put on my plate I was allowed to sit there until I did like it.'
By this time, the kid was laughing so hard I was afraid he was going to suffer serious internal damage, so I didn't tell him the part about how I had to have permission to leave the table.

But here are some other things I would have told him about my childhood if I figured his system could have handled it :

Some parents NEVER owned their own house, wore Levis , set foot on a golf course, traveled out of the country or had a credit card.

In their later years they had something called a revolving charge card The card was good only at Sears Roebuck. Or maybe it was Sears & Roebuck.

Either way, there is no Roebuck anymore. Maybe he died.
My parents never drove me to soccer practice. This was mostly because we never had heard of soccer. I had a bicycle that weighed probably 50 pounds, and only had one speed, (slow).

We didn't have a television in our house until I was 5.

It was, of course, black and white, and the station went off the air at midnight, after playing the national anthem and a poem about God; it came back on the air at about 6 a.m. and there was usually a locally produced news and farm show on, featuring local people.


I was 13 before I tasted my first pizza, it was called 'pizza pie.'

When I bit into it, I burned the roof of my mouth and the cheese slid off, swu ng down, plastered itself against my chin and burned that, too. It's still the best pizza I ever had.


We didn't have a car until I was 4. It was an old black Dodge.


I never had a telephone in my room.

The only phone in the house was in the living room and it was on a party line. Before you could dial, you had to listen and make sure some people you didn't know weren't already using the line.

Pizzas were not delivered to our home. But milk was.

All newspapers were delivered by boys and all boys delivered newspapers --my brother delivered a newspaper, six days a week. It cost 7 cents a paper, of which he got to keep 2 cents. He had to get up at 6AMevery morning.




On Saturday, he had to collect the 42 cents from his customers. His favorite customers were the ones who gave him 50 cents and told him to keep the change. His least favorite customers were the ones who seemed to never be home on collection day.

Movie stars kissed with their mouths shut. At least, they did in the movies. There were no movie ratings because all movies were responsibly produced for everyone to enjoy viewing, without profanity or violence or most anything offensive.


If you grew up in a generation before there was fast food, you may want to share some of these memories with your children or grandchildren. Just don't blame me if they bust a gut laughing.

Growing up isn't what it used to be, is it?

MEMORIES from a friend :

My Dad is cleaning out my grandmother's house (she died in December) and he brought me an old Royal Crown Cola bottle. In the bottle top was a stopper with a bunch of holes in it. I knew immediately what it was, but my daughter had no idea. She thought they had tried to make it a salt shaker or something. I knew it as the bottle that sat on the end of the ironing board to 'sprinkle' clothes with because we didn't have steam irons Man, I am old.

How many do you remember?


Head lights dimmer switches on the floor.
Ignition switches on the dashboard.
Heaters mounted on the inside of the fire wall.
Real ice boxes.
Pant leg clips for bicycles without chain guards.
Soldering irons you heat on a gas burner.
Using hand signals for cars without turn signals..

Older Than Dirt Quiz :

Count all the ones that you remember not the ones you were told about

Ratings at the bottom.

1 Blackjack chewing gum
2. Wax Coke-shaped bottles with colored sugar water
3. Candy cigarettes
4. Soda pop machines that dispensed glass bottles
5. Coffee shops or diners with tableside juke boxes
6 . Home milk delivery in glass bottles with cardboard stoppers
7. Party lines on the telephone
8. Newsreels before the movie
9. P.F. Flyers
10. Butch wax
11. TV test patterns that came on at night after the last show and were there until TV shows started again in the morning. (there were only 3 channels [if you were fortunate])
12.. Peashooters
13. Howdy Doody
14. 45 RPM records
15.. S& H greenstamps
16 Hi-fi's
17. Metal ice trays with lever
18. Mimeograph paper
19 Blue flashbulb
20. Packards
21. Roller skate keys
22. Cork popguns
23. Drive-ins
24. Studebakers
25. Wash tub wringers

If you remembered 0-5 = You're still young
If you remembered 6-10 = You are getting older
If you remembered 11-15 = Don't tell your age,
If you remembered 16-25 = You're older than dirt!


I might be older than dirt but those memories are some of the best parts of my life.

[BwdLions]

Thanks for sharing that olddawggreen. I remember many of those items. (Not all, but many of them).

[Pick6]

I won't tell my age but I'm almost older than dirt. :(

Those were the best times. Families just don't get it anymore. My kids still sit at the table with us if they don't want to eat or don't like what we're having for dinner. They eat that or there next meal is breakfast the next morning.

[carter08]

i like 45's.

mostly because i can get them super cheap and they always have 2 good songs on them.

[44INAROW]

Originally posted by BwdLions
Thanks for sharing that olddawggreen. I remember many of those items. (Not all, but many of them).
me too - especially the bottle with the stopper with holes in it. When I was about 11 or 12, I used to iron the linen napkins and table cloths for the dining room table using a bottle with a stopper with holes in it (it was a COKE bottle though lol)

Mimeograph paper - when I was in elementary school, I loved to go to the "teachers office" at the high school with my momma and watch her "cut stencils" and run them off on the mimoegraph machine. That smell was intoxicating :p

Does anyone remember "cutting stencils" for classrooms?

[waterboy]

:eek: I guess I'm older than dirt! I remember nearly all of that stuff! We didn't have a TV until I was 12. It was a 9" black and white "portable", there were only about 3 stations (the picture wasn't very good on a couple of them sometimes), and they would "sign off" at about midnight, maybe 1:00 AM on weekends, telling you the wattage, frequency, and where the main tower was located, then play the national athem, then the dreaded monotone electronic noise until it woke you up to turn the TV off. Sad times indeed! Good memories, though.http://www.smileyx.com/smilies/character0032.gif

[Ranger Mom]

Remember the wax candy that was kinda like a harmonica...but not a harmonica....anyway, it was orange and you could blow in it and make a whistling sound.


Also....I loved zots!!

:thinking: This is ringing a bell, I think we have discussed this before!!

[waterboy]

I remember them wax harmonica looking doohickies! I love them! I also remember when Cokes were 10 cents, bubble gum was a penny, and it cost 50 cents to go to the picture show.:(

[Pick6]

RM's favorite Candy Lipstick

http://www.treasureislandsweets.co.uk/acatalog/product_candy_lipsticks.jpg

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Pick6
RM's favorite Candy Lipstick

http://www.treasureislandsweets.co.uk/acatalog/product_candy_lipsticks.jpg

Those don't even look familiar!!

[Pick6]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
Those don't even look familiar!!

You really don't remember them? Well you are older than I am, they probably hadn't invented sugar yet when you was still a kid :D

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Pick6
You really don't remember them? Well you are older than I am, they probably hadn't invented sugar yet when you was still a kid :D

:tongue: :tongue:

No....I am pretty sure those candy cigarettes were pure sugar!!:)

[pirate4state]

S & H greenstamps were those the stamps that got you dishes at grocery stores?

Cigarette candies were the shiznit :smoker:

[Bullaholic]

Olddawg, I know all the young folks hate to read posts where all of us "oldtimers" rememeber "the good old days", but I remember everything on that list, and like you, lived it.

Those were the days when the family unit was largely intact and every family member knew their roles and what they could expect as a member of our society. Respect and manners were not just words, but were actually practiced. The kids of this generation will experience wonders we can only dream about, but I sure wish they could retain some of the good things from the past without discarding them like yesterday's newspaper. I know I'm preaching to the choir, Olddawg----don't forget to take your Geritol and your pills, and I hope you stay regular. :D

[WildTexan972]

and even though we only had a b&w tv, it came with a remote control.....ME

dad never moved but he got the channel changed whenever he wanted by telling me where to twist that clunky knob to....

and when an actual remote was invented on those new fangled VCRs it had a 30 ft cord on it attached directly to the unit....

cable tv meant you lived in a town with NBC, ABC, CBS and public access tv no less.....so in Lubbock we had 4 channels....take THAT bub

and my parents smoked....almost everyone smoked, and everyone on tv and in movies did....and when my mom needed more she sent me on the bike to go get more....she handed me a dollar and ordered 2 packs and let me spend the rest on whatever I wanted from the candy section....

and I walked to/from school on good weather days (days that ended in Y were good weather days) starting in 1st grade.....mom dropped me off the 1st day and asked if I knew how to get home - YES MAAM was the expected answer and that was that....no more training was needed....

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by Bullaholic
Olddawg, I know all the young folks hate to read posts where all of us "oldtimers" rememeber "the good old days", but I remember everything on that list, and like you, lived it.

Those were the days when the family unit was largely intact and every family member knew their roles and what they could expect as a member of our society. Respect and manners were not just words, but were actually practiced. The kids of this generation will experience wonders we can only dream about, but I sure wish they could retain some of the good things from the past without discarding them like yesterday's newspaper. I know I'm preaching to the choir, Olddawg----don't forget to take your Geritol and your pills, and I hope you stay regular. :D

Those were the good ole days....weren't they??

I remember riding all over town with my friends on our bikes....never thought about checking in. If we didn't come home before dark, THEN and only THEN did our parents start calling around or come looking for us.

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by WildTexan972
and even though we only had a b&w tv, it came with a remote control.....ME

dad never moved but he got the channel changed whenever he wanted by telling me where to twist that clunky knob to....

and when an actual remote was invented on those new fangled VCRs it had a 30 ft cord on it attached directly to the unit....

cable tv meant you lived in a town with NBC, ABC, CBS and public access tv no less.....so in Lubbock we had 4 channels....take THAT bub

and my parents smoked....almost everyone smoked, and everyone on tv and in movies did....and when my mom needed more she sent me on the bike to go get more....she handed me a dollar and ordered 2 packs and let me spend the rest on whatever I wanted from the candy section....

and I walked to/from school on good weather days (days that ended in Y were good weather days) starting in 1st grade.....mom dropped me off the 1st day and asked if I knew how to get home - YES MAAM was the expected answer and that was that....no more training was needed....

Did you ever have one of those TV's (I think when the remote controls first came out) that would change channels if you stood in front of it with a metal slinky and let it "slink" from hand to hand???

[Pick6]

My kids didn't believe that I was 30+ years old when I got my 1st cell phone :eek:

[waterboy]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
Those were the good ole days....weren't they??

I remember riding all over town with my friends on our bikes....never thought about checking in. If we didn't come home before dark, THEN and only THEN did our parents start calling around or come looking for us.
If they did ever have to come find us, we knew what was gonna happen when we got home, too! Ouch!:D

[WildTexan972]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
Did you ever have one of those TV's (I think when the remote controls first came out) that would change channels if you stood in front of it with a metal slinky and let it "slink" from hand to hand???


the early remote model tvs would hop all around to different channels (any of 4) if you jingled keys in front of them....

as for the new VCR, my mom had it programmed (we called it "set") to tape Days of Our Lives daily so we were not allowed anywhere near it for fear of messing up the setting.....that nearly $900 unit got used daily and I bet we were not allowed to watch more than about 2 movies on it before I graduated high school, since there was not really a such thing as a Video Rental Store....

and if ya got licks at school they called your parents and no lawsuits were filed....you just got lots more when dad got home...

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by waterboy
If they did ever have to come find us, we knew what was gonna happen when we got home, too! Ouch!:D

LOL!! I always liked it when my brother and sister got their "whoopin" first, so I could count the number of swats so I knew what was coming!!!

The sound of a belt ripping through belt loops still makes me cringe!!!

[44INAROW]

Originally posted by waterboy
If they did ever have to come find us, we knew what was gonna happen when we got home, too! Ouch!:D
I know that's right..

[waterboy]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
LOL!! I always liked it when my brother and sister got their "whoopin" first, so I could count the number of swats so I knew what was coming!!!

The sound of a belt ripping through belt loops still makes me cringe!!!
Oooohh, I'll have to remember that if we ever meet! I'll just rip my belt through the loops for old times sake!:D

My mom and dad divorced when I was about 8 or so, so it was my mom who did all the whoopings around our house. My 3 brothers and I got in trouble on a regular basis! Imagine that!:D She'd make us go out and pick the switches she was gonna use on US! If they didn't last long enough (usually about 30 to 40 strikes on each of us after we dropped our pants), she would go out and find a pole!:( I remember just about every time we would go over to my grandmother's house, she would go out back and pick a few switches from the Weeping Willow she had. Of course, we would ask her WHY she was picking switches (because we wanted to make sure we weren't in trouble, I guess:rolleyes: ) Those things would HUM she'd swing 'em so hard! God rest her soul, my mom had a definite mean streak, but I definitely loved and respected her.

[44INAROW]

Originally posted by WildTexan972


and if ya got licks at school they called your parents and no lawsuits were filed....you just got lots more when dad got home...
I never got licks but I did get sent home numerous times for wearing a SHORT SKIRT/DRESS :D :D :D since my mom taught at the high school, I'd go to mom's room, get her keys, drive home, change clothes and ride around and smoke about 5 cigarettes and spray "Charlie" on the AC vents of the car and go back to school. After about 5 times, between Mr Scott, the principal and my mom - they figured out I was doing it on purpose :)

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by waterboy
Oooohh, I'll have to remember that if we ever meet! I'll just rip my belt through the loops for old times sake!:D

My mom and dad divorced when I was about 8 or so, so it was my mom who did all the whoopings around our house. My 3 brothers and I got in trouble on a regular basis! Imagine that!:D She'd make us go out and pick the switches she was gonna use on US! If they didn't last long enough (usually about 30 to 40 strikes each), she would go out and find a pole!:( I remember just about every time we would go over to my grandmother's house, she would go out back and pick a few switches from the Weeping Willow she had. Of course, we would ask her WHY she was picking switches (because we wanted to make sure we weren't in trouble, I guess:rolleyes: ) Those things would HUM she'd swing 'em so hard! God rest her soul, my mom had a definite mean streak, but I definitely loved and respected her.

I distinctly remember 3 "spankings" (and I use that term loosely) that me, my brother and sister all 3 got....and by George, I was innocent in one of them and sorta innocent in the other two!!! (Darn intercom system anyway!!!)

Here it is 35-40 years later and I still remember it like it was yesterday!!!


:eek:

[waterboy]

Originally posted by Ranger Mom
I distinctly remember 3 "spankings" (and I use that term loosely) that me, my brother and sister all 3 got....and by George, I was innocent in one of them and sorta innocent in the other two!!! (Darn intercom system anyway!!!)

Here it is 35-40 years later and I still remember it like it was yesterday!!!


:eek:
:eek: What? I guess you didn't really act up until you got old enough to get away with it......;) I, on the other hand, usually got at least one whooping a day! I musta been a little slow........or just plain ornery!:D

[waterboy]

Originally posted by 44INAROW
I never got licks but I did get sent home numerous times for wearing a SHORT SKIRT/DRESS :D :D :D since my mom taught at the high school, I'd go to mom's room, get her keys, drive home, change clothes and ride around and smoke about 5 cigarettes and spray "Charlie" on the AC vents of the car and go back to school. After about 5 times, between Mr Scott, the principal and my mom - they figured out I was doing it on purpose :)
You rebel, you!;)

I've got a confession to make:

I wrote my own absence and tardy notes in high school.:( I skipped school a few times just to go party all day and stuff. I guess I was just a bad person.:(

[Ranger Mom]

Originally posted by waterboy
:eek: What? I guess you didn't really act up until you got old enough to get away with it......;) I, on the other hand, usually got at least one whooping a day! I musta been a little slow........or just plain ornery!:D

We got spankings A LOT...I guess I just remember those three because all 3 of us were involved in it....and it hurt like hell!!!

My dad used to make us show him our whelps afterwards......that would probably either be child abuse or sexual abuse in today's society.

[KingRob]

OMG, I never thought I was older than dirt, but I do remember a lot of those things listed. Especially the wax coke bottles! I used to love those things!

I also remember the coke shows at the Rialto theater in Cuero. 6 bottles (GLASS!!) of coke got you in to see Godzilla and King Kong flicks.

I also remember how the neighborhood kids used to run after and play in the chemical fog when the mosquito trucks would drive through. The driver would be hanging out his window waving at us. All us kids out of breath and breathing in these toxic fumes.

Oh the good times. Where does time go?

[Old Green]

I remember all those things and things not on the list. So I'm o;der than dirt;)

[LH Panther Mom]

Originally posted by Old Green
I remember all those things and things not on the list. So I'm o;der than dirt;)
Me too!

[Sweetwater Red]

I'm 38 and I remember 13 of those 25 things.

[LH Panther Mom]

Some comedian (I forget who...) did a thing about "back in the day". I think the thing I remember most was "The President's on......He's on EVERY CHANNEL!!!!!!". When you only had 3 channels, it pretty much sucked! :D


I remember (vaguely) JFK being shot. I was a little over 4, and my baby brother was 8 days old. My Grandmother had just turned 50 the day before and was staying with us to help out. What I remember was not all that went on, but that cartoons got pre-empted. :( Every time I'd hear "the President's on....he's on every channel", it reminds me of that day.

Yep, I'm older than dirt.

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by LH Panther Mom
Some comedian (I forget who...) did a thing about "back in the day". I think the thing I remember most was "The President's on......He's on EVERY CHANNEL!!!!!!". When you only had 3 channels, it pretty much sucked! :D


I remember (vaguely) JFK being shot. I was a little over 4, and my baby brother was 8 days old. My Grandmother had just turned 50 the day before and was staying with us to help out. What I remember was not all that went on, but that cartoons got pre-empted. :( Every time I'd hear "the President's on....he's on every channel", it reminds me of that day.

Yep, I'm older than dirt.

Going back as far as I remember...the first thing I can think of is
the three major networks pre-empting programming due to the
Iranian hostage Crisis. How many of you remember Ayatollah Khomeini?

[LH Panther Mom]

Originally posted by Sweetwater Red
How many of you remember ayatollah khomeini?
:doh: I remember JFK being shot. What do you think? :p

http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/5360/imamkhomeinihasexiled.jpg

[Sweetwater Red]

Originally posted by LH Panther Mom
:doh: I remember JFK being shot. What do you think? :p

http://img198.imageshack.us/img198/5360/imamkhomeinihasexiled.jpg

Uh... you're like one or two years older than me?????:p

[olddawggreen]

Ah the memories!:) :)

[44INAROW]

Originally posted by KingRob
OMG, I never thought I was older than dirt, but I do remember a lot of those things listed. Especially the wax coke bottles! I used to love those things!

I also remember the coke shows at the Rialto theater in Cuero. 6 bottles (GLASS!!) of coke got you in to see Godzilla and King Kong flicks.

I also remember how the neighborhood kids used to run after and play in the chemical fog when the mosquito trucks would drive through. The driver would be hanging out his window waving at us. All us kids out of breath and breathing in these toxic fumes.

Oh the good times. Where does time go?
I remember the Coke SHows at the Rialto - seems like they were on Monday's during the summer? I also remember swimming in the bar-ditches when they filled up during a rain storm. (that scares the crap out of me thinking about that now) That water would be flowing super fast and we'd act like we were surfing :eek:

[garciap77]

I remember:

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/garciap77/ababestues1.jpg

:D

[Bullaholic]

Originally posted by garciap77
I remember:

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/garciap77/ababestues1.jpg

:D

No, you mean you never FORGOT....:D

[waterboy]

Originally posted by garciap77
I remember:

http://i220.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/garciap77/ababestues1.jpg

:D
Oh, my gosh! I used to fantasize about Ginger and Jeanie! They were HOT!:inlove:

[44INAROW]

Originally posted by waterboy
Oh, my gosh! I used to fantasize about Ginger and Jeanie!

together? :D :D

[waterboy]

Originally posted by 44INAROW
together? :D :D
:thinking: Not at the time, but...........:inlove: sounds delicious to me!:D

[olddawggreen]

I remember the hoola hoop contest during intermission at the theater on Ayers street in Corpus on Saturdays, 15 cent cheese burgers at Burger Chef, the fried shrimp at Ship Ahoy, the egg rolls at Chung King on Alemeda (Pretty exotic stuff back then ;) ).

Old wooden party line crank phone at our ranch house in Burnet county, two shorts and a long, black and white tv with one channel (channel 7, Austin). wow, sometimes it's easier to remember things from back then, than it is to remember what happened yesterday:doh:

[garciap77]

Originally posted by Bullaholic
No, you mean you never FORGOT....:D

Mary Ann was nice too!:D

[GrTigers6]

I'm 39 and I tell my kids when they tell me that 2 blocks is too far to walk to work, That when I was a kid we walked all over town. all day everyday. Of course I lived in Santa Anna so it was about a mile and a half wide and a mile deep. But still there was no place too far. My 15 year old says he can't walk 2 blocks to work. Also they couldn't believe that I didn't have a tv in my room until I was 30. At least my kids do know how to operate a rotary phone. :clap:

[waterboy]

My daughters are amazed when I tell them that we didn't have calculators when I was in school, no cordless phones, and no cell phones.:eek: We either walked or rode bicycles everywhere we went. Moma didn't carry us anywhere, hardly, except maybe to church and the kinfolks' house, although she did usually carry me with her to the grocery store. I was her walking caculator.;)