Remembering things with fondness from days gone by

hollydolly

hollydolly

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Location
London England
What do you remember fondly from your younger days that are no longer in existence or have changed beyond recognition? ( people aside)

Although these were largely phased out when I was a child, I remember these old cage Lifts( elevators) with great fondness.

The fun of riding one of these in the department store with the lift man taking us for a ride up to what seemed to us kids as heaven or down to the deep dark basement was a joy to us on the odd occasion we got the chance.. .

I remember some were really luxurious, with seating inside too...

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I loved the glass-fronted elevators one of the downtown large department stores had. You could see all the floors flashing by and the elevator mechanisms. They were the first self-operated large elevators in town and for the first couple of years, the store had to keep an elevator operator in each car to reassure the older shoppers that they were safe. It was probably the easiest job in town, because all they did was stand back in the corner until someone freaked out about the buttons.
 
Growing up on my grandmother's small farm.

From my vantage point as a little kid, it was perfect. I was too young to see all of the work and worry associated with the farm way of life.

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Pappy said:
I miss the old homestead. It was in the country, on a large hill that overlooked the valley where our small town was. On foggy mornings, we were in the sun and the valley was filled with fog. Fresh air and good cold spring water.
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Sounds a lot like my daughter's place in Spain, Pappy.... A little piece of heaven
 
I remember those elevators. We had one in a bank my mom used. I remember getting off and running to the window to look out over the town. I thought I was so high but in reality I was only about 4 floors up.
I miss the sound the radiators made as the heat came up after my Dad shoveled in the coal. The sound comforted me.I felt warm and safe. When I came home from school in the winter my Mom would put my bunny slippers on top of the radiator so they would be nice and warm. Back then kids actually walked to school and those rubber boots weren't very warm.
Watching my Grandma make jelly and melting wax to pour over the jelly to seal them.
 
Lovely memories for you Ruth

...talking of jelly ( jello to you)... reminded me that my grandmother had no fridge, and she made jelly all the time, and to set it, she would run about 2 inches of cold water in her bath, and sit the bowl in there. It always set like rubber..:D
 
So funny Holly. I was talking about jelly made from fruit you use as a spread on bread but you reminded me of a funny thing my Grandma did with jello,the one you are referring to. She thought since jello tasted so good maybe it would make a nice cold drink on a hot summers day. She filled old soda bottles with it and stuck the bottles in the ice box. Of course when it came time for the nice cool drink it had jelled in the bottles and wouldn't come out. She never lived that one down.
 
I remember my old farming days as well. I'm darn glad I stopped doing it when I joined the Navy, but it was interesting and definitely...……...WORK!
 
Ruth n Jersey said:
So funny Holly. I was talking about jelly made from fruit you use as a spread on bread but you reminded me of a funny thing my Grandma did with jello,the one you are referring to. She thought since jello tasted so good maybe it would make a nice cold drink on a hot summers day. She filled old soda bottles with it and stuck the bottles in the ice box. Of course when it came time for the nice cool drink it had jelled in the bottles and wouldn't come out. She never lived that one down.
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Early Jell-o shot development.
 
hollydolly said:
Most people here still have clothes lines RR... Mine is an extendible one that reels out from the wall when I need it . I use my dryer all the time, but the clothes line is a boon when I want to dry Duvet's and pillows, or rugs
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I still have a clothes line, too. There are some things I don't want to put in the dryer. Using the clothes line always reminds me of my mother. There's something comforting about clothes flapping in the sun and breezes.
 
Butterfly said:
I still have a clothes line, too. There are some things I don't want to put in the dryer. Using the clothes line always reminds me of my mother. There's something comforting about clothes flapping in the sun and breezes.
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I agree with you Butterfly...on a sunny day there's something very comforting about seeing sheets drying on the line in the sun.
 
I think every house here has a washing line. Some older houses have communal 'drying greens' - an area with lines for common use.

I miss (although some still exist) the good old hardware shops where you could buy things in the quantity you wanted - not boxed or 'bubble packed'.
 
Capt Lightning said:
I think every house here has a washing line. Some older houses have communal 'drying greens' - an area with lines for common use.

I miss (although some still exist) the good old hardware shops where you could buy things in the quantity you wanted - not boxed or 'bubble packed'.
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We have 2 within 10 minutes drive of our house... One is a family business been in the town for about 50 years..
 
I notice that my local hardware store is up for sale (owner retiring). This is a farming area and there are plenty of stores to support the farming and building industries. I can buy most things at a good price, but usually in larger quantities than I want. There are fewer shops that cater for the casual DIY person who only wants small quantities.
 
Capt Lightning said:
I notice that my local hardware store is up for sale (owner retiring). This is a farming area and there are plenty of stores to support the farming and building industries. I can buy most things at a good price, but usually in larger quantities than I want. There are fewer shops that cater for the casual DIY person who only wants small quantities.
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yes we also live in a farming area, but close enough to a market town to make things simple for shopping. although much of it is changing rapidly..:D
 
My grandmother would hand-make everything she sent for Christmas. Cloth dolls, fudge, peanut brittle, afghans, knitted gloves and hats, embroidery on pillowcases, and Maple Syrup from her own trees. She lived in upstate NY. Everything would come delivered in a gigantic box every year. The anticipation was so exciting.
 
I miss the dime stores too, also called 5 & 10 cent stores. They had more, even pet fish. They had lunch counters, fresh baked goods, photo-booths, cosmetics (Evening in Paris and Tangee, lol)-seems like everything was cleaner and neater, as well.
 
RadishRose said:
I miss the dime stores too, also called 5 & 10 cent stores. They had more, even pet fish. They had lunch counters, fresh baked goods, photo-booths, cosmetics (Evening in Paris and Tangee, lol)-seems like everything was cleaner and neater, as well.
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Did yours also have the dyed baby chicks at Easter? I had a few of those...early 60’s I think. Then it was banned because it was considered cruelty.
 

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