Thursday, June 7, 2012

1970 prices




We are still riding in the Way Back Machine...it's 1970 and we're headed to Fayetteville, Arkansas where you could buy a nice little house for $23,000 or a brand new car for under $4,000. Gas was only 36 cents a gallon, eggs were a quarter a dozen and that 8 track stereo tape player we wanted so badly was $38.99! I can't imagine how we lived on our little paychecks, but somehow we did. We just lived a lot different than young couples do now. For one thing our rent was $75 a month, can you imagine what you'd get for that these days? The only pictures I have of that apartment is our first Christmas tree, no people, just the tree. We had one of those little Kodak Instamatic cameras, the one with the cube flash on top but picture taking was way down my list of importance at that stage of my life! The furniture in this retro pic has the horrible Danish Modern furniture that furnished our first place. Avocado green ruled the universe in 1970!

A few years later when we bought a house, we added a fireplace just like this. When it was on, it got so hot it became a fire hazard after about 15 minutes. So, basically, we didn't use it... it just looked cool. Shag carpet, yeah baby, and we had a carpet rake... did you have one of those?

We learned a lot of things that first year. Like don't blow your whole week's food budget on a "fun weekend"... and don't write weekend checks on a deposit made on Friday after hours. We learned to scrimp and save for the things we wanted, I think it made us appreciate the things we had even more. If I had asked my parents if things were ever rough for them, I'm pretty sure they would have recalled times when their month stretched longer than their paycheck. And I know for sure that my Grandparents struggled to hold onto their farm during the Great Depression.  

Along the way they learned that happiness can't be bought. They worked hard and saved where they could until one day they had a little left over at the end of the month. Then they just kept going down that road, saving where they could. They grew gardens and ate meatless meals and were wise about the purchases they did make. It's more important now than ever to make each dollar count. 

Grandpa used to say he "traded" at Pruitt's Grocery. He had the choice of two groceries at Lead Hill and he went to the one that greeted him by his name when he walked through the front door. That means a  lot even now. 

Every generation we have the chance to teach our children the things that are really important. Just make sure going barefoot and picking beans are on that list!          

10 comments:

  1. That fireplace is still way cool!!..love this post..

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    1. I loved that fireplace, don't think it would match a thing I have now!

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  2. Yes, we had a shag rake! I hated shag. Have you ever tried to clean up baby throw-up on a shag carpet? Not pleasant!

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    1. Thought I'd done just about everything... but I've never done that!

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  3. Love this post! We had shag carpet in this house, back in the 70s and a rake. And there were many times I found myself cleaning vomit, among other things, out of it.

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    1. Touched a nerve with this one... if you ever had avocado green, raise your hand!! :)

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  4. I love those two chairs in the first picture. Classics!

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    1. We had those chairs in our first apt. and you couldn't get comfortable if you tried! They are very Retro, prob. cost a few $$$ if you can find them at a flea market. Now we have reclining sofas, my old fanny needs comfort!

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  5. Well, guess what? Shag is back. It is much shorter now and has a twist to the fiber. I am loving it.i! Only now they call it something else. I just put it in my living room and master bath.....

    Remember blond furniture? I had some end tables in the modern style that were blond.

    Could we be seeing a trend slowly back to some of those old ways.....Wal Mart is building a much smaller just grocery store fairly near us...not a super center. Be interesting to watch developments.

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    1. I DO like the new shag, that soft chenille that is so pretty! I haven't bought them but I'm thinking I need a bath set for sure. Oh yes, blond furniture was so in when I was a kid. Even our tv cabinet was blond! Glenda, are you close to the one on M highway? That's near my sister in laws house and she loves it! You will like the Neighborhood Markets, they are in and out... my favorite thing.

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