witterings on OS life

mardatha
mardatha Posts: 15,612 Forumite
edited 8 December 2009 at 9:46PM in Old style MoneySaving
Husband & i were talking (:D we do sometimes) about how much life has changed since the 50s when we grew up, and how hard it still is. Then we decided that people sometimes make it harder than it needs to be.. for instance - growing up in the 50s, you had one fire in the house, usually coal. Your mum stayed at home and cooked nice big dinners and made cakes, and used veg from the garden. You played outside all of the time or read a book at the fire. So, only one income but low outgoings.

Take todays family...like my daughter's. All bedrooms have to be heated because they all play/study/slob around in their own rooms. All rooms have a mix of playstations, computers, tvs, x-boxes, wi-fi. The living room has a tv and 2 computers. All this has to be paid for.

Most women work (they want to or have to). They rush to childminders, rush to work, rush to shops, picking up dropping off kids all day, inc weekends and evenings to clubs & activities. They have to juggle all this with cooking and cleaning and cuddling.This all has to be paid for, inc petrol.

We get bombarded with ads on what healthy children need/dont need/must eat/cant eat. We "must" have expensive soap powder that comes in tablets/sachets/liquid with wee fancy dispensers.. We "must" have softener or else we are being cruel & terrible, forcing our kids into rough clothes that will surely damage their skin .... We "must" have silly little wipes smelling of disinfectant that cost a fortune to wipe the whole house with...

Which one has the easier life ? The 1950s woman or todays ? We earn so much more money now - but look what we're doing with it ! Maybe we're all hamsters on a wheel...:rolleyes: with the big company bosses peering in, chortling and rubbing their hands as they count their profits !

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  • Olliebeak
    Olliebeak Posts: 3,167 Forumite
    Hear, hear, Mardatha!

    No wonder so many people are opting out of the 'ratrace' of Life and looking for something much saner.

    I don't remember my childhood being rushed - apart from me rushing home for my tea when 'called in' because it was ready :rotfl:!
  • purpleivy
    purpleivy Posts: 3,573
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    I love your 'witterings' Mardatha.
    [SIZE=-1]"Knowledge is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is not putting it in a fruit salad"[/SIZE]
    Trying not to waste food!:j
    ETA Philosophy is wondering whether a Bloody Mary counts as a Smoothie
  • cuddlymarm
    cuddlymarm Posts: 1,890
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    Hi

    I quite agree with you. Today you are dependent on 2 wages because it is expected that you provide your children with a room of their own, with games, holidays, designer clothes etc and it is ironic that you need to spend the money you earn on ready made pies, burgers etc because you haven't got the time or energy to make them. I am a child of older parents (and I was a child in the 60s) and my dad took it as an insult when my mum wanted a pin money job because it would look like he wasn't providing for us. The money wasn't allowed to be spent on anything that he should provide ( bills, shoes, clothes etc) The only credit they had was the mortgage and the car (which when was paid off was replaced with a newer model) I think that these were more simpler times and you didn't expect as much at xmas or for birthdays. The problem now is that we are all running round like mice in a wheel to pay the interest on all the credit that we use rather than saving up for things and telling the children that they will have to wait till what they want is saved up for.

    Oh you've got me feeling all nostalgic now
    Cuddles:rotfl:
    🎄December 🎄 NSDs 11/15
  • Penelope_Penguin
    Penelope_Penguin Posts: 17,288
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    edited 3 December 2009 at 11:15AM
    mardatha wrote: »
    Husband & i were talking (:D we do sometimes) about how much life has changed since the 50s when we grew up, and how hard it still is. Then we decided that people sometimes make it harder than it needs to be.. for instance - growing up in the 50s, you had one fire in the house, usually coal I have 3 coal fires (we put them back into our Victorian house after previous occupants removed them :rolleyes: ). Coal fires certainly aren't labour saving :confused: central heating makes life much easier than the 50s :D Your mum stayed at home and cooked nice big dinners and made cakes, and used veg from the garden. I still do that and so do plenty of people I know. Admitedly, I work 2 days a week, but a chest freezer allows me to batch cook so we have a HM meal even on my work-days :D You played outside all of the time my children played out loads when they were smaller; it's a myth that it's more dangerous these days for children - they're at danger from the motor car rather than strangers, so teaching road-sense goes a long way or read a book at the fire DS 14yo has just discovered the Twilight series, so reads by the fire each evening :D So, only one income but low outgoings. My PT income for a charity is so small that we rely on DH's income. We have low outgoings, and I'm not unusual amongst my friends in this :D
    Take todays family...like my daughter's. All bedrooms have to be heated because they all play/study/slob around in their own rooms. All rooms have a mix of playstations, computers, tvs, x-boxes, wi-fi. We have one TV and it's in the sitting room. We have a laptop that is in the living room. Apart from when the children are doing homework at their bedroom desks we spend a lot of our family time together in the sitting room, kitchen, or garden The living room has a tv and 2 computers. Our TV has an off switch and I used it when they were small ;) TV was only on if someone was watching, and this habit continues in the children. It's not difficult :confused:All this has to be paid for.
    Most women work (they want to or have to). They rush to childminders, rush to work, rush to shops, picking up dropping off kids all day, inc weekends and evenings to clubs & activities. They have to juggle all this with cooking and cleaning and cuddling.This all has to be paid for, inc petrol.
    We get bombarded with ads Where :confused:My TV has an off switch, and there's always the BBC with no ads :confused:on what healthy children need/dont need/must eat/cant eat. Have we become incapable of making up our own minds as to what's best for our families :confused:We don;t have to do what others tell us :D We "must" have expensive soap powder that comes in tablets/sachets/liquid with wee fancy dispensers.. :confused: We "must" have softener or else we are being cruel & terrible, forcing our kids into rough clothes that will surely damage their skin .... We "must" have silly little wipes smelling of disinfectant that cost a fortune to wipe the whole house with...Must we :confused: who says

    Which one has the easier life ? The 1950s woman or todays ? We earn so much more money now - but look what we're doing with it ! Maybe we're all hamsters on a wheel...:rolleyes: with the big company bosses peering in, chortling and rubbing their hands as they count their profits !

    I think it's sometimes easy to look to the past with rose-coloured specs, and forget the difficulties. The main improvement in my life over my forebears is reliable contraception. I've been able to limit my family, thereby giving me choices, and I'd suggest, a better life for my children. Whatever time and money I have is split between 2 of them rather that 4 or more.

    I wouldn;t be without my washing machine and electric iron. My weekly laundry takes an hour or two of my time, rather than a day or more.

    And I have the vote, I'm able to own property in my own right, and able to make decisions for myself, without recourse to my husband or father.

    Are these not all progress?

    Mardatha, I'm interested to know. How did you bring your children up, and why do you think that their way of life now is so different from what you'd like them to have?

    I have a great life, but maybe as a liberated woman who can think for herself, that's easy :D

    Penny. x
    :rudolf: Sheep, pigs, hens and bees on our Teesdale smallholding :rudolf:
  • Hmm interesting - I can't do a long reply as I am a SAHM and am cooking a nice big dinner for my two children and H who will be home from school and work for their lunch in 15 mins ;)

    I'll be back!

    Norman x
    Bon App's Scraps!
    :)
    MFb40 # 13
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 16,065
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    I have a great life, but maybe as a liberated woman who can think for herself, that's easy :D

    Penny. x

    Will you adopt me please? :D:D:D
  • greenbee wrote: »
    Will you adopt me please? :D:D:D

    Of course - are you happy to move to The North, as I couldn't negotiate the Robin Hood Roundabout every day :rotfl:

    I can then retire from cake decorating :kisses3:

    Penny. x
    :rudolf: Sheep, pigs, hens and bees on our Teesdale smallholding :rudolf:
  • greenbee
    greenbee Posts: 16,065
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    Of course - are you happy to move to The North, as I couldn't negotiate the Robin Hood Roundabout every day :rotfl:

    I can then retire from cake decorating :kisses3:

    Penny. x

    Just working out how to fit my cake decorating stuff and my le creuset into the car and I'm on my way :beer:
  • greenbee wrote: »
    Just working out how to fit my cake decorating stuff and my le creuset into the car and I'm on my way :beer:

    Oooh, more Le Creuset - Triker will be soooooooooo jealous :rotfl:
    :rudolf: Sheep, pigs, hens and bees on our Teesdale smallholding :rudolf:
  • thriftlady_2
    thriftlady_2 Posts: 9,128
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    edited 3 December 2009 at 11:47AM
    I don't know Mardatha, you make some valid points but I have to agree with Penny, we don't all buy into the modern way of life that your daughter seems to have done.

    We have only one tv and one computer. The kids have a wii now too but they spend just as much time reading, crafting (dd has just taught herself to crochet) playing the drums:eek:. My youngest spends a huge amount of time playing outside with neighbouring children in our quiet cul-de-sac. The boys go for bike rides and run errands for me by foot or bike.

    I tell my kids 'if it has to be advertised on tv then you don't need it'. When those ads for cheese strings or juice with added calcium come on there's a chorus of 'why don't you just drink some milk?' from my kids.

    And it goes without saying we eat homecooked meals every day.

    And don't forget how hard doing the weekly wash was without modern washing machines.
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