Past Recessions - what were your experiences?

bo_drinker

Snooze wrote: »

:huh:

How exactly does one "turn off" the internet? Is there a central on/off switch somewhere then? :rotfl:

For the internet to be "turned off" as such, they'd have to take away everyone's modem and/or cut off everyone's phone line - something that would simply never happen. :rolleyes:

And by the way, who is "they" ?????? Source?

Rob

There is a big switch somewhere, a bloke down the pub was telling me. "They" are the other blokes down the pub and at work. :rotfl:

John_Pierpoint

amcluesent wrote: »

I don't like recession era food -

Pigs trotters
Jellied pigs head
Hazelnut 'coffee'
Carrot cake (made with swede)
Oxtail
Tripe & Onions
Gooseberries
Fish-paste sandwiches

Yeuch!

Don't think I've had pig's head or hazelnut coffee - the others are OK, its just a matter of how hungry you are.
Pig's ear is OK too but there is a little meat on one side and nothing on the other.

oldMcDonald

fc123 wrote: »

You know what Amc? You are on my list of New Years resolutions. I am going to award myself a prize if I can dig you out of the doom feeling by Dec 2009.

A sample post by Amc in Nov 2009 will read so positively by then, he will be in shock himself.

Oh dear.....

I thought he was joking!

fc123 - if he really is so full of doom that he was being serious, I will put in a few pennies towards that prize myself!

.....they may not be worth that much by then, though, what with all the bird-flu, wars, four horsemen trotting about etc. etc.

baileysbattlebus

I can remember the last recessions going back to the 1970's. I was 19 in 1973 when OPEC imposed an oil embargo on those countries that supported Israel during the Yom Kippur war.
That was global - we had the 3 day week (you only got paid for 3 days and had to go and sign on every week to get a day or two's benefit - it was paid in cash too, so you had to collect it). The electricity workers imposed and over time ban, then the miners did the same, we had rolling power cuts - no unecessary lighting, Christmas lights etc, the miners finally went on strike in early 1974.
We had food shortages, I remember queueing for bread and sugar. Candles cost a fortune (supply and demand?).

Offices and shops were unheated and it was a cold winter. Petrol shot up in price - you queued to get any - petrol stations ran out frequently. There was a 50mph speed limit introduced on motorways and other roads.

It was a rough time, there were shortages and deprivation for most people, obviously essential services carried on working full time and hospitals did not have power cuts. If you were lucky you were on the same part of the national grid as a hospital or fire station - most people weren't though.
1/2 a million people lost their jobs during that winter (73/74), oh, and house prices fell too.

What followed in terms of recessions did not have the impact of the early 1970's, during the 1980's and 1990's it was financial, there were job losses and falling house prices, failing businesses and loss of manufacturing, but there were no shortages, you could go out and have a meal or go to the cinema if you wanted - the lights stayed on.

The 1970's was the worst I have experienced, most people had less money because of the 3 day week and along with the shortages and power cuts it was not a pleasant time, the fact that it was through the winter made it a lot worse ofcourse.

It's strange how things affect you, I always keep a box of candles in the cupboard under the sink in the kitchen - there was nothing worse than having a power cut and no form of lighting, just sitting in the dark. Sad, eh?

Davesnave

It's strange how things affect you, I always keep a box of candles in the cupboard under the sink in the kitchen - there was nothing worse than having a power cut and no form of lighting, just sitting in the dark. Sad, eh?

Snap! A whole biscuit tin full of candles! Oh, and we've just bought three of those wind-up torches too. I won't forget those 70s cuts.

fc123

oldMcDonald wrote: »

Oh dear.....

I thought he was joking!

fc123 - if he really is so full of doom that he was being serious, I will put in a few pennies towards that prize myself!

.....they may not be worth that much by then, though, what with all the bird-flu, wars, four horsemen trotting about etc. etc.

I think, with the effects of inflation still being debated.....because we don't have a clue if we are going to have deflation or hyper inflation...I am starting a prize box scheme. Pop a bag of chick peas. brown rice, mung beans in a box every so often. I may run a few boxes...one for !!!!!! and Dopestar too. A house warming gift for when they buy their first homes.


And I am so relieved....I always have candles under the sink...so I know where I can find them in the dark + a box of matches.....I didn't ever realise it was from a memory of the 70's. I have always done it and OH has always thought it was normal too. I think we've had 1 power cut once in S E London when the local grid got cut off for 3 hours.....and I have had my own under the sink cupboard for 25 years.

fc123

John_Pierpoint wrote: »

Don't think I've had pig's head or hazelnut coffee - the others are OK, its just a matter of how hungry you are.
Pig's ear is OK too but there is a little meat on one side and nothing on the other.

You can make a nice purse out of a pigs ear too...or was it a sows ear? Are the boy pigs ears tougher than the girl pigs ears?
What's the expression? silk purse out of a sows ear??

treliac

amcluesent wrote: »

I don't like recession era food -

Pigs trotters
Jellied pigs head
Hazelnut 'coffee'
Carrot cake (made with swede)
Oxtail
Tripe & Onions
Gooseberries
Fish-paste sandwiches

Yeuch!

Revolting !! And I don't eat meat anyway. Never seen hazelnut coffee and hardly ever gooseberries. I shall obviously starve.

fc123

Davesnave wrote: »

It's strange how things affect you, I always keep a box of candles in the cupboard under the sink in the kitchen - there was nothing worse than having a power cut and no form of lighting, just sitting in the dark. Sad, eh?

Snap! A whole biscuit tin full of candles! Oh, and we've just bought three of those wind-up torches too. I won't forget those 70s cuts.

I am worrying now...my old dad stored loads of tins in our cellar during the 70's. He was asking me about my ''stores'' recently. I don't have any 'stores'...well a bag of chick peas and brown rice and processed cereal...that's it really.
He's old now, so I ignored him....that sounds terrible but sometimes old people can go on and on and you are never sure what are the gems in what they are saying and what is the paranoid, old person information that is no longer relevant to our time.

He said we had tins in case of nuclear war...I never knew when I was a kid that that was the reason for tins in the cellar...and bottled fruit in kilner jars that my mother made.

He told me Xmas day he has stocked up the cellar again......

SingleSue

Davesnave wrote: »

It's strange how things affect you, I always keep a box of candles in the cupboard under the sink in the kitchen - there was nothing worse than having a power cut and no form of lighting, just sitting in the dark. Sad, eh?

Snap! A whole biscuit tin full of candles! Oh, and we've just bought three of those wind-up torches too. I won't forget those 70s cuts.

Strangely, I do the same! The kids used to ask why I did and I always replied "In case of a power cut" and they would give me that weird look that kids always give when they think the parent has gone a bit mad.

First power cut we had and they were so happy that good old mum had thought of it plus also had a camping gas cooker to make cups of tea and dinners on!