A MATTER OF PERSPECTIVE

Not too long ago, my oldest grandson asked me "Grandma, what were cars like back in the olden days?". The question took me by surprise. Not that he wanted to know about cars way back then, but that he referred to my younger days as the olden days. I responded with "Well, it wasn't THAT long ago.". Since I'm probably one of the oldest people he knows, I guess that when he thinks of me being younger, it seems like the olden days.

When I think of the olden days, I think of when my father was born back in 1904. Now that was really olden...long before automobiles, indoor plumbing and paved roads. In his personal history, my father writes about life in the olden days of Brigham City, Utah:

"The house was a one-story adobe one with an attic that was unfinished and only accessible by ladder to one of the windows at the gable ends. The house consisted of a parlor (which was rarely open for use), a dining room, two bedrooms, a pantry a lean to kitchen, and room intended for a bathroom but without any fixtures. The toilet was a 2 holer out in the back yard where a Sears Roebuck catalog usually served as toilet paper. The only water supply in the house was a cold water tap in the kitchen sink and the sink drain pipe extended through the wall and spilled the water on to the ground outside.

The only source of heat in the house in addition to the kitchen range was a small coal-burning heater in the dining room. This meant that the bedrooms were unheated and so were uncomfortably cold in the winter months. It was common practice on the coldest nights to heat a flat iron on the stove, roll it in rags or newspapers and put it in between the bed covers to keep the feet warm."

I guess the "Olden Days" are just a matter of perspective. For my grandson, it was life without video games, microwaves and iPods. For me, it was the lack of indoor plumbing, electricity, telephones and automobiles. This blog is mainly for the benefit of my children and grandchildren. I've realized that they may not know too much about me before I became their mom and grandma. I'm going to share the good times and the bad times of my life. Enjoy the trip back to my olden days.

Note: Excerpt from my Dad's life history is as he wrote it, including the punctuation or, lack of, in some cases. I was tempted to correct it, but refrained.