The Original Greenies.

[surfergirl]

Being Green

Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the older woman, that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren't good for the environment.

The woman apologized and explained, "We didn't have this green thing back in my earlier days."

The young check out chick responded, "That's our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations."

She was right -- our generation didn't have the green thing in its day.

Back then, we returned milk bottles, cool drink bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.

But we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags, that we reused for numerous things, most memorable besides household garbage bags, was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our schoolbooks. This was to ensure that public property, (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags.

But too bad we didn't do the green thing back then.

We walked up stairs, because we didn't have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn't climb into a 200 kilowatt machine every time we had to go two blocks.

But she was right. We didn't have the green thing in our day.

Back then, we washed the baby's nappies because we didn't have the throw away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up kilowatt hours of energy -- wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days. Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing.

But that young lady is right; we didn't have the green thing back in our day.

Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house -- not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Tasmania .

In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn't have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, we didn't fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power. We exercised by working so we didn't need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she's right; we didn't have the green thing back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull.

But we didn't have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the tram or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their mums into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances.

And we didn't need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint.

But isn't it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn't have the green thing back then?

So don't we appreciate the old generation. We young folk can learn a lot from the old ways.

[Miss Bea]

Days gone by....

[surfergirl]

Reading this reminded me of how products like a sterio & washing machine used to last & last forever. The brands you paid for had a good reputation & were dependable.

 

I once visited Jenolan Caves when I was younger they had light globes that lite up the entrance to the caves, They were made dating back to when the first lot of globes were originally made.  Now they aren't.

 

in my late teens & early 20's Dad used to repair washing machines & fridges. My job was also to take a washing machine strip it done to the gear box & take out the oil & change the used part & replace it, or maxibond a hole in a pipe if the hole was as big as say a 5 cent piece, You could do all that & that was like saving the enviroment because whatever was no good went to the metal yards & you got paid for the scrap metals.

 

Now the washing machines are twice as expensive, You can't replace the parts they are plastic & the gearbox is attached to the bowl & is as big as a 425g tin of tuna. So they are useless. &  you  might as well by another for the cost of repairs.

In away our society is forced to be waistful.

 

I remember the paper bags before the plastic, most parts of Aussie have now made it illegal to have plastic bags or bottles. &  You gotta to pay for the ones they supply. twisted world. lols.

 

[Miss Bea]

We had an older washer. An automatic, but still old. It washed a load in an half an hour or so. It broke down, and regretfully, we bought a new one. It is computerized, and the minimum time for a wash is one hour. I go back to the old May Tag wringer washer. I'd almost trade one of them for this thing I have. But I hear they cost more then the thing we bought. Still hanging out clothes, though...no dryer. And I don't particularly want one. My big up-grade when we finally got electricity from a company was the freezer. And I am still smiling over that one!

[timpin]

reading this online is one thing, but trying to read it to someone out loud - i couldn't stop laughing about 3/4 way through   ... you must try it.

[pnutts]

My first car was a 1967 Pontiac Laurentian with a 283 cu in V8 ( a small V8 with carb back then ) and got 25 MPG ( Imperial gal  4.54 L as opposed to US Gal 3.78 L ). A few years ago I had a 1995 Ford Winstar  ( 3.8 L engine 6 cyl fuel injection - got rid of at 360K Km ) which I could get up to 30 MPG. Next I had a 2000 Volvo S70 ( 2.44 L 5 cyl fuel injection ) and I could get 38.5 MPG although on high test gas.

Now I have 2005 Ford Freestar ( 4.2 L 6 cyl  fuel injection ) and average 25 MPG on hwy ( if kept about 95 Km/hr - sometimes I have got as high as 27 mpg ) Already rebuilt tranny at 136K Km.

 

Let's see 25 MPG with V8 and carburetor ( now I know how to get 30% increase with carbs for under $10  - gas was expensive 65 cents per Imp Gal - 4.54 L ) and now 40 years later have a vehicle gets same mileage with more efficient fuel injection and gas is $1.25 per Liter or about $5.71 Can per Imp gal.

 

Yup things have got better.