Chuckies shoes made me think of this.

I was four when, with a note from my mother, would go a few houses down to a store and get things for her.

My parents did not smoke, but I know that several kids with a note from their mother, would buy packs of cigarettes and think nothing of it.

I was gone from dark to dark as long as my chores or homework was done if I had any.

During the dark to dark period, I could be anywhere in the town, or at any of several friends' homes. You could not pinpoint where I was but could find me by calling around.

From 1-6 I lived in a small town. From 6-10 I live in San Jose, now not a city to mess with. From 10-18 I lived in a small town. All this time I was a free-range kid. I was born in 63.

Chuckies shoes made me think of this.

I was four when, with a note from my mother, would go a few houses down to a store and get things for her.

My parents did not smoke, but I know that several kids with a note from their mother, would buy packs of cigarettes and think nothing of it.

I was gone from dark to dark as long as my chores or homework was done if I had any.

During the dark to dark period, I could be anywhere in the town, or at any of several friends' homes. You could not pinpoint where I was but could find me by calling around.

From 1-6 I lived in a small town. From 6-10 I live in San Jose, now not a city to mess with. From 10-18 I lived in a small town. All this time I was a free-range kid. I was born in 63.



I was born in 62, and what you posted was true with me too! :) Also driving in the car, my Sister and I in the big back seat , even very little we weren 't in car seats , no seat belts even either and we would practically be jumping around back there sometimes, until Dad would tell us to stop! Not for safety reasons, but just because we were being annoying !! :D

No, back in the day (I'm about a decade older) there were no car seats or seat belts.

Meat for dinner thawed on the counter. Nobody ever heard of e coli or norovirus, just "germs."

Mercurochrome was red stuff you put on a cut and it had mercury. So did thermometers. Feeling ill and need to check your temperature? It also had mercury in the glass vial you put under your tongue.

Asbestos and lead paint abounded. We never heard of radon but we somehow made it through.

If you had an upset stomach your mother gave you paragoric, which evidently was an opiate. Ether was a gas that put you to sleep when your tonsils were taken out. Penicillin was the cure-all drug and it was always a shot--if you were (kind of) lucky it was in the arm, but if not, in the butt. Arthritis was called rheumatism. The common kid viruses were measles, mumps, and chicken pox and there were no vaccines to prevent them. If the flu was fatal we didn't know it at the time.There was a vaccine for the polio virus, one invented by Salk that was a shot, and a later oral one called Sabin.

Cars were huge, heavy, and gas was a few cents a gallon. Sirens that were tested were called air raid sirens. The Soviet Union was viewed as a threat and it was behind the "Iron Curtain."

In New Jersey traffic circles were hated and were to be gotten rid of. Now in many states they are making a comeback and are called roundabouts.

Dentists had spit sinks and there was no such thing as a dental hygienist--the dentist actually cleaned your teeth and did whatever else needed to be done. Fluoride was actually put on your teeth probably with a small cloth--it probably wasn't added to the water.

Every house had a black phone or maybe two, with a rotary dial. There was actually a human operator who could help you if you needed assistance. When you called a store or company a human being actually answered the phone. There were no recordings with press one/press two--in fact, the only telephone recordings were maybe weather and the time.

Fast food was not in the lexicon, but there were chain restaurants, the most well-known being Howard Johnson's (boy did I like their ice cream cake roll with chocolate sauce for dessert!) There were automats, which had food items behind a door, which operated with a coin insert.

Another thing not in the lexicon was the term "big business"--the biggest ones were maybe some department stores that operated in a couple of areas, maybe in Philadelphia and New York, for example. Banks were all local, as were most other businesses. Grocery stores had groceries, and that was it. Go to a hardware store or five-and-dime variety store like Woolworth's for other items; for drug items or prescriptions, go to the drug store, like Rexall.

Going to the dr.? Take $3, and pay the nurse at the desk. At most other places, pay cash also, but the department stores had what were called charge-a-plates. No pay at the gas pump either; in fact, an attendant pumped your gas and washed you windshield--he also checked your oil and didn't expect a tip.

No, back in the day (I'm about a decade older) there were no car seats or seat belts. Meat for dinner thawed on the counter. Nobody ever heard of e coli or norovirus, just "germs." Mercurochrome was red stuff you put on a cut and it had mercury. So did thermometers. Feeling ill and need to check your temperature? It also had mercury in the glass vial you put under your tongue. Asbestos and lead paint abounded. We never heard of radon but we somehow made it through. If you had an upset stomach your mother gave you paragoric, which evidently was an opiate. Ether was a gas that put you to sleep when your tonsils were taken out. Penicillin was the cure-all drug and it was always a shot--if you were (kind of) lucky it was in the arm, but if not, in the butt. Arthritis was called rheumatism. Cars were huge, heavy, and gas was a few cents a gallon. Sirens that were tested were called air raid sirens. The Soviet Union was viewed as a threat and it was behind the "Iron Curtain." The common kid viruses were measles, mumps, and chicken pox and there were no vaccines to prevent them. If the flu was fatal we didn't know it at the time.There was a vaccine for the polio virus, one invented by Salk that was a shot, and a later oral one called Sabin. In New Jersey traffic circles were hated and were to be gotten rid of. Now in many states they are making a comeback and are called roundabouts. Dentists had spit sinks and there was no such thing as a dental hygienist--the dentist actually cleaned your teeth and did whatever else needed to be done. Fluoride was actually put on your teeth probably with a small cloth--it probably wasn't added to the water. Every house had a black phone or maybe two, with a rotary dial. There was actually a human operator who could help you if you needed assistance. When you called a store or company a human being actually answered the phone. There were no recordings with press one/press two--in fact, the only telephone recordings were maybe weather and the time. Fast food was not in the lexicon, but there were chain restaurants, the most well-known being Howard Johnson's (boy did I like their ice cream cake roll with chocolate sauce for dessert!) There were automats, which had food items behind a door, which operated with a coin insert. Another thing not in the lexicon was the term "big business"--the biggest ones were maybe some department stores that operated in a couple of areas, maybe in Philadelphia and New York, for example. Banks were all local, as were most other businesses. Grocery stores had groceries, and that was it. Go to a hardware store or five-and-dime variety store like Woolworth's for other items; for drug items or prescriptions, go to the drug store, like Rexall. Going to the dr.? Take $3, and pay the nurse at the desk. At most other places, pay cash also, but the department stores had what were called charge-a-plates. No pay at the gas pump either; in fact, an attendant pumped your gas and washed you windshield--he also checked your oil and didn't expect a tip.

and nobody taught paragraphs. Way to hard to read.

Right. Tried to fix it up a little.

Oh, and they did teach paragraphs. I was absent that day.

:wave:Right. Tried to fix it up a little.

Oh, and they did teach paragraphs. I was absent that day.

:cool:

Chuckies shoes made me think of this.

I was four when, with a note from my mother, would go a few houses down to a store and get things for her.

My parents did not smoke, but I know that several kids with a note from their mother, would buy packs of cigarettes and think nothing of it.
.

When I first read the "Parents did not smoke" and read on, I thought you mean the mother would send the tots to buy cigarettes. I thought that is really nervy having the kids do the shopping but later thought little kids can't buy tabacco products.

Little kids did buy tobacco as long as they had a note. It wasn't until the 80s that people started cracking down on sales to minors.

Right. Tried to fix it up a little.

Oh, and they did teach paragraphs. I was absent that day.

LOL

if some wrote in " Today TEXT" they were call illiterate !

I’m confused stevea wrote in paragraphs and found it very easy to read. Oh maybe he updated it with paragraphs. Either way it was all true and very informative. I like how you could go down to the local grocery store and cash a check. My mother called it a charge a plate at the department store too. All coins were considered essential and $.50 was a lot of money in 1965.

Talk about going down memory lane. They were the good old days if you had a good life.

But it’s never too late to have a happy childhood. (Don’t start a sentence with but.)

I’m confused stevea wrote in paragraphs and found it very easy to read. Oh maybe he updated it with paragraphs. Either way it was all true and very informative. I like how you could go down to the local grocery store and cash a check. My mother called it a charge a plate at the department store too. All coins were considered essential and $.50 was a lot of money in 1965.

Talk about going down memory lane. They were the good old days if you had a good life.

But it’s never too late to have a happy childhood. (Don’t start a sentence with but.)

Actually, some claim it is okay to start a sentence with and, but, or...

Yes, check cashing and store credit. Many places would let you cash a personal check. In the movie, Adventures in Babysitting where the girl wanted to sign over the check she got from some other girl's mom to the hotdog vendor. We could do stuff like that at the mom and pop stores.

Lunch counters in drugstores

The hoses in gas station parking lots that rang bells when you drove over them

The ladies who worked in the produce section at the grocery who would weigh and bag your selections

Service bays in gas stations with "Mechanic on Duty" late into the evening

The Merry Mobile

Those machines in stores that you could test TV tubes with

One that really goes back further than the 50s and 60s would be the ubiquitous neighborhood grocery store with no parking lot, because people walked to them.

There were a few straglers left as "independents" in the 1960s, but if you go through an old city directory from like the 1920s and 30s...those small groceries were everywhere. Kroger, A&P, likely others regionally...frequently within a few blocks of another Kroger and/or A&P.

I used to notice buildings that were out of character with the other buildings around them and wonder why they were so unique. For instance a brick building covering a "lot and a half" with only wooden frame houses all around it, where the brick building had been cut up into duplex or triplex apartments....those odd duck buildings were the old neighborhood groceries.

Often they would try to differentiate themselves from the competition by one store offering the best price on cereals, while the other on meats, or fish, or produce...hoping that shoppers would come to them for the one, and then buy other needed items on the same visit. But some hardy souls actually had it in them to "make the rounds" on foot, and buy just the specialty items from each location.

Can you imagine people walking to the grocery today?

I’m confused stevea wrote in paragraphs and found it very easy to read. Oh maybe he updated it with paragraphs.

I did try to fix it with paragraphs. "Tanker" had a point. It was a mess of a read.

In fact as it originally was I doubt anyone would bother to read it. I think I dashed it off after a long day and wasn't really thinking about readability.

Lunch counters in drugstores

The hoses in gas station parking lots that rang bells when you drove over them

The ladies who worked in the produce section at the grocery who would weigh and bag your selections

Service bays in gas stations with "Mechanic on Duty" late into the evening

The Merry Mobile

Those machines in stores that you could test TV tubes with

Elevators with a person inside who operated it.

A person who collected tolls at the bridge, turnpike exit, or along the parkway.

Elevators with a person inside who operated it.

A person who collected tolls at the bridge, turnpike exit, or along the parkway.



Yes! ;)

Back in the day kids never called adults by their first name. It was always Hello Mrs. Smith or Hello Mr. Jones ! ;)

Yes! ;)

Back in the day kids never called adults by their first name. It was always Hello Mrs. Smith or Hello Mr. Jones ! ;)

Yes! That was a form of respect, which is really lacking today.

Lunch counters in drugstores

The hoses in gas station parking lots that rang bells when you drove over them

The ladies who worked in the produce section at the grocery who would weigh and bag your selections

Service bays in gas stations with "Mechanic on Duty" late into the evening

The Merry Mobile

Those machines in stores that you could test TV tubes with


I loved the lunch counter at Woolworth's !:) I remember out shopping with Mom and we stopped for lunch at Woolworth's lunch counter ! Such fun, a good memory ! :)

Speaking of Woolworth's , back in the day remember when they sold small pets ! :) The turtles were very popular ! That would not fly today, they were tiny little baby red eared sliders. Now there is a law, a red eared slider ( I guess other breeds too) can not he sold until they are at least 3 inches long ! It was found the babies carry bacteria, and besides that they really were too young and small, a lot of them didn't survive as pets! :(

I remember the hose you drove over at the gas station! That was cool! Ding Ding , and the gas station attendant would come over to the car ! :)

Yes! That was a form of respect, which is really lacking today.

And there were some adults that even if they weren't really an Aunt or Uncle , you could call them Aunt Jane or Uncle Bob, instead of Mr. And Mrs. Smith if they were close friends of your parents or something ! But never just Jane and Bob ! ;)

Speaking of Woolworth's ,

Or for that matter, Department Stores before the bloodbath of mergers. I used to love the way Department stores used to have distinct and unique character.
Here is a Long list that is sure to have a fond memory for everyone:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_defunct_department_stores_of_the_United_States

How about that clandestine area behind the counter at drug stores where merchandise that, while not legally restricted, was kept out of sight due to concerns over "decency"?

I remember the hose you drove over at the gas station! That was cool! Ding Ding , and the gas station attendant would come over to the car ! :)

I think when I was about 8, me and a couple friends went to a near by filling station, and found it was great fun to all line up on the hose, and jump up and down making the bell go crazy.
So, they would chase us away, and that just made it that much more fun, trying to "get in-get it on, and get gone" while the station manager would try to discourage us.

Lol he eventually started chasing us with a garden hose with a really effective nozzle. So we had to concede defeat

Which brings me to another "they can't do this anymore" thought. How about teachers who physically disciplined their students?

I remember at my old grade school their was this one sixth grade teacher who was notorious for his fondness with the "board of education". And the entire student body would usually start worrying at about grade 4 level, whether they would eventually end up in his class.

I was a kid all thru the '60's and so so much here reminds me of those times and how it was like then. My Dad used to take us to the Lafayette electronic store or even hardware stores as I recall and test TV tubes to get replacements.

He bought asbestos gloves for all of us to use, they really worked fire didn't burn them, I tried once. I love asbestos.

We had something called vermiculite as insulation in the attic. The attic was just beams and if you stepped in between the beams your foot went thru the ceiling below. My Dad did once have his foot go thru.

My Mom couldn't drive so we would take cabs and every cab I ever got into smelled like a smoking factory. Everyone seemed to smoke in a cab, at least they did in the cabs we took. If you were around adults you were around smoking and guess what, I'm still alive. According to today's "experts" you know those who love to command how you should live, I'm still alive. How's that possible, "experts"?:wave:

No lousy safety belts we all crawled around in the back of the station wagon as Dad drove. Our Dad would leave us little kids in the car all by ourselves with the windows down while he went in the store. Guess what, he wasn't thrown into the gulag for abuse either.

Us kids would walk up to the stores all by ourselves and go from store to store, I esp. loved walking up to the Newstand where I'd get Big Buddy gum and Batman and Superman cards and of course comic books, Superman and all other type comics, Sad Sack was a favorite too.

When we went to the shopping center in a cab with my Mom we'd go to Peoples Drug store and yes, sit at the counter and have milkshakes and burgers and those fries were great with ketchup.

We walked to school thru snow and blizzards and enjoyed every flake:).

And there were some adults that even if they weren't really an Aunt or Uncle , you could call them Aunt Jane or Uncle Bob, instead of Mr. And Mrs. Smith if they were close friends of your parents or something ! But never just Jane and Bob ! ;)

Yes, I had an Uncle Gus, a good friend of my dad's.

And yes, others mentioned the bell hose at the gas station, signaling the attendant, who checked your oil and cleaned your windshield while filling 'er up. As others also mentioned, there were a couple of garage bays for working on cars; and I'll add that the station often had small, different-color triangular flags stretched on ropes between the light poles. Somewhere on the premises was a pay phone, which charged a dime for a local call. One price I somehow remember for gas is 29 cents a gallon.

I loved the lunch counter at Woolworth's !:) I remember out shopping with Mom and we stopped for lunch at Woolworth's lunch counter ! Such fun, a good memory ! :)



You know, those Woolworth's lunch counters lasted quite awhile, probably into the 90s. That was back when there were several decent malls in the local area, and there was a Woolworth's with a lunch counter at Lafayette Square mall. They made great burgers!

He bought asbestos gloves for all of us to use, they really worked fire didn't burn them, I tried once. I love asbestos.



Put this man in leg irons!

I like watching Mike Holmes shows on HGTV or DIY--he fixes up other contractors' mess-ups. But he goes over the edge when he sees asbestos and vermiculite. Anyone on TV pushes the panic button. Yet we are all still alive! We grew up with (close your eyes) LEAD PAINT (gasp!) And I don't want to make fun of concerns about mold, but no one ever talked about it back in the day. Its spores are probably in the air we breathe yet we're all still here. God gave us immune systems for a reason.

Holmes goes nuts when he sees a garage which isn't properly sealed and MIGHT allow car fumes into the house (I'm in PANIC mode!) Now, class, how many people let a car run in a closed garage? I live in an older house and he'd probably have heart palpitations if he inspected my garage. Yet I've never smelled a trace of an exhaust fume in this house!

I also saw a Property Brothers episode where they cut open a bunch of walls, just to get rid of asbestos-wrapped heating ducts. I've read that asbestos is safe if left alone. Why spend all that money for something that isn't necessary?

Or when smoking was still allowed inside public places. We had a G.C.Murphy store downtown with a lunch counter that made their own donuts.

And there was this old geezer who was almost always sitting at the counter reading a paper and smoking a pipe. The combination of the smell of cooking donuts and his pipe combined into a devine mixture that I've never found anyplace else.

How about those small spherical kerosene lamps that they used to put out with barricades when there was street work?

Cabooses on trains

Coal chutes into people's basements

Coolers on front porches for the milkman to put the deliveries into

Elm trees

S&H Greenstamps
and the yellow TV stamps too

Ethnic icons

You know, those Woolworth's lunch counters lasted quite awhile, probably into the 90s. That was back when there were several decent malls in the local area, and there was a Woolworth's with a lunch counter at Lafayette Square mall. They made great burgers!

Somebody else mentioned G. C. Murphy--I think that's the one that was in the mall thru the 90s, and had a lunch counter.

Going to Woolworth’s for a banana split and paying 1 cent was a treat. You could order the banana split and then you could pick a balloon that hung up draped around the snack bar and they would break it and that’s what you would pay for the split. I think the maximum was $.59.

The company that I worked for built what was at the time the largest mall on the planet. (After we expanded it a few times).

Woolworth's was one of our original tenants from 1971 onward. They occupied a two story space with their own escalator. This was located in "in line" space, not a separate anchor building. They were there until 1994 if I recall correctly.
The noteworthy thing about Woolworth was all the "fake competition" specialty stores they also owned and located through out the malls they operated in.

FootLocker, Northern Reflections, Afterthoughts, and Champ Sports being some of the more recognizable names. I believe that Footlocker is the only one that still survives.

We had seven anchor Department stores in that mall
Montgomery Wards
Ohrbach's
Bullock's
JW Robinson
The Broadway
None of which exist anymore

Plus Sears and JCPenney, which likely are not long for the world

The company that I worked for built what was at the time the largest mall on the planet. (After we expanded it a few times).

Woolworth's was one of our original tenants from 1971 onward. They occupied a two story space with their own escalator. This was located in "in line" space, not a separate anchor building. They were there until 1994 if I recall correctly.
The noteworthy thing about Woolworth was all the "fake competition" specialty stores they also owned and located through out the malls they operated in.

FootLocker, Northern Reflections, Afterthoughts, and Champ Sports being some of the more recognizable names. I believe that Footlocker is the only one that still survives.

We had seven anchor Department stores in that mall
Montgomery Wards
Ohrbach's
Bullock's
JW Robinson
The Broadway
None of which exist anymore

Plus Sears and JCPenney, which likely are not long for the world

and now malls are out...

and now malls are out...

LOL, we sold the mall in 2003, because we anticipated that on-line shopping would doom the mall paradigm.
And the 2008 crunch destroyed the company that bought us out.

Shrewd timing on our part, I would say.

and now malls are out...

Right, there were no malls in the 50s, few malls in the 60s, now few malls in the 20s, and maybe no malls in the future.

In the Indianapolis area now, there are only 2 viable inside malls--Castleton Square and Greenwood Park. Castleton Square does have one of the largest Macy's in the chain.

I am okay with the mall decline.

I was a teen in the late 70s early 80s and enjoyed the teenage privilege of going by myself or with friends.

Nowadays the mall seems like a place for trouble. There have been shootings in some and hordes of gangs.

I hate Amazon for what they have done to the last of the mom and pop, but they sure have everything the mall had...

Oh, my family used to shop at the first JC Penny. JCPenny has been a mall staple since the beginning.

http://worldclassbenchmarking.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/cumbergrule.jpg

Going to Woolworth’s for a banana split and paying 1 cent was a treat. You could order the banana split and then you could pick a balloon that hung up draped around the snack bar and they would break it and that’s what you would pay for the split. I think the maximum was $.59.

That is so cool!! :cool:I don't remember that? Maybe you are older than me or they didn't do that in the Woolworth's I went to? ;)

There are a few malls that are still doing well. Most of those have shifted their target to the upper middle class who seek not just a shopping trip, but an overall experience.

Pampered by clerks who will stroke their egos, and then a fine dining experience with a white tablecloth and an upscale wine selection. Then, hang out at the "lifestyle center" before going home.

I've never got caught up in " high fashion" personally. Slacks and a dress shirt for the office, add a jacket and tie for important meetings, and jeans along with last year's dress shirts for my leisure time. Meets all my needs just fine.

But, I guess to those who find great importance in fashion, having a clerk telling them how "smashing" they look in the newest "whatever" really seems to work in terms of stuffing shopping bags.

Ah! Here, that sounds like the Fashion Mall--Keystone at the Crossing. One step inside you feel like you don't belong.

Ah! Here, that sounds like the Fashion Mall--Keystone at the Crossing. One step inside you feel like you don't belong.

There in Indianapolis, you have the headquarters of Simon Properties, and they seem to know what they are doing. They have assembled an impressive collection of trophy shopping centers.

Shoppers who will spend $250 on a whim for clothing they are not sure they really need, and then stop by a boutique barber on their way out to spend $50 for a haircut and $12 on two beers while they watch sports on a bigscreen and swap war stories with the barber (and other guests).....they are the future for the big malls

I was born in 1985 and I remember Woolworth’s when I was around 5-6. There was one fairly close to us and it was the only pharmacy/discount store that had a soda fountain inside. I remember the ladies who worked at the counter watched us kids while our mothers shopped. I believe this store closed around 1992 or 1993.
I also got to smoke only once in a restaurant. NYC changed their public smoking laws around the early 2000s, but New Jersey did it a little bit later. I visited a friend in Old Bridge around 2004 and we were lighting up Black and Mild’s in a Denny’s. The NJ laws eventually banned it.

There in Indianapolis, you have the headquarters of Simon Properties, and they seem to know what they are doing. They have assembled an impressive collection of trophy shopping centers.

Shoppers who will spend $250 on a whim for clothing they are not sure they really need, and then stop by a boutique barber on their way out to spend $50 for a haircut and $12 on two beers while they watch sports on a bigscreen and swap war stories with the barber (and other guests).....they are the future for the big malls

They do know what they're doing. If it's close to failing, they sell. That's probably why they sold Lafayette Square and Washington Square.

I agree with "Tanker" that I don't miss them. The only problem is they leave these big empty shells behind, mostly from the failed department store spaces sitting there unused.

I was born in 1985 and I remember Woolworth’s when I was around 5-6. There was one fairly close to us and it was the only pharmacy/discount store that had a soda fountain inside. I remember the ladies who worked at the counter watched us kids while our mothers shopped. I believe this store closed around 1992 or 1993.
I also got to smoke only once in a restaurant. NYC changed their public smoking laws around the early 2000s, but New Jersey did it a little bit later. I visited a friend in Old Bridge around 2004 and we were lighting up Black and Mild’s in a Denny’s. The NJ laws eventually banned it.

It's interesting to hear about more of these soda fountains that were still around in the 1990s. It would be unheard of to leave a kid in a stranger's care nowadays.

Southern New Jersey had a mall around 1960, Cherry Hill Mall--one of the first. It had at least a Strawbridge's, Gimbel's, and probably John Wanamaker (all Phila. area dept. stores), but I don't remember a Woolworths. In those days most areas had their own dept. stores. In Indiana they were L. S. Ayres, Block's, and H. P. Wasson Co.

It's interesting to hear about more of these soda fountains that were still around in the 1990s. It would be unheard of to leave a kid in a stranger's care nowadays.

Probably not. I wouldn't say they were strangers per se, these ladies worked at the store for 40-something years and my mom and her friends saw them there when they were younger.

Still, I don't think people would agree to watch over kids today (liability).



I've been there a few times, there is this neat place in Downtown Brooklyn called Brooklyn Farmacy and Soda Fountain that's made to look like the old lunch counters from "back in the day".

They aren't a pharmacy so they can't legally call themselves one, hence "Farmacy".

Probably not. I wouldn't say they were strangers per se, these ladies worked at the store for 40-something years and my mom and her friends saw them there when they were younger.

Still, I don't think people would agree to watch over kids today (liability).



I've been there a few times, there is this neat place in Downtown Brooklyn called Brooklyn Farmacy and Soda Fountain that's made to look like the old lunch counters from "back in the day".

They aren't a pharmacy so they can't legally call themselves one, hence "Farmacy".


That place looks really cool !! ;)

That was another thing from back in the day , you were saying those ladies worked there forever! Seems back in the day a lot of people did stay at the same job for years and years, not cause of lack of jobs or not being able to get a new job, just that they really liked it there. If was nice seeing a very familiar , nice , smiling lady working behind a lunch counter or a grocery counter ! :)

That place looks really cool !! ;)

That was another thing from back in the day , you were saying those ladies worked there forever! Seems back in the day a lot of people did stay at the same job for years and years, not cause of lack of jobs or not being able to get a new job, just that they really liked it there. If was nice seeing a very familiar , nice , smiling lady working behind a lunch counter or a grocery counter ! :)

I remember the owner's wife of a family-owned diner worked as the hostess/greeter at the place from beginning to end. She had to be in her 90's when the restaurant finally closed, long after her husband's death.

The place closed around 2015 and she was there since the beginning at 1940-something. I heard that this was a common thing where military cooks would open up restaurants after they came back from the war. The husband was a Navy cook during WWII.

That was a great story. Seventy five years working in a diner. How was the food?

Okay, ready for another round?

The Fotomat drive up booths, with their "overnight" photo development

Card Catalogs in libraries

Gasometers those things used to be everywhere https://i.imgur.com/XeFUmI7.png

The only problem is they leave these big empty shells behind, .

Way too many malls were built. Mostly because they were such a cash cow for the communities they were located in. Between property taxes and sales taxes collected, the malls were often the largest sources of revenue for the communities they were located in.

You might have a large metro area made up of dozens of smaller communities. And after a mall gets built in suburb "A"....that town immediately has money to build new schools, parks, whatever it's been wanting...and that abundance tends to make neighboring suburbs B,C, D, and E envious.

Hoping to climb onto the same bandwagon, it was not uncommon for such communities to make sweetheart deals to mall developers.

When the developers have more interest in harvesting those sweetheart deals than they do in long term ownership, they found institutional investors such as pension funds, earmarked to take ownership upon completion.....consequently you had a whole string of people who never bothered to contemplate if the local retail environment would support another mall, they just wanted "what the other guy is having".

That's where your "dead malls" originated.

That was a great story. Seventy five years working in a diner. How was the food?

Honestly, nothing special. Typical diner food. I loved their tuna melts.