How Old do You Think She is?

[jamespowers]

How old is Grandma???

Stay with this -- the answer is at the end. It will blow you away.

One evening a grandson was talking to his grandmother about current events.
The grandson asked his grandmother what she thought about the shootings at schools, the computer age, and just things in general.

The Grandma replied, "Well, let me think a minute, I was born before:

' ? ? ? ?television

' ? ? ? ?penicillin

' ? ? ? ?polio shots

' ? ? ? ?frozen foods

' ? ? ? ?Xerox

' ? ? ? ?contact lenses

' ? ? ? ?Frisbees and

' ? ? ? ?the pill

There was no:

' ? ? ? ?radar

' ? ? ? ?credit cards

' ? ? ? ?laser beams or

' ? ? ? ?ball-point pens

Man had not invented:

' ? ? ? ?pantyhose

' ? ? ? ?air conditioners

' ? ? ? ?dishwashers

' ? ? ? ?clothes dryers

' ? ? ? ?and the clothes were hung out to dry in the fresh air and

'????? man hadn't yet walked on the moon


Your Grandfather and I got married first, . . and then lived together. ?

Every family had a father and a mother.

Until I was 25, I called every man older than me, "Sir".
And after I turned 25, I still called policemen and every man with a title, "Sir."

We were before gay-rights, computer- dating, dual careers, daycare centers, and group therapy.

The Ten Commandments, good judgment, and common sense governed our lives.

We were taught to know the difference between right and wrong and to stand up and take responsibility for our actions.

Serving your country was a privilege; living in this country was a bigger privilege.

We thought fast food was what people ate during Lent.
Having a meaningful relationship meant getting along with your cousins.

Draft dodgers were people who closed their front doors when the evening breeze started.

Time-sharing meant time the family spent together in the evenings and weekends-not purchasing condominiums.

We never heard of FM radios, tape decks, CDs, electric typewriters, yogurt, or guys wearing earrings. ?

We listened to the Big Bands, Jack Benny, and the President's speeches on our radios. ?

And I don't ever remember any kid blowing his brains out listening to Tommy Dorsey. ?

If you saw anything with 'Made in Japan ' on it, it was junk. ?

The term 'making out' referred to how you did on your school exam. ?

Pizza Hut, McDonald's, and instant coffee were unheard of.

We had 5 &10-cent stores where you could actually buy things for 5 and 10 cents.

Ice-cream cones, phone calls, rides on a streetcar, and a Pepsi were all a nickel.

And if you didn't want to splurge, you could spend your nickel on enough stamps to mail 1 letter and 2 postcards.

You could buy a new Chevy Coupe for $600, . ?but who could afford one??
Too bad, because gas was 11 cents a gallon. ?

In my day:

' ? ? ? ?"grass" was mowed,

' ? ? ? ?"coke" was a cold drink,

' ? ? ? ?"pot" was something your mother cooked in and

' ? ? ? ?"rock music" was your grandmother's lullaby. ?

' ? ? ? ?"Aids" were helpers in the Principal's office, ?

' ? ? ? ?" chip" meant a piece of wood,

' ? ? ? ?"hardware" was found in a hardware store and

' ? ? ? ? "software" wasn't even a word.

And we were the last generation to actually believe that a lady needed a husband to have a baby. No wonder people call us "old and confused" and say there is a generation gap... and how old do you think I am?

I bet you have this old lady in mind...you are in for a shock!

Read on to see -- pretty scary if you think about it and pretty sad at the same time.

This Woman would be only 58 years old!??


Regards to all,

J

 

[LaMedicine]

Whoops...just as I thought...I'm running close behind

Only, I thought Penicillin was discovered in 1929 and was already in use in the '30-'40s....Way before my time

 

[BD Jones]

Umm, I think the age is incorrect. If the woman is 58 she would have been born around 1947-48 (my mother is 58). In 1947, many of the items were in use or had been invented. Television, penicillin, frozen foods, radar, ballpoint pens, pantyhose, air conditioners, dishwashers, clothes dryers, instant coffee, were all pre-war inventions. They may not have been in wide use, but they were there. Grandma is having memory problems.

 

[LaMedicine]

Grandma is having memory problems.

That, or the entire story is a decade or two old?
Come to think of it, radar was already in use in WW II, wasn't it?
Pantyhose, though...I remember it was still garters and stockings when I was a child

 

[BD Jones]

That, or the entire story is a decade or two old?
Come to think of it, radar was already in use in WW II, wasn't it?
Pantyhose, though...I remember it was still garters and stockings when I was a child

Yes, radar was in use during the war. As to the pantyhose, I yield knowledge of that area to the women. However, weren't they rationed during WWII? If so, they were invented before then. This is a real conundrum.

 

[LaMedicine]

As to the pantyhose, I yield knowledge of that area to the women. However, weren't they rationed during WWII? If so, they were invented before then. This is a real conundrum.

Yes, nylon was rationed during WW II. (That's why you get stories of women painting lines down the back of their legs to simulate the seams) However, if you ever have a chance to go through '50s Sears catalogues and the like, it's still garters and stockings...Seamless stockings came first, then pantyhose, and they became popular only in the mid-60s or so, I think, ask your Mom...

 

[android]

Here's a quick cheat list for when major stuff was invented:

Inventions

Granny's lying about her age.

Every family had a father and a mother.

And I think widows and orphans were invented a really long time ago.

 

[jamespowers]

The gist of the list of items should be taken to mean commonly available items. Some of those things were invented long before they came to market at a price outside reach of the average US citizen. Some of these things were invented in other countries, took forever to become the products we know and recognize instantly today. TV might have been invented in 1926 but how many stations do you think you could get in the US at that time to make viewing it worthwhile? Therefore the real time at which Television became reachable and entertainment for people came after 1948.
I am not sure about the whole hubub over pantyhose either. It says pantyhose not stockings or nylons. Those were a completely different animal. I expect that most men wouldn't know the difference but hey I live near San Francisco and that precludes the statement most MEN for that city. They would probably know due to their wardrobe choices.
Every family did have a mother and father---they knew. They might not have been alive but they knew who their parents were. Orphans were usually the result of a tragedy in the family---not personal choices.

Regards to all,

J

P.S. I meant this to be a sort of funny eyeopening post not an opening to an argument over inventions or families. Geez!

 

[Angelicious]

P.S. I meant this to be a sort of funny eyeopening post not an opening to an argument over inventions or families. Geez!

Best intentions, huh, JP?

(Or should that be "fools rush in where angels fear to tread"?)

Thanks for posting it though, it made me think at least... (Rare, I know...)

:cheers1:

 

[jamespowers]

Yes, radar was in use during the war. As to the pantyhose, I yield knowledge of that area to the women. However, weren't they rationed during WWII? If so, they were invented before then. This is a real conundrum.

Radar was used during the last days of WWII. Radar was really not used to great commercial appeal until later. Remember the Andrea Doria? They didn't have radar down pat even then. The fool didn't realize what scale of measure he was supposed to be using.
Then what about the lost squadron of corsairs in the Bermuda Triangle. The military thought so much of radar that they discontinued using it in that area of Florida after the war. Another bunch of fools. :rage:

Regards to all,

J

 

[BellyTank]

The Brits were using Radar early in WW2. Night fighter aircraft were Radar equipped.

B
T

 

[sandysot]

"Grandma" is, more than likely, about 68 years old but practicing the time honored woman's tradition of shaving a decade from her age.The tell tale is the combination of things ,like television and radar.Many of the things she describes were unheard of in the mid 1930's, began commercial development by the early 40's and generally available by 1947. If she were born circa 1937, her statement could be true-but only for her birth year.

Sandy