""I worked in a supermarket in the late 1960s in Sacramento, California. Back then, nobody recycled anything. So, to manage the copious amount of cardboard, we had a huge incinerator in the back room that burned cardboard all day long. It's still hard for me to believe that, with the safety and environmental rules of today, we had a fire in the back room burning every day." -Bob, 72, Oregon"
""It was either before color television or if you just couldn't afford one, but they used to sell a three-colored screen that you could put over your TV to make it colored. It didn't work, though." "Everyone dressed up to go to church. Men wore suits and ladies wore dress hats and white gloves, especially on Easter Sunday." -Anonymous"
""We rarely ever had to go to a store. Peddlers would arrive each day on our block: the fruit and vegetable man, the underwear/sock salesman, the milk man, the bread man, the fish man, the ice cream man, and the tool-sharpening man. We also had trucks with children's rides visit once a week. What a life!" -Anonymous"
Household and community routines from the 1950s through the 1980s included many practices that contrast sharply with modern norms. Simulated color screens were used to mimic color television, and families often dressed formally for church and holiday portraits. Homes were frequently left unlocked unless occupants planned extended travel. Retail and delivery models relied on daily peddlers and department-store portrait studios, reducing the need for routine store trips. Supermarkets sometimes burned cardboard on-site rather than recycling. These habits reflect different safety standards, retail structures, environmental attitudes, and everyday rhythms than those common today.
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