Sharron, there is no question that people in general were just plain tougher back then. I'm not talking about going to some gym and lifting weights for a few hours while you're looking at yourself in the mirror 'tough'. I'm talking farm tough. I was trying to think of the best single word to describe people back then and I think I'm going to go with Hardy. The dictionary gives the following meanings to the adjective Hardy which I think fit perfectly, let me know what you think;
*Capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, exposure, etc.; sturdy; strong
*Able to withstand extreme conditions
*Displays physical toughness vigor, and endurance
Another great Katy post! - Thanks so much for posting these, always enjoy. - Jim.
Yep, this quote above is what my husband said about Idaho when I met him in college in L.A. Yet somehow we returned to Idaho to live for 34 years! Haha. Great place, sure, but now in Santa Cruz CA he often mentions again how he doesn't miss his snowy upbringing in N. Idaho or our 34 years of snowy weather in S. Idaho.... he's very content to have retired here in the sun....
My part of Indiana gets a bunch of snow, but not like that. I have pictures of snow piled on one side of tree bark like vertical sideways cone shape. Wind and temps have to be just right. Once a helicopter brought travelers from the highway and left them at the restaurant next door. That building is long gone and the meadow blooms on that property. It is my job to shovel the sidewalks for the tenants. I remember it being waist high sometimes. Dan plowed the driveway and the way out to the road. State plows opened the roads. Those plows would bury us back in when they went past a second and subsequent times. People here went to work in that stuff. I got out there early as an old lady can manage. AFter breakfast. The bosses knew it snowed and we're out in the country. Nobody got in trouble for being late. Snow kills off the bugs so I don't begrudge.
Please continue to keep your Katy memoirs going. You can share them all your life as I'm certain your memories go on and on...
I enjoy reading them so much. What we think of as hard or difficult, isn't anywhere near what had to be endured back...whenever.
Unless we have accounts, we aren't able to even begin to put ourselves in their shoes or think that we wouldn't have smartphones, GPS, and all the modern conveniences. Perhaps we, in general, are not as grateful for what we have because it is so convenient. I'm not certain that we are less hardy, but since we haven't truly experienced the "inconveniences" perhaps we have just become spoiled?
I realize that I have a different experience since currently I've chosen to have a place in Canada that is NOT connected to any utilities and has no road, and is only accessible by boat. This means that we cannot go in winter. Have DEFINITELY an outhouse. And definitely, it's a walk to get to it!! I'm learning. Slowly, but just the location teaches such adaptation and acceptance and letting go of our little peeves to learn how to live better and appreciate more each day.
That choice seems so brave, Jill. Off grid sounds fine to me, but the deal breakers are the snow and the outhouse. It reminds me of these two little one-minute pieces on the same tiopic:
If you live in a place where there is never ice, except in ice cubes in a drink, ice might be frightening and without a phone even more so...right now I remember Laura Ingalls Wilder and the book The Long Hard Winter-UGH! twisting hay to keep warm? double ugh. But it was what it was.
And time have drastically changed. Prophets said the earth could not support a population of over 4 billion people but advances in disease and drought-resistant plants, etc. we aren't starving. And here comes SOLAR! I've got wonderful solar power off the grid which allows , not only for lights, but I can plug in my phone, AND have an electric refrigerator!!
The world is full of such magic. And it's all true.
Everyone has their own perspective and I don't have a claim on intelligence or judgement.
I do have a commitment to living with purpose.
Thank you for your continued comments and thoughtfulness and expressing them!
Hi, Katy's stories do put life into perspective, don't they? We had snow in Ohio, but nothing to compare to North Dakota. We moved to California almost 50 years ago, and I've never been sorry for a minute.
Amen indeed. Our parents lived through incredibly difficult times. It wasn't just the lack of modern conveniences, there were financial problems and wars along with the general everyday challenges of living in communities whose attitudes stymied growth and unity. It didn't take much to become that degenerate person at the edge of town. Maybe that's why so many people, especially the men, were so ornery and stern. They were just worn to nubs.
Katy lived all her adult days with "poverty consciousness" due to having lived through the great depression. She wasted nothing, repaired or repurposed everything.
I enjoyed snowy Kansas winters as a kid. No snow days. We'd put on our parkas and galoshes and walk the six blocks to school. I hated the snow as an adult working as an outside salesman traveling to small towns, sliding off the road into ditches, doing 360's on black ice bridges, carroming off guardrails. I've lived in the desert southwest for 44 years and do not miss the cold and snow one bit. The high temp for today, Feb 8, will be 78. Thanks, Sharron, for reminding me how fortunate I am to be living here.
You bet. I have traveled all over the world, but California climate wins my heart every time. And the deserts of the southwest are sublime. We are indeed fortunate.
Sharron, there is no question that people in general were just plain tougher back then. I'm not talking about going to some gym and lifting weights for a few hours while you're looking at yourself in the mirror 'tough'. I'm talking farm tough. I was trying to think of the best single word to describe people back then and I think I'm going to go with Hardy. The dictionary gives the following meanings to the adjective Hardy which I think fit perfectly, let me know what you think;
*Capable of enduring fatigue, hardship, exposure, etc.; sturdy; strong
*Able to withstand extreme conditions
*Displays physical toughness vigor, and endurance
Another great Katy post! - Thanks so much for posting these, always enjoy. - Jim.
Hardy is definitely the perfect word. Also tenacious! Thanks, Jim, for reading about Katy.
Yep, this quote above is what my husband said about Idaho when I met him in college in L.A. Yet somehow we returned to Idaho to live for 34 years! Haha. Great place, sure, but now in Santa Cruz CA he often mentions again how he doesn't miss his snowy upbringing in N. Idaho or our 34 years of snowy weather in S. Idaho.... he's very content to have retired here in the sun....
For every thing, a season. Right? Thanks Linda
My part of Indiana gets a bunch of snow, but not like that. I have pictures of snow piled on one side of tree bark like vertical sideways cone shape. Wind and temps have to be just right. Once a helicopter brought travelers from the highway and left them at the restaurant next door. That building is long gone and the meadow blooms on that property. It is my job to shovel the sidewalks for the tenants. I remember it being waist high sometimes. Dan plowed the driveway and the way out to the road. State plows opened the roads. Those plows would bury us back in when they went past a second and subsequent times. People here went to work in that stuff. I got out there early as an old lady can manage. AFter breakfast. The bosses knew it snowed and we're out in the country. Nobody got in trouble for being late. Snow kills off the bugs so I don't begrudge.
You get used to the rhythm, I imagine. As I mentioned above, for every thing there is a season... Thank you, Kate for reading about Katy.
ND is still a frosty place, or at least it was the last time I was there....
Yes, indeed. In more ways than one, I'd say.
"... a canvas-covered wagon on runners ..." Thank you for sharing this history.
I love the Katy posts!
Oh! Thank you, Joel. I am so happy you find value in these Katy stories. They mean a lot to me.
Please continue to keep your Katy memoirs going. You can share them all your life as I'm certain your memories go on and on...
I enjoy reading them so much. What we think of as hard or difficult, isn't anywhere near what had to be endured back...whenever.
Unless we have accounts, we aren't able to even begin to put ourselves in their shoes or think that we wouldn't have smartphones, GPS, and all the modern conveniences. Perhaps we, in general, are not as grateful for what we have because it is so convenient. I'm not certain that we are less hardy, but since we haven't truly experienced the "inconveniences" perhaps we have just become spoiled?
I realize that I have a different experience since currently I've chosen to have a place in Canada that is NOT connected to any utilities and has no road, and is only accessible by boat. This means that we cannot go in winter. Have DEFINITELY an outhouse. And definitely, it's a walk to get to it!! I'm learning. Slowly, but just the location teaches such adaptation and acceptance and letting go of our little peeves to learn how to live better and appreciate more each day.
That choice seems so brave, Jill. Off grid sounds fine to me, but the deal breakers are the snow and the outhouse. It reminds me of these two little one-minute pieces on the same tiopic:
https://sharronbassano.substack.com/p/being-real
https://sharronbassano.substack.com/p/copy-breaking-free
If you live in a place where there is never ice, except in ice cubes in a drink, ice might be frightening and without a phone even more so...right now I remember Laura Ingalls Wilder and the book The Long Hard Winter-UGH! twisting hay to keep warm? double ugh. But it was what it was.
And time have drastically changed. Prophets said the earth could not support a population of over 4 billion people but advances in disease and drought-resistant plants, etc. we aren't starving. And here comes SOLAR! I've got wonderful solar power off the grid which allows , not only for lights, but I can plug in my phone, AND have an electric refrigerator!!
The world is full of such magic. And it's all true.
Everyone has their own perspective and I don't have a claim on intelligence or judgement.
I do have a commitment to living with purpose.
Thank you for your continued comments and thoughtfulness and expressing them!
When the winter winds blow
through the cracks of the outhouse trap door you do your business and no time to read a newspaper or catalog let alone Farmers Almanac.
Uh. No. Outhouse is a deal-breaker when you are my age...
Hi, Katy's stories do put life into perspective, don't they? We had snow in Ohio, but nothing to compare to North Dakota. We moved to California almost 50 years ago, and I've never been sorry for a minute.
Though many may not agree, we are truly blessed here, Janice, and we give thanks for being Californians everyday.
Absolutely!!
Love the history…. And the way Katy told it.
Thanks for giving it a second read, Wade. I do appreciate your comments ( and your cheesecakes ) Thank you.
Amen indeed. Our parents lived through incredibly difficult times. It wasn't just the lack of modern conveniences, there were financial problems and wars along with the general everyday challenges of living in communities whose attitudes stymied growth and unity. It didn't take much to become that degenerate person at the edge of town. Maybe that's why so many people, especially the men, were so ornery and stern. They were just worn to nubs.
Katy lived all her adult days with "poverty consciousness" due to having lived through the great depression. She wasted nothing, repaired or repurposed everything.
People, my age are always grateful. The conditions of living in the 40s weren’t always easy. I was a child but having a bath was pretty complicated.
You and I are of the same era. It was rough sometimes, but look at what great people we turned out to be! We win.
Down with snow!
👍🏻.
I agree with Jim Wilsky, hardy is the word. I always enjoy reading Katy in her own words. Wonderful, Sharron.
Thank you, Jim.
I enjoyed snowy Kansas winters as a kid. No snow days. We'd put on our parkas and galoshes and walk the six blocks to school. I hated the snow as an adult working as an outside salesman traveling to small towns, sliding off the road into ditches, doing 360's on black ice bridges, carroming off guardrails. I've lived in the desert southwest for 44 years and do not miss the cold and snow one bit. The high temp for today, Feb 8, will be 78. Thanks, Sharron, for reminding me how fortunate I am to be living here.
You bet. I have traveled all over the world, but California climate wins my heart every time. And the deserts of the southwest are sublime. We are indeed fortunate.