Since we are living "Like" 1942 we know that a sugar shortage and rationing is looming.
In the spring of 1942 as the war is progressing supplies of sugar and other things have been cut dropping the supply of sugar to 1/3. This is when the realization that sugar would be rationed or else prices would soar and people would stockpile and hoard and then no one would be able to get sugar.
An article came out in the paper in January saying that sugar would start rationing in February but it did not. The last day of retail purchases of sugar was April 27th 1942, nobody could go to the store to purchase sugar until May 5th and only with a ration card. We have less than a month to go before we start our sugar rationing. We already know since we are not really living in 1942 that we will get 1 pound of sugar per person per month. During canning season they came out with canning rations allowing more sugar for that purpose but it was still rationed.
During the war, as rationing was beginning I can only imagine the confusion. In the beginning when getting ration stamps they had to report how much they had at home. This is when they had to make a decision to tell the truth or not.
I feel that people were more honest back then just knowing my elders and generations that have gone now. People did all they could to help support the troops fighting. The government needed all the food, rubber, metal and goods to fight the war.
With sugar rationing looming there is something else that was going to be missing from the American shopping cart, bananas. Due to ww2, many goods were no longer able to make it to our shores. The war was spreading and ships that normally carried goods could no longer make it for various reasons.
I made some banana bread for our farewell to bananas.
When Charles and I did the one year like 1943 (2015) coffee was rationed and we have never gone back to not rationing our coffee. It turns out it helped us to not be wasteful with coffee and helped the grocery budget.
I will post the recipe at the bottom of this post.
I have been thinking a lot about what I can tell you what it is like to live like 1942 but the problem is that it seems so normal to us that it makes it hard to describe.
We are getting pretty routine and the one thing that has changed the most is we are in bed now earlier than ever because we like to read and we are really tired!
Living like 1942 is hard work but it is a good kind of feeling. When we veer off from what we are suppose to be doing like 1942 we are eager to get back on track.
Some of you that are doing this along with us understand what I am saying. Some of you have mentioned that due to normal "today's time things", that it has interfered with their 1942 life and craved getting back to it.
There is something romantic and right about living this way. When I go out I notice the generic or similar things that are everywhere. I do not want similar anymore.
The older pieces are not made of plastic. I paid .50 cents for this cake carrier at a yard sale. I once had one like this and was foolish to ever part with it. I was patient and found one without spending a lot of money.
When I go shopping it is for food or a thrift or fabric/yarn store. We will go for lumber, hardware or gardening. All of these places benefit our home. Our purchases are for something that helps us to become more sustainable and that it will last. We never go shopping just to shop, fill a void. Home and family are what is important to us.
Snapdragons
I am doing all I can do to learn how to care for the things we have including our plants.
In 1942 victory gardens were springing up everywhere because the government urged people to grow food. It has helped me to realize that we should try to grow something if possible, we never know if or when we might need the knowledge how to do this.
I have realized through success and failures that my relationship with the plants have changed. I do not look at them anymore for what they will give me but what I can give them and what they need so they will produce food for us. It seems to be a much better balance.
Charles has moved a bench for me to sit and rest in the secret garden. I am expanding the garden to go around the shabby cabby (camper). The Shabby Cabby has many issues with the wheel wells being cut off and being gutted before we purchased it. You can see more about it under camper. We are going to use it for a garden place. I have noticed that the UK Allotment gardens often have small garden sheds or houses and we would enjoy a garden house so we will change the shabby cabby a bit to suit our needs.
That area will be the herb garden and we are transplanting some of the herbs that are not happy living in a pot. This area needs much work.
We have noticed that we now have 4 mulberry trees that have voluntarily come up in our yard. We have never had a mulberry tree. We took a branch with leaves to our extension office and they verified that they are mulberry trees. That is just amazing! One is already producing mulberries, we did not know that it was a mulberry tree and almost cut it down thinking it was something we did not need in our yard.
Nature has given us gifts over and over since we started paying attention to our little space here on this earth and doing what we can to take care of it.
We have a beautiful cilantro that was seeded by a bird or something. We have had tomatoes come up where we did not plant and other things.
Well it is time to get back to work but before I do let me give you that recipe for banana bread.
Easy Banana Bread
preheat oven to 350 degrees.
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
3 ripe bananas
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/3 cup softened butter (6 tablespoons)
2/3 cup sugar
Cinnamon to taste
Grease Baking pan, I use a loaf pan
Mix all ingredients together with a mixer and pour into a greased pan and bake until toothpick comes out clean. For me this takes 45 minutes to 1 hour. I use a long toothpick.
Enjoy, Grandma Donna
