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My grandparents built their small farmhouse in 1942. I think I'll look into home building in 1942. It will probably be a few months before I can spend time on that though. I'll report what I find. 

Hi to one and all,

Like a lot of people who are growing older,

We both are in our 70's my dear wife just 70 & im 77in january,

Due to us aging and having no family "It's a case of what the future holds for who ever go's first and about living in todays very strange world of both cost of living and the fear of who's knocking on the door?.

But thanks to both reading this forum and in my case being looked after from my grand mother & father from an early age I could still remember they way my Gran did everything herself,

The Importance of good home cooking and those smells coming from the kitchen as I arrived home from school,

She gave the importance of good stews/home made bread/ Eat whats on the plate and not being fed on sweets and plenty of veg,

When it came to heating she had what I called the witches grate, (wood/coke fuel) and it had two ovens "One a higher up the grate & larger for bread making etc And one lower down near the floor  this was the warming oven for the cat to use when she felt the need and it was also for our night wear to be warm pre going to bed.

The use of candels & oil lamps was very offten as it did give off heat and added that cosy feel to the lounge and bedroom, Plus as has been said it kept the bills down a little,

Now as I said at the start of this little offering Im all for saving what food I can "As is my wife" And a lot of my up_bringing has come into place, every scrap of veg is used including the peelings cooked for the birds, We are not scared to "Not to buy packaged food" because it's in a fancy box etc with a picture on it of mashed something or other with a sauage" And the words one microwave minute to cook, !!! It so simple to feed your self and perhaps have enough over for freezing for future meals if you use your head and dont buy rubbish because it looks easy & quick to cook, (if you can call it cooking)

I was amazed when an old lady once told me she saves a fortune on meaty things by buying tinned cat & dog food,  She swore it tasted as good as the fresh stuff but a hell of a lot cheaper & she'd read it was perfecty healthy food.

We now live deep in the countryside and we enjoy good food and try to be warm in the Winter and take life at a good pace & not run around like headless chickens wanting to be fooled by semi fresh rubbish,

When i see the latest clothing ideas (rip your jeans at the knees))  because it's the in thing !!!!!

It makes me feel that I made the right choice years ago to buy some good quality jackets "Tweed & leather" being my choice & a few from the red cross centre, And im still wearing them today,

Some folk ask "What was so good about the Good Old day's?

My reply  "It produce people who knew what was a good way of life and not tobe wanting what your parents have & worked for Now with out putting in the effort to both Ask those who've been there , done that, And also learn for your own future.

I am enjoying reading the best selling books of 1942.  In January 1942 the best selling nonfiction book was Berlin Diary by William Shirer when he was a European correspondent for CBS Radio during the period leading up to WW II. The best selling fiction was The Keys of the Kingdom by A.J. Cronin. I have always loved the Big Bands so listening to Glen Miller’s The Chattanooga Choo Choo is a pleasure; it was #1 on the Hit Parade in January, 1942. And I like to turn the lights off and listen to the Luxe Radio Hour mysteries (available on YouTube). 

Hello All who are in this space.  Happy New Year to us all and extra thanks to GDonna for providing us a view into the past. It is helpful to teach us how to save and not waste a bit more and to also remind us to be grateful for what we have today  Here’s to a peaceful 2026!!

Happy New Year to all - we slept right through it, didn't hear a thing.  These days we prefer to just continue our usual routine and are in bed way before midnight - and personally no matter how much pleasure they give, I shudder at the millions spent on fireworks all over the world and can't help thinking what a total waste of money when people are living day to day trying to feed themselves and keep a roof over their heads.

I also love the big bands and listen to them regularly - I was born in 1946 and some of the things mentioned are relevant to my family - we still had backyard "dunnies" (Aussie term for outdoor lavatories), and hand pumped water - and kerosene lamps, kerosene fridges or iceboxes - all of those things resonate.

I look forward to reading more, and found that wartime account from the UK to the US very interesting regarding the rationing.

Thank you so much for such a lovely and informative read! And for those washcloth instructions, that is one of my favourite things to do, knit my own washcloth/dishcloths. I feel like my thought patterns and lifestyle is very much like this era without always realising it. It is such a challenging world we live in, in so many ways, it's certainly a treasure to reflect and learn from the past and hold onto those values and lessons : ) blessings for the year ahead xx