Remember when?

How about Made in USA. Here are some of my basic kitchen appliances. Oster products from Milwaukee. The Osterizer has the chrome metal base and glass carafe for my margaritas. Silex juicer from Philadelphia. General Electric waffle maker from Bridgeport. My Toastmaster toasters I don't know where since they had several places in the 40s and 50s. I rotate them with Sunbeam toasters. I decided back in 1999 that any time I need something I would first check Ebay and look for American made. Then I would buy from someone in the Midwest where they have been devastated by factory closures. I have no issues with paying more for a well made American appliance but I suspect corporations don't want to make those kinds anymore. Here I am using some that are 70 years old and that just isn't good for the quarterly profit picture they are all chasing today.
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I gave my Oster wafflemaker like the one in your pic to one of my sons, and still have the blender, same glass carafe. It's an Imperial, so I better keep it away from DocMcNeedy.

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My grandma, god rest her soul, who would be about 105 now had her tonsils taken out when she was a little girl on the kitchen table at home. She said they did put down some newspaper before the procedure and Her memory was crystal cLear until the day she died at 101.
You know, after thinking about this some more I’m thinking that it was my grandma telling me about my mom getting hers out on the kitchen table. Either way...
 
General Electric waffle maker from Bridgeport

I spent some time in the GE Bridgeport plant. It was a small fraction of what it once was, using less than a quarter of the buildings to make washer and dryer switches. Most of the personal were near retirement and you could see that GE wasn't going to spend a penny on any improvements.

The best story was that the guy that invented the electric blanket would drop in once in a while. He would tell everyone that he made more women warm in bed than any other man. Sorry to say I never met him.
 
I spent half my youth in those old PCC cars. The most iconic streetcar in the world.
The pic below is the Orange Line that I knew by heart. Odds are I rode in that exact car.
No heat. No. A/C. Always late and operated by an emotionally detached guy. And packed like Sardines. That was my daily transportation to school. No coddling.
I survived.
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And this would drive us nuts. No car for an hour and then two separate ones come at the same time. :BangHead:
 
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Having a "milk" door in the kitchen.
A coal chute door to the basement and having to shovel coal from the coal bin to the boiler to keep the house warm. Hauling the cinders out to put on the sidewalks and street in winter.
Summer air conditioning - open all the windows.
The sharpener man with his 2' diam peddle driven stone. He walked the streets and sharpened knives, garden tools, axes etc. Many had a monkey to draw the kids and parents. These guys actually made pretty serious coin - tax free.
Chimney sweeps with a formal looking long tailed coat and a tall top hat.
Door to door salesmen selling all kids of stuff, bibles, encyclopedias, vacuum cleaners, dishes, kids toys, cleaning supplies, etc. Most were pretty bad deals, but every once and awhile .. !!

One I really miss, the full service gas stations with "we" fill pump islands and a service garage with two bays and a couple of mechanics. When you stopped for gas, three or four pump monkeys would fill your tank, wash your windows, check your oil, air filter, belts and bug juice. Early one's even checked your tires. The service side did oil changes, tires, brakes, etc. Some could do alignments and exhaust repairs. You would find a garage with a mechanic you trusted and that became your "go to" garage. Today I feel absolutely lost, every option is a crap shoot designed to separate me from the dude who will actually work on my car and to ensure my wallet is properly drained.
 
full service gas stations with "we" fill pump islands and a service garage with two bays and a couple of mechanics. When you stopped for gas, three or four pump monkeys would fill your tank, wash your windows, check your oil, air filter, belts and bug juice. Early one's even checked your tires. The service side did oil changes, tires, brakes, etc. Some could do alignments and exhaust repairs. You would find a garage with a mechanic you trusted and that became your "go to" garage. Today I feel absolutely lost, every option is a crap shoot designed to separate me from the dude who will actually work on my car and to ensure my wallet is properly drained.
That's where I learned to become an adult at 16. Over 50 years later, all my values today came from working in that gas station.
 
No car for an hour and then two separate ones come at the same time. :BangHead:

that's like where i work have to take the work's bus system around to where we need to go,(at least from the parking lot to security) some times it's much easier and faster just to walk half mile :-/
 
That's where I learned to become an adult at 16. Over 50 years later, all my values today came from working in that gas station.
Wow, yes. After hours was the time to get some free hoist time and to sit around and BS with the guys. I often wonder where the young people hangout today, shopping malls I guess. Of all the "remember when" things, I don't miss many at all, but the loss of the corner service station has left a big hole that I've never really been able to refill. I guess that's why I like these internet user groups and forums like FCBO, to bad none have a hoist!!
:lol::lol:
 
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My latest object d'art on walnut from the midcentury period depicting Narvik, Norway. Freshly installed. Well worth the 60 bucks, Lowbrow me generally doesn't estimate wall art of any kind higher than 99 bucks.
 
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