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Back in the 50s.... Without a doubt. The very best university course I ever took was not even in my career field! Ironic! The course was of my electives to give me some "breathing space" amidst the heavily technical and all-important coursework that my curriculum demanded. I found the class to be the perfect deflection from my challenging coursework. By sheer accident, when I first arrived in the state and on campus to attend "summer school" to help decrease my fall class demand.... I was quickly informed that the remaining "seats" in this particular class was unheard of and that I had better of them as this was a surprise to not having been filled by then. It was a sociology course named Courtship & Marriage and was taught by a world-renowned expert who was blind and had to be escorted to class each day by his dog. Incredible course! The very best I ever took and in taking that course it gave me understandable pause in wondering if sociology might be a better fit for my inquisitive mind. Anyway.... I loved the class, as did all the other students, as this professor and his several courses ranked as the most in demand courses at the university. Enough of the accolades for the professor and the course, now on to the point I am taking forever to get to..... I did come away from this course with several very poignant facts and figures that were formative to me and my perspective towards social life. Other facts were simply neat to hear and be aware of. Take this ..... back in the 50s, life was a "front porch" society where families sat outside on their porches in the early evening hours to enjoy the cooler night air and to "visit" with neighbors as they walked about around their homes. So, if you were to take a few block walk around the neighborhood around your family's home..... there was about a 90% chance you would pass/"See" your future intended while taking your post-supper walk. Just think of that. Think of that as compared to how accessible the whole world is to us nowadays. In a second ....we can an e- instead of what what used to be a "snail " letter that usually took days and sometimes did not even reach it's desired destination. Instead of a phone booth you had to stand in at the corner and pump quarters, dimes and nickels into to make a call, or a fixed dial telephone at home..... you have a high tech cell phone that can do soooo much. Phones are computers, cameras, encyclopedias, flashlights, and have a wealth of features that I do not want to even delve into as I might be forever hooked. In full disclosure, I have never had the urge to get into , , and all of the other cell social areas. My loss? I do not feel that way. Back in the 50s, what was flight like with commercial airlines compared to what it is now? I am certain you can add so much more about how our lives have changed year by year since we were much younger. And you ladies can certainly add to what present day improvements have done in your lives. Now back to the point about the ability to more easily "communicate and connect" with others. Would you argue or agree that we can all use very dear friends in our lives. Hopefully we have some very dear friendships close by in our lives. Friends we see and deal with daily, often and local. What of friendships that span a sizable distance from where we are? Away from where we "live?" What of the contacts and yes, incredible friendships that could occur if..... if we expanded our sphere of distance? Yup, I am certain that as we come into SFF as we do, and after we have attended to any "" we have received.... when we give a moment to "search" who might be online, are you adamant to consider those that are within a minimal number of miles from you? It's a Small, Small, Small, Small World out there now. As a matter of fact, was there a movie wayyyy back when with that same name? Humph..... interesting! |
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Hi, welcome to the blogs...In order for your blog to be visible on the front page, you need to make a comment.....So here you go.... Interesting blog...Yes, the world has changed a lot in our lifetimes.......
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There's a song, 'It's a Small World After All'. The lyrics are very cheery. Technology makes communication instant, but people seems to be socially further apart.
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I live on an island with fewer than 3000 people in the Winter....but the population doubles in the Summer...City folks with Sumer homes....Basically two separate cultures...The Sumer people look at us as if we are mental defectives if we address them...
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The "front page" is where the list of new blogs is....If your blog doesn't show there, no one will se it or comment. On my little island, we get very chummy in the Winter....It's a close-knit community where everyone knows everyone. We are concerned with the every-day family living and al that entails....The "Summer people" earn their living elsewhere, they bring most of what they need and stay 2-3 weeks at a time...Their friends, extended family, work associates, entertainment etc. is in the city.....so they have no interest in mingling with the natives.....and they bring along their city-bred cultural habits of not speaking to or even meeting the eyes of others.....Habits that they are not even aware of. As we aren't aware of our habits of relating to our community. Habits that we are not aware of until we are shown the difference. I mention this as a response to your blog about the 50's.....That it's not necessarily that the people have changed so much overall, but that it has a lot to do with the size of the community you live in. In a small, relatively isolated community, people still relate a lot like they did in the 50's and interact physically with their future spouse as they grow up.....I'm always amazed at how many people here find their partners within the community.
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Interesting post.  It inspired me to think about the impact of the internet on my life.Until I started chatting online in the 90's, all of my friendships were found through my work and hobbies. Then, with chat, my world expanded and I had online friendships with lots of people in many different states. I remember looking forward to logging in every night and connecting with tons of chat buddies. At that time there were many stressors in my life and chat was a great stress-buster. I was sad to see the demise of the AOL chats. I know there are alternatives in existence today but my experience with those has not been positive and therefore I avoid them. Part of your post explored how distance relates to the online experience. I think the answer depends on what each party is looking for. Distance is not a factor if a person's goal is to enjoy some friendly interaction on blogs or emails. But for someone who is searching for in-person connection, distance is of course a factor.  A day without dance is .... just kidding. I have no idea!
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The world has changed so much in our lifetime. I often wonder what my parents and grandparents would make of it all. Sometimes I feel things are moving too fast for me, hard to keep up with all the changes. Lol. Very interesting post.
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Well back in the 50's I grew up in the city, Queens, NY. Where I lived we sat on the stoops (front steps to apartments), listened to transistor radios. I had a candy store on the corner and around the block from me. Loved the penny candies ! LOL We went to church every Sunday. Pay phones that took nickels, and then dimes to make a phone call. When the lights on the light post came on, it was time to go inside, unless our Mom's were outside chatting with each other. My only connection to the past in on FB. I have friends who I grew up with still there ! We may not see each other anymore, but still connected. I also have nieces and nephews, I have never met who r adults now
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What a nice blog, it brings back so many memories. In my youth I spent most of my time in boarding school, summers at my grandfather's farm. We had family gatherings at his farm, or at my cousin's farms. Always something to do and we spent the majority of our time outdoors. I wish I had stayed with farming, but chose a different carrier path in electronics. When I think back, companies really took care of their employees, treated us more like a family. Company picnics, bowling teams, Christmas parties, free health insurance and my job was like having a second family, but that all dwindled as time went by. Good memories, I wish I could go back in time.
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