Cooking and other matters domestic of day past.

sampa, Nov 10, 10:37pm
Brains Fried with Bacon anyone? Lots of gems of NZ's earlier years including exactly where to locate that pesky ashtray among the rest of the table setting.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/nelson-mail/lifestyle-entertainment/lifestyle/460790/Ingredients-for-a-readers-digest

badams1, Nov 11, 5:01am
To the woman of the house. However late you are running to put a meal on the table. Set the table It just gives the impression you are under control.

samanya, Nov 11, 5:29am
Haaaa love it & to welcome the husband home . pop on the lipstick, greet him the moment he walks in the door in a freshly starched pristine frilly apron!
Take his shoes off & pour him a drink of his choice.
Never mind the fact that there are many littlies, screaming for their dinner/bath etc . that's wifey's dept.

samanya, Nov 11, 5:32am
Oh I do wish elliehen was still here . she could have quoted from many old recipe books, with recipes to keep the ' man of the house' contented as well as making soap & toilet paper & raising umpteen kids.
Miss you ellienhen . recipes has become a bit of a (insert word) & it's poorer without your input.

mbos, Nov 11, 5:49am
So THAT'S why Mum always made us set the table before Dad got home!

samanya, Nov 11, 5:55am
Probably . the breadwinner was always top of the heap, apparently.
& in those days, the male was always the bread winner.
Women knew their place as . whatever.
Gloriavale springs to mind.

awoftam, Nov 11, 6:04am
Or marriages that lasted?

samanya, Nov 11, 6:39am
yep, that too.
Commitment?

daarhn, Nov 11, 8:16am
The Good Wife's Guide & Advice for Young Brides

http://www.feministezine.com/feminist/historical/Good-Wifes-Guide.html

The days when a woman knew her place, the men were men, and children were seen not heard!

samanya, Nov 11, 8:49am
!960's?
Haaa, blardy hell!
Sounds more like the early 1900's.

daarhn, Nov 11, 9:12am
1950s first half of article. 1894 second half

punkinthefirst, Nov 11, 8:15pm
Haha. the "sex advice" sounds WAY too frank to come from 1894! Mind you, that was in the day when there was no birth control to speak of, and many women died either in, or soon after childbirth.
I have a High School Home Ec. book from the 60's that gives similar advice to the 1950's article. I always found it rather alien, though I was brought up through the 50's and 60's. My parents were farmers, and worked together on the farm and in the house. Housewifery used to be a JOB for most women, though, and those women didn't have the appliances that make life easy for us these days.

Different times.

biggles45, Nov 11, 8:27pm
Lots of memories from days gone by here. Grandma using a copper to do the washing, a ponch (also known as a posser) for agitating the clothes, wooden tongs to get them out of the boiling hot water. On her hands and knees scrubbing the kitchen floor with a bar of soap and a scrubbing brush. Cooking on the coal range, she didn't have a stove so it was used all year round, all the prep was done in the scullery, her rabbit stews and meat and potato pies were to die for. She didn't have a fridge so she walked to the shops most days for bread, meat etc, and the shop was a decent walk away too. Aunty had a tin bath that was hung on the dining room wall (ugh) by the fire, it was filled with hot water for the weekly bath time, she didn't have a bathroom until late 70s. She also had the UK equivalent of a long drop loo, with a wooden seat with 2 holes (seats) in it!

fifie, Nov 11, 10:16pm
There is some memories of back in the day here lol, growing up we sat at the table for evening meal, talking over dinner was a big no,no, no telly or eating off your lap. Grocer called weekly, we all went to school daily in a buggy, pulled by the pet horse, rain or sunshine, wonderful food cooked on a cold range, made the best scones, mutton roasts etc, didn't dare back chat the parents, they sure had to work to survive no mod cons like today.

lythande1, Nov 12, 12:23am
"you're sure to please your man if you serve up . tripe and onion casserole, braised ox tongue, . brawn. "

I think not.
.

samanya, Nov 12, 1:10am
I only read the first half initially as I didn't notice the rest. the second half is almost comedy from today's perspective

biggles45, Nov 12, 1:27am
Same here, and we had linen napkins! We had breakfast, lunch and dinner at the table and when we'd finished eating we had to sit with our arms folded till everyone had finished! We still eat our main meal at the table but we make the most of the time to chat and catch up on everyone's day.

ritebuy, Nov 12, 6:21am
a gentlemans supper take a large onion core the middle out and place a kidney in the hole bake until done

samanya, Jul 2, 8:53am
Oh yum!