What a difference a 100 years makes.(Dad would be 107!)

In 1903 the Wright brothers achieved sustained powered flight. But most important Benjamin Franklin Darnell, MY DADDY was born January 14th. Then 95% of all births were at home. So was his, in the North country of Georgia.
By 1909 my dad was six years old. Cars were invented and being used but he never saw one until he was ten years old. Having access to the internet is a wonderful (and time consuming) thing. Especially since we cannot have high speed internet here in our motor home. So I thought I would check out some things. Since ten years ago we climbed into the year 2000 to see how it fit. Amazingly, it was uncomfortable at first, but now it feels normal.

My Daddy 1903-1972, The right Reverand Benjamin Franklin Thomas Edison Roosevelt Darnell. (dad added the Thomas Edison Roosevelt later, LOL)

( My cousin Billy, he is pretty old himslelf, still around.)

Mama used to say, “I was born in five, your dad was born in three.” That sounded so funny to me. Now children will be saying the same thing if the world lasts until 2070.
Did you realize when my dad was six that the gas for the old Ford cars was only sold in drug stores? There you could also buy marijuana and opium.
The speed limit in town was 10mph and in the entire USA there were only 8,000 cars and 144 miles of paved roads. 8000 cars would not even put one in each town. My dad lived to own cars and ride in an airplane. He lived to see Neil Armstrong step on the moon.

(Over there is another OLD cousin Jimmy another of the Herron boys.)

When dad was six years old it was 1909 and the average wage was 22 cents an hour. Eggs were about a penny apiece. His life expectancy was 47 years, he lived to be 69. Daddy drank a little before he was 20 years old, none after. He never smoked, but he loved butter milk, cheese, country ham and eggs. They say it clogged his arteries and caused a heart attack (’71-72). He had open heart surgery, we were stationed in Cuba.

(The yellow car is the 1903 Sunbeam car.)

(This treat, the hot fudge sundae was invented in 1906.

Sherry still says thanks!)

(Corn Flakes were invented in 1906, this is a 1910 ad.)

Dad loved our boys. I still cannot believe it, we let Jackie (13) and Mark (10) take a plane from Cuba, catch a cab to the bus station in Norfolk, and take a bus to Charlotte. (A couple thousand miles). At Charlotte Jack talked the bus driver into letting them off the bus near Dad and Mom’s house even though it was sorta in the country then it was a four lane road and busses never stopped there.. WE followed from Cuba, as soon as I could get leave. Dad survived the surgery a year or so.
But back when he was six, 90% of all doctors had no college education. They attended medical schools.

What a change in a hundred years.
Thanks for coming by the log.
Nite Shipslog
PS: Old is when:

******Getting lucky means you find your car in the parking lot.
****An all-nighter means not getting up to pee!