Growing up we never had a room that was set aside for use ‘occasionally’ for one particular reason, we lived in our house. Kitchen and dining rooms were usually combined, many times I sat at the table just watching mama and talking to her as she ‘put a meal together’, as she called it.
Our Living room was lived in. That is where we listened to the radio or just got together to talk and have friends over. Most of the time that is where the heater or stove was located. I don’t remember ‘central’ heat until after Sherry and I got married.
The parsonage in Belmont had a floor furnace. If you are not familiar with that, it was a gas furnace that was in a central area but under the house with a big heat duct directly into the house, not ducted to each room. You could burn your shoe soles if you stood on it too long. Girls especially with dresses liked to stand over the duct. There was no fan, heat just rose. You got heat into your room by leaving the door open.
Early as a child my mama petted me and sometime heated irons or bricks and wrapped them in towels for my feet. We had throw rugs; they were nice in the winter to keep your feet off the cold floor. Linoleums were COLD.
We were also fortunate growing up, we only had one house with an outhouse, I did move our family into one house with an outhouse, for a few months. Yeah, I know what a slop-jar is! (I think more elite folks called it a Chamber)(Oh yeah, I remember my mama said her family had a ‘Pissery’ not an outhouse, has anyone else ever heard of that?)
When we first got married and moved to Camp Geiger Trailer Park, it was like a play house. The Trailer was 26 feet by 8 feet. One heater heated the whole trailer. Sherry liked it, it was our love nest and very cozy in the winter but hot in the summer. But when you are in love it makes no difference. Ha!
What brought this all up was a note on the news that the Formal Living room was about to disappear. To us it never existed. I have built houses with formal dining and formal living rooms. I even built a house with one special room for a ---- I can’t think of the name of it, it was an antique living room suite. No one was going to use the room, it was just for show. I would build anything, but for me, things had to be practical.
Thanks for coming by the log.
Nite Shipslog
PS: Shucks, we are no longer practical, we have two computers in a 38’ motor home. Haha!
Packard competed with the Cadillac and Lincoln but lost.
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10 comments:
I liked reading this, Jack. It is interesting how someone would need a room just for 'show'. A bit pretentious I think!! I'm with you; live in all the rooms of the house and if there are too many rooms, perhaps it is time to downsize a bit. Fortunately, I've never lived in a house with an outhouse or didn't have central heat; I think I'm a bit spoiled, LOL :)
enjoyed reading about your Mama and how she put a meal together and tried to keep you warm through the cold winter days!!
enjoy the day you two!
betty
My grandparents had 2 big old fireplaces in their house and a small heater in the dining room...all the rest of the house was heated by these and most of the time it was quite toasty in there. I can remember my mom warming blankets by the fire to put on our beds when we were little kids. They had an out house too and that's what they called it. Nothing fancy. When I was growing up lots of people had their living rooms and then they had a den where the tv was located. Now people have great rooms and family rooms. A few even have what they call media rooms where they can watch the big screen tv or movies. I love to watch the home and garden channel and see it all but I prefer the simple life. Hope you all have a terrific Tuesday!
I never had to experience life with an outhouse, luckily lol.
Missy
Only two...??!!
Enjoy
I've lived in many places and many many different styles of homes but we always used every room in the house. Well, almost. The exception now could be our guest bedroom - but I've set up my treadmill in there! ☺ As for the "outhouse" - we've had those in several places...and yes...I knew what a chamber pot or a slop jar was for. Ha. In this place I call "my office" we also store things...thus it becometh cluttered! Most of my growing up years we had a pot-bellied stove for heat. Cooling was done by a fan placed in one window drawing the air outside and lifting all the other windows about 6 to 10 inches to pull air in and across the house to the suction fan, thus creating a draft. Reading your story lets me know you have also learned to "make do" with what you have. Wish our kids and grand-kids understood that better.
I just love your blog. I enjoy reading about when you were growing up it reminds me of my growing up years. A few years after Grover and I were married we lived in a few houses that didn't have indoor plumbing as you know we've been married a few years, lol.Take care and have a warm day.
I always wondered why the bathroom was not important. I guess they were to expensive
and use to much water. I am glad that changed.
Now everybody has to have two or more.
Hope it has warmed up some for you.
Shirl
An interesting mean to measure time and life. Please have a good Wednesday you all.
Boy did you make me feel important. Our pot was called a chamber but we were far from elite. No matter what they are called the job of empying them is not a pleasant one.
Wonderful article, I sadly remember the days of slop jar and out house. You needed to know if you really wanted to relieve yourself in the winter for sure. Also we had central air yes. a fan in the middle of the house with windows up when turned on was quite often how i ended up with a new ball cap. We had a ditch in front of the house on the road which was my job to collect hubcaps for wayward drivers, for lots of times it meant a nickle for the hubcaps return sometimes 50 cents. Thanks for the blog the ships log it really reminded me of better days where our cell phone was our legs, our computer was the mail box or telegram or phone at the local grocery. Kids today do not know and would not move if on fire depresses me sometimes to think they are our future.Yes this includes my children as well.My 19 year old says the mower wont crank, has almost made me want to buy the honeycut the old rotor blade grass cutter which spins while you push for younger kids who do not know and cuts grass like scissors. It never failed to crank for me sadly.
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