River's End, thanks for suggesting this week's column.
The 50's and 60's were collectively known as the Jet Age. That moniker implied that life was being lived at an accelerated rate, compared to previous decades.
I suppose that means that the 21st century should be known as the Warp-Drive Age, because the pace we experienced forty or more years ago was quite laid back in comparison to today.
One thing about life back then that may have escaped your mind was how quiet Sundays were. I grew up in NE Oklahoma, definitely Bible Belt territory. Sunday meant
(a) That you were at church
(b) That after church, about the only thing you could go purchase was gasoline and food. Everything else was closed. Main Street was abandoned. The entire town was noticeably quieter.
Mom was raised Christadelphian, and Miami didn't have any churches of the somewhat obscure religion that was big in her hometown of Mason, Texas. So she would generally stay home when dad took me to the Lutheran church on Sunday mornings.
I would get out of bed at about 8:00, and turn on the TV and watch Bullwinkle. It was the start of the weekly Sunday ritual.
What would follow next would either be dad telling me to get ready for church, or else Davey and Goliath would be next on the tube.
As I recall, it was time to go outside after Goliath finished assisting Davey with yet another life lesson. The channels were filled with church broadcasts after that.
Even if I was spared the eternity-for-a-kid of sitting through a Sunday morning sermon, it still wasn't as much fun as Saturday. You see, most of the other neighborhood gang were likely at church themselves, making most play a whole lot less fun.
By afternoon, there would typically be enough of us for a game of army or baseball, but there was no running over to Moonwink Grocery for a nickel can of Shasta pop when you got hot. The store was quiet, owner Mark taking his one day of the week off.
Sundays were sad for me. I know,many of you long for the days when it was largely a day of rest, but to be honest, I don't miss the overall pallor that would seem to take over the town.
Blue laws, responsible for the closure of most businesses, were basically a holdover from the colonial days. The activity-limiting legislation has been largely overturned, or simply ignored, in states which once rigidly observed them (although limiting sales of alcohol is still widely practiced). In Rogers, Arkansas, Wal-Mart was allowed to open their doors on Sunday about 1975, as I recall (there have been very few Arkansas laws that were less than favorable for Wal-Mart that weren't overturned during the 70's ;-). That led to a flood of businesses opening their doors on what was becoming less and less a day of rest.
But we Boomer kids can recall when Sunday was a day on which the whole community would stop their regular activities, put on a suit and tie, and begin the weekly ritual of enjoying a lazy day.
Comments (4)
Sunday was hardly ever a lazy day when I was young. We were expected (required) to go to church every Sunday unless deemed to be too ill to attend the church service.
After the meet & greet socializing that invariably followed each Sunday service (once a month there was even juice, cookies & crackers and coffee,) we would come home to a roast chicken or chuck roast (usually coated with Lipton’s Onion Soup Mix and placed in an aluminum foil pouch) along with carrots, potatoes, and onions that had been roasted while we were impewed. Our electric oven could be set to turn on and off via a timer feature so that Sunday Dinner would be done to a turn by the time we’d arrive.
As Ron noted Blue Laws prevented many businesses from remaining open 7 days; only mom & pop convenience stores could be open in VT (in MA we only allowed Sunday liquor sales starting in 2004) but if one planned ahead, visiting a store on Sunday was hardly ever a necessity. As we didn’t get our 1 channel (NBC) TV until 1959 (and we weren’t exceptional in that regard,) Sunday afternoons were devoted to projects (homework), communing with nature (hunting/fishing), or playing with neighborhood kids who used to be outdoors in abundance, unlike today when it is rare to find children outside (at least in my neighborhood.)
After 1961 or so I was often required to attend services at 3 different churches which really put a crimp in the day (9AM-2PM - I was a substitute organist as a teen and pre-teen which when I was playing made the service more tolerable (I was naturally fidgety and in later years would play pop & folk songs in hymnalesque arrangements to amuse my peers during the offertory and processionals.)
I must admit that it’s nice to be able to not have to plan my Sunday actions prior to the day and if I need a piece of hardware or automotive gear in the middle of a project, I can run down to the local TrueValue or AutoZone (we even have some banks open from 1 to 5 on Sundays – unfortunately not mine but ATM’s have taken up that slack) but I miss the down time that is prescribed by most religions for 1 day to reflect on one’s life and actions.
Posted by Burt | June 22, 2009 6:55 PM
Posted on June 22, 2009 18:55
WEll, there are good and bad with each set up. I really enjoyed the quiet easy going nature of Sunday before shopping was allowed. The streets had not traffic on them. Getting anywhere was easy. Yes, kids tended to not be around as much as they were off as families having some recreation. but I loved the calm quite Sundays.
I hated the idea of Sunday shopping. In Maine, it was mid to late 80s, I think, when those laws were overturned to allow shopping. Now every day was a hassle. No break at all.
But shopping on Sundays is nice if you need that car part or something at the store that you didn't get to during the week. Getting gas is easier. You can pretty muc do anything, as long as you don't mind the @#$% traffic.
for those who like open Sundays, I am happy for you. But if I had my way, I would go for the quite laid back time of no shopping. But love it or hate it, quite Sundays were the thing in the 60s.
Posted by Scott Irv | June 23, 2009 12:59 AM
Posted on June 23, 2009 00:59
Sunday mornings as a child. Yup, we went to Sunday School. We didn't go every Sunday! I hope God doesn't strike me down for that? The Sunday Washington Post always had all the color comics that we would read through. I remember when all the stores were closed. You couldn't even get alcohol. Sometimes we would go over to the grandparents house for a big dinner. I remember the religious shows on television. For the life of me, I can't remember the names. In a way, I miss when Sundays were quiet, but must admit that it is nice that stores are open on Sundays, especially at Christmas times.
Posted by Riversend | June 24, 2009 7:39 PM
Posted on June 24, 2009 19:39
I miss the quiet of Sunday afternoons! The mornings had its own rituals of Sunday school & Church followed by a Great Home-cooked Dinner! Then we divvied up the newspapers and each took to their favorite spot to read. Some Sunday afterrnoons were devoted to riding out to visit rural relatives and catching up with all their news, their farm doings, etc, or visiting with the older relatives both town & country. I wouldn't take anything for listening to their stories of the "old days." Around 4 pm, somebody always went in their kitchen and you would hear plates rattling and soon there would be lovely slices of home-baked cake with coffee for the grown-ups and milk for the kids.
Now we are losing our peers and have stories to tell of our own "olden days," but who has time to listen to us?
I think one nation-wide turned-off day per week was good for the soul, wheather you were religious or not.
And now I think we are paying the price for not having that day.
Posted by NCeddie | July 6, 2009 6:57 AM
Posted on July 6, 2009 06:57