Exploring Old & New Technology: One Item at a Time

[bobbyk]

Listened to "Little Orphan Annie" sponsored by Ovaltine on an Atwater-Kent 6-tube radio
in 1930.

 

[RonL]

Wow 12 years before i was born Can anyone do the math?

 

[Kurdt]

I remember not feeling old

 

[rewebster]

I remember when candy bars cost a dime--


---and what was the name of that candy that was basically little round drops of colored sugar in rows and columns on a strip of paper?

 

[rewebster]

I remember not feeling old

just think about how old bobbyk is---you'll feel younger

 

[grant9076]

Pong.

 

[Kurdt]

just think about how old bobbyk is---you'll feel younger

Nah. I hate it. Life is far too short even if one lives a hundred years. Theres so much more I want to learn and its all slipping away.

 

[rewebster]

Nah. I hate it. Life is far too short even if one lives a hundred years. Theres so much more I want to learn and its all slipping away.

it sounds like 'someone' has a 'bucket' list started

 

[glondor]

Foods of the 70's, ambrosia, marshmallow salad, cheese in a spray can, anything with Velveeta. Tuna casserole. Other stuff, mood rings, hula hoops, GI joe, metal tonka toys, lawn darts, ahhh memories!

 

[quantumdude]

I remember when toy spaceships had spring loaded cannons that fired plastic missles that were juuuuussst small enough to swallow and choke on.

Seriously, my brother and I had Battlestar Galactica toys that fired little red plastic projectiles (guess they were supposed to look like lasers). They were great, my brother and I would run all over the house shooting them at each other. But then the missles were recalled when some kid choked on them, which we thought was lame. My mom confiscated our missles and sent them in. In return, the company sent us each a free Hot Wheels car, which I thought was pretty stupid on their part. Little plastic missles bounce right off a person, but those Hot Wheels cars leave a really nasty welt.

 

[Dr Transport]

I remember when $3 would fill up your gas tank, not buy a gallon of gas.

I remember when getting on the computer meant putting the phone reciever on the modem, dialing at 256 baud and waiting for the teletype machine to send the line of basic to the other end.

I remember when I had only 4 channels, then we got UHF and had 5 and we had to put tin-foil on the antenna to get any channel during a snow storm.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

In a large covered pot, heat 3 Tablespoons of oil to near ignition temperatures and add 1/3 cup of popcorn kernals. Shake like mad over a very hot element while trying not to let hot oil spew all over your arm.

I always liked eating the burned ones.

 

[Evo]

Remember Jiffy Pop?

 

[Moonbear]

In a large covered pot, heat 3 Tablespoons of oil to near ignition temperatures and add 1/3 cup of popcorn kernals. Shake like mad over a very hot element while trying not to let hot oil spew all over your arm.

I always liked eating the burned ones.

Sounds like my mom's approach to Jiffy Pop. I still pop my popcorn on the stove...tastes much better than microwave or hot air popping, and only takes a tiny bit longer (a medium high flame and a thick pot works much better than high) due to waiting for the pot to heat up, but really quick to pop once it's ready to go.

Edit: Evo and I both thought of Jiffy Pop at the same time.

 

[Kurdt]

I remember when $3 would fill up your gas tank, not buy a gallon of gas.

You have to go back to the crusades in British history for that to be true.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

Remember Jiffy Pop?

Oh yes... I don't think we ever used it though. Maybe we were too poor for Jiffy Pop.

MB, I didn't realize that anyone still makes popcorn this way... Hmmmmm, I may try it again, but if I burn myself it will all be your fault.

 

[rewebster]

I remember the first painting that took my breath away--at the Art Institute in Chicago when just this special female art teacher and I took a train trip up there for the weekend.

--(first trip to the Art Institute, too)

 

[Ivan Seeking]

I remember when toy spaceships had spring loaded cannons that fired plastic missles that were juuuuussst small enough to swallow and choke on.

Seriously, my brother and I had Battlestar Galactica toys that fired little red plastic projectiles (guess they were supposed to look like lasers). They were great, my brother and I would run all over the house shooting them at each other. But then the missles were recalled when some kid choked on them, which we thought was lame. My mom confiscated our missles and sent them in. In return, the company sent us each a free Hot Wheels car, which I thought was pretty stupid on their part. Little plastic missles bounce right off a person, but those Hot Wheels cars leave a really nasty welt.

I had this set containing a spring powered cannon that fired a projectile about the size and weight of a real 44 bullet, and spring loaded wall that would explode when hit. I can still recall that the wall mechanism was fairly stiff and required a good bit of force to actuate, so those projectiles must have really been zinging along. I guess that's why I don't recall being shot... I don't think anyone wanted to try that one.

 

[hypatia]

Never wear a 3 foot long leather fringed belt{heheh remember those} while rideing on the handlebars of your friends orange crate bike. Thats all I have to say about"remembering when".

 

[turbo]

I remember when the best way to get a motorcycle sound on my bicycle involved using clothespins and baseball cards to rub on the spokes. IIR, Mickey Mantle and Hank Aaron rookie cards sounded really good.

 

[sas3]

I remember my first C.B. Radio a "23 channel" Pinto Base station from J.C Pennies.

 

[turbo]

I remember when even pretty small radios had to be plugged into AC and NONE of them got any band other than AM, and I used to pray for sundown when the mega-stations in Albany and Buffalo would start pumping out Mo-Town, Blues, and English rock.

 

[rewebster]

Long trips on vacation on non-interstate roads

 

[Andre]

I remember doing homework I would sneak into the office of the little family company and use the dinosaur calculator. A big very heavy black metal box with an 10 x 10 array of buttons each marked 0-9.

With some physical extertion, turning the heavy handle, it was actually possible to have that thing make your calculations for homework. Wow.

 

[GeorginaS]

I remember when the best way to get a motorcycle sound on my bicycle involved using clothespins and baseball cards to rub on the spokes. IIR, Mickey Mantle and Hank Aaron rookie cards sounded really good.

Yes! Hockey cards flapping in bicycle spokes. Wonderful noise.

 

[Ronnin]

I remember when people thought corduroy jackets and pants actually looked good. I remember my bowl haircut and those stupid velour sweaters my mom use to make wear. It's Texas mom, we only need sweaters two weeks out of the year!

 

[turbo]

I remember when Milky Way and Snickers bars cost 5 cents, and a Hershey Lunch Bar (plain chocolate) cost 3 cents. At the time, sodas cost 10 cents (including the 3 cent deposit on the soda bottle) so if the store owner trusted you, he'd sell you a bottle of soda AND a Lunch Bar for 10 cents with the understanding that you'd consume them on the front porch of the store and bring the bottle back in when you were done.

 

[Dr Transport]

Remember Jiffy Pop?

My son's boy scout troop thinks that Jiffy Pop is the best thing since sliced bread.

 

[jim mcnamara]

Cooking on a wood stove.

Did that up until 2001. We heated with wood and used the stove for long cooktime items like beans.

1 gallon water
2 tsp salt
3 cloves garlic whole
about 6 ounces of salt pork
3 quarts of soaked pinto or anasazi beans

Boil covered from when the sun shows full over the Sandia Mountains til dark. 'bout 8 hours in winter. Check water ever 2-3 hours... Crudely mash the beans with a potato masher (in some of the liquid.)

Our neighbors add wood ash to the beans at the start.

 

[Ronnin]

Our neighbors add wood ash to the beans at the start.

What kind of flavor does that add?

 

[jtbell]

I remember when McDonalds was just a local hamburger stand - just one.

I don't go back quite that far (at least my memory doesn't), but I do remember when all McDonald's had a counter on their sign that proudly announced how many hamburgers the chain had sold so far: "100 million served"... "200 million served"...

Of course, they eventually had to switch to the Carl Sagan version: "Billions and billions served."

 

[FredGarvin]

Does anyone remember making actual carbon copies on an old Gestetner, hand crank copy machine? My Dad had one in his office for the longest time.

 

[Moonbear]

MB, I didn't realize that anyone still makes popcorn this way... Hmmmmm, I may try it again, but if I burn myself it will all be your fault.

Perhaps I should remind you to put the lid on the pot too?

Just put a tablespoon or two of oil in a heavy pot, and about 3 kernels of popcorn, put on the lid, place it over medium-high heat. When the first few kernels pop (I always do three in case you have a "dud"), the oil is ready. Quickly add your 1/3 cup of kernels, put the lid on, and wait. When you hear the popping start (shouldn't take long at all), start shaking the pot. When the popping slows down, take it off the heat, wait a moment or two longer for the last little explosions to stop (otherwise they'll all jump out of the pot when you open the lid), add salt or butter to taste (I can eat popcorn popped this way completely plain, but still add a little salt and butter anyway) and enjoy!

And yes, when I was growing up, my mom did it the scalding oil in a cheap (thin) pot and too high of temperatures and burn half the popcorn way too.

 

[Evo]

One of the most heavenly smells - hot buttered popcorn, one of the worst smells - burned popcorn.

 

[Evo]

Does anyone remember making actual carbon copies on an old Gestetner, hand crank copy machine? My Dad had one in his office for the longest time.

I remember having to type with carbon paper if i wanted copies.

The good old days of changing typewriter ribbons, unsnagging the keys