Corona Musings for Us...

Freqflyer,

I think people in those days had something that we (most of us) just don't have. My dad was one of those people that no matter what was going on he always remained calm.

Once when I was 7 yrs old my mother was gone and my dad was home with my brother and me; the kitchen caught on fire in the middle of the night. I woke my dad up scared and he just lead us kids out of the house and once we were safe, he went back into the house and put out the small fire. He had us kids come back into the house and we all went back to bed! The next day, I woke up and there was my dad cleaning up the mess. He was amazing when it came to disasters. In fact, I don't remember him ever panicking! He was my rock!

GardenArtist, it was amazing how my parents coped with anything that was happening in the world. During 9-11, I became very scared as there were fighter jets flying over as we were living next to Washington DC. I called my folks and told them I am coming over. They were watching the news but had a calmness that I can't describe. Anyway, it was a comfort to me.

Back when I was a teenager, there was a northeast electrical blackout. We lived in upstate New York. It didn't phase my Dad, he pulled the car up to the house, ran an electrical cord from the cigarette lighter through the nearest window and had a light bulb on the end of the cord. And my folks got out their camping gear to heat up coffee. Gosh, I still have that old grey metal camping coffee percolator.

Worried,

Great minds think a like! I thought the same thing. We have one or two drive-ins in my state, but they are to far for us to go to:( I loved going to the drive ins when I was a kid:)

Great idea😄

I threw out the pork and packaging so I can’t take it back and make a fuss. I was in a hurry to get rid of the smell before my family started complaining and took it all outside to the big bin. And today was trash day so it’s gone. Don’t think I can go make a fuss without the packaging and receipt :(
and yes it could have been a misprint. The chops looked fresh and pink like normal but you never know. Lesson learned though. No more stuffed chops.

I’m bored and just had a thought! Now would be a great time to bring drive-ins back to life! Good idea, no? Bring your own snacks. Buy your ticket online and print it or scan a bar code on your phone. No human contact needed! I think drive-ins are pretty hard to find in America these days.

I completely agree, GardenArtist, about our parents being more adaptable than we are. I am having to bake my own bread since I can't get any in the stores (and can't leave the house to get to the store because I'm the sole caregiver for my mom now since I canceled caregivers) and find alternatives to paper towels. I think of how my grandmother went through WW1, the Great Depression and WW2 and still found a way to take good care of her four kids, two of which went to war. Or even Amish communities who make do and don't rely on modern conveniences.

LilHelp and Living South, I'm asking myself similar questions:  how would my parents cope?   I remember my mother telling me once that they had no coal for their furnace, in the wintertime.    And she had to do homework by lamplight; I don't recall if they didn't have electricity b/c they were poor, or if the lights were off b/c of some event during the Great Depression.

They were so much more adaptable than many groups of people today.

Worried, another possibility for the spoiled pork chops:   left out of refrigeration too long.  I've seen those 5 - 6' carts filled with meat rolled out, placed near the meat counters, then left...for who knows how long.  It's why I quit buying any meat from that particular store.

If the pork chops were left out long enough to spoil, the "good by date" would have been effective if not for human error.

In fact once I reported seeing a guy working in the butcher counter w/o wearing gloves.   Yuck.

I've been researching my family tree and one grandparent lost half of her family to flu, scarlet fever, and cancer. She also looked after her blind grandma when she was a teenager. They even made it through the Spanish flu. They did it without a refrigerator, a phone, a computer and television. They had only a few books. My mom used to read a childrens story to me about a little hen that would prepare when all the other animals said there was nothing to worry about and they were too lazy. I guess it made an impression on me because I always buy things on sale in case I need them. I can shelter in place easier than my grandparents could because of these modern conveniences. I read about people freaking out because they can't go out to the bar or they can't entertain themselves at home and I can't say that I feel very sorry for them.

Worried, a use-by date that far in advance on fresh, pre-prepared pork? (17th March you bought them, use by the 30th, nearly two weeks?) - I'd think it was a misprint in the date stamping, so I would alert the retailer anyway because what if they sold a whole load of packs like that?

Many of us grew up with generations of parents, great great grandparents, great grandparents, grandparents, all who lived through The Great Depression, Wars, and all they did, did not do, did without, could or could not do, used in order to make do, proper cleaning and disinfecting, re-used with proper cleaning, keeping hands clean and off our faces, eyes, nose, etc., all the great hygiene they practiced and taught all to us in order that we, too, survive and be prepared for the worse case scenarios. 

I've always been thankful my parents, especially my Mother taught me these things, and to always live this way.  And now, I'm more thankful than ever.  She did a great job!

Praying we who grew up like this also taught others what we all are so blessed to have been taught.  And that others who weren't taught may listen when we tell them, and that they learn and live their lives this way, too  .. quickly.

Worried, can you take the chops back and get a refund?   I think I would at least raise an issue about the apparently spoiled food.   

Lilhelp, I do think this will be a defining and life changing event for those of us who either don't get the virus or survive it.    I also think the talk of recession isn't anywhere close to what we'll experience, more like another Great Depression.    But we won't even be able to stand in bread lines.

This has accelerated so quickly that's it's literally terrifying.    I think it will change a lot of people, some in good ways hopefully.

Worried,

Some one change the date on those pork chops just so they could make money and didn't bother to lower the selling price a few days before the chops went bad!

I never buy any meat that is stuff with anything! I am not sure why I don't. I guess if I want stuff chops or stuff NY strips I do it myself!! Maybe I just don't trust people to do what they should!!😱

I am sorry that your pork chops didn't turn out. It sucks when you have to throw meat out:(

I had to throw away 4 pork chops last night. 4 meals gone and $12 wasted. At a time we should not be wasting food :(

I just bought them on Tuesday afternoon. The sell by date was 3/30. They were pork loin chops stuffed with Apple stuffing (Nob Hill sells them already stuffed in the meat dept.). I opened the package and they were kind of stinky. I thought perhaps I was just sensitive to smells & I had been feeling a bit sick yesterday. I went ahead and baked them...and the kitchen ended up smelling stinky. Like stinky feet. It was a funky smell. They looked normal when they were done. Against my better judgement, I decided to eat it. I cut off a piece and spit it right out because it tasted as funky as it smelled! Straight to the trash they all went!

Sig other's grand-daughter [16] was so upset as she wanted to go to Starbucks, according to her Mom [they live in New York]. Both her and her Mom just cannot stay put. It's go, go, go.

My parents were the teenagers of the Great Depression and they would tell me stories about how difficult it was for so many people. Especially the run on banks to remove money [that was before banks were insured].

Both my parents grew up on farms, so the family rarely went hungry. They would barter bushels of crops for other things they needed. Dad said he and his brothers would pop up corn [the farm raised various types of corn] and use it like cereal with milk and sugar.

For transportation, my Dad had his horse.

Toilet paper? Well, no indoor plumbing back then on the farm. There was always the Sears, Roebuck and Company catalog that one would rip out pages, and the Montgomery Ward's catalog.

Both my parents were very fugal. My Mom could make clothing last for over 30 years, she didn't fuss about "today's" styles. So glad I learned from my parents. The next generation is so buried in their cellphones, they aren't listening.... [sigh].

I think it's awful to waste food...it's too expensive and I always think of the people in our world who would give anything to eat what we throw out. I cut the mold off bread and cheese and eat it (and I'm not dead yet). I've peeled a layer of pure mold off a yogurt and ate what was underneath (it's already cultured...I didn't die). I do this all the time to the point that my family sometimes covertly checks ingredients for freshness as I'm cooking dinner. I just smell things before I eat them, never look at the expiration date on anything as those are random and just for CYA. When I went to Europe and North Africa in the early 80s I couldn't believe what people were eating that hadn't been refrigerated (eggs, meat and wet cheeses to name a few). I was pretty sure they were serving that food to us tourists.

Americans are way on the paranoid end of the spectrum about food. I used to be that way too. Milk is good for a while after the expiry date. Let your nose tell you if it's good or not. Milk was what got me over my food expiry paranoia. I traveled around with a bunch of Europeans for a while. We had the same jug of milk for a week. This was no refrigeration. It was just sitting in the trunk of the car. I refused to drink it after 4 days. They made fun of me for that. No one got sick.

In many countries there is no refrigeration. The meal you get at 6pm was cooked that morning at 6am. It's been sitting there all day. I've never gotten sick.

I've been reading some online comments from people who are seriously upset they will get sick because they might have to use milk that is 1 day past it's expiry date or wondering if they can use that half jar of pasta sauce that has been in the fridge for 3 days .... as a generation I think too many have become spoiled and have an incredibly low ability to make due with less, hopefully we can learn something from this.