DH likes all the canned greens (I think ugh!). But he's a bit more careful to read labels ever since he took a big bite from a can of 'turnip greens' that was seasoned heavily, very heavily, with hot peppers. MIL loved canned asparagus and refused to eat it fresh, no matter how long the fresh spears were cooked. To show what a difference 20 years makes (I think that's about how much older Gandle is), I grew up with a freezer. Greens (and a good many other vegs) were frozen for future meals, never canned. I recently discovered that cabbage freezes very nicely. Chop or shred, and blanch for about a minute before packing into meal-sized portions. It retains crispness and is great in stir-frys and most other recipes. Since DH has a habit of buying a 10-pound head of cabbage while not wanting more than a serving of cole slaw, etc. in any one week, it's nice to have the other 9 pounds in the freezer for future use.

newdawn1895 - Not only in the downtown areas, but the art district and the Riverview districts are all undergoing fabulous transformations. Chattanooga is such a neat town. I wish I had taken a photograph of my sons street. The avenue was absolutely beautiful! Most of the houses and yards were well kept, and the flowering trees were gorgeous hanging over the street. :) golddust - First of all, I wanted to tell you how much I love your dog. What a cutie! Secondly...what a tub! I love large old tubs like the claw-foot that my son has. I asked the guys if either had taken a bath and they answered "no" because they were using the tub as a storage place for their bathroom supplies. Now that we have provided a space saver tower over the toilet, the tub is now free for bathing. LOL You are so lucky to have many of the original features, like the built-ins. Your kitchen appliances are tops! I would love to know the date that my son's place was built, and also the history. Guess I'll have to ask the owners.

There's a lot of truth to many of the things brought up, and people wax nostalgically about "the good old days" but not many people really want to go back too far. Few will give up their cell phones, cars, remote controls, cable/satellite TV, microwaves automatic washers and the like. I'll admit I sure appreciate a lot of the conveniences but I also enjoyed going "back to nature" at the lake. No electricity out there so you got a taste of what it was like 100+ years ago. And certain conveniences there too. But that's a different topic. And me, I really like a large yard. I don't like being where you can reach out the window and shake hands with the neighbors. One of the reasons I bought where I did. Nice large lawn. I much prefer grass to blacktop or concrete. Healthier too. Trees and grass absorb CO2 and emit O2. It's part of photosynthesis. My dad couldn't figure out why I planted so many trees in my yard. I run the a/c much less because the house is much cooler when it's shaded. With grass rather than blacktop or concrete, it's much cooler in the summer and the smell of fresh cut grass is a nice smell, quite unlike the chemical smell of "mountain freshness" or whatever they call that stench they put in the laundry detergents and softeners that people seem so addicted to. Used to be when the clothes would stink was an indicator it's time to wash the clothes and yes, back when, you could wear a shirt and/or pants more than an hour before changing them. Having lawns instead of hard surfaces also lets the water tables fill up again from the rains and snow. Look at the areas with water shortage issues. Generally they have far more impervious surfaces. We are doing our best to fight Mother Nature and can't figure out why she gets ticked off and gives a little slap on the wrists now and then to remind us to wake up. And FWIW, I haven't watered my lawn for over 25 years and have a much nicer lawn overall than most of the neighbors. The hottest part of the summer the grass will go dormant. When that happens you don't need to mow. If you water it, then you have to mow it! What's wrong with this picture? :) And the one I'll add is how people used to "cook" coffee at home. They didn't have to go pay $5 at Megabucks for coffee with a lot of milk in it! Used a mug or a cup and saucer (how many remember saucer and blow? Course the coffee was much hotter then too because women in those days knew that coffee was hot and not to spill it in their laps and run to a lawyer. You'd fix it rather than just toss it and buy new. And nobody bought all new appliances because the color trend had changed! You could get your appliances in any color you wanted, as long as it was white, possibly with some chrome trim. Home buyers didn't know the phrase "kitchen needs 'updating'"! And for the rare circumstance if the washer quit for good and was unrepairable, you surely didn't buy a new dryer to go with it! And back then if you didn't have that item you wanted needed for whatever, you didn't make a special trip to the store. You called a neighbor or went over and asked to borrow a cup of sugar or whatever. Or you would "make do" without. If clothes went out of style, you wore clothes that were out of style until they wore out. Although few would go back to those days, many sure could learn something from those days couldn't they?

Oh gosh! I should have peeked in here earlier! Thats the Angel feather ornament Country Bumpkin did for my DD after DSIL passed away a year ago in November. I'd think Hobby Lobby would have those hangers... Your a sweetie Patti to think of this, I KNOW how much my DD loves hers. (CB if your peeking in she still has it out) Here is a pic and I think the poem is a bit easier to read. The flip side of the poem has a pic of Steve and is laminated. If you want there are two more pics I can post. CB put two red roses on to represent DD and Steve and 2 white, one for each of the boys. I was in awe when I saw it in person!