Times do change

We were discussing the annual Holiday Tea and the idea of using card tables this year. Thinking of card tables took me back to when I was a kid, watching my mother get ready for a bridge party. The tables were out and set up with decks of cards, pencils and scorepads. My dad would be busy setting up the bar, making sure there was plenty of ice. My mother had spent some time preparing a variety of good things to eat, of course using the cookie cutters shaped like the various suits.












She would be wearing a dress, heels and pearls - shades of Mrs. Cleaver - and a hostess apron. In case you are too young to remember hostess aprons, these were lovely and frivolous. They were often made of organdy and were really just decorative. But most women had a few, some themed for holidays. It was a standard gift for women, like a tie for a man.












But what struck me was how this form of entertainment, the bridge party, something so central to married life for many years disappeared so completely. While I play cards, I never played bridge, never thought of having a card party. It is remarkable that something so central to our daily life can vanish and not really be missed. The bridge party, the card suit themed kitchen gadgets, the hostess apron, the wacky recipes have all faded away with the Greatest Generation.

I can think of some examples in libraries. Card catalogs, card sorters, typewriters. Just last week we saw another standard library tool get retired - our due date stamper or charger as it is known in the library world. It was invented in 1930 and it was the revolutionary invention for libraries at the time. Automation had begun, and it served us well for many, many years. But, we no longer could get them repaired and we knew we were on borrowed time. So, we gave them a well deserved retirement, and started using receipt printers. We, the staff, are thrilled with the printers, and so are the majority of you. Sad to say, something so central to our lives wasn't missed a bit. Thus the march of time, the voyage onward into the future, kicking the past to the curb.

But if you haven't seen the printers work yet, be sure to check something out - they are really cool!

Book: The Apron book, by EllynAnne Geisel
Book: Antique Trader Kitchen Collectibles
Book: Bridge for anyone, by Shelly De Satnick