# Child Abuse & Sibling Rivalries



## VeraBlue (Sep 8, 2006)

Please don't let the title startle you.   This is actually for Mudbug.

We were discussing things our parents made us do, that, in our enlightened opinions amounts to child abuse.

I figured I'd toss in sibling rivalry/abuse just for 'pips' and giggles.

My mother used to make me ride my bike (without benifit of bike basket) to the supermarket to fetch groceries she had run short of.   This meant I had to hold the bag (and sometimes it had big gallons of milk) with one hand and steer with the other.

My brother was quite enterprising.  He had a very large after-school paper route.  There were easily a hundred and twenty five papers over 6 miles to be delivered.   It also had to be done on foot because of the geography.   When he was in the midst of baseball practice I had to do his route.   He never permitted me to make the collections because he didn't want me getting the tips.   He paid me a dollar a week.   This was 1975.  My parents told me I had no choice.

We had a glass shower door which my father insisted on cleaning with some product called 'Jubilee'.   He would spend 2 hours cleaning this thing, getting off all the soap build up and lime...etc.   We only had one bathroom, by the way.  When he was finished, he would tell us no one was allowed to use the bathroom till the next day.  He wanted it to stay clean for a while.

My father liked to make breakfast on sunday morning.  My father also liked to get up early.   It's not too bad when you're 7 or 8...but when you're 17 and were out with friends the night before, being told 'you can't eat cold eggs' at 7am is torture.

My mother insisted we 'kids' phone our grandmother to say goodnight every night.  Everytime my grandmother would ask to speak to my mother, however, she'd run out of the room.

When I was 10 I traveled to Italy with my family.  My sister was 6.   Being only slightly more understanding of the lire than my sister, I convinced her that the bigger the size of the paper bill, the more it was worth.  I got her to trade all her little bills for my big bills.  

Okay.....your turn.   And Mudbug, I do hope you have had a nice laugh!


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## mudbug (Sep 8, 2006)

Love it, Vera!  Actually, I never thought of the ciggie-fetching task as abuse - it was just one more item mom needed from the store every couple of days......just thought it was quaint how store clerks would readily hand over a pack of butts to a kid back in the day.

But on to sib rivalry and other tortures..........
Being the oldest, I constantly heard "take your sister/brother/the baby with you" whenever I wanted to venture outside.  At a young age, I had determined that I was meant to be like Huck Finn - orphaned, barefoot, and available for any adventure that the burbs of Chicago could offer (not quite the same as having the Miss. River readily to hand, but nevertheless a kid could dream...)

What I never got was how the responsibility tasks never left - even when the younger sibs got to be old enough to do what I had been doing at their age, taking the sister/brother/baby along on their daily excursions - it always had to be me.  In fact, one of my younger sisters to this day uses that excuse to avoid anything difficult ("but mudbug, you're the oldest...")  

One good thing about this role was I got to rush the younger kids thru their dessert and scarfed up the remnants.


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## Alix (Sep 9, 2006)

I am the youngest, so I got tortured regularly. My sister closest to me in age (only 9 years older) used to babysit me and she was MEAN! My parents would walk out the door at 6:30 or so and she would immediately tell me it was bedtime. I would argue, and she would pick up the phone to "call" them whereever they had gone. Being only 6 or so at the time I believed that crap and would run my butt to my room as fast as I could go! Got my own back though. She worked really hard to buy her own contacts (Mom would pay for glasses but if you wanted contacts you had to pay for your own) and she would leave the solutions on the counter in the bathroom. Did y'know, you can make really creative fingerpaints with contact solution, eyeshadow and a dab of lotion?


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## Dina (Sep 9, 2006)

I should turn back time and begin some sort of this same discipline we used to have.  My mom would make me clean and dust the house, fold clothes, and wash dishes.  I remember my brother (1.5 years older than me) walking to the grocery store with her to help her carry grocery bags (and they were not light, let me tell you).  Mother used to have me hang my clothes on a clothes line (do you remember those?..eek) until we were able to get a descent dryer.  TV shows were the ones we had to watch with our parents-how did we survive?  Who knows.  I'm just thankful for cable now.  If grades were below 70s we were in for a good swatting with no excuses.  

All the luxuries we have now don't even measure to what we had back then.  Maybe this way, our kids would take things seriously and know when we mean business.  I feel there are things we, as well as, kids take things for granted now.  I still am very stern with the rules and consequences with my kids but sometimes, they can really push the limit.   Argh!  Like today, when I went into the online gradebook for my son.  AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I won't even go there!  Sorry, I had to vent!


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## kadesma (Sep 9, 2006)

_I swore as a teenager that I was never going to get married and never but never going to have kids..I being the oldest, was in charge of my sister. This of course gave my sister the green light to say no to anything I asked and I'm goona to other things. I was in charge of picking up groceries each day after school for dinner, waiting at home straight after school to meet little sis when she got home and then starting dinner each night, either washing or drying dishes after, my home work, then maybe a few minutes of TV and it was bed. My sister knew that she was expected to hang her school uni up when she got home and then make her bed..Nope, she always had dire homework to get done or else..So old sucker would do it for her and off she'd go to play!!! Homework, oh she'd say daddy has to help me later. Yep later, just when it was time to take a turn drying dishes!!! Yep, I would get the call. When asked to go to the store to pick up milk or what ever, there was always a battle and for peace for myself, I'd give in and do it. Silly thing was, I never ever told my folk the problems I had with her, until years later when they moved here to live..Mom and dad both said, you should have said something!!!!! Sure and just what would I have said? That kid had me figured out from the day she came home from being born, I still haven't got a handle on her I didn't stand a chance unless I could have sold her to the Circus _
_So, thus the feelings I didn't want kids..Yep, me no kids and here I sit having had four and now have six grandkids four of whom I watch..Know what, they more that make up for the pains of being a big sister.._
_kadesma _


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## rdcast (Sep 9, 2006)

mah older sisters dressed me n skirts n painted mah nails(red) when I was too small to hitum. They didn't have polish remover, so I had to go to kindergarten with chipped nail polish.


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## pdswife (Sep 9, 2006)

I was the girl... he was the boy.. I did all the dishes...setting the table clearing the table, fill the dishwasher, empty the dishwasher, make the salad, vaccuum, and dust and empty the garbage, HE had to take the trash can to the road on trash day and if he forgot... I HAD to do it.  

I could go on and on about how unfair life was... but... I'm sure ya don't want to hear it.


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## lindatooo (Sep 9, 2006)

I had no siblings to either torture or be tortured by but my mother more than made up  for it.  She did Spring Cleaning every Saturday - I mean stuff most of us never do or do once a year max!  She was a clean-aholic!  I was never allowed to watch cartoons on Saturday am - and if I didn't do the job to her standards I'd be required to sit and watch her work....now that is torture!  And she could stretch a lecture over some misdemeanor into days!  I remember asking her to "Please just hit me!"  that did NOT go over well!

One Saturday, very determined to do such a good job she'd have no complaints, I dusted her philladendron (sp) (which was ancient and intertwined almost into a macrame) so thoroughly I completely un tangled it and cleaned every single leaf.  It died!


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## VeraBlue (Sep 9, 2006)

Dina said:
			
		

> I should turn back time and begin some sort of this same discipline we used to have.  My mom would make me clean and dust the house, fold clothes, and wash dishes.  I remember my brother (1.5 years older than me) walking to the grocery store with her to help her carry grocery bags (and they were not light, let me tell you).  Mother used to have me hang my clothes on a clothes line (do you remember those?..eek) until we were able to get a descent dryer.  TV shows were the ones we had to watch with our parents-how did we survive?  Who knows.  I'm just thankful for cable now.  If grades were below 70s we were in for a good swatting with no excuses.
> 
> All the luxuries we have now don't even measure to what we had back then.  Maybe this way, our kids would take things seriously and know when we mean business.  I feel there are things we, as well as, kids take things for granted now.  I still am very stern with the rules and consequences with my kids but sometimes, they can really push the limit.   Argh!  Like today, when I went into the online gradebook for my son.  AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  I won't even go there!  Sorry, I had to vent!



Dina, I always thought my neighbour's clothes dryer was broken because she always hung her clothes out to dry.   This was afte we got a clothes dryer.  On the other hand, I always wondered where my other neighbour hung her clothes to dry...because she never hung them outside.  See....she had a clothes dryer!

Do you remember actually having to get up off the sofa to change the television channel?


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## Alix (Sep 9, 2006)

VeraBlue said:
			
		

> Do you remember actually having to get up off the sofa to change the television channel?


 
LOL!! I DO!! My Dad called me his remote control!


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## VeraBlue (Sep 9, 2006)

kadesma said:
			
		

> _I swore as a teenager that I was never going to get married and never but never going to have kids..I being the oldest, was in charge of my sister. This of course gave my sister the green light to say no to anything I asked and I'm goona to other things. I was in charge of picking up groceries each day after school for dinner, waiting at home straight after school to meet little sis when she got home and then starting dinner each night, either washing or drying dishes after, my home work, then maybe a few minutes of TV and it was bed. My sister knew that she was expected to hang her school uni up when she got home and then make her bed..Nope, she always had dire homework to get done or else..So old sucker would do it for her and off she'd go to play!!! Homework, oh she'd say daddy has to help me later. Yep later, just when it was time to take a turn drying dishes!!! Yep, I would get the call. When asked to go to the store to pick up milk or what ever, there was always a battle and for peace for myself, I'd give in and do it. Silly thing was, I never ever told my folk the problems I had with her, until years later when they moved here to live..Mom and dad both said, you should have said something!!!!! Sure and just what would I have said? That kid had me figured out from the day she came home from being born, I still haven't got a handle on her I didn't stand a chance unless I could have sold her to the Circus _
> _So, thus the feelings I didn't want kids..Yep, me no kids and here I sit having had four and now have six grandkids four of whom I watch..Know what, they more that make up for the pains of being a big sister.._
> _kadesma _



We had the same sister.  I know it.  Is her name Nancy?    I have an older brother, who never had any responsibility around the house because he was such an 'over achiever'...he was always studying, being the lead in some play or being the star athlete...   I also have a younger sister who couldn't really be counted on for anything.  After all, she was the baby.   Like you, I had to come straight home after school to keep an eye on her, and get dinner started.   All the rest of the kids on the street were out playing till dinner time, but I was always stuck home right after school.   Tell me her name was Nancy...I know it's the same person.


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## VeraBlue (Sep 9, 2006)

rdcast said:
			
		

> mah older sisters dressed me n skirts n painted mah nails(red) when I was too small to hitum. They didn't have polish remover, so I had to go to kindergarten with chipped nail polish.



oooo...X rated....


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## VeraBlue (Sep 9, 2006)

lindatooo said:
			
		

> I had no siblings to either torture or be tortured by but my mother more than made up  for it.  She did Spring Cleaning every Saturday - I mean stuff most of us never do or do once a year max!  She was a clean-aholic!  I was never allowed to watch cartoons on Saturday am - and if I didn't do the job to her standards I'd be required to sit and watch her work....now that is torture!  And she could stretch a lecture over some misdemeanor into days!  I remember asking her to "Please just hit me!"  that did NOT go over well!
> 
> One Saturday, very determined to do such a good job she'd have no complaints, I dusted her philladendron (sp) (which was ancient and intertwined almost into a macrame) so thoroughly I completely un tangled it and cleaned every single leaf.  It died!



I think I missed every saturday morning cartoon too!  My mother would blow into the bedroom at 7:30 with the vacuum cleaner.   If that didn't actually wake you up, she'd bump it into the bed a few times.   Then it was chore time.   Every other kid on the street was watching the Flintsones or whatever was on on Saturday morning, but not me.  I was learning the finer points of dusting before you vacuum and how to properly iron the collar on a shirt.   If I was lucky, I got done in time for HR puffenstuff.


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## VeraBlue (Sep 9, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> LOL!! I DO!! My Dad called me his remote control!



Do you remember getting yelled at if you changed them too fast?   My father insisted we turn the knob one at a time, giving the show on that channel a chance to visualize before changing to the next channel.   He was convinced the knob would break if we simply turned it all the way from 2 (what kid ever watched channel 2?) to channel 11.


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## mudbug (Sep 9, 2006)

rdcast said:
			
		

> mah older sisters dressed me n skirts n painted mah nails(red) when I was too small to hitum. They didn't have polish remover, so I had to go to kindergarten with chipped nail polish.


 
could have been worse, rdcast.  we painted our little brothers' toenails.  Would have curled their hair too, but Dad always believed in the GI crewcut for little boys.


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## Dina (Sep 9, 2006)

VeraBlue said:
			
		

> Do you remember actually having to get up off the sofa to change the television channel?


 
Boy, do I remember the manual switching channels!  I blessed the day they got a TV with a remote.


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## mudbug (Sep 9, 2006)

pdswife said:
			
		

> I was the girl... he was the boyI could go on and on about how unfair life was... but... I'm sure ya don't want to hear it.


 
You had the same parents I did - specific sexes had specific chores.
To this day I have never mowed a lawn.  Until my brothers moved out, they never washed a dish.

And boys think their clean underwear magically appears in their dresser drawers.  Some are tortured by actually having to put it away themselves.


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## rdcast (Sep 9, 2006)

I was mah dad's bartender n book caddie and mah sisters always laughed at me
It's too painful, I must stop...

​



​


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## kadesma (Sep 9, 2006)

VeraBlue said:
			
		

> We had the same sister. I know it. Is her name Nancy? I have an older brother, who never had any responsibility around the house because he was such an 'over achiever'...he was always studying, being the lead in some play or being the star athlete... I also have a younger sister who couldn't really be counted on for anything. After all, she was the baby. Like you, I had to come straight home after school to keep an eye on her, and get dinner started. All the rest of the kids on the street were out playing till dinner time, but I was always stuck home right after school. Tell me her name was Nancy...I know it's the same person.


Well Hellooooo sister Vera How's Nancy Judy? 
kadesma


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## VeraBlue (Sep 9, 2006)

kadesma said:
			
		

> Well Hellooooo sister Vera How's Nancy Judy?
> kadesma



Are you serious?   Is that her real name???


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## kadesma (Sep 9, 2006)

VeraBlue said:
			
		

> Are you serious? Is that her real name???


Relax Vera, her name is Judy, but I'm thinking they could be twins 

kadesma


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## rdcast (Sep 9, 2006)

VeraBlue said:
			
		

> oooo...X rated....


haha, mah last post had to be pulled, so yea, Iz bad, real bad !!!!!!!


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## BigDog (Sep 9, 2006)

This has been fun to read.

I guess I don't recall too much stuff like this. I know I had wooden opjects broke over my backside, but nothing that would even compare to y'all.

'Bout the worst I recall is mom saying she wasn't cooking, so fend for yourselves. That's where I learned to cook! I recall Mom granting me permission to make a meal that caused me to call myself "Captain Cholesterol." Mom & Dad were going out with friends, and mom said to have whatever in the fridge since she was going shopping the next day. She looked in the fridge and said there are about a half dozen eggs and a pound of bacon. So, that's what I had for supper.  

Thus my agreement with Emeril that pork fat rules!  

Sorry, I digress from the topic.


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## lulu (Sep 10, 2006)

My sister is almost twenty years older than me.  As a sweetener for losing only "child" status she got to name me.  Oh deah!  My "real life name" is very individual!  She and I were actually quite close when I was little....I think she really was my primary carer till I was about 4, when she left home it was like losing a parent.

But, she would have been mad not to make the most of her age and size advantage!  The worst thing I remember now is she used to put me in our big old ali Baba type laudry basket and push me over the top stair and I would go clattering down.  She convinced me it was a game at the time but it terrified me and I played a long just cause I loved her so.  I shudder now at the damage she could have done.

I did chores, I think every kid should have responsibilties.  From when I was very little I was the shoe cleaner....every weekend everybody's shoes.  It was fun, and I am really good at cleaning shoes now.  Other jobs thatr were mine when I was small were cleaning all the door handles and knobs and light switches and sockets.  Cleaning the front porch and cleaning the bathtub.  Those three jobs were always mine and Saturdays we tended to pull together in the house, Sundays the garden.  It was ok.  I think if you have to be involved in the housework you are less likely to leave a huge mess behind you.


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## licia (Sep 10, 2006)

Well, I was the dreaded older sister. There were four of us - three girls then a boy. I hear that I was doted on until my sister came along when I was 2 1/2, then another when I was 4 1/2, then the boy when I was almost 7. By the time I was 10, I could do most anything in the house. I made the mistake of ironing one of Dad's white shirts better than my mom and after that it was my job (I still think it was rigged). I had to iron 6 of them each week. I didn't do babysitting since my grandmother had a house on our property and was quite willing to sit with us whenever necessary. I did lots of cooking and cleaning also, but mostly cooking.  My siblings have sad tales about our growing up, but those blamed on me are ALL fibs. My mom thought I should always be busy, but never gave me a list, just gave me one job at the time and I thought that was cruelty. I did get back in some ways, like when my sister and I were doing the dishes and I went to the bathroom with my book and stayed til she finished them. Whatever the thoughts were then, we are fabulous friends now and look forward to getting together with or without our dh's whenever we can. We do agree that mom was a taskmaster!


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## Claire (Sep 10, 2006)

Big Dog, that really rings a bell.  When I was in high school, one morning my mom got up.  My two youngest sisters were still in bed, it was me and my next younger sis and my dad, all getting ready for school.  Sis and Dad are real grumps in the morning, I tend to awake happy until the world does something to change that.  Mom took one look around the kitchen.  Dad's sour puss.  Sister's sour puss.  She looked at me and said, "you know what?  I'm not getting up for this crew any more.  Claire, I'm sorry, I love you, but you are on your own."  Then she went back to bed (she continued to get  up and get my little sisters off to school, but an hour later when she didn't have to put up with sour dispositions).  To this day I applaud her decision that morning!


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## Claire (Sep 10, 2006)

We also cleaned a lot.  In the summer or other school breaks, we "really" cleaned (that is vacuum cleaning, mopping, furniture polish, the works) on Mon-Wed-Fri.  On Tue-Thurs-Sun after church we ran the "carpet sweeper" and a duster.  I know Sunday is supposed to be a day of rest, and believe me, we tried to convince Mom of that.  But quite often Sunday meant guests and that meant the house had to be immaculate.  Saturday wound up being our "day of rest" (no, we were Catholic, not Jewish), when we had all our friends running in and out, sleepovers, etc.  So if you wanted to find our household a mess, it was probably on Saturday afternoon.  We were the "go to" house for our friends; they preferred to be at our house rather than their own.  So those Saturdays were over-flowing.  But nowadays that house-cleaning routine would be considered child abuse!


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## Claire (Sep 10, 2006)

I know this is really child abuse:  We were not allowed to do anything until homework was done.  Period.  So there were no after school activities.  Period.  Homework.  You come home, you don't go to your room, you sit at the dining room table.  You work until it is done.  THEN you can (go to the playground, call your friends, etc).


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## GB (Sep 10, 2006)

Alix said:
			
		

> LOL!! I DO!! My Dad called me his remote control!


Not only did you and I have the same mother, but now it seems as if we had the same father as well. 

He used to say "why do you think we had kids" when he would use us as a remote control or to go downstairs to get his tools for him.


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## Claire (Sep 10, 2006)

I used to try to "keep peace" in the family.  I was the eldest of four girls.  My next youngest sister was the ****-raiser.  Mom used to actually get angry with me for "taking the fall".  It was easier to take the spanking or whatever punishment rather than living through the day or three that my sister could sulk when she got caught.  It didn't last long, Mom has good kid sense and caught on quickly that "Claire wouldn't do that, XXX has to have done it."  She'd seat me in between my two younger sisters to keep them from fighting -- even if it meant that I had to sit on the "hump" in our station wagon (I was very tall).


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## rdcast (Sep 10, 2006)

So *lulu*, big sis shoved you down the stares then laughed and made you play with electric sockets ? You need a hug.




​


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## Andy M. (Sep 10, 2006)

GB said:
			
		

> ..."why do you think we had kids"...


 
That struck a chord!  Dad would send you to fetch and if you complained, that's what you heard.  

I also had to help with certain housecleaning tasks.  I had to dust the venetian blinds as I was the only one tall enough to reach the tops.  Sis did most of the housework.

We never owned our own home so I never had to address cutting the grass or raking leaves.


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## VeraBlue (Sep 10, 2006)

lulu said:
			
		

> My sister is almost twenty years older than me.  As a sweetener for losing only "child" status she got to name me.  Oh deah!  My "real life name" is very individual!  She and I were actually quite close when I was little....I think she really was my primary carer till I was about 4, when she left home it was like losing a parent.
> 
> But, she would have been mad not to make the most of her age and size advantage!  The worst thing I remember now is she used to put me in our big old ali Baba type laudry basket and push me over the top stair and I would go clattering down.  She convinced me it was a game at the time but it terrified me and I played a long just cause I loved her so.  I shudder now at the damage she could have done.
> 
> I did chores, I think every kid should have responsibilties.  From when I was very little I was the shoe cleaner....every weekend everybody's shoes.  It was fun, and I am really good at cleaning shoes now.  Other jobs thatr were mine when I was small were cleaning all the door handles and knobs and light switches and sockets.  Cleaning the front porch and cleaning the bathtub.  Those three jobs were always mine and Saturdays we tended to pull together in the house, Sundays the garden.  It was ok.  I think if you have to be involved in the housework you are less likely to leave a huge mess behind you.



Do you remember that white liquidy stuff in the bottle for whitening shoes?  It had a sponge built into the top??

I remember having to clean the shoes, too..


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## rdcast (Sep 10, 2006)

I remember that. Don't they still sell it ??? I had white "patent leather shoes" I wore to Church.


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## Shunka (Sep 10, 2006)

I think I am related to most of you!!!!   Besides the household chores, babysitting younger siblings, taking the punishments for said siblings; I also had feeding chores and chores to do on the ranches we lived on. My first stepfather was of the opinion that the reason you had kids was for free labor on the ranch and boy, did he work ya!!!! At 5 years old, I was working at least 8 hours a day in the saddle. Would come home and could hardly move but had to help my Mom with the stuff she wasn't able to get done by herself (sister just younger than I, never did have the responsibilities that I had). I look back now and you know what? I am glad that I do have those times in my life; I did learn quite a bit and feel sorry for so many of the kids today that might never know what a "good day's work" really is. One thing that my Mom and I talked about a couple of weeks ago was how her mother (my late Grandmother) would slap us in the face and tell us not to cry!! I mean, huh? Of course if we managed to not cry, she would do it again to make us cry. Now that in my mind, is child abuse.


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## rdcast (Sep 10, 2006)

For whatever reason, mah dad would line up mah sisters n I (oldest to youngest) and ova his knees, spank the tar out of us with his skinny leather belt. My older sisters would always begin to cry, big time, before they even got spanked. Me, being the youngest would set mah jaw and never cry. Because of this, my sisters spankings were very short while, by virtue of my stubborn determination, dad would pound on mah butt till I thought I would lose it. Karen n Doris would cry even harder and beg me as they watched, "cry bobby, cry, just cry and he'll stop !!!". It made me so mad. Dad had to know that he either had to stop or do real damage. He was both a fine man and father but someone to fear when you did wrong.


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## AllenOK (Sep 10, 2006)

Oh, yes, I remember solid-state channel knobs on TV.

When I was little, I had to clean my bedroom before I could watch any cartoons on Saturday mornings.  I got in the habit of cleaning my room up after I went to my room for the night on Friday, but before I went to sleep.  That way I could spring out of bed at 6 am, bounce down the stairs, get a bowl of cereal, and turn on the tube.  I knew that the channel would already be set to the one I wanted to watch, as I had snuck downstairs after my parents went to bed and set the knob to the appropriate channel while the TV was off 

I remember the white shoe polish with the sponge tip; I had to use that stuff on my band shoes during marching season.

When I was older, in my teens, I had quite a bit of chores to do.  Cleaning house, dishes, mowing the lawn, etc.  Of course, as long as I got that stuff done, my mother allowed me to go fishing as much as I wanted.


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## rdcast (Sep 10, 2006)

Allen, u had the good life


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## wasabi (Sep 10, 2006)

Remember these? We called them oxfords when I was was in grade school and all the kids wore them. I had the back and white ones.  A bottle of white shoe polish with the sponge tip was always at hand to keep the white, white.


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## Andy M. (Sep 10, 2006)

We called these Saddle Shoes.  Never owned a pair.


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## rdcast (Sep 10, 2006)

No, they're saddle oxfords, and how about penny loafers ???


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## middie (Sep 11, 2006)

I was the remote control AND the dishwasher !!!


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## pdswife (Sep 11, 2006)

lol..life sure sucked didn't it middie?


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## phinz (Sep 11, 2006)

We had a bayou down at the end of the block that was full of cat tails. We would pick them and bring them home. One had sat out on the front porch in a planter for about 6 months. I was standing inside the screen door. My sister, 5 years younger, was outside, as was my little brother, 10 years younger. He was *maybe* 3, and more likely 2.

Anyway, my little sister picked up the cattail and handed it to my brother. He was confused. I told him "Eat it Stuart. It's a corn dog." 

He looked at me with trepidation (well, as much trepidation as a 2-year-old can have) until my sister said, "Yeah. Eat it. It's *good!*"

Keep in mind my mom was watching this with a little bemusement, not thinking anything would come of it.

But it did. He reared back, drew a bead on that nice, dry, dark brown corn dog with the nice fluffy center, and took a *big* ol' bite. I will never forget the tears rolling down my face, the stomach cramps from laughing until I almost wet myself, or my mom's look as she tried to keep a straight face while Sheri fell on the ground in hysterics and Stuart stood there with that highly-expandable cat tail fluff coming out of his mouth in vast, billowy clouds.

And to think... that kid with the corn dog phobia now works on nuclear missiles on a submarine for a living.


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## VeraBlue (Sep 11, 2006)

phinz said:
			
		

> We had a bayou down at the end of the block that was full of cat tails. We would pick them and bring them home. One had sat out on the front porch in a planter for about 6 months. I was standing inside the screen door. My sister, 5 years younger, was outside, as was my little brother, 10 years younger. He was *maybe* 3, and more likely 2.
> 
> Anyway, my little sister picked up the cattail and handed it to my brother. He was confused. I told him "Eat it Stuart. It's a corn dog."
> 
> ...


We used to call those things 'punks' for some strange reason.  We used to pick them, and then set the tip on fire...although they only just smoked, never really burned.


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## phinz (Sep 11, 2006)

Punks are the unscented incense sticks we use to light firecrackers. Same basic concept. Cat tails make *excellent* tinder if you tear them apart, though. I've started many a campfire with them.


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## VeraBlue (Sep 11, 2006)

phinz said:
			
		

> Punks are the unscented incense sticks we use to light firecrackers. Same basic concept. Cat tails make *excellent* tinder if you tear them apart, though. I've started many a campfire with them.



I loved the way they smelled when they were smoldering!


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