By Mary Ellen Shaw At some point in our lives we seem to turn into our parents.I guess it’s inevitable as we grew up following their instructions. I thought of my father when someone commented to me that I mow […]
Category: Looking Back
Column, Looking Back
Grocery shopping in the 1950s to 1970s
By Mary Ellen Shaw Shopping for food in Rutland back in the ’50s was an entirely different experience than it is today. The Rutland Directory for 1955 has 50 listings under the heading of “Grocer.” Only two of those stores […]
Column, Looking Back
Saturday morning routine back in the ’50s
By Mary Ellen Shaw The morning host of a local radio station who is fairly new to Rutland said he sees signs on buildings for businesses that are no longer open. He named a few of them and invited people […]
Column, Looking Back
Our connection to aromas
By Mary Ellen Shaw Once you have lived through several decades you will realize that various aromas have a connection to a certain time period in your life. One of the earliest aromas that I can remember was the delicious […]
Column, Looking Back
Remembering Seward’s
By Mary Ellen Shaw When I read that Seward’s Restaurant is closing my mind went to memories that began in childhood. When you have been around for more than of a century it’s rare to have an existing business that […]
Column, Looking Back
Gardening this fall
By Mary Ellen Shaw Well, how did your garden grow this summer? Did you try anything new? Experimenting with new plants is one of my favorite things to do. When the calendar tells me that Labor Day has arrived I […]
Column, Looking Back
Remember the cold, snow and ice?
By Mary Ellen Shaw When I submitted my column to Polly recently I added a comment about how much I dislike hot weather. I told her I had much rather have it cold. I also gave her permission to remind […]
Column, Looking Back
Childhood pets
By Mary Ellen Shaw Many of us had pets growing up. Dogs and cats were the most common pets but goldfish, turtles and birds also had a place in many of our homes. On my street three of my closest […]
Column, Looking Back
Shopping for items of the past
By Mary Ellen Shaw I realized that I am “stuck” in the ’50s when Venetian blinds are still my choice for privacy and keeping out the sun. Apparently, the majority of consumers have moved on to more modern options! About […]
Column, Looking Back
Objects: large to a child, small to an adult
By Mary Ellen Shaw As adults we have occasions to observe how small something actually is that seemed large to us when we were children. That happened to me just before the school year came to an end at Christ […]