How things change over time
If you are of a certain age like me, I passed the 80 mark earlier this year, then you will have seen lots of changes in your lifetime. Some very good, some possibly good and lots of changes that may not be so good!
Certainly changes over the years for people with disabilities have in the main been on the very good side. Things such as powerchairs, mobility scooters and even wheelchairs have become available and are improving all the time. Then there are the wonderful aids to use in the home such as adjustable beds and riser recliner chairs. These can make so much difference to people with mobility issues and other health problems. Such as blood pressure or sleep apnoea as just a couple of examples. My situation with sleep apnoea has certainly improved by using my adjustable bed. To be able to raise my head to assist with my breathing at night.
Memories
When I look back to my childhood it was not all fun and games. But there were far fewer choices of things to do and games to play. The excitement of finding some chalk or even a stone to draw the numbers to play hopscotch. Or putting your jumpers down to mark out the goals in an area that said ‘No Ball Games’. That is a lot different to the choices of today. Xbox and PlayStation are beyond me but today’s generations love them and their phones as well
It can be strange though how certain memories stay with you. Recently my mind wandered back to the summer of 1967. When I was a sales representative for Loreal (does that mean I am worth it?). At the time I happened to be covering a territory in London whilst the normal salesperson was on holiday. My sales case in one hand and my trilby hat in the other, I wandered along the main street of Muswell Hill.
I was surprised to see a crowd had gathered outside a shop. As I got closer I saw that it was a Radio Rentals shop. Then as I managed to wriggle my way to the front of the crowd I realised why they were all there. In the middle of the shop window, there were 3 different working televisions. The ones to the right and left were showing the tennis from Wimbledon in black and white (standard at the time). But the one in the centre was showing it in colour! Can you imagine the excitement that was created? These colour broadcasts were experimental at the time and only shown in certain areas of London. So it was just by chance that I got to see how green the grass was at Wimbledon!
When I joined Loreal back in early 1966 I had to have a phone installed at home. The first time we had ever had one and my parents, I don’t think actually believed it was happening! We were the first people in our particular road with a phone. Now look where we are phones everywhere!
Fast forward nearly 60 years and television is a totally different product, how many channels are available? If you are not interested in the main broadcasters then there are numerous ways you can download programmes and your TV can be used as a computer or to play games on. It is amazing!
How our well-being has changed!
When I left school and went out to work for the first time I was a very innocent and impressionable young man. I probably didn’t look as old or know as much about life then as my 11-year-old grandson does already. Work for me meant being dressed smartly in a suit with a jacket collar and tie and my shoes shining. Nowadays if you see someone in a shop they will be wearing trainers and jeans or anything casual. You go shopping in M&S and you can’t tell the staff from the customers!
Back in 1959 and into the 1960’s, life expectancy was a lot shorter than it is today. Things like hip replacements, heart transplants and the other things available to all were just a dream or science fiction. As time has progressed though we have started to take them all for granted. To a put extra strain on the NHS. As we all tend to live longer the cost of caring for us increases. Even if it is just medicines that help us to continue with our daily lives. I am very fortunate to have had hip replacements, a knee replaced twice and lots of other operations and treatments. Aurerin Bevan never imagined these sorts of procedures when he was the driving force behind the introduction of the NHS.
Today we have so many aids that can help us in our own daily lives. Wonderful walking sticks with flexible ferals or crutches that are so much better than those supplied by the NHS. Even the ranges of riser recliner chairs and adjustable beds are just so fantastic. Now that there is one that will suit all. As for getting about the number of wheelchairs, mobility scooters and powerchairs you can choose from is fantastic.
Progress
I love the memories I have from a reasonably long life, working mainly in retail selling. I have met so many fantastic people over that time and am now fortunate enough to pass my memories on to my grandson (whether he wants to hear about them or not!). But his life and the lives of so many youngsters of his age is and will be so very different. Computers, gaming, and TVs that do everything and can be voice-operated it is beyond belief. Would that young man (me) who stood in front of a Radio Rentals shop in 1967 have believed this would happen? No, I don’t think I would. It’s progress but not all of it for the better.
Just a thought for those who don’t know Radio Rentals was, like various other brands a company that supplied and installed TVs but who you paid weekly for a television you never owned. They serviced any problems you had with the television and around that time (1967) there were just 3 channels BBC, BBC2 (only on for about 4 hours) and ITV but the ITV companies were split into regions and controlled by companies like ABC, ATV & Rediffusion.
A Final Memory
It is a final memory, the World Cup final of 1966 when England beat West Germany (as they were known back then) 4-2. With one goal that probably should not have been allowed, I saw it and I remember it so well The excitement of it all, then after it finished probably around 5-30 in the afternoon there was no chance of getting a drink to celebrate. The pub in those days had to close after 2 pm until either 6-30 or 7 pm so it was a very flat period! Unlike today where all the pubs show any match on TV with even special viewing areas are set up for fans to celebrate. I will have one memory though that today’s youngsters won’t have! I watched England win the World Cup!
By National Media Museum from UK – The Queen presents the 1966 World Cup to England Captain, Bobby Moore.Uploaded by mrjohncummings, No restrictions, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=30445353