"FENDER
SKIRTS".
A term
I haven't heard in a long time and thinking about
"fender skirts" started me thinking about other words that have
quietly
disappeared from our language with hardly a notice.
Like "curb feelers” and "steering knobs."
Since I'd
been thinking of cars, my mind naturally went that
direction
first. Any kids will probably have to find some
elderly person over 50 to explain some of these terms to you.
Remember
"Continental kits?” They were rear bumper extenders
and spare
tire covers that were suppose d to make any car as
cool as
a Lincoln Continental.
When did
we quit calling them "emergency brakes?" At some
point "parking brake" became the proper term. But I miss the
hint of
drama that went with "emergency brake."
I'm
sad, too, that almost all the old folks are gone who would
call the
accelerator the "foot feed."
Didn't
you ever wait at the street for your dad to come home,
so you
could ride the "running board" up to the house? Or
beg to ride
in
the “rumble seat?” That was replaced
with a “trunk,”
Here's
a phrase I heard all the time in my youth but never
anymore
- "store-bought." Of course, just about everything is
store-bought
these days. But once it was bragging material to
have a
store-bought dress or a store-bought bag of candy.
"Coast to coast" is a phrase that once held all sorts of
excitement and now means almost nothing. Now we take the term
"world wide" for granted. This floors me.
On a smaller
scale, "wall-to-wall" was once a magical term in
our homes.
In the '50s, everyone covered his or her hardwood
floors
with, wow, wall-to-wall carpeting! Today, everyone
replaces
their wall-to-wall carpeting with hardwood floors. Go
figure.
When's
the last time you heard the quaint phrase "in a family
way?" It's hard to imagine that the word "pregnant" was once
considered a
little too graphic, a little too clinical for use
in polite
company. So we had all that talk about stork visits
and "being in a family way" or simply "expecting."
Apparently
"brassiere" is a word no longer in usage. I said it
the other
day and my daughter cracked up. I guess it's just
"bra" now "Unmentionables" probably wouldn't be understood at
all.
I always
loved going to the "picture show," but I considered
"movie" an affectation.
Most
of these words go back to the '50s, but here's a
pure-'60s
word I came across the other day - "rat fink." Ooh,
what a
nasty put-down!
Here's
a word I miss - "percolator." That was just a fun word
to say.
And what was it replaced with? "Coffee maker." How
dull. Mr. Coffee, I blame you for this.
I miss
those made-up marketing words that were meant to sound
so modern
and now sound so retro. Words like "DynaFlow" and
"Electrolux." Introducing the 1963 Admiral TV, now with
"SpectraVision!"
Food for
thought - Was there a telethon that wiped out
lumbago? Nobody complains of that anymore. Maybe that's what
castor
oil cured, because I never hear mothers threatening
kids with
castor oil anymore.
Some words
aren't gone, but are definitely on the endangered
list. The
one that grieves me most "supper." Now everybody
says "dinner." Save a great word. Invite someone to supper.
Discuss
fender skirts.
Someone
forwarded this to me. I thought some of us of a
"certain
age" would remember most of these.