From Agas and Acres To Having Less Is More . . . WTF!!!

Whilst out walking I began to ponder on the progression of the human through the ages. Obviously, I was not around for many of these ages and neither was pen or paper or, in some cases neither was accuracy even when pen and paper were the done thing; thanks, biblical text writers, you wheeze master generals you, you had us going there for a bit. This aside I got to mulling over how things have spun upon their heads over the years. 

Let us put on our mental hiking boots point our odometers to backwards and wander down the ages isle at our mental supermarket. We are not going that far, no packed lunches required. Off we pop, just to a time when being poor meant working your own field, growing your own vegetables, milking your own cow, collecting eggs from your chickens and putting wood into your oven in your small thatched cottage to make a simple meal of stew and bread. 

Now back to the now. Off with the boots, come on, all of you, stop dillying at the back. Right we are now in modern times and tell me this, who now live in thatched cottages, have fields to work, have the time create their own home-grown supplies and puts homemade loaves in their solid fuelled oven? Anyone getting this yet? What was once a place for the meek and shallow of pocket is now a place that the deeper pocketed personage dwell. 

In today’s times cooking on a solid fuel cooker is a latter-day status symbol! If I told a new acquaintance I got my milk from our own cow, had chickens, baked my own bread and planted my own onions they would think I had a fine “hobby” and then question the cost of all this and surely I would be better off purse-wise, to be off down my local farmers market (the irony really does abound here). When did a solid fuel cooker become “the in thing”? Surely when gas and electricity were made using white man magic (I have no idea how it all works but I just know it does and it is groovy) at that time only the people of means were capable of affording the gas or electric oven, when did everyone switch ovens? Was it at the same time of field swapping? Because you are definitely in a good place financially if you have a field or two! 

 

People who get their horse from their yard and ride to town are generally the lucky ones and they are not actually doing anything other than going for a jolly jaunt with no actionable job in mind. No one is ever seen riding Old Neddy down to Bob the Millers for some flour to pop in their saddle bags, and I find that a damned shame. I mean, where could you even park your horse today? And trust me, I really would ride to town if I could but no-where to park oh, and no horse (small drawbacks arising here). 

I do think about what will change in the future? Will walking barefoot only be a thing for the rich and flame grilled? Will going shopping in person singly be done by the poor? I mean recently I have even seen people making their homes “minimalist” in some sort of way it is meant to show how well to do you are!!!! Less is only more if you are not poor. FACT!

Making our own bread, clothes, shoes or repairing the ones we have etc., has stopped being so obviously essential now and it does irk me that we seem to be losing the thread of self-sufficiency and becoming, as a species, quite useless at it.  A hell a lot of people don’t even talk anymore but rely on TV/Computer machines to talk at them and for them, to entertain their whole family, even down to being told what to think and not even realising it!! 

Back in the days gone by the people being entertained in the evening by performers were . . . you got it, those with plenty of pocket space and it certainly was not done every single night of the week! Now being entertained by performers is as common as buying a loaf of bread, throwing away a broken pair of shoes and going “on-line” for pre-made everything . . . . anyone else noticing these things?