Originally posted on 08/03/2017:

Quote Originally Posted by Auto Donk View Post
why my Czech grandfather used to point out the reason no one was ever smiling in early photographs taken before 1940.... "times were tough, and life was hard."

boy isn't that the truth. I often think of my grandparents too and how difficult life was. Females got up in the morning and their entire task was to clean and prepare meals. And often it was for a dozen or more people. Think about cleanup. Almost always they cooked with those heavy cast iron pieces. Cleanup alone must have been a nightmare but to those people it was simply routine. Males worked from sunup until sundown. Life was tough is an understatement.

then we have their kids who witnessed this type of life and had character and stamina. I admire them too and naturally they became the "greatest generation." god we take for granted how easy our life is compared to past generations. my god not that long ago people didn't even have indoor plumbing.