- Can you identify with the era?
- Do you have photos or other artifacts showing technology from the 1970s — or later?
- Did you work outside the home during pregnancy?
Note: My computer will be in the repair shop for a short time. I will be back in blog-land as soon as possible.
Good morning, Marian! I remember having to learn how to use a mimeograph machine (and change the ink) when I was an undergrad. I was in grad school during my first pregnancy. Good luck with your computer!
I remember using the mimeograph too, Merril. I always seemed to be wearing white when it was time to change the ink. 🙁
🤣
Thank you, Merril and Jill, both early birds this morning. 🙂
😀
This object is an overhead projector. It was for making transparencies larger so that children could see them.
A mimeograph was the thing that had a hand crank for making blue line masters. Having used them many times, it was nearly impossible not to end up with the familiar blue ink on one’s hands. Both served their purposes during that era.
When we got our hands dirty with blue ink, we never imagined the technology that would follow–no ink on hands, but perhaps a dent in our sanity. Thanks for checking today, Pete!
I know what both objects are! 🙄
I was simply stating that I remembered using the mimeograph (and changing the ink).
My apologies. I wasn’t trying to be a jerk. Just thought you might have mixed up the word.
😀
It’s fine.
I love your picture from the past! I used overhead projectors for workshops up until ten years ago!! I worked through both of my pregancies. Never even considered not. And we only got 6 weeks off for Maternity leave before we had to return to work. Good luck with the computer. Mine will be next. But I still have my tablet!
Thanks for the nod to the past . . . and the good wishes about my computer. I have a new iPhone, but it’s hard to moderate comments on such a squinched-up screen. I appreciate all this, Darlene! :=)
There is a picture of me in the EMU yearbook with my head inside the hood of a microfilm reader which I kind of love and have used on my blog. 🙂
I worked while pregnant, took 3 months off (6 weeks paid) for each baby, and came back to work half time and later increased the number of hours of employment gradually. That was a gift to me and my family to be able to do that.
Oh, the blast from the past–I remember using a microfiche reader when I was working on my master’s thesis. And, of course the card catalog too, no internet searches!
You and I were in the first generation that really stepped out to combine career and motherhood. Back in Aunt Ruthie’s day (and your mother’s too), women usually stepped out of the workplace for a long while until their children were in high school. There was a school of thought that believed women with outside jobs neglected their children. Well, we have “come a long way, baby,” and still a few miles to go.
Thanks for checking in today, Melodie! 🙂
The teachers used overhead projectors when I was at school. I can’t remember pregnant teachers but I suppose there must have been some. I worked while I was pregnant with both my sons. I don’t recommend it if you have a high stress job. The heartbeats of both my babies were very high in utro because of my stress.
should be in utero – oops
Actually, because I read quickly, I didn’t notice the typo until you pointed it out. Ha! (If I notice errors in comments, sometimes I’ll correct them on my end . . . but only if I NOTICE them. 🙂
I can sympathize with feeling concerned with stress and its effect on unborn children. But it’s hard to avoid it altogether. Thanks for adding to the conversation, Robbie!
Good Morning Marian,
Yes, I can identify the era and I am happy that we have advanced further.
I really don’t know if I have photos from a previous era. i tend to move on and update myself through my desire of wanting to learn new technology.
I have never been pregnant so I can truthfully say that I have been working outside of my parents home ever since I was a teenager.
Good luck with your computer. I hope you get it back soon and it is running the way you want it to run.
Take care.
Shalom aleichem
Pat, you have answered all the questions, so you get an A+ today. (Just kidding, of course!)
Our grandson just left our house after doing some grueling cleanup work in the garage. Then, he’ll go to his job at the car wash. He is college-bound, but has bought and maintained a car as a H. S. junior., which take money, but he likes the independence.
Thanks for the good wishes, Pat, so appreciated! 🙂
I love the picture, Marian. You look both professional and maternal. We were the generation that demonstrated that combination can work. And along the way we used whatever the appropriate technologies came our way. I can identify with all of the ones mentioned here and numerous others. I am nursing along a computer that looks a lot like yours. It has absolutely no battery power left. So I have to keep it plugged into the wall. Just trying to get past the next few months and then I hope to get a new one. Ten years is a century in computer years.
Thanks for the compliment, Shirley. I worked half-days when the children were very young because of financial need. I enjoyed teaching, but felt the tug to also be a good mom, so I felt at ease when I could retrieve my little ones from day care at school and go home to the “Storybook chair” before their afternoon naps.
Yes, we do acquire a kinship with our computers. Mine is a 7-year-old MacBook Pro. Our guru friend replaced my hard drive last week which he said was about to “blow up.” Also, when he looked inside he said my battery is “bulging,” not good. Although I have an appointment at the Apple store Genius Bar this week, I am looking for a Plan B because I think Apple would send my computer off for weeks, so I need to find a temporary fix. In the meantime, I keep my device plugged in too! If it’s any consolation, 10 years is mighty fine mileage for one computer. I believe 5 years is the life expectancy of most computers. Built-in obsolescence, I guess.
Here’s wishing us both success with our tech! 😀
Honestly, I miss that era, Marian.
Me too. Back in “the good old days,” I remember believing I could trust the news. Walter Cronkite and Dan Rather come to mind. No one ever spoke of “fake news.” Social media, though it has its place, exacerbates the problem.
I think you may disappear into a simpler time with your novel writing. Even though there are hurdles, I always sense an honest-to-goodness tone when I turn the pages.
Thanks, Jill, for adding this. 🙂
Fantastic! I remember those days. What a great memory. I did work during both pregnancies as a video producer. It was some fun hauling video equipment around with an 8-month pregnant belly. That was at a time when we used to use actual videotape. During my second maternity leave the transition to digital happened. If I had gone back to work, I would have had to learn how to do my job differently. I decided to stay at home and be a mom for a while. That led to freelance writing, so all’s well that ends well.
Well, Arlene, I am getting to know more about your past work history here. Yes, I do remember video tape, and also recall how paintful it was to learn computers in my job at the college, which began with electric typewriters.
Time marches on even if we resist the change. I’m sure that you will agree that you past work experience provided a bridge to freelance writing. I so agree: “All’s well that ends well.” 🙂
Marian — That’s a wonderful photograph! I hope you get your computer back soon.
Well, you know how our computers are necessary appendages. I’ve successfully scaled one hurdle: replacing the hard-drive. Next: the battery. Thanks for your good wishes, Laurie! 🙂
Marian, I can definitely relate! Teachers at school and at church used them.
So sorry to hear about your computer. Mine has been having issues too.
Oh, yes, L. Marie, technology moves so fast, we remember that not TOO long ago we had overhead projectors and electric typewriters. We will have to pray for each other over our devices: clarity on the best way to get them to behave well! Thank, you friend! 🙂
I like the photo. Such optimism. I have a very old projection camera that would have been used in the 50s [?]. I haven’t tried it in years. It might still work…
Ha! We still have carousel trays for slides. Hubsy like to keep relics of the past, and sometimes they come in handy as backups, Ally! 🙂
Your picture is beautiful kind of like a Norman Rockwell picture what a blessing your children and grandchildren have had having you and Cliff. No I didn’t grow up with any of that. I have a projector that I used at the house for our children and grandchildren to watch movies outside in front of a bonfire. I try to give great memories for my family. Thanks for your post hope your computer gets fixed fast.
Gloria, I know you understand the value of family as you create memories and a great LEGACY as a Mother and now Grandmother. I love the idea of watching movies outside in front of a bonfire. Mom would be so proud of you! 🙂
Sending healing thoughts to your computer. :-)!
You certainly understand the challenges as a writer. Thanks for your good wishes, Joan. One way or another, it’ll get repaired! 🙂
What a great picture, Marian. Everyone looks so happy and excited! I did not start my second career until we returned from Congo. I taught my oldest daughter at home together with two other children. When I returned and started university I was using my electric typewriter to do my papers. By the time I began my MA computers came into vogue. I used my computer a lot when I was studying for my comprehensives and certainly to write my PhD thesis. Just made life a lot easier once I got over my apprehension of this new way of doing things!
Well, Elfrieda, you were in the groove of homeschooling before it was ever in vogue. Many parents, especially mothers, homeschool their children. I typed my Aunt Ruthie’s master’s thesis on a manual typewriter, which I used in college. Then, when Cliff began his graphic arts career, I used an IBM Selectric. I remember how hard it was when I began my career at Florida State College to even learn email. Now I smile at this challenge because as a writer I have to constantly adapt, first of all to WordPress when I began blogging.
Thanks for sharing your amazing milestones and the technology that went with it, Elfrieda! 🙂
The students and teacher in this photo look so amazed and happy. Yes, I worked when I was pregnant with my first child. Before that, in the late 1960s, I remember typing and then running off mimeos (blue ink) with information about political activity on campus. We also turned out political essays from an organization called Glad Day Press. This was the year after I graduated from college–so a temporary gig. I don’t have photos of the machinery, but I still have some of those mimeo handouts and brochures. I hope all goes well with your computer. We’ve become ridiculously dependent on our machines.
Oh, my gosh, Elaine. A mimeograph machine! It was considered a wonder in its day, but so antique now. Long before that, Aunt Ruthie ran off multiple copies on a hectograph machine, with purple ink on a gel cylinder that spun around spitting out copies!
I agree, we’ve become ridiculously dependent on our machines. After a few minutes, I’ll go for another walk and let nature soothe my sore eyes and hunched-over shoulders. You know, like Wordsworth suggests in The Tables Turned: “Enough of Science and of Art;
Close up those barren leaves;
Come forth, and bring with you a heart
That watches and receives.
Thanks for chiming in today, Elaine!
I do remember that scene well. I worked in a doctor’s office through each of my pregnancies. Even took the kids to work once they were born for a while. Great post.
Oh, Janet, in some respects, a doctor’s office would be a perfect place to work during pregnancy if you experience difficulty. But I am amazed that you even took the kids to work once they were born for a while. Thanks for stopping by today!
It is interesting, it was about 35 years ago and I had intended to quit working for a while but the office really needed me and asked me to come back so I told them I would but the baby was only about 5 months old so I asked if I could bring her with me and they said yes. She stayed in a box next to my desk!
Obviously, the doctor and the office manager valued your service. And they got a baby to play with! in the bargarin. Maybe you got help with diaper changes too – ha! Thanks for returning with a comment, Janet!
Remembering when… It doesn’t seem that long ago, but it was! I remember typing on my first electric typewriter, making copies with carbon paper, using mimeo machine for multiple copies. Seem like only yesterday I was using the overhead projector in classroom. Hope your new tech is up and running soon! Meanwhile, enjoy a little downtime…
Thanks for the review of technology, all of which I lived through as well. Having written several books, you know about the challenges and blessings of the beast, on which we have become so very dependent.
I don’t know how much down time I’ll have, but lots of books are waiting in the queue, and I can spend some time thinking about the layout for “Kids and Oaks,” probably my next project.
It’s always good to hear from you, Bette. And thanks for the good wishes too!
What a fantastic photo, it expresses that time really well.
Thank you, Valentina! It is so good to hear from you again. I hope you are well. 🙂
Everything is fine here, I hope you are well too. Create a good day 😀
Buona giornata!
I never could get that darn overhead projector to work for me. I got so stressed trying to use it. And I’m the same now. When I give presentations I decided to forgo using a computer to show things up on a screen, etc. Too nerve wracking. I just hold one of my books and stand behind a podium and talk. Old fashioned am I. (And my guy had a huge poster made with my four books on it – so I can use that as my “display.”)
Anyway, yes, I worked during both of my pregnancies. First one I was the medical editor for a small publishing company. They gave me a cute baby shower. But I hated it when the older women would pass me in the hall way and rub my belly. Second pregnancy I worked from home editing a medical journal – worked from 7 p.m. (after both babies went to bed) until 1 a.m. We are women, hear us ROAR and take care of business!
I have a love/hate relationship with most forms of technology. I love it when it works, assuming I can figure out how to use it. I hate it when it fails, or more than likely the operator (me) fails to use it correctly. I’m a relatively smart guy, but people who were born in the technology era seem to have a much more intuitive sense. It makes me feel ignorant when I can’t figure out something that many young people would think is a simple fix. One of the most frustrating things is to try and describe a problem to a tech person over the phone and then to be stumped by their questions because I don’t understand them. It reminds me that there are children in school who probably feel this way about themselves every day. How sad is that thought?
Actually, that’s a good thought, Pete, because when we’re stumped (and feel stupid by the tech’s questions – and believe me, I often am) it helps us understand our young ones better. How they are “stumped” with life’s questions (as well as math and English).
I’m joining in on the conversation here, Pam and Pete. I have no problem with low-tech, Pam, because it allows our personalities to shine. Also, when the internet fails, we can recourse to posters and podiums with smiles. And, Pete, I’m constantly flummoxed with technology, so my 40-something web guy steps in every so often, a God-send, indeed.
Pam, as annoying as it may seem, I think people (even strangers) like to rub the bellies of pregnant women because it puts them in touch with new life. (It happened to me at least once, so I can definitely relate! 🙂
I had no problem when someone ASKED to rub my pregnant belly- yes, reverence for new life. But it’s my body so I didn’t like it when someone didn’t ask. Whatever- I loved seeing the joy in people’s faces when I waddled down the hallway. 😍
Using “waddled down the hall” and “reverence” in the same reply is rich indeed. Love it, Pam!
😃
Hi Marian – oh I remember the overhead projector and film strips in school. I’m going to take a look at old family photos and see if I can spot some old technology in them. Sorry your computer is down – looking forward to having you back!
Thank you, Barbara, for remembering the vintage equipment we used “back in the day.” I’m glad this post prompted you to peruse old family photos, usually a delight. Thanks also for the good wishes. Today, I take my computer in for evaluation. 🙂
Oh ! dear , are we not lost without our computers , may yours have a safe return Marian. I love the photo it looks 60s but I gather early 70s . That dress is so pretty, is it browns and oranges?
I had my hairdressing shop when I was having Cameron and I worked up to two weeks before I had him .I was digging the garden in those last couple of weeks . Six weeks off and back to work . I’ve always been active .
Here in Wales our hairdressers are opening on Monday for the first time since a week before Christmas because of lockdown , we all look like wooly mammoths . My husband ,being married to a hairdresser , is neatly chopped . He’s one of the lucky ones .Doesn’t being without anything make you appreciate what you have . This pandemic has taught me loads .
Cherryx
Leave it to you to ask about my dress colors: brown, green, and dull rust, as I recall, but not particularly flattering in color though I did like the design, allowing for expansion. Ha!
I did not know you are a hair stylist. It doesn’t surprise me because you are very artistic. I laughed when you described the heads of your neighbors as wooly mammoths. So FUNNY! But obviously true. I think the pandemic has taught us all LOADS, most of all the thought that we will be grateful for an END to it. I wonder how soon your spot of the world will be able to get the vaccine. I hope sooner rather than later, my dear. Thanks, Cherry, for your cheery update as always. 😀
What a great photo! I do remember the overhead projectors during my school year, and being very proud if I was allowed to change the transparencies for the teacher.
Welcome, Lynn. I clicked on your link and saw that we probably met through Liesbet Collaert and the IWSG. I see we do have quite a bit in common: love of family history, vintage artifacts and reverence for the scripture.
Thank you for stopping by and sharing a different perspective on over head projectors. Do visit again! 🙂
Hi, Marian. I love this photo. The overhead projectors were widely used in school in the 60s. Someone else mentioned the old mimeograph machines. I know this sounds crazy, but loved the smell of the ink in those things and always felt special when I got to help the teacher run off papers for the class. My, how things have changed!
Hi, Jan, and welcome again! I’m crazy about certain smells too. Maybe because we writers like stuff associated with books and reading. I’m glad this post reminded you of the smell of ink. Do you remember getting new textbooks, opening them, and inhaling the smell of fresh ink? Ahhh!
Again, thanks for sharing your reminiscence here. 🙂
Cool pic!
Thank you for stopping by, Fiona. Enjoy the coming (slowly) of spring!
This looks like a projector we used in our schools. But reading few comments I came to know that it is an earlier version known as Mimeograph. I had to google it to know more about it. Fascinating how technology has changed today! We have come a long way…
Thanks for stopping by with a comment, Monica. Yes, I agree we have come a long way, but I’m glad you could identify with some old technology here.