Comments on: Insights on Resilience from the Recent History of Totnes. 4: Shopping http://transitionculture.org/2009/07/10/insights-on-resilience-from-the-recent-history-of-totnes-4-shopping/ An Evolving Exploration into the Head, Heart and Hands of Energy Descent Thu, 24 May 2012 15:12:55 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: AngieC http://transitionculture.org/2009/07/10/insights-on-resilience-from-the-recent-history-of-totnes-4-shopping/comment-page-1/#comment-63621 AngieC Wed, 15 Jul 2009 21:54:48 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2752#comment-63621 A bit late, but for what it's worth - I grew up in rural western Devon in the 60s/70s and remember the grocer delivering, and the fish van that used to deliver fresh fish to our inland village twice a week. Not to mention the churns that sat outside gates up & down the road for the milkman to collect; the milk in those was thick & golden & delicious, not like the blueish stuff that was delivered in bottles. Where I live now, nearly a hundred miles away but only in the next county, there's a model village showing how the town looked in the 1950s. The streets were packed with little shops; there was a huge range of food & clothing shops, all selling locally-produced goods, as well as ironmongers, stationers, newsagents & tobacconists, each one of them providing an income for a local family & jobs for local workers & producers. What do we have now? Mostly chain stores & a supermarket; one or two excellent one-off shops, but mostly the business rent & rates are so high that local people can only dream of starting up a new shop. The railway went, so we have to travel into the nearest city, or even further afield, for many things like art supplies. And high bus fares mean that if more than one member of the family is travelling, it's cheaper to take the car... Why do we continue to think we've "progressed" since then?! A bit late, but for what it’s worth – I grew up in rural western Devon in the 60s/70s and remember the grocer delivering, and the fish van that used to deliver fresh fish to our inland village twice a week. Not to mention the churns that sat outside gates up & down the road for the milkman to collect; the milk in those was thick & golden & delicious, not like the blueish stuff that was delivered in bottles.

Where I live now, nearly a hundred miles away but only in the next county, there’s a model village showing how the town looked in the 1950s. The streets were packed with little shops; there was a huge range of food & clothing shops, all selling locally-produced goods, as well as ironmongers, stationers, newsagents & tobacconists, each one of them providing an income for a local family & jobs for local workers & producers. What do we have now? Mostly chain stores & a supermarket; one or two excellent one-off shops, but mostly the business rent & rates are so high that local people can only dream of starting up a new shop. The railway went, so we have to travel into the nearest city, or even further afield, for many things like art supplies. And high bus fares mean that if more than one member of the family is travelling, it’s cheaper to take the car…

Why do we continue to think we’ve “progressed” since then?!

]]> By: Sarah Edwards http://transitionculture.org/2009/07/10/insights-on-resilience-from-the-recent-history-of-totnes-4-shopping/comment-page-1/#comment-63607 Sarah Edwards Sun, 12 Jul 2009 19:44:11 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2752#comment-63607 I know this is really revealing my age, but this excellent reflection on how things used to be in Totnes reminds me of my childhood in Kansas City, KS. Brings back lots of warm memories. Fresh milk with the cream on top was delivered to our front door every few days by the milkman in glass bottles with little round lids. He carried the milk to our door in a little metal basket, for lack of another word, and placed it on the doorstep. We’d put out the empty milk bottles for him to pick up with a little stick think inside that told him what we wanted next time. The Manor man also came a few times a week (in his truck, though my grandmother remembered when he came in a horse-drawn carriage). He brought our order for bread, cheese, butter, cream, and such. (My grandmother always ordered salt rising bread. Yum.) Each time he came we’d give him an order form-like thing to tell him what we wanted for the next time. Our produce, meats, and delicious, delicious fresh baked cookies (sand cookies and bears claws) was delivered by Wolferman’s grocery. Mother would call in her order each week. Well, I hope you enjoyed this article as much as I. Our transition initiatve is in a rather remote area so I forwarded this to our list, noting that the services described here were considered especially important to outlying towns. So, is it back to the future? Sarah I know this is really revealing my age, but this excellent reflection on how things used to be in Totnes reminds me of my childhood in Kansas City, KS. Brings back lots of warm memories. Fresh milk with the cream on top was delivered to our front door every few days by the milkman in glass bottles with little round lids. He carried the milk to our door in a little metal basket, for lack of another word, and placed it on the doorstep. We’d put out the empty milk bottles for him to pick up with a little stick think inside that told him what we wanted next time.
The Manor man also came a few times a week (in his truck, though my grandmother remembered when he came in a horse-drawn carriage). He brought our order for bread, cheese, butter, cream, and such. (My grandmother always ordered salt rising bread. Yum.) Each time he came we’d give him an order form-like thing to tell him what we wanted for the next time.
Our produce, meats, and delicious, delicious fresh baked cookies (sand cookies and bears claws) was delivered by Wolferman’s grocery. Mother would call in her order each week.
Well, I hope you enjoyed this article as much as I. Our transition initiatve is in a rather remote area so I forwarded this to our list, noting that the services described here were considered especially important to outlying towns.
So, is it back to the future?
Sarah

]]> By: Insights on Resilience from the Recent History of Totnes. 4 ... | Museum And Art http://transitionculture.org/2009/07/10/insights-on-resilience-from-the-recent-history-of-totnes-4-shopping/comment-page-1/#comment-63603 Insights on Resilience from the Recent History of Totnes. 4 ... | Museum And Art Sat, 11 Jul 2009 23:04:59 +0000 http://transitionculture.org/?p=2752#comment-63603 [...] here: Insights on Resilience from the Recent History of Totnes. 4 … Connect and [...] [...] here: Insights on Resilience from the Recent History of Totnes. 4 … Connect and [...]

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