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I don’t have those items you listed either and don’t miss them. They also took up a lot of space for the service they provided. I (we) don’t fit into any 1 era either. I am more comfortable in older eras than Hubby so there is compromise and it seems to work ????. 
I bet it is a bit of a switch getting your brain off of “study year” mode. I’m thinking once you settle into your “new” old fashioned life, you will be quite comfortable.

You might have to rearrange the furniture though ????. (Just joking

such a lovely, peaceful post Donnq. Soothing to the soul.

We didn't have TV for a week after the cyclone and then the noise of it has settled teeth on edge. 

I think you have chosen wisely. I just hope you continue your weekly posts and I love Myrtle 

"I will continue to wash the dishes in the wash pans on the dining table, something feels right about that. "  I remember my mother-in-law doing this in their rural farm home even in the 60"s.  She used an oilcloth tablecloth to protect the table. 

I have found that the website https://www.foodtimeline.org/  is a great place to spend some time learning what our parents and grandparents had available during their era.  It's also a goldmine of old cookbooks and recipes you can see online.

We home can, cook from scratch, bake our own bread and other baking products, and don't use mixes except a few my grandmother had available and used, like gelatin.   We find that shopping in some of the local Mennonite stores helps us buy basic ingredients in bulk that are fresh too.  We don't miss a thing.

When I couldn't find a hand eggbeater in good condition, I did buy one from OXO that I use almost daily.  I still use many of my kitchen tools from when we married in the late 60's, the quality was much better.

Donna, glad to see your post, thank you for continuing your blog.  It is an oasis in a sea of turbulence for me…so many people are wringing their hands, it is important for me to live a quieter life, and you represent that.   My husband passed away in late December (I am 66, he was 75) so I am going through the transition of what my next bit of life will be.   Where to live, how to live.   Your writing is helping me think through alternatives.   My nature is to make decisions quickly and move on.  Your blog, and the tempo at which you live your life, is a really good counterbalance to my impatience.  Thank you ;

Grandma Donna wrote, Lady L, I am not sure anything will cure me of moving furniture.  Right now I am in a mood to get it "exactly" the perfect place and leave it but is that possible? Lol

Diat H, Thank you :0

IowaSue D, that timeline is incredibly detailed, I did notice in the early 1900's the diabetic diet started. I am not surprised.  This is quite interesting, I will have to look into that further.

Hilogene O, I am glad that you are taking your time to think through alternatives. I think we all have some impatience, if there is no reason to rush decisions do everything on your time schedule. I am happy that you feel calm reading my blog :)

I was born in the mid-fifties  and many times I think about going back to simpler living .  Once I retire, I will start cutting back and simplifying more things, but as someone with a full-time job, certain family responsibilities and a long commute, I still need timesavers such as a microwave and dishwasher.  I went without either for the first 20 years of my marriage - there was no room for them.  Once I finally got a place where I could have them and saw how much time they saved me, I was hooked.  Once I retire, the issue of time won't be so overbearing and I may let them go.  What I won't let go:  my heat pumps that efficiently cool and heat my home.  It's far too hot here to go without A/C and I have no place for a fireplace or woodstove for when our temps hit the 20's in the winter on occasion (which happened four days in a row this winter, and 30's for quite a few nights).  I won't give up my showers - they save water and I feel cleaner; I grew up without a shower in the house and hated it.  I won't give up my hybrid water heater that saves a lot on my water heating bill.  I won't give up my contact lenses; I have very poor vision, and when wearing glasses, it means I have very poor peripheral vision.  I  can't give up my cell phone; I have a family member with serious health issues, so I keep a cell phone on me at all times, as I never know when I might be needed.

What I already do that is "old-fashioned":   I use real plates, glasses and utensils at all meals.  I use cloth napkins.  I sew to make repairs and make some things new, as well.  I cook meals at home, day in and day out.  I use inherited cookware that is just under 60 years old.  I make meals from scratch.  I do use a TV (we had one even when I was very young ) but have only one.  I listen to radio in my car, not subscription service or downloaded music on my phone.   I read books, not e-books.  I use a vacuum, not a robot vac.  I use a mop, not a battery-operated mop or robot mop.  I wash with soap, not body wash.  

Fortunately, I don't have to give up everything to live more simply, and it's nice to have some modern things available.  

I look forward to the coming posts to help remind me of how we used to do things, and see how much of it I can reasonably incorporate into my own life.  I think I feel some - wistfulness, perhaps? - when contemplating the past, and I know I will enjoy this new direction of the posts.

Perhaps we should just decide on an alternate timeline and go with that : )   Imagine an alternate timeline where mental and emotional health and living in healthy relationship with each other and also protecting the health of our planet were prioritized instead of corporate profit.  If that was the case, slow and deliberate living would be valued but so would using low energy techniques to meet our physical needs, including physical needs as we age or for those with disabilities.  

I once attended a Buddhist meditation retreat and we shared a silent meal after which each person was asked to wash and dry their own dishes mindfully at the set up stations.  What a beautiful experience to slow down that much in that setting.  Ever since I have preferred to hand wash my dishes mindfully as moments of contemplation in my day.  

But of course there could be a time when I can no longer do that and at that point maybe I will value a mechanical dishwasher.  Or maybe just another person in the household who is happy to wash while I contribute in other ways.  Maybe some day I will find a younger person who needs an inexpensive place to live and is willing to take on some of the garden and household tasks - it might even be a intentionally created type of family if my own family members aren't particularly interested.  

I so very much enjoyed reading this post G Donna. I love seeing your photos and we are very admiring of your new shingled roof. Your dinner could be one of ours; we prefer to eat the old way- a small piece of meat or fish or a vege pie perhaps alongwith veges from our own garden. Just now we are eating ruby chard and green beans, potatoes ( Rocket) and cauliflower. We try to eat what is in season. I made a cauliflower pie the other night which was a bit extravagant but oh so delicious. I made puff pastry which is full of butter and there was a rich cheese sauce with a pinch of cayenne in it for an exciting touch. That was a ‘supernormal’ dinner. We are usually simpler. 
Looking forward to seeing your new washstand at Myrtle. 
And sending warm homely greetings to you. 
Felicity in NZ 

Grandma Donna wrote, I enjoy reading all of your comments, Felicity, thank you, we are so happy the roof is finally on now, we have to paint the ceilings in the near future, that will be a job but we will do one at a time.  Hurricane Michael contributed to a few ceiling spots from wind blowing rain up and under the air vents.  I love making and eating puff pastry, I always wait until I have plenty of relaxed time to make this so I can do it properly and fold and chill and fold and chill.  It always feels so special to eat such a treat.  I am looking forward to getting the washstand up there so I can have my space back here, if not soon I may decided to keep it here so I need to get it up there. Lol 

Hilogene,

Take your time. I've been through that loss twice now. You will reach a point where you think you are back to normal, but it really takes longer than you realize. Condolences on the loss of your husband.

Hello Donna, greetings from Norway. Snow is finally melting and it looks asif Spring is here, though nights are down to almost -10 C.

A wise man once said that in order to find the life that suited him, he had "travelled" the decades and brought with him the useful, the good and what made sense to him and left the rest behind. Very well said I thought, as no era is all good or all bad, so I "pick and mix". Loving our new life at our little smallholding, the quiet and the simplicity. My kitchen is full of seedlings for the garden. 

Blessings, to you both, Pam in Norway

I have so enjoyed following along with your history studies and am doing 1943 myself now. Your post makes me think about the Amish and Mennonite communities. My understanding is that they put a stop to changing with technology at different points, some at the motorized vehicles, hence horse and buggy, some at other points. The issue was how advances in technology were breaking down their communities and relationships. A car meant that you no longer depend so much on those close by- you can whip over to a store or whatever else many miles away, instead of having to work within the local network. It means family members work away, and often eventually move away. Etc. I had the feeling today that many of us want to pin ourselves to a simpler, more local, less checked-out time retrospectively, having missed that stopping point as we flew by it, or as our parents did. I get so much satisfaction from using the old skills. Yes, I could have bread from a bread machine, but there isn’t the same satisfaction in it for me. I suppose it is about the effort, the process, and not just the product. Same with woodworking. I am learning to use very old, very reliable hand tools. Most of my planes are more than 100 years old, and they are better than what can be bought new. Same with gardening, and other parts of my life that I slowly, awkwardly, painstakingly, become a master of. Each step has its pleasures and satisfactions, ones that paying someone else to handle do not. Thanks for being on this journey with me. At times I have felt very out of step, and then have found like minded people, like those here.

As I am behind on reading this post I think that's a good idea to adjust to those changes. I'm glad to see the new roof put in. That's always a good thing. We have to do ours this year. You're absolutely correct on the adjusting to change us. Life is always changing whether we like it or not.