Do you remember when McDonald’s hamburgers were 15 cents? How in the world did we get to where we are now??

It seems like everything is getting more and more expensive, faster and faster. Sigh.

Just a few months ago, I was diligently working on getting all of almost 50 years of photographs, cards, newspaper clippings, and memorabilia into albums.  I had thoughts that when Dick and I, more than likely, the boxes of photographs would be tossed – that’s what has happened many more times than once, our friends and acquaintances tell us, when they are faced with a household of “old stuff” – everything but the silver goes out to the dumpster…

So, I was making an effort to ensure that our boys would at least look at the albums before they go into the dumpster, and maybe they would save a picture or two if they want.  Anyway, made me feel so good when the chore was done – even though it was work, and took me a few months to accomplish.  Now, I’ve even transferred all the video tape into CD’s – made copies and have given each boy a set.  The next two jobs are going to be transferring 8 mm movies to cd’s and our slides also onto cd’s. 

Anyway, as usual I digress, so back to the subject at hand. While going through our stuff, a little receipt fell out.  It was from the motel that my husband, Dick, and I spent our first married night in – the Maple Motel – heading toward Niagara Falls, of course – we are so conventional.  And the cost?  $7.  Yep – seven dollars – and there were no roaches. LOL  We were traveling with two young sons when the Motel 6 started – it was actually only $6.00 a night.

And, here I go about bargains again – the chart I found on the internet above lists milk as 97 cents a gallon in 1957.  I know that our eldest was born 16 months after we were married, so, that means we’re looking at around 1959 when I started buying milk in large quantities.  There was more than one store in the little town we lived in, in Ohio, where we got 3 – yep, three gallons for $1.00!  

Years later, when we moved to  Pennsylvania, I can remember buying gas.  Yes, it was the cheapest in town, but at a little gas station tucked into the side a mountain – I pumped gas into our 1957 Ford for $.19 cents a gallon.

Our first home we bought was in Ohio, in 1962,  we paid $12,000 for it.  Two bedrooms, new neighborhood, one bath, full basement, where we added another bath right away (it had already been plumbed for it – and a car port and all.)  When we bought it, we borrowed $1,000 from my parents, and paid that off completely to them within one year – at the wages we were making – and we still didn’t want for anything.   (Now homes are 20X’s that – just doesn’t make sense!)  Of course, we hadn’t gotten trapped by the advertisements that make people want to pay $8.00 for a cup of coffee, just because it makes them feel important to be seen there.

So, I think the chart above represents the very highest prices of the time – at least according to what Dick and I were paying for items.Another price that will never escape my memory – because I “demonstrated” certain foods in the local Kroger store where my Daddy managed is the price of ham. Ham sold for $.29 cents for the shank end(big bone), $.39 cents a pound for the butt end(more meat than bone).  Bread was 10 for $1.00.  And I’m talking about 1958 and 1959.

So, how have we come to where we are now??? 

Inflation is not a very good thing as far as I’m concerned – just makes the dollar worth less and less. Between 1957 and 1969, home prices doubled.  And median income doubled – seems as though the only people who come out on top with inflation are the people selling the products needed to print more money to our government.