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What Are The Greatest Changes In Shopping In Your Lifetime

What are the greatest changes in shopping in your lifetime? So asked my 9 year old grandson.

As I thought of the question the local Green Grocer came to mind. Because that is what the greatest change in shopping in my lifetime is.

That was the first place to start with the question of what are the greatest changes in shopping in your lifetime.

Our local green grocer was the most important change in shopping in my lifetime. Beside him was our butcher, a hairdresser and a chemist.

Looking back, we were well catered for as we had quite a few in our suburb. And yes, the greatest changes in shopping in my lifetime were with the small family owned businesses.

Entertainment While Shopping Has Changed
Buying butter was an entertainment in itself.
My sister and I often had to go to a favourite family grocer close by. We were always polite as we asked for a pound or two of butter and other small items.

Out came a big block of wet butter wrapped in grease-proof paper. Brought from the back of the shop, placed on a huge counter top and included two grooved pates.

That was a big change in our shopping in my lifetime… you don’t come across butter bashing nowadays.

Our old friendly Mr. Mahon with the moustache, would cut a square of butter. Lift it to another piece of greaseproof paper with his pates. On it went to the weighing scales, a bit sliced off or added here and there.

Our old grocer would then bash it with gusto, turning it over and over. Upside down and sideways it went, so that it had grooves from the pates, splashes going everywhere, including our faces.

My sister and I thought this was great fun and it always cracked us up. We loved it, as we loved Mahon’s, on the corner, our very favourite grocery shop.

Grocery Shopping
Further afield, we often had to go to another of my mother’s favourite, not so local, green grocer’s. Mr. McKessie, ( spelt phonetically) would take our list, gather the groceries and put them all in a big cardboard box.

And because we were good customers he always delivered them to our house free of charge. But he wasn’t nearly as much fun as old Mr. Mahon. Even so, he was a nice man.

All Things Fresh
So there were very many common services such as home deliveries like:

• Farm eggs

• Fresh vegetables

• Cow’s milk

• Freshly baked bread

• Coal for our open fires

Delivery Services
A man used to come to our house a couple of times a week with farm fresh eggs.

Another used to come every day with fresh vegetables, although my father loved growing his own.

Our milk, topped with beautiful cream, was delivered to our doorstep every single morning.

Unbelievably, come think of it now, our bread came to us in a huge van driven by our “bread-man” named Jerry who became a family friend.

My parents always invited Jerry and his wife to their parties, and there were many during the summer months. Kids and adults all thoroughly enjoyed these times. Alcohol was never included, my parents were teetotallers. Lemonade was a treat, with home made sandwiches and cakes.

The coal-man was another who delivered bags of coal for our open fires. I can still see his sooty face under his tweed cap but I can’t remember his name. We knew them all by name but most of them escape me now.

Mr. Higgins, a service man from the Hoover Company always came to our house to replace our old vacuum cleaner with an updated model.

Our insurance company even sent a man to collect the weekly premium.

People then only paid for their shopping with cash. This in itself has been a huge change in shopping in my lifetime.

In some department stores there was a system whereby the money from the cash registers was transported in a small cylinder on a moving wire track to the central office.

Some Of The Bigger Changes
Some of the bigger changes in shopping were the opening of supermarkets.

• Supermarkets replaced many individual smaller grocery shops. Cash and bank cheques have given way to credit and key cards.

• Internet shopping… the latest trend, but in many minds, doing more harm, to book shops.

• Not many written shopping lists, because mobile phones have taken over.

On a more optimistic note, I hear that book shops are popular again after a decline.

Personal Service Has Most Definitely Changed
So, no one really has to leave home, to purchase almost anything, technology makes it so easy to do online.
And we have a much bigger range of products now, to choose from, and credit cards have given us the greatest ease of payment.

We have longer shopping hours, and weekend shopping. But we have lost the personal service that we oldies had taken for granted and also appreciated.

Because of their frenetic lifestyles, I have heard people say they find shopping very stressful, that is grocery shopping. I’m sure it is when you have to dash home and cook dinner after a days work. I often think there has to be a better, less stressful way.

My mother had the best of both worlds, in the services she had at her disposal. With a full time job looking after 9 people, 7 children plus her and my dad, she was very lucky. Lucky too that she did not have 2 jobs.

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Avoid Excessive Over-Charges or Unethical Business Practices

Nothing is more upsetting than receiving a statement showing hidden excess billing charges or being cheated by an unscrupulous dealer. No one likes to be taken advantage of.They may be justified or unjustified surprises, some tantamount to being classified as unethical “rip-offs”. Unfortunately, some may be accidental accounting duplications; others may be embedded surcharges that you were not aware that you would be charged for like hotel usage. Others may be fraudulent or deceptive professional services.The worst types are “scams” where unscrupulous charges are created intentionally, or planted. Some of the most notorious industries that can create excess charges are: hotels, hospitals, auto repair, veterinarians, dentists, plumbers, website designers, and computer repair technicians.Initially, be aware how you present yourself, inadvertently announcing your income status. Walking in with a Gucci bag, driving a BMW, prices can escalate.Coming from a frugal, small Dutch Iowa town, we were taught monetary principles ingrained generations back. Immigrating to the United States in the 1800s, the Hollanders wore velvet breeches and conducted business with gold coins. They soon found they were cheated wherever they went, and finally, resorted to an “unassuming-frugal-chameleon survival code”.In other words, they learned not do display their affluence, or they would be charged more in business transactions. Currently, remaining unpretentious, few drive new high end cars and do not flaunt wearing expensive apparel with flashy accessories.There is something to be said for this dictum, because if you look foolhardy, or appear pretentious with careless spending habits, you become subject to excess service rates. There is bias with older people, teens, and women, who become targets.Or, if the proprietor finds that you are in an “emergency situation”, you can be targeted, and unethical business practices may come into play.Auto repair establishments, whether in a city or out “in the middle of no-where” like rural Utah, Kansas, or Montana, will double charge if they think they can “get away with it,” when you lack alternative options and need your vehicle.We recently had our automobile towed from a near city’s hospital to a local repair garage. Then, the same week, our second car had severe mechanical problems, but luckily, happening near the garage we routinely use, so we drove the car in, limping all the way. The proprietor, knowing we were in a health-state emergency situation, gave us excessive double-cost estimates to repair the two autos.Refusing to be victimized, the next day I called several other places to compare repair rates, and had both cars towed, a second time, from one garage to the next. I saved nearly one thousand dollars by being alert and on the offense.One of the most surreptitious situations is when you unwittingly trust an unethical dentist. With many small and midsize towns becoming filled with dental competition, some find unscrupulous ways to create cash flow. They know they can get away with fraudulent work, because their colleagues will not acknowledge investigative inquiries regarding their missteps to the State Dental Board.For some time, I was fortunate to have a reputable dentist, who did fine, professional work. When he retired, I went to an acquaintance who I thought was highly regarded. Then, a minor traffic accident unfortunately loosened four front teeth. Subsequently, to stabilize the fragile teeth, my new dentist inserted four posts without root-canals, which would create abscesses. Much successive dental work would be then required, perfect cash flow. Conversely, the expected consequential plan would back-fire. The damaged teeth all abscessed simultaneously, rather than piece-meal.Was this dentist merely a bad dentist performing shoddy work? At first, it was hard to determine.Local consulted specialists were obviously appalled, but had little to say. They advised that they had never seen anything like that before, as root canals for posts were basic Dental 101. I would have to go to another state to get a true evaluation for corrective surgery.I was further dismayed when I consulted a Dental School regarding the issue, and overheard students joking about how easy it was to practice unethical dentistry without fear of repercussions. And, make good money doing it.To avoid your own dental horror story, if you question any work at any point of a procedure, find a reputable dentist, or dental school, in another state for a complete evaluation. A local second-opinion dentist will not want to reveal or try to correct any faulty work. Remaining professionally bonded with their local colleagues, they will refer you back to the dentist who created the mess.The best way to avoid hidden fees and unethical business services is to:Research the person’s or the business’ background and reputation. Go online. Talk to people (not their references who may be shams) who have used their services. Inquire within other businesses, like real estate firms, if they have conducted work with them.
Be certain you are working with the authorized decision maker or owner when making a purchase or arranging for services.
Up front, obtain second, even third opinions regarding the work to be done.
Ask questions. Obtain firm, descriptive cost estimates in writing, and establish specific guidelines up front.
Be aware of your surroundings; read body language.
Do not sign any document without carefully reading the fine print.
Carefully review all billing statements and inquire if you note discrepancies

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Skin Care Tip: Why It’s A Good Thing For A Woman To Have Tough Skin

When I tell women that tough skin is a good thing, they tend to shy away from this skin care tip.They shun the idea of tough skin because of two misconceptions based on the way we use language.The first misconception is that they assume tough skin is the same as rugged skin. They equate tough skin with rough, leathery, unattractive skin. This, however, is not at all what I am talking about. But I do understand where they get this impression.They get this mistaken impression because they are used to the carefully-spun language used by advertisers to seduce readers and viewers into buying products. When describing facial skin, glossy women’s magazine advertisements or television commercials use words like “soft,” “smooth,” “silky,” “creamy,” and so on. This unconsciously implies that skin must be delicate to be beautiful.The second misconception is people often they think of the metaphor of thick skin, meaning a pachyderm like indifference to unpleasant facts, words, or experiences. Again, the impression is that a thick skin is something that relates to insensitive, cold, hard, and calloused people. Although this is a connotation, an associated or secondary meaning, it is still enough to cloud judgment.The Real Truth about Tough SkinThe truth of the issue of tough skin is that beautiful, healthy, and smooth skin looks that way because it is tough and thick. In fact, it is 7 layers strong because skin was designed to protect the body, rather than serve as an ornament draped over flesh and bone to increase sexual appeal.Young people, for instance, have beautiful skin because they have tough skin. Yes, their skin is thick and tough! This does not mean that it is unhealthy or unattractive as a result of too much swimming, sunbathing, or beauty care neglect. Instead, thick and tough skin means that it is well-structured, strong, and works as an effective barrier against bacteria invading the body from a topical source. Let me repeat: tough skin is also beautiful, healthy, and smooth skin. It is skin that is attractive. While it may be smooth to the touch, it is not delicate skin.How Skin Gets ToughSo now that we have established that tough skin is a good thing, something that you should want to have, the next thing you may be wondering is how skin gets thick and tough. Why did our skin look beautiful when we were younger? It is because as we aged, our skin began to create less collagen and elastin to toughen up.In fact, contrary to popular opinion, delicate skin is not a good thing. As our skin became more delicate, it actually began to crease, line, and wrinkle. It lost its tough, elastic, durable texture. Delicate skin is a nice way to say thin, oversensitive skin. When skin gets thin, it begins to sag. Bags under the eyes, for example, are a result of thin, delicate skin.So when I offer a skin care tip about tougher skin, I am actually pointing people in the right direction.How, then, does one get tough, thick skin?Tough skin is skin rich in collagen and elastin. It is healthy, resilient, well-structured skin.The way to get tough skin is to get more collagen and elastin in the tissue of your skin.The Great DeceptionRealizing that consumers are becoming much more sophisticated when it comes to skin care, cosmetic companies are pretending to offer it to them in skin care creams. In fact, they boldly proclaim that their product has collagen and elastin. Consequently, their sales do really well.Now, this is not a lie. But it is a deception. Let me explain.When assayed by independent laboratories, the beauty product will indeed have collagen and elastin.What the manufacturers are not telling you is that a skin care product with these ingredients is absolutely useless. The proteins have molecules that are too large to be absorbed by your skin. So when you rub the lotion or cream on your face, you only enjoy a temporary benefit. Your skin will look younger and smoother-until you wash off the cream. Then it will go back to its original weak structure and your wrinkles will reappear.A Better SolutionIn your quest for tougher, thicker skin, you should not look for products that have collagen and elastin. Instead, you should look for products that have ingredients that stimulate your body’s ability to produce its own collagen and elastin.Only the highest quality skin care products give you the right ingredients for beautiful skin. These products don’t have additives, preservatives, or filler substance, but are completely natural. Use of these products over time, assuming you use them daily, will recreate the two vital proteins. When they are back in the layers of your skin, you will indeed look years younger. People will marvel at the change.Not Made In North America or EuropeIf you live in North America or Europe, you will not likely have heard of skin care products that are rich in antioxidants, emollients, and, yes, collagen and elastin boosting ingredients. This is because the best beauty products have extracts that come from New Zealand and the Amazon forests in Brazil.As someone living in the United States, I myself had not heard about these products until I became a passionate Internet researcher. I can assure you that I never heard of them when I was in a prestigious beauty school, purportedly learning all about skin care.Fortunately, due to the reach of the Internet, you don’t have to rely on brick-and-mortar stores to get high quality and reasonably priced skin care products that really work. Today, you can get them wherever you live.Here is what I use and recommend:Maracuja from the Amazon forests of Brazil.
Babassu from the Amazon forests of Brazil.
Phytessence Wakame, a sea kelp from Japan.
Extend TK from New Zealand.In closing, it is my hope that you will take this skin care tip to heart. If you do, it will completely transform the way you think and feel about your beauty. The simple truth is that tougher, thicker skin is the foundation of beautiful, healthy skin.

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