Before digital invites and party planners, birthday parties in 1980s Maine had heart. Parents hung streamers by hand and baked cakes from box mixes, and that was more than enough. Here are the unforgettable trends that made growing up in the ’80s feel like a nonstop celebration. Character-Themed Everything From tablecloths to party hats, everything…
Family movie night in 1950s and ’60s Kansas used to sound like this: “Where’s the remote?” “It’s not working!” “Who sat on it?” Before remotes were slim, sleek, and rechargeable, they were clunky rectangles of mystery. Owning one was a luxury, and losing one was a full-blown household emergency. These are the TV remote struggles…
Long before cars started talking to you, they made you work for it. Seatbelts were optional, cup holders didn’t exist, and if you wanted to roll down your window, your muscles got a workout. From the 1950s through the 1990s, every car came with quirks you just accepted as part of the experience. And back…
In the United States, you can stand in four states at once or travel to the hottest place on Earth. The Land of the Free is also home to the largest subtropical wilderness and the tallest mountain in North America. The United States is a diverse country with many geographical landmarks and topographies. Even some…
Publix is Publix no matter where you live in Florida. But the way Floridians shop at it is completely different from the way newbie transplants do. Florida natives have a rotation of items they grew up with, things that are so baked into their lives that they don’t think twice about tossing them into their…
The Sears catalog was once the ultimate shopping guide, filled with everything from socks to entire houses. Idahoans and Americans across the U.S. flipped through its pages with excitement, circling items that caught their eye. Hidden among the practical goods, though, were some downright strange things that still make us laugh today. Entire Houses Delivered…
Dinnertime in the 1960s had a rhythm all its own in Delaware. The table was set before the streetlights came on, and the smell of something warm and familiar drifted in from the kitchen. Kids washed their hands without being told (well, most of the time), and families sat down together without distractions. Moms wore…
Florida’s got its obvious stuff: Disney World, Key West, Publix, and Cuban sandwiches. That’s the surface. The real Florida shows up in ways that most out-of-staters have never heard of. Every Floridian has a few of these in their pantry, on their calendar, or in their weekly rotation without even thinking about it. Meanwhile, their…
Californians love to talk about what presidents earn while in office. The $400,000 salary. The White House housing. The whole deal. What gets less attention is what former presidents receive for the rest of their lives after leaving the Oval Office. The Former Presidents Act, signed into law in 1958 in response to Harry Truman’s…
Have you ever run a foreign phrase through Google Translate and get something like “To ride an elephant to catch a grasshopper”? Yeah, idioms don’t always travel well. Every language has sayings that make perfect sense to locals and sound completely unhinged to Arkansans and people across the globe. Here are seventeen strange, funny, and…
