Thought I was still fairly "with it" and relatively youthful until the other day.
Neighbors came over for a beer, (us mid-forties, them mid-thirties) and we mentioned how tough the old pioneers were.
"Yes", they said, "back in the war years they used cloth nappies, people had to know how to sew, bake their own bread and preserve their home- grown food".
When I asked if they knew anyone their age who did any of these things, I got a blank look followed by giggles - "oh, you can't be that old "
No, I was doing it in the 80's. And still am.
I realised we're the last of the dinosaurs from a pre pre- packaged world.
Anyone else find their skills have been lost & superseded?

I'm 62, and grew up in the post war years in the US, just as things like cake mixes and frozen vegetables and pre-packaged just-add-water foods burgeoned. I remember how pleased my mother was every time she found anything that would save here work or time. Baking cakes from scratch and sewing and all that is fun when it's an option, but no so much when you don't have a choice.

Most people still make most things from scratch in Cambodia I do not think you could even buy much of what they eat packaged anyway . The good side to that is probably a much lower level of modern day contaminents such as growth hormones , nothing added to lengthen its shelf life and 'Fresh today '. The highlight of villagers appears to be cooking , because they always seem to be eating something , wonder how they stay so slim ?

They probably are pretty active, and don't eat a lot at one time, which helps. In Thailand there is lots of talk about how suddenly they have lots of overweight people, and most of that is being blamed on western food. What I noticed, though, was that people are more prosperous, and the ones that used to have nice motorbikes now have nice cars, and the ones that used to walk a lot now have motorbikes. I think they just aren't nearly as physically active as they used to be.

Cambodians in general are far from 'Pretty active 'they are in fact , on the lazy side and sleep about as often as they eat , i have read the 'Slim 'is from a deficit of good nutriants in their diet .
This is not a reflection on those who have what i call a real job , more toward the street vendors who have a problem even cleaning up thier own mess , wish i was allowed to send a couple of photos to show you what i mean .

god it makes you feel old, i had my first child 76 no washing macine(got one 78 twin tub)nappies soaked in nappy-san boiled in a pot on cooker,if there was not a power cut. due i think partly to the power cuts i went on to give birth in 77,78,80,82,84,88,93,by wish time i had fond the joy of disposable nappies. made lots of stews soups, ectnow i would be lost without mico wave, dishwasher, its a great life.

Hi synthia ,it has always amazed me how people 'Suddenly 'find themselves overweight or obese , how did they manage to miss those first few extra kilos ? In the 7/8 odd years i visited Thailand , i never noticed too much active behavior on the part of the locals , why stand when you can sit seemed to be the general attitude . Those that still do not own a motor-cycle still use one to get from A to B and look askance when you mention you intend to walk a few kilometers , many of them rarely venture out of thier soi let alone get ambitious . I was asked several times to take ladies to visit thier grand-children whom they had not seen in a long time because they lived "Long way ", a short taxi ride later with the meter barely off the basic B35 , there we were. The prosperity you mention , i fear goes into Macdonalds and that ilk's coffers . They say housework is good excercise also , did you ever watch a Thai clean anything quickly and with expertise other than a dish of food ? I am sorry to say that sloth is common in this country also .
As a foot note , the majority of obesety is self inflicted as is smoking , the health department spends millions helping them lose weight and get healthy , smokers , you are on your own ????? Colin

So you attribute the relatively sudden burst of obesity in Thailand solely to a change in diet? I definitely remember more active people back in 1989, 1991-1993 than I saw on this trip, so I don't agree with you that it is all fast food. I didn't really see a lot of Thai's in McDonald's compared to the increase in the number of obese people, and there were McDonald's in Bangkok back in 1989, too.

I really don't know anyone who 'suddenly' found themselves obese, but it does seem to happen in general populations, where 'suddenly' means a span of ten years or so, or at least a comparison of average data over several years.

And of course people notice that they are gaining weight, but some don't believe it is a problem as long as it isn't making them feel bad. Even then, it can be very difficult to lose weight. Apparently any time you have a probelm you address it immediately and solve it perfectly, or perhaps you'd have a little sympathy.

In some societies being heavy is regarded as an indication of wealth, and carries prestige. Some medications, such as those for diabetes, make people gain weight (as in gaining weight with a diet and exercise level that had you stable before). Some people think of weight solely as a vanity problem, and if they aren't particularly vain, really don't care.

Others would rather be fat than spend their days worrying about every bite they put in their mouth and never getting to eat any of their favorite foods. It's hard to worry about chopping a couple of years off of your life when you are in your thirties and forties and think you will live forever.

ok im 39, I cook from scratch pretty much every night (including doing really 'strange' stuff like making stocks from chicken bones, baking around 3 times a week). I do not own a microwave. I mend clothes rather than just binning them - oh and when they are too knackered to use anymore I recycle them as rags. I grow fruit and veggies so I can give my kids some good fresh food and Im teaching them so they can do it too. I also knit and occasionally sew. Old fashioned? maybe, tight? definately (its the scottish genes) but its good to be different.

yes it is a scottish thing, we have chicken most sundays so its chicken soup monday.When daughter went college her room mates loved it as iwent once a month filled the freezer with soups, stews mince(it was a shock to find out some had never had mince and tatties) ido admit to having mico only got it two years ago .and i cant knit i tried but i sweated blood for dish cloth,so left that to mum who did baby stuff in a night.My girls are 27&22 both cook alot off the same(mind you 19yrs old is lost if you cant ping it)i working on it