Soviet habits that seem wild to the modern generation
'18.06.2021'
Source: Culturology.ru
What household manners of Russians originate from the USSR, why did they arise and fell in love with economic Soviet citizens - says Culturology.ru.
To some, they seem touchingly sweet and cause nostalgia, others are forced to sigh, they say, "scoop", while others are annoying, but the overwhelming majority of adults simply continue to do this every day without noticing that Soviet habits are part of their life.
The level of prosperity did not play any role, the Union equaled everyone without exception, because it does not matter how much money you have, if a plastic bag is a scarce commodity. This means that it needs to be washed and treated with care, even if there is a financial opportunity to buy a hundred of these. But the deficit passed, but everyday habits remained, because parents did this and, in general, “everyone does it”! And therefore, maybe you shouldn't reproach yourself for the “bag of bags” and the warehouse of empty cans.
Buy for future use
Genetic memory has not gone anywhere: during the height of the pandemic, fellow citizens busily bought buckwheat and toilet paper, and without much panic and demonstrating a very rational approach. Remember all the same!
For Soviet citizens, this habit was not at all an idle whim, but an urgent need. I saw that pasta or cereals were "thrown" on the shelves in the store - take it with a reserve, because tomorrow the product may not be available. It is quite possible that Soviet citizens themselves provoked a shortage of food, simply sweeping everything off the shelves. In addition, the shops were open until 18.00, so if during the preparation of dinner it suddenly turned out that the sunflower oil had run out, then you would have to run to the neighbors, but this is a completely different habit.
Do not throw away, but repair
There is nothing strange about replacing a heel or a zipper, but Soviet shoe repair was ruthless and merciless. It was possible to change everything - the sole, the leather upper of the shoe, resulting in almost a new pair of shoes. But so that it didn't come to this, the shoes were regularly referred to "preventive maintenance": the backdrop was sewn, an anti-slip sticker was glued to the sole. It was considered good form to immediately give the newly purchased boots to the master for firmware.
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The main argument of those who still live this habit is that shoes must be of good quality, which means they must be worn for a long time. But fashion trends are unlikely to support such an undertaking. No matter how high-quality the shoes are, they have their own service life.
Okay, shoes, but stockings and socks are much less wearable than boots, so practical Soviet citizens knew a lot of ways to extend their service life. For example, nylon tights were advised to wet and freeze, then dry and use as usual. Allegedly, frost improves the quality of nylon and makes it more durable. And if you then also sprinkle with hairspray, then they will not be demolished. Although, if the arrow went, then any fashionista is still aware that nail polish will help. But not everyone in the house now has it: many do manicure in beauty salons.
A rag epic and an inglorious end to your favorite clothes
A thrifty attitude to things did not bypass clothes. Children bought everything for growth. Therefore, boys and girls in jackets with rolled-up sleeves did not surprise anyone, as well as those whose sleeves have already become short.
It is now in stores a bunch of different rags for any surface, then the universal rag for cleaning floors was children's tights or an old T-shirt. However, almost any clothing ended its life with deportation to the country, and the summer residents themselves were dressed a little better than a garden scarecrow.
Package Package
Even if it is not intentionally collected, it forms by itself, forcing to admit with sadness: yes, "scoop". Although the Internet has long been replete with jokes about the notorious "package with packages", but this is the only possible golden mean between environmentalists and those who do not care about nature and its future. Buying a polyethylene "T-shirt" in the supermarket to bring food to the car or home, most people do not throw away the bags, but fold them at home to reuse them. Let's say like a garbage bag.
Eco-activists, representatives of a very fashionable movement today, are actively promoting the idea of using eco-bags. It's funny, but literally 50 years ago, these eco-bags were called string bags and were worn by those who were not afraid to demonstrate their soviet habits. So the new is the well-forgotten old, which suddenly turned out to be not old-fashioned snobbery, but pragmatism and a thoughtful attitude to ecology.
The sachet bag is a “light version”: the bags have been carefully washed, dried and reused many times. They looked very shabby, and it was rarely possible to dry them to the end. But milk or kefir bags were resistant to abrasion, some still store trifles in them.
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Box with buttons
Before you put your shirt on rags, you need to cut off all the buttons from it and put them in a special box. What for? Because my grandmother always did that. If in the era of the USSR such actions had well-reasoned grounds (buttons were in short supply, and clothes were often repaired on their own), then in the modern world this is at least strange.
Iron cookie tins were often used as boxes for such "treasures". Compatriots still have a strong association of round tin containers with buttons.
Glass jars collection
The modern generation is also sinning with this habit. Having bought a jar of pickles in the store, after eating them, the jar is carefully washed and put into the closet for a long, long memory. In the USSR, jars were not thrown away, because everyone polls made seaming on their own and glass jars were highly valued. If someone was treated to jam or canned salad of their own preparation, it was quite within the bounds of decency to demand a similar jar immediately or to control the return of the container to the owner.
Clean Plate Society
Leaving food on the plate was not just bad form, but disrespect for the hostess. If it was about children, then they were fed almost by force. This habit is so strong in the older generation that the term "food abuse" even appeared, when children are forced to eat food that they do not want, to the extent that they simply cannot master. The good appetite of children has always been a reason for the pride of Soviet mothers, who, having become grandmothers, are already intensively feeding their grandchildren.
Psychologists say that the desire to “love food” is a real trauma of generations. And the reason for this is the war left in the genetic memory, hunger and scarcity. In general, eating habits clearly demonstrate all the difficulties that the older generation had to face. Eat to the end, eat with bread, and these endless fries that are added to all soups? The desire to make any meal more satisfying, and not just healthier, is perhaps the main evidence that a person had to go through difficult times.
However, now there is another extreme - a lot of products are thrown away. Humanity still cannot build an adequate relationship with food and its consumption.
For the holidays, it was customary to cook salads with basins, abundantly seasoning them with mayonnaise. In general, this cold sauce was very much to the liking of Soviet citizens. It was believed that he turns everything into food. Now mayonnaise is not at all held in high esteem, because the world is flooded with zozhniki and peepers (supporters of healthy lifestyles - a healthy lifestyle and PP - proper nutrition).
Endless renovation
No one was surprised by the fact that most of the families lived in conditions of continuous renovation. People did not have the opportunity to hire repair teams, and such services were not provided to the population. Therefore, everything was done on our own and as far as possible. Often it looked like the older family members were gluing wallpaper after work or painting the ceiling a little bit every day. It so happened that when the last strip of wallpaper in the bedroom was glued, it was already time to start renovating the living room.
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The modern generation, tired of living in conditions of eternal repair, often considers the only possible option - to hire a team and complete the repair in 2-3 months. By the way, this is humane not only in relation to ourselves, but also to neighbors who will not listen to the endless hum of drills and punchers.
Oilcloth, film and other ways to keep the surface new and clean
Everyone remembers the multi-colored oilcloths that were on the tables, some of them managed to clap the walls with them. Moreover, the colors of this material were very diverse.
Polyethylene was used to keep the surfaces relatively new. Wrapping the TV remote control in a bag is a purely Soviet tradition, which annoyed everyone. Some managed to cover the shelves of the refrigerator with foil, they say, then removed - and cleanly, or covered the gas stove with foil for the same purposes.
Dishes for a sideboard
Beautiful cups and shiny crystal, proudly placed on glass shelves behind the sideboard doors (some even had illuminated shelves!) Were taken out for use for their intended purpose several times a year, and then with luck. In ordinary times, it was an endless field for cleaning and a reason for mom's nervousness: what if they break something!
How little beauty was in the life of Soviet citizens that they looked for them in glass and put them in a place of honor. A folding table was also attached to the dishes from the sideboard, all this was placed in the center of the largest room - it was then that a feeling of celebration began, because the main attributes were already in place.
The habit of putting off life until later - keeping the same remote control in its original form (for whom ?!) - psychologists call the inability to enjoy life here and now anhedonia. This is when the grandmother does not allow eating cherries from the tree, because then she will cook jam from them and “how delicious it will be to eat it in winter!” But actually, eating fresh cherries in summer is also very, very tasty! Everything would be fine with this character trait, but it spoils the life of others, because the restrictions fully apply to them. It is simply unbearable for such people to watch others rejoice, somewhere in their subconscious it works that rejoicing is bad. Because if you are happy now, then it will definitely be bad later.
Soviet habits, it seems, were all invented by the anhedonists: “don't touch the caviar, it's for the New Year”, “eat it, otherwise it will go bad,” cups from sideboards, from which no one drinks, the best treats for guests and a constant desire to limit oneself and loved ones so that they would not be very happy. Why? A nеwhat!
