One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 11:08:30 GMT

mjack@mastodon.bsd.cafe — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 11:08:30 GMT

When I was in Civil Defense as a young man, we were asked to hold a meeting, select a spokesperson and write down any grievances we might have.

I was there for a month, we never heard anything back. The whole thing started over again with the next group.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 10:53:19 GMT

flaneur@is.nota.live — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 10:53:19 GMT

@louisa_ @futurebird the reason why there’re almost no men’s working or everyday clothes in collections — such clothes rarely survive
also, i’ve been browsing a shop in japan (sadly, i forgot its name) they were selling used clothes from europe from some 1900-1940s — every piece was heavily and visibly mended, it was so unusual to look at

the same happens to fancy wedding dresses in museum collections: it’s not that women were that small, it’s they were married when they were lean teenagers

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:56:50 GMT

amokura@mastodonapp.uk — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 08:56:50 GMT

@paulc @futurebird
It's the maintenance that enabled some Roman roads to survive, probably those on major routes. Not really any different to today.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:18:09 GMT

dmakarios@theres.life — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:18:09 GMT

@louisa_ @futurebird Also annoying: the idea that "work" and "home" were/are two separate concepts, as though a person's work somehow isn't real if it's done under their own roof.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:14:05 GMT

tuban_muzuru@beige.party — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:14:05 GMT

@futurebird

Pratchett's Boots Theory:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boots_theory

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:12:23 GMT

wil@beige.party — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:12:23 GMT

@futurebird I read Lark Rise to Candleford last year and even back in the 19th century there was talk about how shoddy all the new furniture was compared to the good old stuff.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:09:55 GMT

annaf@climatejustice.social — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 07:09:55 GMT

@stellarsarah @louisa_ @futurebird that’s a great point, basically they are PA, housekeeper and and events manager rolled into one but also ‘not working’ hmm

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 01:42:20 GMT

thomas_decker@mastodon.online — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 01:42:20 GMT

@futurebird All our heirlooms look a little bit like this
Edit: Dang it Suzanne, you got there before me.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Sat, 04 Jul 2026 01:16:30 GMT

sabik@rants.au — Sat, 04 Jul 2026 01:16:30 GMT

@futurebird
"where's the romance of travel" in first class, where it always has been

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 23:59:23 GMT

ophis@brain.worm.pink — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 23:59:23 GMT

@temporal_spider @futurebird i wonder if our eating or moving habits have changed too - or the average quality of fibers in our clothing

like i'm actually pretty secure now but even now i look at some of the fancy stuff i could theoretically get and my brain just nopes out and i look for something thin and flimsy and cheap and most importantly **lightweight that i can move with one hand while i've got the vacuum in the other**...

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 22:57:10 GMT

todymotmot@mastodon.social — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 22:57:10 GMT

@ehproque @ClimateJenny @futurebird

Actually, no. The dressers were cardboard. Ikea stuff is a hundred times better.

As a disabled person, I've held back tears hundreds of times over the furniture that hurts my hands horribly to use, knowing now I could've got Ikea for the same price. Each year, I can replace one or two things.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 22:16:55 GMT

vinh@mastodon.ie — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 22:16:55 GMT

@hi_cial @futurebird https://www.castleleslie.com/home/historical-castle-ireland/ https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/colourful-collection-from-castle-leslie-1.299280 There is a story that discarded furniture thrown into a flooded summer house over decades paid for the renovation of a castle, don't know if it's true.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 22:15:23 GMT

vinh@mastodon.ie — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 22:15:23 GMT

@hi_cial @futurebird https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hands_(TV_series) You might be interested in this.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 21:33:29 GMT

robotdiver@starlite.rodeo — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 21:33:29 GMT

@whangdoodler @futurebird

100% We are currently saving up for a single Ikea cabinet for our kitchen. $400 is like a month of groceries.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 20:31:28 GMT

terryhancock@realsocial.life — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 20:31:28 GMT

@futurebird
Survivorship bias is definitely a factor in this perception.

But there is a kernel of truth in that sturdy, solid wood furniture has become much more expensive (demand being higher and trees not more numerous).

The gap is filled with cheaper, less durable furniture. So what we mainly notice is the declining quality of what we can afford.

Another bias is that we expect to spend more on personal electronics, computers, and other things that didn't exist decades ago. A person in the 1920s expected to spend more of their income on clothes and furnishings than we do.

Does that make us richer or poorer?

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 19:20:08 GMT

ehproque@neopaquita.es — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 19:20:08 GMT

@DanielMReck @hi_cial @futurebird so, even better, you can have cardboard heirloom furniture!

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 19:10:48 GMT

timwardcam@c.im — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 19:10:48 GMT

@vfrmedia @gbargoud @futurebird My grandfather was a proper cabinet maker. I've still got some of his stuff. It shows no signs of getting old or worn out.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:57:33 GMT

cliftonr@wandering.shop — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:57:33 GMT

@futurebird

With a few exceptions, thankfully.

Thanks to Henry Mayhew, for instance, and his 'London Labour and the London Poor', it's possible to get some idea just how many impoverished and homeless people there were in 19th century London and how they lived. I've only read excerpts from it but it is astonishing.

There used to be establishments which charged homeless people a penny a night for room where they could sleep sitting up and roped into pew-like benches, to have some shelter.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:55:16 GMT

ianob@mastodon.ie — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:55:16 GMT

@futurebird What do people expect from Temu products? I'm always pleasantly surprised if it survives being shipped nevermind being usable for more than a few hours

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:35:26 GMT

ormai@mas.to — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:35:26 GMT

@futurebird Furniture can be expensive. A decently sized table made of actual wood by an artisan can cost you a few *thousand* €/$. Of course people don't even consider that and complain about modern furniture that is made of composite and is ten times cheaper. Works about the same but I guess it's not an heirloom.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:31:59 GMT

mathew@universeodon.com — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:31:59 GMT

@HappytoBe @futurebird Or liberated from a company dumpster.

I remember friends visiting and asking me why the carpet in my bedroom didn't reach the walls at either end, why I had a chair that looked like it belonged in a factory, and why the kitchen table looked like pieces of old doors.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:24:22 GMT

maswan@mastodon.acc.sunet.se — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:24:22 GMT

@em_and_future_cats
In this case it was in the early 1900s, and the farm was bought out by the forestry agency because growing lumber was seen as a better use of land in northern Sweden than farming or something (I'm not 100% on the motivation, just know who forced a sale).
@futurebird

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:21:20 GMT

klara@drupal.community — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:21:20 GMT

@futurebird family heirloom? Cheap things were made of poplar and pine with enough paint to keep everything together and hiding the different bits of wood recuperated from something else. In Flemish there is a word for poplar "konijnenkotelaar" which means bad wood, just good enough to make rabbit boxes.

Reply to One of my big pet peeves is when people say "people used to ..." and they describe something well-off or only wealthy people did in the past. on Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:13:53 GMT

karnbot13@mastodon.social — Fri, 03 Jul 2026 18:13:53 GMT

@futurebird Selection bias is absolutely rampant in Home renovation/repair circles. I can't count the number of times I've pushed back on the idea that homes were built better in the "old" days.