I am lovin' me some Netflix! My newest binge-fest is Mad Men. Lots of viewers say they enjoy watching and seeing how life was "back in the 60's" I'm watching from the perspective of being one of Don Draper's kids. I can instantly relate to the clothes, the cigarettes, the parties, the liquor, the dark rimmed glasses, the black and white TV's, the rotary phones and the sets....all props for "Mad Men", all real life for me. All I have to do is pull out a few photo albums and I'm right there in 1960 (and not a bad place to be!)
In 1960, I was 8, my brother was 16 and my sister (yes I have a sister) was 13. Steve could drive (which was awesome) and my sister (whom he called "Pirate Christie and her sunken chest") left no lingering impression. I was the baby and maybe a tad spoiled. My Dad called me Peanut, Steve called me Princess and Mom and Crick called me to dinner... (No wonder I liked boys better.) We took family trips to Florida. We had family holiday dinners at fancy restaurants where we wore new dresses, big hats and uncomfortable shoes. We lived at the lake for 1/2 the year and in Locke the other half. Dad wore a shirt and tie to work every day and I got to play with the other spoiled brats on Mom's golf days...brown bagged lunch and all. We'd go south for Easter break ( yes, we actually claimed Easter.) The three of us in the back seat while Mom and Dad puffed away in the front seat. When we'd stop at a motel, Dad would grab the liquor case (which I still have) and head to our room and we'd grab our overnight bags. It would take us three days to get to Florida or two to Southern Pines. If Florida was our destination, Cypress Gardens was our "theme park"..no Disney, no Sea World, no Universal. Our anticipation was focused around the family we'd visit and the pools where we'd swim.. I thought it was perfect!
I'm thoroughly enjoying the perspective of (Mad Men's) politics and the world as those were things that were never discussed with kids. Topics around the dinner table usually centered around school, sports and whose turn it was to clear the table and do the dishes. We didn't say grace (unless Steve would literally say "Grace" or "Good food, good meat, good God, let's eat". Steve was the funniest, the oldest and the best! We never touched our plates till Mom sat down and nobody even dreamed of leaving the table till we had asked to be excused and were given permission. I never heard our parents swear......ever..... maybe that's why it flows effortlessly from me.... all those suppressed feelings;-)
Another attraction to Mad Men (other than Jon Hamm) is the idea of writing advertising. That would have been my dream job....if I had wanted a dream job...well, I actually had a dream job, which inevitably was "no job!" (but that's a blog for another day.) Clever copy which would entertain while selling a product sounds pretty enticing to me..even today. Instead, I post on Face Book, write my blog and laugh out loud to myself when I think I've said something clever. I'm my own best critic. Don Draper would have liked me!
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