Just another day

37chief

Well-known Member
Location
California
Today I got home from church and had a call for a mowing job. I don't mind getting work. But calling on Easter Sunday. Growing up in the late 40's and 50's. In my town nothing was open Sunday. as I remember most stores closed 5:00 pm Saturdays I doubt you could buy a quart of milk, or a loaf of bread anywhere Sunday. Sundays were kind of a special day. Some times Mom and Dad would visit friends. Most folks didn't do much, unless a crop needed to be taken care of. In the 60's things started opening up Sundays. Today everything is open until late in the evening all days of the week. I think some of your towns were probably the same. Stan
 
We live in a country (USA) which fortunately has few laws that apply to all religions, or to a specific religion. Our expectations need to adjust in many ways. Jim
 
Chief 37,

I think it was a good thing when life was like that. Gave people some built-in down-time to spend with family and friends and at church.

I realize that some places like hospitals need to run around the clock... but I wish some other businesses did not.

I looked online for my husband this morning, for some building trim. We were really pleased to see that Fleet Farm was closed today.
 
Only thing open in town on Sunday when I was a kid was the drug store from 10 til noon. If you needed a loaf of bread,you had to go to a gas station a few miles south of town that sold a few groceries and was open til 6.
 
I remember the Blue laws we used to have here in Texas. Some items didn't make sense. But I also remember Sunday in small town Texas. It was for church and Sunday dinner nothing else. If you got caught working on Sunday you had better have a good reason. That still goes on in this small town I live in.If some of the older locals see the doors of my shop open. Monday I will hear about it.
 
When I was a kid I vaguely remember "blue laws" in Texas.

Certain items could not be sold on Sunday. It mostly meant necessities, like food, medicine, etc. could be sold. Merchants would cover certain displays with butcher paper, meaning these were not for sale.

Gas stations would take turns opening, just so gas could be bought if really needed.

Even now there are restrictions on car dealers, something about they can't be open Saturday and Sunday, have to close one or the other.

And there are restrictions on alcohol sales, no liquor stores can open on Sunday, no alcohol can be bought before noon. But you can open a bar or restaurant, sell on premises after noon on Sunday.

Strange laws, guess money talks!
 
When the wife and I first married I would have to buy gas on Saturday so we could make the drive to visit her parents after church on Sunday. No gas stations open on Sunday!
 
Ones I recall.
You could buy milk and beer. But not a bottle for the milk or glass for the beer.
Blank cassete tape could be sold but not a recorded one.
Hammers and screw drivers. But no nails or screws.
Food could be sold. But nothing to cook it in.
You could buy a wooden ladder but not a metal one.

One I never understood. You could buy paint by the gallon or quart. But not in a spray can.
 
They still had the blue laws in affect until the mid 80s in Massachusetts. Could buy Alcohol on Sundays and a lot of stores weren't open.
Now its all because of the all middy dollar. All of that money they were missing out on. now its another excuse to have a sale on everything.
 
MN just passed a law allowing liquor stores to sell hard liquor on Sunday. My opinion is that anyone who needs to buy liquor on Sunday is someone that probably shouldn't have it! Have a friend that used to be a car salesman, he was glad they had to be closed on Sunday, otherwise he never would of gotten a day off.
 
Funny thing is , even though you can now spend your money 7 days a week , people don't seem to have any more money to spend .
When I was a kid , our town was shut down tight on Sunday , couldn't even buy gas or smokes , nothing.And all of the stores on main street close at noon on Wednesday , this way the store clerks got a day and a half off every week . Sounds crazy now , but being a store clerk was a full time job then , same with being a bank teller . Banks opened at 10:00 am , and closed at 3:00 pm Mon.- Fri. Everyone lived just fine .
 
Here in ohio menards and lowes closed at 6 pm. A couple restaurants were closed today.
 
Law change takes effect the first Sunday in July this year. One store in Mpls jumped the gun, was open first Sunday in March. Got caught.
First proposed penalty was loss of license for 30 days plus $3000 fine. City felt sorry for employees who would be out of work for a month, so second proposal was closed for 30 Sundays starting in July, when the others could be open, plus fine. Last I heard will be closed the 5 Sundays in July, $6000 fine, & closed 4 more days of his choice.
I remember days before the Interstate highways were built, that because of heavy weekend traffic, no trucks allowed in twin city 5 county area Saturday & Sunday, unless hauling perishables. During summer, Memorial Day to Labor Day, the ban extended to be from Friday noon to Monday noon. Same ban statewide if pulling oversize by permit.

Willie
 
As I recall in the sixties the four gas stations in our little town would take turns. One would stay open on Sunday while the rest were closed. Just in case the old Merc needed a refill to make it home after Church on Sunday afternoon.
 
Oerscheln's and a few other stores were closed today. But, when I was a kid everything was closed on Sunday.

Forty or so years ago, a hay stack self-combusted and burnt for a buddy of mine. His father swore to the day he died that the stack burned because it had been put up on Sunday. Who could prove him wrong?
 
Easter Sunday aside, the first time that I ever heard of "blue laws" was when I was stationed at Ft. Hood in about 1982 - 1983. Some friends and myself went into a Piggly Wiggly in Kileen one Sunday to buy some beer to take to Belton Lake, and bought the beer. We were sold the beer. But as we walked through the store, there were chains across items with signs that read "This Item Cannot Be Sold On Sundays". Stuff like that throughout the store. So we're at the cash register paying for our beer and there was one right there blocking the sale of panty hose. Being from Indiana and having never seen such a thing, I asked the lady what the story was. "Blue Laws" she said to me. Never heard of a blue law and asked what's a blue law. "Laws to keep people from having to work on Sundays" she said back as we paid her for beer while she worked the cash register...on a Sunday. Good thing none of us needed to buy new panty hose. Then again, back then male GIs weren't allowed to where panty hose though, and to my knowledge none of my buddies did. They may have and maybe I just never noticed it. I didn't wear them either, and still don't. And if any of you fellas do, I don't want to know about it. You can buy and drink beer though, even on Sundays as far as I'm concerned.

Any of you fellas ever seen or heard of a Pizza Hut with a brown roof instead of a red roof? Know the difference? Same deal, Ft. Hood in Texas. Back then to drink beer or liquor at any bar or restaurant, needed to buy a "club card" that lasted for the month and generally cost about $3.00. Pizza Hut was no different. Pizza and beer seem to go together, so one day while at a Pizza Hut in Kileen, we all bought a club card for that month and bought beer and pizza. A week or so later while on the other side of Kileen and thirsty for beer and hungry for pizza, there was a Pizza Hut so we went in, ordered a pizza and then showed them our club card to get a pitcher of beer to go along with the pizza. "We don't sell beer at this Pizza Hut" we were told". Hmm? Pizza Hut, pizza and no beer? "Really?', we asked. That's when we were told "Not at this Pizza Hut, we have a brown roof instead of a red one". Hmm? Brown roof versus a red roof? We walked outside and looked, and sure enough, brown roof, no red roof and no beer. Might have been a Texas thing. I never ever saw another brown roof Pizza Hut and have never been refused beer with my pizza at another.

Mark
 
It is truly amazing the silly laws that our esteemed lawmakers have put on the books over the years to pander to the
various voting factions. You still can not buy beer in Kentucky until after noon on Sunday (in many cities)apparently we are concerned that morning drunks will come crowding into church services.

I tried to buy cold beer for a party at a friends house in Indiana a few years back. Could not buy a cold six pack (illegal), but buying a cold 24 bottle case was OK! Figure that legal logic. Made no sense.

The laws in many southern rural counties indicate that the freedoms are still influenced by the denominations. Like people won't drive 20 miles to the dry county's border to buy beer, but they will drive 30 miles to Walmart to buy groceries? Huh?

I feel like if the only way to make people obey you beliefs is to enforce those beliefs by law, something is missing in your beliefs.
 
Hay hay hay- My county is still dry in E. Ky. The biggest town in the county just went wet last year. That is a long haul to drive to town for me. I just go to the local boot-legger a couple of miles down the road. LOL
 
By the way, I like my cars and trucks. I am glad the Amish don't control the legislature.

As for the start of this thread, the guy that called on business on Easter Sunday morning is probably just oblivious to the need for courtesy toward others. He is the same guy that will blast past a church on his motorcycle on Sunday morning, or roar past a funeral procession....all full of himself.
 
The thing I remember about Kileen. The cops would stop service members for any reason. Never noticed the roof being brown. I traveled over three states don't recall ever seeing a brown roof.
 
Copperas Cove, TX. right down there was real bad too. Cops used to pull along side you on the highway and keep speeding up and slowing down while staring at you to cause you to make a mistake so they could and would pull you over. They used to do things like give PUI's (Public Intoxication) to GI's that walked to bars instead of driving, AND if you had car keys in your pocket while you were walking as many did because their barracks room keys were on the same key ring...it got moved up from PUI to DUI even though your car was safely back at the barracks.

Mark
 
Indiana's kind of goofy. You can't buy beer or liquor in a store on Sunday, but can buy in a bar and buy carryout from a bar. The stores are lobbying the legislature hard to change that and may win. Forever and ever bar lobby groups have owned the legislature and owned Sunday beer and liquor sales. Stores have had their fill of legislators picking winners and losers based upon whom buys them the biggest and most steak dinners and cars, especially regarding Sunday sales. If one group can sell on a Sunday, the reasons for others that sell the same product being blocked might be coming to an end.

Mark
 
Can't or couldn't buy beer or liquor in whatever county Cave City is in. I spent the night there one night while passing through. No beer or liquor because it was a "Dry County". I never heard of one of them before then. But, could buy candy that had hard liquor in them. Problem is had to get past the dark chocolate to get to it. Bad combination.

Little Rock, Arkansas. I was there one weekend on business. Saturday night at what might have been the only bar or night club there, I don't know. About 11:30 or so, "Last call". About 11:45, "Drink them up, gotta go". 11:50 and 11:55 same thing, "Drink them up, gotta go". At Midnight turning into Sunday if you were taking a drink, it got pulled out of your hand as the lights went on, "Out, everyone out now".

Mark
 
Any one that needs to buy liquor on Sunday, is probably smart enough to buy it on Saturday. Sunday closing, just another really short on brains naive concept pandering to the church voters.
 
We had a software vendor decide to do an upgrade yesterday.
So we had to update a few thousand computers and test.
It all went well, but I did voice my opinion about having our
people doing that kind of work on Easter.
 
"When I was a kid , our town was shut down tight on Sunday , couldn't even buy gas or smokes , nothing."

Yep, and we could all make plans. Going Christmas shopping?
"Ok, you all go look around and we'll meet back here in an hour."
Now. people have to call each other on a cell phone to see where
they're at in the same store. The same cell phone that is now their
watch and reminds them when they're supposed to do something.
 

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