Old Soul, Mad Woman

There are many times I think I may have been born in the wrong time. Or perhaps I’m an old soul come again to live in this day and age. (I can hear my dad’s voice not buying that claim with a simple: “bullsh*t.”) It’s TRUE dad! I love all things 50’s and 60’s….the modern furniture, the music, the fashion of the time. Maybe I’m the soul of one of Lucille Ball’s goofy relatives.

Exhibit A: I am never happier than when in an 50’s apron with my house filled with people who I get to serve. Add old-fashioned Christmas music, lovely food, some wine and voila – the perfect recipe.  Heavenly.

Think about it: The music was arguably better then. I can’t turn on the radio now without hearing about booty dropping or drunken club hopping. Perhaps it’s a sign that I’m getting older? I’m disgusted more often than not and opt for oldies or classic rock.  Should there have been drunken club hopping back then, as I’m sure there was, nobody was blatantly singing it’s praises. You kept your freak flag rolled up in the closet.

So my latest “mid-century obsession” that I’d like to share with readers is the book Mad Women by Jane Maas.  You can read about said wild happenings and experience life in the 60’s vicariously through the books’ author who actually lived it.  It’s “The Other Side of Life on Madison Avenue in the 60’s and Beyond.” It’s a read I highly recommend if you’re any way interested in what life was like at that time. In addition, it explores what the field of advertising and marketing were like  – from a woman’s point of view. It gave me solace to know that I wasn’t born in a time where women were routinely subject to sexual harassment and sexism at every turn in the workplace. Bonus: I learned a little about advertising in the process.