Cooperative Living October 2014 - 6

MAILBAG
JULY 'VIEWPOINT'
TRIGGERS FOND MEMORIES
When Cooperative Living
arrives, I hurriedly turn to the
VIEWPOINT article. The July column,
" Derring-Do by Daring
Doers, " was most interesting
and real for me
because I was born in
1929 in a very small village.
At age 84 I well remember
Warrenton reader Joanne Wilkins found this mysterious
utensil in her kitchen drawer and challenges
Cooperative Living readers to identify it.
READER ISSUES UTENSILPHOTO
CHALLENGE
This utensil (above) was found in
our kitchen drawer.
I had no idea what it was. My
husband remembered his mother
using it, and identified it right away!
For fun, we put it on Facebook. Out
of about 70 people, only two have
known what it is! As you can imagine,
there were lots of interesting
ideas.
I wonder how many of your readers
can identify this?
Joanne Wilkins
Warrenton, Va.
WHATZIT?
Each issue, we will
pub lish a photo of a familiar
but unidentified object.
You are invited to make
your best guess and send it
in writing with your name,
address, and phone number
to WHATZIT?, c/o Cooperat -
ive Living, P.O. Box 2340,
Glen Allen, VA 230582340;
or guess online at
www.co-opliving.com
under " Contests. " Dead -
line for entries is Oct. 20.
All correct entries will be
put into a drawing and a
winner announced in the
Jan. 2015 issue.
The winner will re ceive a
check for $25. n
4
WRITE US!
NOTE
EMAIL
ADDRESS
We want to hear from you - comments, opinions, suggestions.
Your letter must be signed and legible. We reserve the right
to edit for grammar, style and length, with a 250-word
maximum for acceptance. Write: MAILBAG, P.O. Box
2340, Glen Allen, VA 23058-2340; or email
mailbag@co-opliving.com. Please include your name
and city/town of residence, with MAILBAG as the subject.
kerosene lamps which needed to
be filled and their shades washed daily, sitting
around the kitchen table doing school
homework, and going to bed early because
there were not lamps in every room.
I will never forget when the cooperative
came to our village in the late 1930s
and our house was wired for electricity.
That single hanging light bulb in the ceiling
was a " miracle " in itself. Then came
running water, bathrooms, radios and, a
little later, television.
My family was one of the first in our
village to own a big Sears cabinet radio,
and neighbors came to our house to listen
to the news and weekly prize fights.
Joe Louis and Max Schmelling were our
favorite fighters!
Today, three generations later, the
cooperative continues to provide prompt,
economical service to its customers,
friendly devoted employees when there is
a question or complaint, and overall, a
commitment that will never be forgotten
by us, your members.
Thank you for your most informative
column! It makes good sense in today's
troubled times!
Mabel C. Garland
Montross
READER SEES PROBLEMS WITH
CONTEMPORARY SCHOOLS
In response to Alice Campbell's letter
in the July 2014 issue, I agree with
her about schools being closed too
easily because of snow.
I went to school in the 1950s and
'60s, and I don't remember missing
many days of school because of snow;
and when we did, it was due to blizzard
conditions, not a forecast of
snow. We also had to make up those
days. They were known to put chains
on the buses too.
But this is not the only problem
with today's schools. The SOL tests
are hurting our kids more than people
realize. I know a boy who's now in the
7th grade, who happens to be on the
A-B honor roll. This child does not
know his multiplication tables and
can hardly add or subtract in his
head. Kids are allowed to use calculators
in math class. We used paper and
pencil, no calculators.
I don't blame the teachers. Many of
 DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS?
The August 2014
WHATZIT? (r)
was he stem of a
brussels sprout.
Reader William T.
Clarke of Wakefield (l) was our $25
winner. Congratu lations, William!
them don't like the SOLs. They teach
something today and tomorrow they
can't review it but must teach something
new. We need to get rid of these ridiculous
tests and let teachers do their jobs.
And the idea of no child left
behind isn't working. Kids who really
need help aren't getting it. It's time for
us to stand up for our children before
it is too late.
Lynn Balderson
Via Email
Cooperative Living/October 2014
http://www.co-opliving.com
Cooperative Living October 2014

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