Soviet habits that seem wild to the modern generation

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

To some they seem touchingly cute and cause nostalgia, others are forced to sigh, they say, "scoop", while others are annoying, but the overwhelming majority of adults simply continue to do this every day, without noticing that Soviet habits are a part of their life. What household manners of Russians originate from the USSR and why did they arise and fell in love with economic Soviet citizens?

The level of prosperity did not play any role, the Union equaled everyone without exception, because it doesn't matter how much money you have, if a plastic bag is a scarce commodity, then it needs to be washed and treated with care, even if there is a financial opportunity to buy a hundred thousand of them. But the deficit has passed, but everyday habits have remained, because parents did this and, in general, “everyone does it”! And therefore, maybe you shouldn't reproach yourself for a bag with packages and a warehouse of empty cans, because a habit is not just second nature, but what forms this very nature.

Buy for future use

Genetic memory perfectly demonstrated that it still exists and has not gone anywhere, during the height of the pandemic, when fellow citizens busily bought buckwheat and toilet paper, and without much panic and demonstrating a very rational approach. Remember all the same! For Soviet citizens, this habit was not at all an idle whim, but an urgent need. I saw that in the store they "threw out" pasta or cereals on the shelves - take it with a reserve, because tomorrow it will definitely not be there. It is quite possible that Soviet citizens themselves provoked a shortage of food, simply sweeping everything off the shelves. In addition, the shops were open until 18.00, so if during the preparation of dinner it suddenly turned out that the sunflower oil had run out, then you would have to run to the neighbors, but this is a completely different habit.

Do not throw away, but repair

There is nothing strange about replacing a heel or zipper slider, but Soviet shoe repair is ruthless and merciless. It was possible to change everything - the sole, the leather upper of the shoe, and in the end received almost a new pair of shoes. But so that it doesn't come to this, the shoes were regularly taken to "preventive maintenance", the heel was stitched, an anti-slip sticker was glued to the sole, it was considered good form to buy good boots and immediately give them to the master for firmware. The main argument of those who still live this habit is that shoes must be of good quality, which means they must be worn for a long time. But fashion trends are unlikely to support such an undertaking, no matter how classic and high-quality the shoes are - this is something that has its own lifespan. Okay, shoes, but stockings and socks are much less wearable than boots, so practical Soviet citizens knew a lot of ways to extend their service life. For example, nylon tights were advised to wet and freeze, then dry and use as usual. Allegedly, frost improves the quality of nylon, and makes it more durable. And if you then also sprinkle with hairspray, then they will not be demolished. Although if the arrow went, then any fashionista is still aware that nail polish will help. But not everyone in the house now has it.

A rag epic and an inglorious end to your favorite clothes

A thrifty attitude to things did not bypass clothes. Everything was bought for children to grow. Therefore, boys and girls in jackets with rolled-up sleeves did not surprise anyone, as well as those whose sleeves have already become short. It is now in stores a bunch of different rags for any surfaces, then the universal rag for cleaning floors was children's tights or an old T-shirt. However, almost any clothing ended its life with a reference to the dacha, and the summer residents themselves were dressed a little better than the garden scarecrow.

Package with packages

Even if it is not intentionally collected, it is formed somehow by itself, forcing to admit sadly, they say, yes "scoop". Despite the fact that the Internet has long been replete with jokes about the notorious "package with packages", this is the only possible golden mean between environmentalists and those who do not care about nature and its future. Buying a plastic T-shirt from a supermarket to carry food to their car or home, most people do not throw them away, but fold them at home to be reused. For example, as a garbage bag. Eco-activists, a very fashionable and modern movement today, are actively promoting the idea of using eco-bags. It's funny, but literally 50 years ago, "eco-bags" were called string bags and were worn by those who were not afraid to demonstrate their soviet habits. So the new, this well-forgotten old, which suddenly turned out to be not old-fashioned snobbery, but pragmatism and a thoughtful attitude to ecology. The sachet bag is a “light version”, the bags have been carefully washed, dried and reused many times. They looked very shabby, and it was rarely possible to dry them to the end. But milk or kefir bags were resistant to abrasion, some still store trifles in it.

Box with buttons

Before you put the shirt on rags, you need to cut off all the buttons from it and put them in a special box. What for? Because my grandmother always did that. If in the era of the USSR such actions had well-reasoned grounds - buttons were in short supply and clothes were often repaired on their own, then in the modern world this is at least strange. Iron cookie tins were often used as boxes for such "treasures". Compatriots still have a strong association of round tin containers with buttons.

Glass jars collection

The modern generation also sins with this habit, having bought a jar of pickles in a store, then carefully wash the jar and put it in the closet for a long, long memory. In the USSR, it was not customary to throw away jars, because everyone without exception made seaming on their own and glass jars were highly valued. If someone was treated to jam or canned salad of their own preparation, then it was quite within the bounds of decency to demand a similar jar immediately, or to control the return of the container to the owner.

Clean Plate Society

Leaving food on the plate was not just bad form, but disrespect for the hostess. If it was about children, then they were fed almost by force. This habit is so strong in the older generation that the term "food abuse" even appeared, when children are forced to eat food that they do not want, to the extent that they simply cannot master it. The good appetite of children has always been a reason for the pride of Soviet mothers, who, having become grandmothers, already intensively feed their grandchildren. Psychologists say that the desire to love food is a real trauma of generations. And the reason for this is the war left in the genetic memory, hunger and scarcity. In general, eating habits clearly demonstrate all the difficulties that the older generation had to face. Eat to the end, eat with bread, and these endless fries that are added to all soups? The desire to make any meal more satisfying, and not just healthier, is perhaps the main evidence that a person had to go through difficult times. However, now there is another extreme - a lot of products are thrown away, humanity still cannot build an adequate relationship with food and its consumption. For the holidays, it was customary to cook salads with basins, abundantly seasoning them with mayonnaise. In general, this cold sauce was very much to the liking of Soviet citizens, it was believed that it turns everything into food. Now he is not at all held in high esteem, because the world is flooded with "HLS" and "PePeshniki"

Endless renovation

No one was surprised by the fact that most families lived in conditions of ongoing renovation. People did not have the opportunity to hire repair teams, and such services were not provided to the population. Therefore, everything was done on our own and as far as possible. Often it looked like the older members of the family were gluing wallpaper after work or painting the ceiling daily and a little at a time. It so happened that after the last strip of wallpaper in the bedroom was glued, it was already time to start repairing the living room. The modern generation, tired of living in conditions of eternal repair, often considers the only possible option - to hire a team and complete the repair in 2-3 months. This, by the way, is humane not only in relation to ourselves, but also to neighbors who will not listen to the endless hum of drills and hammer drills.

Oilcloth, film and other ways to keep the surface new and clean

Everyone remembers the multi-colored oilcloths that were on the tables, some managed to upholster the walls with it. Moreover, the color of this material was simply bombic. Polyethylene was used to keep the surfaces in new condition. To wrap the TV remote control in a bag is a purely Soviet tradition, which annoyed everyone at the same time. Some managed to cover the shelves of the refrigerator with a film, they say, then removed - and cleanly, or covered the gas stove with foil for the same purposes.

Dishes for a sideboard

Beautiful cups and shiny crystal, proudly placed on glass shelves behind the sideboard doors (some even had them with lighting!) Were taken out for use for their intended purpose several times a year, and then with luck. In ordinary times, it was an endless field for cleaning and a reason for mom's nervousness: suddenly, something will be smashed! How little beauty was in the life of Soviet citizens that they looked for them in glass and put them in a place of honor. A folding table was also attached to the dishes from the sideboard, all this was placed in the center of the largest room - it was then that the feeling of celebration began, because the main attributes were already in place.

The habit of putting off life until later - keeping the same remote control in its original form (for whom ?!) - the inability to enjoy life here and now is called anhedonia by psychologists. This is when the grandmother does not allow eating cherries from the bush, because she will then make jam from it and how delicious it will be to eat it in winter. But actually, eating fresh cherries in summer is also very, very tasty! Everything would be fine with this character trait, but it spoils the life of others, because the restrictions fully apply to them. It is simply unbearable for such people to watch others rejoice, somewhere in their subconscious it works that rejoicing is bad. Because if you are happy now, then it will definitely be bad later. Soviet habits, it seems, were all invented by the anhedonists, "Don't touch the caviar, this is for the new year", "eat it, otherwise it will go bad", cups from sideboards, from which no one drinks, the best treats for guests and a constant desire to limit oneself and loved ones so that they would not be very happy. Why? And there is nothing! The culture and life of the Soviet Union was distinguished by its severity, however, despite this, it was this period of their lives that many remember with nostalgia and warmth. A reusable syringe, one soda glass and public baths seem wild in modern reality, but symbolize an entire era.