What ever happened to....?

[Jim]

I was working in rural Mass about 30 years ago. Some of my friends went to a local restaurant and asked the waitress what the soup de jur was. She ran back to the kitchen, came back to their booth and said "It's the soup of the day".

Back to the topic, whatever happened to packaging products in nice little cardboard boxes? I am so sick of buying products in these giant anti-shoplifting sealed clear plastic skins. The stuff is almost impossible to open without slicing a vein, takes up a huge amount of garbage space and is useless for storing the item. I hate it.

Other things I miss, 10 weight non-detergent motor oil. Makes a great all-around oil for bearings, motors, etc. I asked for it at the biggest parts store in town and he doesn't carry it anymore. I have to buy a gallon of spindle oil mail order. Decent Craftsman tools. They aren't much better than the import junk. Popcorn salt. Had to buy *2 quarts* at Costco. At least it was cheap. Hushpuppy shoes. Still around, but I have to drive 50 miles to get them. The only shoes in the world that don't hurt my feet, and they only last 6 months to a year. Oh, and what about decent spray paint? Try to use the low emissions junk they pedal today? It never drys, even in an oven. I'd sure like about 5 cans of the old Krylon flat black.

Somebody asked about Stroh's beer. They were bought out by a large brewery chain many years ago. The changed the process or formula and the result was awful and nothing like the old Stroh's. I don't think even the new Stroh's is around anymore.

Dot asked about mercurochrome. It's a topical antiseptic for cuts and scrapes. That red stuff that your mom might have used, the one that didn't sting. Merthiolate was the one that stung and it's not the same. Anyway, mercurochrome is absolutely the best thing for cuts, scapes, cat scratches, etc that ever existed. Put it on a cut and it *never* gets infected. Unfortunately the FDA and the Clinton folks deemed it "ineffective" because it is a mercury compound, and hey, any heavy metal thing is bad thing, and made it illegal to sell. As it only costed a few cents to make, the drug companies weren't making any money off it anyway. So screw us.

There's a whole raft of chemicals that individuals can't buy post 911, either because they can be made into bombs or drugs. No more sulfuric or nitric acid, no iodine crystals, no strong ammonia, etc. Walmart has a limit on the number of lithium batteries you can buy because the dope cookers use the lithium to make speed. None of this is a problem for me, but something of a bad sign of govenment control. The sad thing is that a determined person can work around all these issues.

[Ron G.]

Sulfuric acid (H2SO4) is battery acid. SURELY it's available in auto parts stores. I haven't had occasion to buy any in several years, but it's gotta be out there somewhere.

Just because you can't find something at wally world doesn't mean it's not available in the free world. Hell, wally world doesn't sell non PC ammunition like 7.62x.39...they don't even sell ignition points for older vehicles. Ignore them.

SURELY battery acid is available SOMEWHERE.

Try Tractor Supply or any decent farm and ranch supply. I usually find whatever I need at those places.

[Jim]

Battery acid is available. Lab grade sulfuric acid used to be and now isn't. Which just shows how stupid the laws are. Battery acid can be concentrated by boiling the water out, giving you any strength you want. Don't try this at home, kids...

Oh, and I'd rather chew barbed wire than set foot in a Walmart, if that's what you mean by Wallyworld.

Edited February 21, 2006 by Jim

[Dot Matrix]

So, Stroh's bit the dust like Balentine Beer.... Ho hum

Oh yeah, the red stuff on my cuts! I do recall! Then we moved on to Bactine, is that still around?

[notinKansasanymore]

I miss phenolpropanolamine, but don't know whether I spelled it correctly. It was an ingredient in allergy medicine that could make my sinus headaches history in a hurry. I never needed it too often, but it just worked wonders. Evidently, it gave some people heart attacks.

I'm tempted to say "dang that FDA," but I can't, because of the heart attacks thing.

Oh, well. :blink:

[Shellon]

Chewing barbed wire......LOL But yup, walmart sucks great big ones, indeed.

[Ttessa]

If you have a Cracker Barrel Old Country Store in your area, you have a lot of the old-timey candies & gum. I've seen Mary Janes, Bit O Honey, the wax bottles filled with colored 'water', Black Jack gum, Beeman's gum, Teaberry gum (the old chewing gums are my favorites).

Apparently, Ace Hardware still deals with Lestoil. Online, you can buy it by the case.

I've bought Bon Ami in the last few years - but can't remember where. Probably Dollar General store. Are they only in the South?