Some Fascinating Historical Facts...

We've Got It Easy, Even When We Think We Don't...

A good friend reminded me today that blogging sometimes needs to be about more than book excerpts and competitions.  I was honored when Mirella Patzer, an author of significant historical knowledge cited me as an authority on the old west.  I stopped and thought about it, and realized I really am.  I've spent countless hours reading about the Lakota Sioux, researching their tribal traditions and rituals, and studying the trials and tribulations pioneer men and women faced.  For Sparta Rose, I researched the area, to familiarize myself with historical landmarks, schools, banks, and hotels from the past.  I may not be a "true" authority, but I sure know a lot more now than I did when I began writing historical novels.  For those who don't think your credibility as an historical author is important, you couldn't be further from the truth.  If you make a mistake with regard to the era of which you write, someone will let you know about it.  *smile*  In my debut novel, someone took issue with the fact that my Indian hero made coffee on the prairie.  I guess that person missed the part of the book where he stayed with the white heroine for months and developed a taste for the "white man's" brew.  Of course, that wasn't the only thing he grew to like.   Okay...that was yesterday's book. I digress.

This morning, I bemoaned the fact that I needed to change our bedding.  While I slipped on clean sheets then stuffed the "used" ones (I started to type "soiled" but that conjured up a big ewwww) into the washing machine, I realized how very spoiled our generation is.

 Had I lived in the old west, I might not have owned anything that resembled a mattress.  Although by the 1800s, beds raised off the ground were commonplace to avoid insects and rodents, poor pioneers often slept on straw covered with quilts or blankets. If they were lucky, rough wooden frames with crisscrossed rope created the foundation. Feather beds were common only among those wealthy enough to have access to down feathers. In some cases, straw was sewn into a bag, and cleaning the bedding meant dragging the heavy sack outside and beating the dust from it. Same for anything that covered the wood or dirt flooring.  No Hoovers or Dust Devils then!

As I added detergent to my washing machine, I thought about the women of the old west who at one time beat their clothing clean on rocks, and later marveled at the invention of a scrub board and a wringing device.  Oh, talk about thanking God for my life.  Do you know that in some third world countries, women still do laundry this way?  Don't you feel lucky?

I promise more of these types of posts.  I love western history, don't you?


Note from Ging:  If this look familiar, it's because it appeared on my other blog, Dishin' It Out in 2010.  Now that I have a place to share "western" themes, I thought this fit the bill, although I did tweak it a bit.   I'm loving this blog.  :)